542 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



primitive colour (green) is now well established. This reminds 

 one of the green rose, in which chlorophyll has retaken posses- 

 sion of all the floral appendages, and the flower thus becomes 

 foliaceous or "leaf -like." In the "green" Chrysanthemum the 

 corollas are only " sub-virescent " (somewhat green) without 

 being foliaceous. Green flowers are, however, not always due 

 to chlorophyll ; for Professor Church has discovered that the 

 blue-green colour of the flowers of a species of Ixia is due to a 

 modification of the common blue or purple colour of many other 

 flowers, &c. ; but in the case of Chrysanthemums it is probably 

 the presence of chlorophyll which accounts for the green hue. 



White Spokts. — By far the commonest kind of sport upon 

 Chrysanthemums bearing flowers of pink or rose shades of 

 colour is to a nearly or quite pure white. The following are 

 examples : — 



Pink, &c, to White. 



Queen of England . Sport, Empress of India. 



Princess of Wales . „ Mrs. Heale. 



James Salter . . ,, Lady Selborne. 



Christine (rosy blush) . White Christine. 



Venus (violet) . . ,, White Venus. 



Bouquet Fait (rich rose) ,, Mrs. Eorton (cream). 



Wm. Tricker . . ,, A pearly white.* 



Hero of Stoke Newington „ Creamy white. 



Viviand Morel . . „ White.f 



M. G. Grunerwald . „ White. 



The absence of all colour may probably appear in the flowers 

 of sports and seedlings of all plants ; and what has been 

 discovered is its great use in intercrossing ; for, to speak meta- 

 phorically, it has the power of breaking up compound colours. 

 Thus the old bronze Abutilon striatum produced no change 

 until it was crossed with a white flowered seedling. This mixed 

 colour then gave rise to pure pinks and yellows. The same 

 result has occurred in Begonias and E. 1. Rhododendrons. 



With regard to variations from white flowered Chrysan- 

 themums, there are numerous instances of the appearance of 

 yellow sports. Such is, of course, a restoration or reversion to 

 the primitive type of colour. Madame Desgrange normally 

 changes on expanding from a sulphur yellow to white ; so 



* Mr. W. Buffham has forwarded me a nearly white sport from Wm. 

 Tricker this year, ami observes : "The same plant has also produced one 

 bloom half-yellow. This year the flowers are very pale, but scarcely white, 

 and at present do not show any yellow." Nov. 24, 1897. 



f W. Buffham, 1897. 



