282 



THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST 



December, 1911 



It is possible to have the, soil too rich 

 in fertilizers for bulbs. It is best to fer- 

 tilize the ground when digging it for 

 the summer decorative plants in June :is 

 before suggested. If the ground is of 

 good garden soil quality, no more man- 

 ure should be required for the bulbs. If 

 manure is used at the time of planting 



bulbs, it should be well rotted, almost 

 the nature of soil itself, and be dug in 

 deeply so as not to come in direct con- 

 tact with the bulbs. If the soil is of a 

 heavy clay nature it should be lightened 

 by digging in some sand as well as the 

 fertilizer. A rather light loamy soil 

 suits tulips best. 



Practical Plant Breeding 



H. J. Moore, Queen Victoria Park, Niagara Falls, Ont. 



(Convluclcd from the November i.isue) 



The Chinese Primrose, Primula sinen- 

 sis, affords another striking illustration. 

 The flowers of the species as originally 

 introduced were insignificant and of poor 

 color. Now we have flowers rjinging 

 from white to deep crimson, including 



Figure 3 



a beautiful blue, while the foliage is so 

 attractive, as to render the plant orna- 

 mental even when not in flower. This 

 process of development has been slow, 

 but the results of careful hybridizing and 

 selection are sure, and who can say that 

 the result is not worthy of the labor as 

 he looks into the face of any one of thiese 

 beautiful flowers? Surely such results 

 as indicated in Figure 3 are encourag- 

 ing. 



Horticulturists generally are aware 

 that a great number of the beautiful 

 greenhouse flowering plants have been 

 introduced from the older countries. 

 .Some of these have been satisfactory, 

 while others have proved decidedly the 

 reverse. In many places it is almost 

 impossible to grow the herbaceous Cal- 

 ceolaria, which is so highly prized as a 

 decorative flowering plant. This is due 

 to the excessive heat, which checks 

 growth during the late summer and fall 

 months when the plant as a seedling 

 should be growi;)g strong and vigorous. 



Figure 4 is a photograph of a plant 

 belonging to the genus and 4a the hybrid 

 with both parents. The parent plants 

 were crossed with the object of produc- 

 ing a more hardy heat resisting variety. 

 The female parent is C rugosa and the 

 male parent a variety of the herbaceous 

 greenhouse type. 



C rugosa was cho.sen on account of 

 its hardy nature. The hybrid has in- 

 herited that character, and has proved 

 a valuable ornamental plant as is shown 

 by the photograph. 



Selective work also has been carried 

 on to .some extent with the genus Cal- 

 ceolaria. Through eight generations 

 seeds have been selected from the plant 

 with the most desirable habit, and the 

 largest flowers. The result is shown in 

 Figure 5, which represents a specimen 

 of the herbaceous type. The plant was 

 grown in a 7-inch pot, and measured 

 three feet in diameter. 



The genus Begonia also affords op- 

 portunity for experimental work. Figure 

 6 illustrates the results of crossing the 

 ordinary tuberus bedding variety with 

 the species Dregei (The hybrid is in the 

 centre), while Figure 7 illustrates a 

 batch of the seedlings of the first gener- 

 ation. The cross was made in the hope 

 of producing an improved bedding var- 

 iety, but as the seedlings cannot be 

 planted out during the present year, it 

 will be impossible to say whether the 

 object has been attained until next sea- 

 son. In any case the hybrid is a most 

 satisfactory greenhouse plant. 



Space will not permit of further illus- 

 tration, but it will be obvious to anyone 



with a knowledge of plants that what 

 can be done with one natural order or 

 even genus can nearly always be done 

 with another, and there can be no 

 greater reward than the realization of 

 having created with the help of nature 

 something different than already existed. 



In the above experiments many of the 

 hybrids ha\e followed Mendel's Law of 

 Heredity. Of this Law there is no tim^- 

 to sf)eak here except to say that this 

 great discovery has taught us not to dis- 

 card hybrid plants as worthless. They 

 may have inherited some desirable qual- 

 ity which in succeeding generations will 

 appear and amply repay months and 

 even years of assiduous toil. 



\Vhat is true of flowers is true also of 

 vegetables. .Strange as it may seem, a 



Figure 4 



Figure 4 A 



good edible variety of carrot has been 

 produced by selection through seven 

 generations from the common wild 

 species Daucus carota. The parsnip has 

 a similar history, and that delicious 

 vegetable asparagus has been produced 

 by judicious selection combined with 

 careful cultivation from the wild, saline 

 loving seaside plant .Asparagus offici- 

 nalis. 



There is not only an unlimited field for 

 the scientific investigator, whether he be 

 studying to throw light upon some cyto- 

 logical problem, or to substantiate some 

 existing theory, but there are also un- 

 limited possibilities for the practical 

 plant breeder. Science and practice are 

 inseparably wedded, therefore it is the 

 duty of one to aid the other for the sake 

 of the good which can only accrue fro'n 

 mutual cooperation. S<-ientists have ob- 

 tained many ideas and much of th^ir 

 knowledge from the. trained practitioner, 

 and it is to him they look for material 

 for scientific investigation. 



Let us then not .scorn the efforts of the 

 men who do the work ; rather let us 

 encourage the improvement of our 

 beautiful flow-ors and useful fruits and 

 vegetables. The difference between the 

 scientist and the practitioner is only that 

 of degree, and in either case let us en- 



