12 



HORTICULTURE 



July 6, 1918 



WINTER-FLOWERING SWEET 



PEA TRIALS AT CORNELL. 



By Prof. A. C. Beal. 



The American Sweet Pea Society 

 is to be congratulated upon its excel- 

 lent display. In times like these 

 when make-believe patriots are ex- 

 erting themselves to discourage all 

 floricultural activities, your results 

 are especially gi-atifying. Why such 

 persons can see harm in growing 

 flowers as a recreation when the 

 theater, movies, baseball and other 

 similar pleasures are not interfered 

 with, is indeed somewhat mystifying. 

 Possibly it can be explained on the 

 ground that powerful, well-organized 

 financial groups control these latter 

 things, and therefore they are in a 

 position to control public opinion in 

 their favor. The gardening interest 

 is not thus organized and must make 

 its appeal to the reason and judgment 

 of the people. 



War conditions are not to be con- 

 sidered lightly, but there is no reason 

 for wearing sackcloth or going about 

 in a state of perpetual gloom. The 

 more we feel the effects o" war, the 

 more we shall need some relaxation 

 from the worries and cares of the day. 

 For those who are weary in mind and 

 body, for hearts that are heavily 

 laden, what can be better than the 

 pure air, the beauty, the overbrood- 

 ing calmness and peace of a garden? 

 The moment anyone discourages gar- 

 dening, he immediately advertises the 

 fact that he does not love flowers and 

 that he knows nothing of the joys of 

 gardening. 1 am not advising the 

 maintenance of large grounds and gar- 

 dens with their great expenditures of 

 labor and money, but I have in mind 

 the small home gardens which some 

 self-styled patriots think should be en- 

 tirely given, over to vegetables. While 

 it is probably true that many people 

 who find their amusement and relaxa- 

 tion in the theater, the movies or 

 baseball, would be better off if they 

 took an interest in simpler, quieter, 

 less obtrusive pleasures like garden- 

 ing, no real garden lover would pre- 

 scribe the amusements mentioned, 

 but would ask reciprocal considera- 

 tion. Those who oppose ornamental 

 gardening and flower shows in these 

 times are showing themselves to be 

 at least tinctured with some of that 

 selfishness that the world is fighting 

 against. 



Professional gardeners and florists 

 are asking for no special considera- 

 tion or immunities, and I feel sure 

 that when the war is ended no pro- 



fession will show, in proportion to its 

 numbers, any greater devotion to our 

 cause. The growing of flowers in 

 home gardens, which we all so much 

 wish to increase in this country, is 

 not done by those of draft age, but 

 rather by older people v/^o find their 

 peaceful pleasures in gi/owing things 

 they love. No person is a true 

 i:atriot who denies them that. 



We are all in this war to back our 

 government to the utmost* of our 

 ability, but let us realize that each 

 day we must somehow regain strength 

 for the tasks of tomorrow, for only in 

 this manner can we hold to the end. 



Although the people have been ad- 

 vised to do this and to refrain from 

 that until in the conflicting advice of 

 many advisers it would seem difficult 

 to plan a course of action, it is a 

 great satisraction that the people 

 have not been confused or stampeded. 

 Calmly they have taken up the bur- 

 dens of war. They have realized the 

 need of greater food production, but 

 in gardens everywhere some flowers 

 bloom to cheer the toiler. The sweet 

 p^a, because of its intrinsic merits, 

 has its deserved place in the affec- 

 tions of all war-gardeners. We know 

 that with reasonable care it will rich- 

 ly reward those who look forward for 

 the first time to gather its glorious 

 blossoms from their gardens. May its 

 reward be to gather multitudes of 

 new friends, and may it ever increase 

 in the affections of the old. 



It was the lovable old bishop in 

 "Les Miserables" who said; "The 

 beauti-Ul is as useful as the useful," 

 and then as an after thought re- 

 marked, "and perhaps more so." 



In the foregoing I tried to make 

 plain my belief that the row of sweet 

 peas in the garden has its mission 

 and plays its part in winning the war. 

 Let us not undervalue the beautiful 

 influences of our lives, and especially 

 at this time when it would seem that 

 we need them so much when men are 

 searching out the eternal verities and 

 casting aside the superficial. 



Today I come before you with only 

 a brief report. This year we are not 

 growing any garden varieties of sweet 

 peas for we discovered last year that 

 it was impossible to secure the neces- 

 sary labor to care for all our trials 

 of flowers. We are only caring for 

 the perennial plants and must defer 

 work with annuals until labor condi- 

 tions are settled. 



We grew 86 varieties of sweet peas 

 under glass and upon these I shall 

 base my report. 



Among the new varieties Zvola- 

 nek's Limit is a true giant-flowered 

 sweet pea. Standards reddish old 



rose, becoming paler; wings creamy 

 white, flushed very pale mauve-pink. 

 An exhibition sort. It does not ap- 

 pear to be very productive, and per- 

 haps will have to be grown as a fancy. 



Zvolanek's Rose. A large waved 

 flowered variety. Much more produc- 

 tive than the preceding. Color of the 

 standards mauve-rose; wings violet- 

 rose. 



The Beauty. A very large waved 

 flower. A warm, glowing color when 

 seen in the bunch. It appears to be 

 a self-color, but really has deep lilac- 

 rose standards and pure mauve wings. 

 There was nothing else like it in the 

 collection. 



Albury Carmine. This is a fine pea 

 with old rose wings and solferino red 

 wings. It holds its color well and 

 should be a good commercial variety 

 in this color which is that of the well 

 known John Ingman. Concord Radi- 

 ance is the same color, but not so 

 good. 



Albury Beauty. A beautiful orange- 

 pink with large waved flowers. Simi- 

 lar to Miss Y. Guilbert, and both bet- 

 ter than Morning Star. 



Mrs. H. C. Mott is similar to Mrs. 

 M. Anderson, but is better flxed and 

 a better waved flower. The standards 

 are dull garnet with violet-puriJe 

 wings. The standards lose the red 

 tinge, becoming more blue and attain- 

 ing a lobelia blue color. These va- 

 rieties produce fine flowers, but it 

 would seem that they are too much of 

 the Christmas Captain order to be 

 valuable commercially. 



Concord Exquisite is a beautiful 

 salmony pink self. A very fine sweet 

 pea. 



Zudemore was a mixed lot, a fine 

 winter-flcv/ering May Campbell ap- 

 peared to predominate in it. If this is 

 tlie intended variety perhaps it would 

 be too much to expect it to be abso- 

 lutely flxed. 



Mrs. Ralph M. Ward a large to very 

 large flower of pale rosy-pink with 

 lilac-rose wings. This is a splendid 

 sweet pea, but perhaps too near other 

 varieties of similar color. 



Mrs. P. Dusha is a large hydrangea- 

 pink waved variety. Not quite fixed, 

 but when flxed will be a beautiful 

 market variety. 



Aglaia Mott is the finest cream we 

 have yet grown under glass. 



Sn^^A^ Qu^^rft ^^rtr^^ 



Awarded Certificate of Merit at B. A. 



F. & O. H. New York ConveDtlon. And 



100 other notable kinda. Always aak (or 



SWASTIKA BRAND CANVAS. 



ThepONARD & l-J^" I WEST GROVE 

 WOfHESCO. I in I PENN, U.S.A. 



Robert tj\t. PrM. Aatolae fVlntier, Vioa-PrM. 



H'f ttre subscrihrrs ta the Nurserymen's Fund 



fer Market Development 



