XXVIII.] THE TWO -INCH CALYX. 459 



calyx, for the history of the carnation shows that 

 the calyx which we now possess has been secured 

 with great difficulty. And I do not think that it is 

 necessary that a four -inch flower should have a two- 

 inch calyx. A much narrower calyx than this may 

 answer every requirement. It seems to me that better 

 results are to be expected in breeding for a shorter 

 rather than a larger calyx, and this feature is admi- 

 rably shown in some of Dorner's recent seedlings. 

 And it may be worth while to enlarge the calyx by 

 breeding for a greater number of sepals. I am par- 

 ticularly glad to have my opinion that we should 

 breed for larger petals, reinforced by such an au- 

 thority as Edwin Lonsdale, who is reported to have 

 said before the second meeting of this Society that it 

 is desirable to develop the length and breadth of the 

 petals rather than their number.* 



But you are waiting to ask me why it is that 

 these large carnations of former years have disappeared, 

 and in answering the question I come upon the most 

 interesting feature in the history of the evolution 

 of the garden varieties. The carnation has always 

 been subject to the demands of fashion, and it has 

 alternately risen and fallen in popular estimation. 

 What has been gained in one period of popular favor 

 has been lost in a succeeding period of neglect. The 

 history of the carnation abounds in laments that the 

 plant is less esteemed than it was a few years ago. 

 Even so early as 1752, Miller declares that the large - 

 flowered varieties had mostly disappeared from 

 gardens, and at comparatively short intervals, until 

 the present day, this experience has been repeated. In 



*Am. Flor. vU. 302. (Nov. 12. 1891.) 



