Page 2 
THE GLADIOLUS FANCIER’S 
IMPORTANT FORWORD 
Our annual accumulation of data, reporting 
Symposiums, variety prize winnings, cul¬ 
tural formula, etc. has crowded our 32 pages 
beyond capacity to record 1937 events with¬ 
out abandonment of much information still 
currently valuable and interesting to our 
new customers of 1938. 
Realizing that our 1938 Guide Book would 
have to omit or condense much of valuable 
interest to our readers, we had about 6000 
1937 Guide Books printed beyond our in¬ 
dicated need for 1937. Thus, we hope we 
have sufficient copies to be able to furnish 
both 1937 and 1938 editions to 1938 new¬ 
comers on our mailing list. We wish to call 
particular attention to such newcomers to 
the fact that the prices quoted in the 1937 
list are void and to be careful to order only 
from the 1938 list. 
AN EXPERIMENT 
This year, for an experiment, we are award¬ 
ing a substantial part of the job of editing 
this Guide Book to our customers. Their 
remarks you will find in italics. This is con¬ 
fined to 1937 correspondence entirely. Only 
a very small part of the usuable remarks 
have been printed, there being so much repe¬ 
tition along the same lines. Because it was 
all unsolicited and authority not sought for 
publication, full names and addresses are not 
supplied but may be had upon request. 
SYMPOSIUM RATINGS 
Neither the American Gladiolus Society 
nor the Canadian Gladiolus Society published 
a Symposium vote in 1937. The Canadian 
Gladiolus Society is now conducting one and 
the results will be published in their 1938 
ANNUAL, ready in February, but not in 
time for inclusion in this Guide Book. See 
page 31 hereof for guidance to secure the 
Canadian and other publications. See pages 
4 and 5 of the 1937 Guide Book for the Sym¬ 
posium Ratings, which are the last published 
to date. 
A WORD TO THE WISE 
Disappointment can be minimized by leav¬ 
ing to the highly trained gladiolus specialist 
the experimentation and cash investment 
necessary to try out all the new offerings of 
the many hybridizers. Those who know the 
quality of competition in national, state and 
regional shows in the last few years have come 
to realize that inferior sorts rarely win. We 
list only those varieties currently winning 
first prize awards and, on occasion, a limited 
few new ones which we have grown and which, 
in our opinion, are about to take their place 
in the winning ranks. We have almost no 
errors to acknowledge. Witness our offering, 
in various years gone by, just before their 
first major wins, such varieties as Frank J. 
McCoy, Blue Peacock, Duna, King Arthur, 
La Fiesta, Lavender Delight, Magna Blanca, 
Mary Elizabeth, Mrs. H. Bromley Ambler, 
Red Phipps and Salbach’s Orchid. On most of 
these, before stocks were widely disseminated, 
we registered the first wins ourselves. Now 
they have become world famous. 
“Has beens’’ and varieties that have been 
kicking around in catalogs for years without 
being able to win in current major shows are 
omitted. You do not have to sift them care¬ 
fully from our offerings. We have tried to 
lead you out of the usual labyrinth of a list¬ 
ing of hundreds of varieties where it would 
be next to hopeless to differentiate the best 
from the commonplace. By our method of 
listing the latter are automatically sifted out. 
We have no knowledge of the existence of 
any other gladiolus catalog in the world that 
even closely approaches so exclusive a list of 
prize-winners. 
Also, it is well to leave to the federal, state 
and university entomologists, pathologists 
and to gladiolus specialists cooperating with 
them, the determination of best usages for the 
control of insect pests and bulb and plant 
diseases. Experimentation by others with 
poisons, poisonous gases and with insecticides, 
the component parts of which are not under¬ 
stood by the user, and with unapproved meth¬ 
ods of fertilization, usually leads to trouble. 
Copyright 1938 
HERBERT O. EVANS 
Trustee and Secretary, Horticultural Foundation of Cleveland 
Member Executive Committee, American Gladiolus Society 
Treasurer, National Commercial Gladiolus Growers’ Association 
Member Board of Dirs., The Garden Center of Greater Cleveland 
Member of following Gladiolus Societies: Canadian, British, New England, 
Empire State, Ohio, Mahoning, Iowa and Sioux City. 
Farm, S. O. M. Center Road, SOLON, OHIO 
P. O. Address, BEDFORD, OHIO 
