1885.] 



AND HORTICULTURIST. 



359 



men are mere machines, and are expected " to do 

 just what they are told and not to think." We 

 should regard crocking very small pots as a waste 

 of time, but as it would not be any detriment to 

 the plant, might tolerate it, if the foreman in im- 

 mediate control desired to follow the practice. 



Plants in larger pots we should assist by 

 " drainage " in the rapid escape of water through 

 the hole at the bottom of the pot — in small pots, if 

 porous, the moisture easily escapes as a general 

 thing. But Mr. Henderson may prefer to have 

 his own say. — Ed. G. I\I.] 



Black Fly on Chrysanthemums. — " M." 

 says: Persian insect powder dusted on the plants 

 will kill the black bug or aphis that so often infests 

 chrysanthemums." 



Double Stocks. — " Mrs. Theodosia B. S.," 

 San Buena Ventura, Cal, asks : " Will you kindly 

 inform me through the columns of the Gardeners' 

 Monthly, why pot grown seeds of Stocks are 

 superior to those grown in the open ground ? 

 Stocks grow to the greatest perfection here (where 

 we never have frost) and seed well. I raise several 

 varieties of the seeds, in different colors. I have 

 difficulty in disposing of them to florists, as they 

 all wish pot-grown seeds. As the flowers of 

 double stocks are barren, so they cannot be used 

 in hybridizing. I cannot see why pot-grown 

 seeds are superior to open ground seed. 



" Henderson says in his ■ Hand-book of Plants ;' 

 All that is necessary to have plenty of double 

 flowers in stocks is, to have seed from strong 

 vigorous single plants. I have found from ex- 

 perience that he is correct, nothing could be finer 

 than our stocks from open ground seed. Yet it 

 seems impossible to convince florists east of this. 



" I will be greatly obliged if you will give me 

 the desired information." 



[To answer our correspondent's questions 

 clearly, we shall have to go over some scattered 

 ground. It will require close attention ; but the 

 reader will be repaid by a full knowledge of the 

 whole subject. 



First, we must remember that plants do not 

 flower at all until there has been some check to 

 the vegetative force. If the tree grows very 

 vigorously, we have to root prune it, or in some 

 other way injure or check the,growing force. We 

 put this in another form of expression, and we say 

 — the intensity of the reproductive or seed-bearing 

 force is inversely with the plant's hold on life. 



Secondly, we may remember, that a flower is 

 made up of metamorphosed leaves. The calyx is 



an organ, but little removed from a leaf; the 

 corolla is formed from leaves still further ad- 

 vanced. Stamens are leaves, and pistils the 

 organs more particularly related to reproduction, 

 are leaves quite distantly removed. 



Thirdly, a double flower is one that has not 

 advanced towards the reproductive stage further 

 than to form petals, with perhaps a few stamens, 

 and makes no seed. 



We see from all, that a double flower is the 

 product of a plant, or a portion of a plant, that 

 has had its vegetative powers but slightly checked. 

 This has been actually tested by experiment, by 

 the present writer, and an account formed one of 

 his earliest scientific papers, now getting on to 

 near a half century ago. A large number of 

 plants of the six-week stocks were taken, and a 

 few seed vessels from the first flowers, when the 

 plant had barely passed its vegetative state, wera 

 taken ; and separately were taken seed from the 

 last flowers on the secondary branches, and when 

 the plant was about to die. The result was the 

 production of nearly all double flowers in the first 

 lot, and single flowers in the second. 



We now sum up all in the following conclusion : 

 High vegetative vigor is unfavorable to the 

 production of single flowers. 



Carrying this to the direct question of our cor- 

 respondent, it will not matter so much whether 

 plants are pot-grown or not, except in so far as 

 this may aid or assist vegetative vigor. In some 

 parts of the world first-class pot-culture would aid 

 vegetative vigor, and then a good portion of 

 double flowers would certainly result. And it is 

 no doubt from this experience that florists have 

 learned to look on pot culture as the necessary 

 means to a good strain of double flowers. Plants 

 left to out-door chances, would be much more 

 likely to have vegetative vigor impaired, and 

 produce strains of single flowers. 



But anyone can see that it is possible to feed 

 well, and get a plant to live vigorously in the 

 open ground ; and, on the other hand, to border 

 on starvation in a pot under glass ; and if this 

 were the rule, the great run would be against, and 

 not in favor of, pot-grown plants. 



No doubt, if this lady perseveres, she will be 

 able to show that her out-door seed is just as good 

 for double flowers as that raised under glass. 



We have gone into the subject at some length 

 here, because it concerns not only the production 

 of double stocks, but also because the answer to 

 her questions affects the whole range of practical 

 horticulture. 



