THE MOST IMPORTANT CONTRIBUTION 
My customers and I do not always agree. I feel certain that w r e would 
again disagree if I were to ask them to name the most important contributions 
which the Lyondel Gardens have made to the cause of delphinium. They 
would say: 
“Lyondel Gardens changed 3-inch flowers from myth to reality and made them 
a common possession.” 
“The seeds of Lyondel Gardens yielded a surprisingly large number of high 
quality plants.” 
“Absolutely self colors such as lilac, orchid, deep lavender, bluish violet, deep 
purples, etc., emanated from the Lyondel Gardens to grace many modest plots of 
grounds or lavishly planted, estates.” 
True! However these are not the most important contributions, but the 
fact that by pioneering the distribution of seeds cross pollinated by hand, 
Lyondel Gardens proved the superiority of such seeds over open pollinated 
sorts and showed the way to other and larger growers who began to follow 
suit and helped to raise the standard of delphinium quality. Sooner or later 
all others must either fall in line or see their business slip away from them. 
Once a flower lover has treated himself to the new magic of seeds cross pol¬ 
linated by hand, he is not going to pay 2, 5 or 10 dollars for a packet of open 
pollinated seeds which usually produce a large percentage of scrub delphiniums. 
I do not wish to convey the notion that all one has to do is to rub the pollen 
of one variety over the stigma of another and thus produce high class seeds. 
The question is much more complicated as each breeder must have not only 
a fundamental knowledge of genetics, and an artistic eye, but he must be able 
to weave something of himself into the seeds which he produces. And here 
lies the secret of successful breeders, of mediocre pluggers, and of downright 
failures. 
WHERE A SERIOUS DRAWBACK BECOMES AN 
IMPORTANT ASSET 
Those who have something to sell must have a line of ballyhoo. Every 
person who has delphinium seeds to sell proclaims his seeds the “best in the 
world.” There are so many “bests” that the average gardener becomes some¬ 
what cynical. But having been subjected to so much hot air about the “best” 
car, the “best” radio, the “best” breakfast food, and the “best” cure for bald- 
headedness, he offers only a passive resistance. To such wearj r gardeners I 
bring a welcome respite. My strain of delphinium is not the best in the world. 
There are other strains that are as good as mine and even better than mine. 
You might wonder how I can expect to sell any seeds by making such state¬ 
ments. I wonder too. I have wondered every year, and yet every year I have 
been sold out. Maybe some people fall for my “line.” But believe me, this is 
no line. And if you think that I would lose any sleep if I did not sell a seed, 
or that I would not continue to have two eggs on my toast 365 days a year, 
you have another guess coming. 
No one man has a corner on delphinium quality; not if he expects to stay 
in business. All breeders must sell the best they produce; when they do, their 
product falls in the hand of their competitors who will distribute it either un¬ 
changed or improve on it and place it on the market. Since breeding is a 
cumulative effort and each person builds upon the best of the other fellow, such 
practices are legitimate and even desirable. The result is that the man who 
introduced the first white delphinium, or the first line of self colors, or the 
“Wrexham” type of spike, or better blues, will wake up in a year or two and 
find others selling the same thing, often greatly improved. The moral of all 
3 
