LECTURE ON HYBRID PELARGONIUM GRANDIFLORUM NANUM. 457 
induced most gardeners to cultivate them; but many soon gaye up the 
cultivation again, as they required too much attention. 
Now I also followed my hobby, and entirely gave myself up to the 
cultivation of these plants. 
I had a strong determination and also a conviction that I should 
succeed in improving the plants and rearing one easy of culture, and at 
the same time a fine specimen of good marketable value. I justified 
myself in this hope by my former success in obtaining new strains of 
vegetables and annuals by hybridisation. My stock-gillyflower strains, 
‘Giant Excelsior’ and ‘Large-flowered Victoria Bouquet,’ and my 
Fic. 129.—Srrpiinc Hyprip PELARGONIUMS. 
keeping-beans, more especially ‘ Biirger’s Fadenlose’ (Buirger’s Stringless), 
are still in the front rank. ; ' 
At that time I was practically the only one to occupy myself with 
such hybridisations, in order to procure a specific improvement, or a 
particular colour which was lacking in the strain, instead of leaving it to 
chance, as was usually done. 
Through my many hybridisations, I had learnt much by careful 
observation, and arrived at many new and interesting facts which I hoped 
to turn to good account in my study of pelargoniums. 
I did not conceal from myself that these experiments with pelargoniums 
would involve me in greater difficulties, and much greater expense and 
“expenditure of time, than the experiments with annuals. Without either 
