FOREWORD 
We regret that circumstances have prevented sending out our price 
list at an earlier date. 
CLOSING OUT SALE OF IRIS STOCKS. As rapidly as possible, 
we shall dispose of the entire stocks of nearly all the varieties of Irises now 
growing in our fields. The lateness of issue of this price list will probably 
not enable us to complete the clearance sale in 1940 but necessitate carrying 
it over to 1941. Even so, the sale will be limited strictly to our own plants 
since we never procure plants from others for transshipment on orders. 
We shall retain our own most recent introductions and a few from 
others of which the prices can not now be lowered in fairness. Our future 
listing of Irises will, therefore, be very limited. 
IRIS HYBRIDIZING. It has been greatly curtailed this year and, 
in future, will be limited to a very few crosses of important leads which 
we can not resist pursuing. However, on the way are large crops of Iris 
seedlings for 1941 and 1942 with a hundred or so in prospect for 1943 
from pods maturing in the gardens. 
Our decision to limit the Iris hybridizing has been reached with great 
reluctance but there are a number of reasons why we do not care to par¬ 
ticipate further. Whether or not we are qualified to originate fine new 
Isises, we certainly are either not qualified or not so located as to obtain 
such recognition for them as would justify our continuing the great labor 
and expense involved. This decision means to jettison the experience and 
enormous study of nearly twenty years of this enthralling work. 
IRIS AWARDS. The record of six of our latest Iris introductions 
supports our extreme conservatism in registering our seedlings. We have 
been growing large annual crops of carefully planned hybrids only to throw 
most of them away, though many so discarded were quite up to the general 
standard of current introductions. 
For the initial year, 1938, of the world competitions at Rome, Italy, we 
had there only one. Wildfire; it failed of an award but rated eighth, receiv¬ 
ing "The admiration of the Committee.” Blue Diamond, our only repre¬ 
sentative in 1939, came out first but received a First Class Certificate only, 
not being considered quite worthy of the Roman Gold Medal. For 1940, 
we had competing West Point, Mary E. Nicholls, Red Valor and Crimson 
Tide; Red Valor was "immediately and unanimously” awarded the Gold 
Medal and Crimson Tide was "second only to Red Valor” with a First Class 
Certificate. Mary E. Nicholls attracted the attention of the Committee and 
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