KEMARKS UPON FERTILISATION. 31 



«nce of the pollen ; ;t was. at a time when the varieties of 

 Gloxinia were few, and O. Fijfiana was the only erect- 

 flowered kind. We fertilised O. rubra grandiflora with 

 pollen taken from O. leuconerva, the latter then a new 

 variety, our object being to obtain varieties with white- 

 veined leaves and red flowers; and as G. leuconerva was 

 not so robust in habit as G. rubra grandiflora, we made 

 the latter the seed-bearer, but in the result, out of several 

 hundreds, we had but one or two which produced red 

 flowers ; the habit was robust, and much stronger than the 

 male- parent, and the white veins less conspicuous on the 

 leaves, but the flowers were of a much richer colour, being 

 a deep purple, and larger, partaking in the latter character 

 of the mother plant. Thus the experiment, though it pro- 

 duced some very handsome varieties, was in direct opposition 

 to our wishes, but it afi'orded a lesson by which we profited 

 in after attempts at cross-breeding. 



REMAEKS UPON FERTILISATION. 



|N seed saving, independent of hybridising or cross- 

 breeding, astonishing results may be obtained by 

 a little selection and care. These remarks will 

 apply most forcibly to the choice strains of flowers which 

 are grown for early spring, autumn, and winter decoration, 

 and which are to a great extent deprived of insect agency 

 for the fertilisation of their flowers, and are consequently 

 dependent upon artificial impregnation. In performing this 

 operation, the pollen of one flower should be used to fertilise 

 its neighbour, as this ensures a greater produce of seeds, 

 and a more vigorous constitution in the plants resulting 

 from the operation. Being a delicate and tedious process, 



