156 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



female florets before lie fertilises or pollenises the stigmas. Very 

 good keen eyesight, and some practical knowledge of what 

 Chrysanthemum seed is really like when ripe, is also necessary, 

 for there are numerous instances of good seed having been over- 

 looked or thrown away by the unconscious grower. M. Rey- 

 dellet, of Valence, was led to become a raiser of seedling Chrys- 

 anthemums by finding a self-sown seedling growing in one of 

 his Geranium pots. On its flowering, it proved to be a distinct 

 variety, a fact which led him to make further experiments ; and 

 to-day, as a raiser, he ranks second only to M. Delaux. I have 

 here a small packet of Chrysanthemum seed, which anyone may 

 inspect if they care to do so. This seed is very plump and good 

 and clean ; but as originally mixed up with dried bracts and the 

 debris of the old flowers which produced it, one might easily 

 pass it over unnoticed. So far, I believe, but little artificial 

 cross-breeding has been resorted to by the raisers of Chrysan- 

 themum seedlings. It has been done, but not so much as is 

 desirable. Most old raisers seem to have trusted to insect aid, 

 or to chance, in the matter. It is, however, quite easy to take 

 the pollen from one flower on a dry and sunny day when it is 

 ripe, and to apply it to the out-curling stigmas of another 

 capitulum. A camel's-hair brush moistened in the honey of 

 a Fuchsia flower is best for removing and applying the 

 pollen. As a rule the incurved varieties are deficient in pollen, 

 most of the florets being i or 0> and to this fact is mainly due 

 the extra difficulty in rearing these kinds. Late flowers from 

 old and hard-grown plants sometimes contain a few disc florets 

 from which pollen is procurable. All the single and Anemone- 

 centred kinds seed freely ; and so do the Japanese when grown 

 naturally as above indicated. 



At a meeting of the Floral Committee of this Society held 

 on April 1, 1884, a very interesting specimen of Berber is jajmnica 

 was exhibited. It appeared that the specimen, a flowering shoot, 

 had been cut from and placed in a vessel of water, where it con- 

 tinued to expand its flowers for several weeks, and eventually 

 ripened a number of berries which, when examined carefully, 

 were found to contain perfect seeds. This was considered more 

 remarkable seeing that this shrub, although flowering freely, 

 rarely produces ripe seeds. Now comes the interesting part of the 

 story." In connection with this fact Mr. Alfred Salter informed 

 the Committee that nearly all the Chrysanthemum seed from 



