86 ey Be SSRURFBVANT 0 Ge OMAN 
tiny 
‘ recent introductions of trojana, cypriana and mesopoiamica origin, 
these last three, when crossed with variegata, tend to produce sterile 
progeny, which are rarely of variegaia coloring. This last point is 
emphasized when we realize that but one, or two, typical variegata 
- have been ranked higher than 80 °/, in the Symposium recently 
_ published by The American Iris Society. Before leaving this subject 
’ of « venation », it is worth noting that a « solid bicolor » may exist 
unveined, in fact is usually unveined, but that a velvety quality of 
the blade of the fall is almost invariably due to the confluence of 
richly colored veins. 
Broadly speaking, our modern tall bearded Irises are derived from 
pallida, variegata, germanica, trojana, cypriana and mesopotamica, 
and from the point of view of the hybridist the lines of distinction bet- 
ween these last four are close and their inter-relationship not yet 
fully understood. It would seem that oariegala of germanica 
and {rojana origin are typically lavender, the standards lighter than 
the falls, which very rarely show the velvety character found in so 
many neglecta which have their origin in variegata. The progeny 
of cypriana hybrids are also typically lavender, as are those of 
mesopotamica, but the former shows yellow tones on the haft, tones 
that not only soften and dull the color but that gives a sheen to the 
surface that reflects the light. This extra substance and finish modi- 
fies the color considerably and may be due to a factor entirely dis- 
tinct from color, but it is worth noting that this fine quality is the 
rule among cypriana seedlings and the exception among seedlings of 
other origin. For example, compare Caterina and Arsace with any 
pallida except the variety pallida dalmatica, Princess Beatrice. 
If by plicaia we mean varieties the standards of which are variably 
feathered, edged or otherwise marked with a deeper color, we have 
examples, not only of original plicata like Buriensis and Mme Che- 
reau, purple on a white ground, but also what I term variegata- 
plicata like Mme Chobaut and Mme Denis, where not only the 
ground color, but the markings and often the venation, all show a 
blending of tones due to an infusion of gariegata blood. The 
plicata character is clearly a recessive, and originally was very 
closely allied to pallida, if not a ‘‘ break ” from that stock. At 
least from our records, a plicala crossed with plicata has but once 
produced a plicala, whereas seedlings of deep-toned pallida often 
produce a plicata. Only by pedigree breeding through a number 
of generations can we hope to secure plicata in the first generation 
and it is proving extremely difficult to achieve the plicata markings 
on the standards in combination with different ground colors and | 
different habits of growth. I have seen these markings on yellow, 
lavender and blended grounds, I expect to see also trojana and 
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