78 



H R T I C U L 'J' U ]{ !•: 



July 27, 1918 



is a picture of an iris flower with part of the wall of 

 one section of the three celled ovary cut away to show 

 the ovules, which are the small white dots. When 

 their contained female cells are fertilized, the ovules 

 become seeds. The ovary grows and becomes the seed 

 pod. 



How to Hybridize 

 The only instrument needed is a pair of strong 

 tweezers. To buy one of the elaborate cases of instru- 

 ments offered for sale is a waste of money. The sharp 

 points of the tweezers should be rounded and polished, 

 to prevent them from wounding the delicate tissues of 

 the stigmas, in removing the anthers from the flowers, 

 to be used as females. Even a slight abrasion, like that 

 intentionally made to the stigma, in Figure 6, might 

 result in imperfect fertilization. 



First Step 



Every pleasant morning during the flowering season, 

 walk between the rows of the varieties to be used as 

 mothers, examining each plant to see which buds have 

 begun to open enough to allow the tips of the drooping 

 segments of the perianth to be grasped by the tweezers 

 and broken off at the base, revealing the anthers A, 

 which are then to be removed in the manner indicated 

 in Figure 6. One blade of the tweezers is to be slipped 

 behind the tip of the anther and carefully slid down to 

 the position shown, then close the blades and remove the 

 anther by drawing it away from the stigma. Repeat 

 the process with the other two anthers. It is not safe 

 to wait for the flower to open before removing the an- 

 thers as their pollen sacs may have burst, freeing the 

 pollen grains. Insects may liring these in contact with 

 th? sensitive surfaces of the stigmas, ^^^len this has oe- 

 <!urred and the flower afterwards pollinated with the 

 chosen pollen, the record kept of the crossing will be 

 iinrelial)le. The surface of the anther shown in Figure 



■1 is smooth, indicating that the pollen is still within the 

 sacs. When tlie erect segments of the perianth have 

 expanded to the j)osition in Figure 5 the stigmas are 

 ready to receive the pollen. The time in warm sunny 

 weather is from two to three hours after the first indi- 

 cation of the opening of the flower, that is from the 

 time when you should have removed the drooping seg- 

 ments and the stigmas. 



Second Step 



Walk between the rows of plants, whose flowers are to 

 lie used as males, selecting as many blossoms of a kind 

 as you have females of the variety you wish to cross 

 with them. Examine the anthers to see that the pollen 

 has come out of the sacs. You can tell this by the 

 anthers having lost their smoothness, appearing gran- 

 ular, from the escaped pollen grains, which are now 

 ripe. Place the selected flowers in a flat market basket, 

 like the one in Figure 8, which should also hold the 

 tweezers, labels, pencils and record book. You should 

 also have a light stool of cypress wood, which stands 

 the weather. A good form is to be seen in the Fig^^re 

 8 which is a general view of part of an iris garden of 

 the size recommended, taken toward the end of the 

 crossing season, and showing the labels, the developing 

 pods, and the stakes to which the seed bearing stalks are 

 tied. This should always be done each day as soon as 

 a plant is crossed, as otherwise the tall stalks are likely 

 to get broken. Observe the hole in tlie top of the stool 

 for the hand, and the band at tlie bottnni connecting tlie 

 legs, and preventing them from sinking into the soft 

 earth. Now having everything ready, like Uncle Wil- 

 liam, when he built his chimney, place the stool near 

 tlie flower to be crossed, and sit in a comfortable posi- 

 tion (for it is well to take life easy) from which the 

 stigmas can be reached, without touching them excejit 

 with the pollen. Next break off the three erect seg- 

 ments of the perianth, leaving only the three stigmas, 

 as in Figure 6. The flower is now entirely prepared 



