LUTHER BUKBANK 



in color variation may readily be carried out is 

 the verbena.' ' The ancestors of the cultivated ver- 

 bena were South American plants, and it is be- 

 lieved that there are four chief species that have 

 been variously hybridized to produce all the forms 

 now under cultivation. One of the original species 

 bears flowers of brilliant red, two others have 

 flowers that are rosy or purple in color, and the 

 flowers of the fourth are pure white. 77 



The hybridized races show the breaking up of 

 these colors, quite as might be expected, with a 

 presentation of all the primary colors in many of 

 their hues and gradations, although pure blues are 

 not well represented, and pure yellow is very ex- 

 ceptional. To experiment in the production of 

 new colors and combination of colors, it is not 

 necessary to hybridize the verbenas, as few if any 

 of the familiar forms breed true from the seed. 

 (( You may secure all the variation that is desirable 

 among the plants grown from a single packet of 

 seeds, and may isolate and fix by selection an in- 

 definite number of new types with color schemes 

 that please your eye. It is possible, also, that you 

 may find among your verbenas an exceptional 

 flower with a pleasing odor, and this also may 

 serve as the basis for an interesting series of ex- 

 periments in selective breeding. Through such an 

 accidental discovery, Mr. Burbank was able to de- 

 velop two varieties of fragrant verbenas which 

 were introduced under the names of the May- 

 flower and the Elegance. 



<A In each case the plant from which the fragrant 



[200] 



