105 
BRINGING UP THE DELPHINIUMS 
By Charles F. Barber, 
Originator of “Hoodacres Delphiniums” 
When the young lady said, “I know what I like,” 
the wise man present remarked, “Madam, that is not 
correct; you like what you know.” That true phil¬ 
osophy can be applied to the hybrid Delphinium. Al¬ 
though a quickening interest in this magnificent flower 
is now evident, the great public is as yet quite unaware 
of its grandeur and charms, not having really made its 
acquaintance. Only the keen floricultural observer 
both “knows” and enthusiastically “likes.” Within a 
very few years we are due to witness a decided furore 
over these enchanting beauties in blue. 
Europe led the way in unlocking the Delphinium 
treasures but it is for us of the New World to “carry 
on.” For more than twenty years the writer has been 
working with these wonderful flowers. This has in¬ 
cluded regular importation of the best the old country 
produced, both plants and seeds. At first the enjoy¬ 
ment of what they had evolved was satisfaction enough, 
but much improvement seemed possible not only in fea¬ 
tures of form and color but particularly in a greater 
carrying power of the seeds from choice types. The 
finest varieties of Europe would give mostly forests of 
common-place seedlings; rarely anything exceptional. 
Now, out of these years of observation and experiment 
is evolved a strain that produces a large percentage 
of high type plants from seeds, and frequently speci¬ 
mens superior to the parent stock. 
Named varieties represent the frame-work of the 
Delphinium structure. They are kinds which have been 
