BREEDING FLORISTS FLOWERS. 



113 



We owe a debt of gratitude to Frederick Dorner for having led the way 

 into this most interesting path of floricultural advancement ; the efforts made 

 by intelligent— and fortunate— workers in this particular field have given to 

 the public strong, long-stemmed flowers with perfect calyces, while the size 

 has been nearly doubled in the past ten years, not to speak of the widened 

 range of color and the free-blooming qualities. Out of the thousands of 

 crosses made last season it would not be surprising to find one or two real 

 additions forthcoming. 



Chrysanthemums. Perhaps in no other flower has the same ratio of 

 progress been made in the same length of time as with this particular subject. 

 The results attained have been more than gratifying, due in great measure to 

 the systematic and intelligent procedure of those devoting their time to its 

 improvement. Experience has systematized the knowledge obtained in this 

 interesting family, and we have more data from which to work than with 

 either the rose or the carnation ; the semi-double forms are no longer used 

 as formerly, the hyljridizer confining himself to the larger and perfectly 

 double forms of flowers. The change in method secures a minimum of seed, 

 but of the small number of seeds obtained, the greater part being large, full 

 flowers. This law does not seem to hold in anything like the same degree 

 with the rose and the carnation, for even when both parents are full-pctalled 

 a large proportion of singles and semi-doubles are produced. It may be that 

 when different lines of procedure are used in these two classes we may be 

 able to eliminate a good portion of the singles, but thus far we are unable 

 to do this. 



Begonias. Here is an unlimited field for the hybridist; the several strains 

 and types of begonias are all — or nearly all — capable of being crossed; there 

 seems to be no reason why we should not have beautiful flowering varieties 

 with the ornamental foliage of the Rex section. 



The writer's first attempt with begonias secured the variety Bertha 

 McGregor, which was the result of crossing a Rex with the ornamental 

 shrubby variety aviicnlca cumpacfa. Later on the writer secured a most 

 interesting lot of the whorled-leaved variety of Re.x by crossing the ordinary 

 Rex with the whorled variety Countess L. Erdody. We have always regretted 

 the loss of this lot of seedlings, from an imported fungus growth, just when 

 they were showing some very interesting characteristics, as many as twenty- 

 five or thirty showing beautiful Rex markings and colorings, with the distinct 

 single or double whorl of the leaf. 



We are deeply indebted to Victor Lemoine, of Nancy, for giving us that 

 finest of all winter decorative plants, Begonia Gloire de Lorraine ; to M. 

 Lemoine more than to any other one man are we debtors for the multitude of 

 magnificent new varieties of plants which have come to us through his patient, 

 persevering efforts. We believe that he has earned the right to be recognized 

 as the most skilful hybridist that the world has yet produced. 



The Chair: This is a very interesting field. We are all interested in the subject. 

 Does any one wish to follow this paper with remarks? 



G. Nicholson: Our begonias have furnished a very interesting series of hybrids with 

 the ordinary petalcd and tuberous begonias; but I believe the whole lot was entirely 

 sterile. You simply have to start with a new tuberous begonia every time. You can't 



