22 



The Weekly Florists^ Review* 



Maech 14, 1912. 



"During the last fifteen years we 

 have only been able to teach the 

 masses the names of about four or five 

 roses. 



"The political expression 'to look to 

 one's fences' applies to the rose situa- 

 tion at the present moment. 



"Sentiment is connected with flow- 

 ers, and with roses in particular, and 

 that sentiment should be used to edu- 

 cate the love for roses and admiration 

 for the wonders and beauty of nature. 



"The successful rose business de- 

 pends just as much on how the product 

 is sold as it does on the growing. 



"Be alive to such opportunities as 

 the National Flower Show will present to 

 educate the public. 



"Teach your retail customers to 

 know and distinguish varieties. Show 

 them something new and different. 



' ' Prepare your grower as to your 

 needs for succeeding seasons. 



' ' Remember that retailer, wholesaler 

 and grower are, after all, just men 

 striving to make an honest living in 

 a busy world, which is, so far as we 

 florists are concerned, sixty per cent 

 roses. ' ' 



' NOTES ON 



GLADIOLI 



1 



i. 



HYBRIDIZATION OF GLADIOLI. 



B. r. White's interesting notes on 

 Gladiolus Primulinus, on page 16 of The 

 Eeview of February 22, ought to arouse 

 discussion along all lines of breeding. 

 Bosarians, carnationists, etc., all should 

 give the fruits of their experience; an 

 open interchange of ideas as to meth- 

 ods, trials, tests and results would be 

 a lasting benefit to all. Indeed, Mr. 

 White, it is worth while to spend the 

 time to seek nature's manifold laws; 

 progress can come only through experi- 

 mentation, comparison and correlative 

 deduction. 



I have done practically little work 

 except with near-species. With these 

 the results have been eminently satis- 

 factory; hence, perforce, I must dis- 

 agree with Mr. White. Some of the 

 most beautiful, robust and especially 

 virile seedlings are from species inter- 

 breeding, but one must exercise much 

 discriminating judgment in the mate- 

 rial entering into the unions. I think 

 that many false conclusions have been 

 arrived at relative not only to the intro- 

 duction of distinct species, but closely 

 allied sorts, because we have not given 

 such work the amount of time that it 

 needs to determine rightly the actual 

 results. Some things may be done in 

 hybridizing that we now declare im- 

 possible, because we take too much for 

 granted or because earlier scientists 

 have not tried rightly. 



Many older growers and fanciers 

 have sneered at Primulinus, but my ob- 

 servations with Gladiolus dracocephalus, 

 etc., have caused me to breed a lot of it, 

 with the result that I have a fine col- 

 lection of its hybrids, embracing plants 

 seven feet tall, with a blooming period 

 from July 1 until November, from 

 bulbs all planted April 1. A row of 

 these will tickle any garden owner 

 longer than anything else in that gar- 

 den. In color they range from palest 

 cream through all shades of yellow to 

 old-gold, golden purples, golden reds, 

 etc. There are many spotless selfs, with 

 flowers superior to the best yellows 

 listed. In size many are equal to 

 Childsii, some with a few, some with 

 many open flowers at one time. While 

 many growers say, "No Primulinus for 

 me," it is the most promising of all 

 gladioli; embracing everything desir- 



able in such a flower. I have good 

 grounds for making that statement, as 

 I possess many of the finest introduc- 

 tions of the better known world special- 

 ists. When showing flowers or selling 

 bulbs, I watch carefully the remarks 

 and opinions of all visitors, regardless 

 of age or degree of intellect, as often 

 the unpolished "rube" has more dis- 

 criminating incisiveness of view than 

 those born with a gold spoon and given 

 an "edycation. " Primulinus has more 

 points of merit to make it popular than 

 any other type. Above all is its thin, 

 strong stem, long keeping qualities, 

 unusual texture and substance. 



We deal with from fifteen to twenty 

 characters in our breeding, as against 

 a few, as did Mendel. Nor do we follow 

 Mendel's ideas so far as many growers 

 and breeders do, as there are some note- 

 worthy exceptions to those laws, so that 

 merely taking things for granted may 

 be the underlying causes for the dis- 

 appointing results some growers get. 

 Again, there are some distinct points 

 we have observed in our work that to 

 the breeder for best results are exceed- 

 ingly important; one should and must 

 know them to realize the "utter devel- 

 opment," etc., that we heard so much 

 about a few years ago. Entirely too 

 many of the older gladioli lack multi- 

 plicative force, or they lack the neces- 



sary vigor and virility to withstand 

 extremes. 



We are breeding a number of types, 

 two of which are: First, spikes with 

 many open flowers at once, for florists' 

 use; second, a few out at once, but 

 developing over a long time, especially 

 for garden culture. Some of our more 

 recently introduced sorts -do not appeal 

 to me at all. A stem y^^lttt eight or ten 

 flowers open at onde, close together, 

 does not appeal to my artistic faculties 

 any more than does a mopstick. The 

 most appealing to rne are those nicely 

 spaced, showing each flower in its full, 

 individual beauty of form, with five to 

 seven open blooms and opening buds on 

 slightly slender stems. These are airy, 

 graceful and beautiful as against stiff, 

 straight, rigid ones, with eight to ten 

 open flowers jammed tightly together, 

 and then, to finish the caricature, sev- 

 eral dozen jammed into a small vase. 

 So long as the store man demands this 

 last type, however, I suppose we shall 

 be compelled to listen to his siren call 

 to profit. 



"V^e expect to see quite a change in 

 the ideal gladiolus, compared with what 

 has been grown, in quite a number of 

 aspects in our future results. We hope 

 to see, and not far away either, an ideal 

 something like the following: A virile, 

 strong plant, seven feet high; broad, 

 bright green foliage; thinner, but strong 

 stem; twenty-four buds and flowers to 

 the spike, each nicely spaced; good, clear, 

 bright colors; wide-open flowers, eight 

 inches wide; good, plump, medium sized 

 bulbs; bulblets large and freely pro- 

 duced. At least, such is my dream of 

 conquest. C. Betscher. 



MORE ABOUT GLADIOLL 



As B. F. White invites discussion 

 on his welcome and interesting article 

 in The Review of February 22, page 

 16, I wish to say that I differ with 

 him on the lasting qualities of glads, 

 where he advises the breeding of longer 

 lasting varieties, such as Princeps, etc., 

 that will last three times as long as 

 other kinds. 



I think gladioli last altogether too 

 long, from a business standpoint. I 

 have heard retail florists say that 

 gladioli make the cheapest window dec- 

 oration, as the flowers will last all the 

 week in a window. Now, if a flower 

 lover buys such kinds as the Prin- 

 ceps type, she would only need to buy 

 about twice in a month and have flow- 



Motor Truck and Store of the Pittsburgh Cut Flower G>. 



