AU3UST 4, 1898. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



235 



ish green color indicating vitality and 

 health. To obtain a darker yellow I 

 crossed them with scarlet. The result 

 showed a very marked improvement 

 in the color, but the scarlet parentage 

 showed plainly in the colored stripes, 

 which even now is characteristic 

 among the yellows. But far more sat- 

 isfactory was the improvement in 

 their constitution; the light green col- 

 or of the foliage disappeared, growth 

 became more vigorous and to-day we 

 have just as strong growing varieties 

 with the deep bluish foliage among the 

 yellows as of any other color, but all 

 .still show more or less the intermix- 

 ture of the scarlet which is bound to 

 appear at some time of the season. 



On the other hand the strong grow- 

 ing scarlets were improved in color, 

 becoming more intense and brilliant, 

 approaching orange scarlet, but 

 strange to say none with yellow 

 stripes. This is the result of five years 

 of persistent work on the same line 

 approaching by degrees the goal of a 

 clear dark yellow. A strong constitu- 

 tion and vigorous growth I gained, 

 also a fair yellow color, but not clear; 

 It may take several more years to take 

 out the stripes. 



This leads very naturally to the 

 question, which of the two seed par- 

 ents will have the more influence on 

 an intended crossing, or from which 

 side is the intended improvement to 

 be expected? With this question we 

 enter into the mysteries of plant life. 

 I do not believe that anybody can tell 

 what of the desirable properties a new 



yellow varieties. I crossed scarlet and 

 yellow, and vice versa. The scarlets 

 were of a more vigorous habit. The 

 yellows inherited the stronger consti- 

 tution and also improved in color, be- 

 coming darker, but inherited with the 

 more vigorous habit also part of the 



intense scarlet. I must not omit to 

 mention here, that these results were 

 obtained from scarlet plants for fur- 

 ther trial, comprising not even ten per 

 cent of all the plants produced from 

 these crossings. Part of the rest were 

 characteristic with the selected ones, 



but greatly inferior in other respects, 

 and the majority went astray in all di- 

 reciions, being worthless. 



I will mention here that we keep a 

 record of all seedlings selected from 

 the first year's seedlings for further 

 trials. As we use these largely for 

 seed parents again, we have the pedi- 

 gree of all the stoch. we use. With the 

 tendency of the carnation to breed 

 back it is a great satisfaction to con- 

 sult the pedigree of the seed parents, 

 and approximately ascertain the in- 

 fluences brought to bear on the in- 

 tended crossing from the ancestors. 

 FRED DORNER. 



Washington Park, Chicago. 



born carnation plant will inherit from | scarlet color, as shown in the stripes, 

 its parents, or which side will exercise I while the scarlets regained their^yigor 

 the most influence. In my experience " ■ -' - - ' -- 

 the most approximate possibilities re- 

 garding expected improvements I met 

 in the above cited illustration of the 



ous habit, inheriting some of the yel- 

 low color, but blending completely 

 with the scarlet, only showing the ef- 

 fect in becoming more brilliant, more 



PROFITABLE CARNATIONS, 



The popularity of the carnation con- 

 tinues to increase. In our locality we 

 sell a hundred carnations to a dozen 

 roses and glass devoted to carnations 

 certainly brings in the most money. 

 But to get the best returns one must 

 keep posted on all the new varieties as 

 well as the old ones. The number of 

 florists who have not seen the new 

 sorts is surprising, as only a small pro- 

 portion are able to visit the carnation 

 exhibitions. 



Last winter we sent out 44 boxes of 

 sample blooms containing one flower 

 each of Flora Hill, Mrs. Bradt, Lily 

 Dean, Maud Dean, Morello, Mrs. 

 Duhme, Triumph, Jubilee, Armazindy 

 and Mayor Pingree; also McG-owan, 

 Scott and Daybreak. Through these 

 sample lots we received forty orders 

 for rooted cuttings, amounting to 



