LUTHER BURBANK 



from Europe, with a white one that Mr. Burbank 

 produced his remarkable blue gladiolus. Flower 

 lovers are aware that the gladiolus, like the poppy 

 and rose, is not partial to the color blue. Yet Mr. 

 Burbank has succeeded, after a long term of 

 experimentation, in developing a blue strain of 

 gladiolus that is as beautiful as it is unusual. 



Mention has been made of the white gladiolus, 

 but it should be explained that this flower is not 

 pure white, as comparison with a white watsonia 

 flower will show. The white of the watsonia has 

 been termed "the whitest white in nature." It is 

 of interest to recall that the progenitor of the 

 white watsonia was a "sport" found in the native 

 home of the plant, South Africa, in a region where 

 watsonias of the normal reddish color were 

 abundant. The white sport bred true, and it was 

 presently introduced in the gardens of Europe 

 and America. 



Unfortunately, the watsonia is a rather tender 

 plant, and this has interfered with its popularity 

 in the eastern United States. Yet it is a plant 

 worthy of cultivation, and one that in many ways 

 rivals the gladiolus, which it somewhat resembles. 

 It has been a favorite flower with Mr. Burbank, 

 who, besides improving it in many features of 

 bulb and stalk, has devoted particular attention 

 to the development of its color possibilities. By 

 combining the white and red strains, and making 

 various recombinations of the offspring through 

 many generations, and by rigid selection among 

 the flowers showing slight variation, he has devel- 



[186] 



