to take the more promising delphiniums of other breeders and to weave the 
Lyondel pattern. My strain was not allowed to stagnate by inbreeding but has 
been highly mobile, ever changing, always progressing, and continuously full 
of surprises. Yet despite all this, the Lyondels possess that stamp of individ¬ 
uality whereby they cannot be confused with other strains. 
I do not wish to convey the impression that I regard my strain as perfect. 
Others are as good or better. I even wish to urge those of my customers who 
have tried nothing but Lyondels to try some other strain, even if it means not 
buying anything from me this year or the next. If they find other strains 
superior to mine, I will rejoice with them, and then I will try to make mine as 
good or better so that the lost customer will come back. I am for my rivals; 
their success makes me happy, and I am ready to do all I can to bring to them 
greater success because my rivals are my best assets; every new customer 
that they gain is a potential purchaser of Lyondel seeds. 
I LIST THE DISTINGUISHING FEATURES OF LYONDELS 
The LYONDEL GARDENS are different from all others because: 
1. All seeds offered for sale are produced by artificial cross-pollenization, 
and no open pollinated seeds are produced or sold at any price because such 
seeds, in so far as I am concerned, are worthless. 
2. Only one grade of seeds is produced, — the highest possible, and there 
is only one price. 
3. Because I do all my breeding work during my spare hours, I can pro¬ 
duce only a limited amount of seeds: I do not trust cross pollinating work to 
others. Consequently I can afford to practice the most rigid selection of seed 
and pollen parents. 
4. Except where longevity constitutes the main object of breeding, rarely 
if ever do I use the same parents in two successive years. Every spring I 
plant thousands of seedlings and from them select the few breeding plants 
needed in my work. Usually these are far superior to the older seed parents 
and naturally are given the preference. 
5. Because of a limited output of seeds, I do not wait to build up a stock 
of the most promising novelties before placing the seeds on the market. No 
sooner does an outstanding specimen occur that it is made available to my 
customers. This is one reason why the Lyondels bring to you today the del¬ 
phiniums of tomorrow; this explains why the novelty loudly acclaimed by 
someone else may be old stuff to my customers. 
6. Lyondels are two-climate products. First they are grown at an altitude 
of some 3,000 feet where the summers are cool and precipitation abundant; 
this is ideal for the mildew and affords me the opportunity of eliminating all 
plants susceptible to this disease. Winters there are very severe and quite 
long. All plants that cannot thrive under such conditions are again eliminated. 
The surviving best specimens are then brought to Morgantown where the 
summers are long and warm, often quite dry, and where the soil is downright 
worthless. All plants that will not fiourish under these conditions are elim¬ 
inated. This goes on year after year. If natural selection has any meaning 
whatever, the Lyondels should be able better to withstand all adverse con¬ 
ditions. 
7. Lyondels bring to you ALL IN ONE. As stated before, every year I 
test the most promising strains. Many prove to be bitter disappointments, but 
some give gratifying results. Suppose Strain X gives me half a dozen fine 
specimens. These are crossed together to intensify the best in Strain X; also 
they are crossed with the best Lyondels to induce a greater variability and 
more new breaks. Strains Y and Z are similarly treated. Seeds resulting from 
these are mixed with the bulk of typical Lyondels to bring to you the worth¬ 
while things in the world of delphinium. 
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