ing can equal it; it conforms to the limits and color range of 

 the smallest as well as the largest garden and is practically the 

 only "fool proof" garden plant. 



Each season brings new and startling improvements in the 

 shape, color and form of the iris and the average small garden 

 grower is often confused by the myriad descriptions of these 

 novelties as well as appalled at the high cost of these new pro- 

 ductions, which is largely due to scarcity of stock. Fortunately 

 there is a way whereby the true garden lover, whose instinct 

 is to get down into the dirt and create some new thing, may 

 acquire a share in some of the new beauties of the iris world 

 without great expense, except in time and care devoted to rais- 

 ing some new plants from iris seeds. 



The bearded iris, having a flower with large individual parts, 

 is not readily pollenized by insects, so as to produce seeds 

 naturally. Only in an exceptional year will one see many seed 

 pods in an iris planting, which have set naturally. The indi- 

 vidual parts being large also makes it possible to easily hand 

 pollenize the flower, with almost 100% probability that no 

 other cross will take place naturally and it is from this hand 

 pollenizing that most of the new and better iris are produced. 



Many famous hybridizers have been and are still making 

 great strides in building up iris blooms toward some certain, 

 definite change in shape, form and color of flower. The iris 

 loving world owes a great debt of gratitude to this eminent list 

 of hybridizers ; the amateur, who is largely concerned with get- 

 ting some new, novel and beautiful flowers for his garden at a 

 minimum of expense, has the opportunity to add not only some 

 beautiful and original blooms to his garden, but to enjoy an 

 insight into Xatiu-e's mysteries in the production of hybrids and 

 the thrill of producing a plant whose bloom is different from all 

 other iris blooms. 



Due to the greatly mixed ancestry of the iris family no seed- 

 ling comes true to its parentage ; in fact every seedling pro- 

 duced to a blooming stage is unique in that in some way it is 

 different from any other iris plant that has ever bloomed. Not 

 all seedlings are the equal of the parents; some are. and a very, 

 very few may show some improvements. However, seed from 

 properly mated parents will usually produce some very pleasing 

 blooms, resembling the parents to some extent and if one realh' 

 becomes interested in the "Hybridizing Hobby" some very inter- 

 esting results may be secured by choosing the best of the seed- 

 lings and crossing or re-mating them for improvements. 



The first bloom of an iris seedling fixes the form, color and 

 type of flower for that particular rhizome ; it will produce the 



-=;i9'r 



