218 



plants which in form and size differed from each other and fiom 

 the parent species. 



By means of self-pollination of the tetrapioid King Alfred I got 

 hnndreds of seeds in 1914 and 1915. In 1916 I had about 1400 

 small bulbs. This spring 50 flowers came out, which differed greatly 

 in form and size from each other and fiom King Alfred. Most of 

 them were smaller than the parent species. The tetrapioid Van 

 Wavereiis Giant can also be self-pollinated successfully. 



IV. Conclusion. 



1. Of the variety Maximii.<i which I examined we are aware that 

 it was already known in 1600, from which it may be inferred that 

 even three hundred years ago there was triploidia in the magni- 

 coronate narcissi. Triploidia must have commenced with the wild 

 species or those again run wild, as the above-mentioned variety 

 and Golden Spur (first cultivated between 1885 and 1888) were 

 probably not obtained in nurseries (see 6). Regarding the wild 

 variety of lY. John.stoni Queen of Spain, Bakkr assumes that this is 

 a hybrid between N. Pseudonarcissus and N. triandru.<}. If this is 

 correct — and the bastards cultivated of these two varieties leave 

 no room for doubt — this variety of Queen of Spain is in all 

 probability a bastard between a heteroploid form of N. F.seudonar- 

 cis.nis and JY. triandrus, as my experience shows the latter to be 

 diploid and to possess the same chromosome garniture as the diploid 

 narcissi already mentioned. 



2. If we keep to the classification of AscHERSoNand Ghaebner we shall 

 see that the feature of the heteroploidia was first seen in the genus or 

 gronp of ISf. P.seudonarcissus festalis major, the diversity which by 

 hybridization has principally yielded the large garden forms of the 

 present day. 



It is very interesting how the increase in the size of these varie- 

 ties now cultivated can be traced. Up till 1885 — the di[)loid 

 varieties were chiefly grown. The culture of the Golden Spur marks 

 the beginning of the era of the triploid garden forms. 



Bastards between Maximus, Golden Spur and other valuable 

 kinds are grown, with the result that lai-ger specimens have been 

 obtained, of which King Alfred (England; tirm of Kendall) is the 

 finest. From this dates the advent of the tetrapioid varieties (1899). 



Just as the climax in point of size of the di[)loids seems to have 

 been reached in Telamonius plenus, and of the triploids in Golden 

 Spur, the culminating point among the tetrapioid forms seems to 

 have been reached in Van Waveren's Giant. Nevertheless this 



