ON FLOWER POSSIBILITIES 



would propably appear that some of the ancestors 

 of the seedling had produced — perhaps genera- 

 tions back — a double or partially double flower. 

 Breeding from a double rose or carnation, almost 

 all the seedlings revert to a single or semi-double 

 form. 



But in any event, once you have singled out a 

 strain of flower that has the tendency to produce 

 extra petals, you will probably find this tendency 

 accentuated, manifesting what I have elsewhere 

 referred to as the momentum of variation, and 

 giving you results that are more and more encour- 

 aging each season. 



Asking Too Much 



Should you attempt to produce a double flower 

 coincidently with the attempt to improve the scent 

 and color and size of the same flower, you may 

 presently discover that you are asking rather too 

 much. 



The flowers that improve in odor and color 

 and size may not be the ones that show the in- 

 creased tendency to doubling of petals. 



In such a case, you may segregate the two 

 groups, and carry forward the two lines of experi- 

 ment coincidently in neighboring plots; and 

 when you have attained a fair measure of success 

 in giving one race of flowers perfume and color 

 and size, and the other race a double or triple or 



[37] 



