THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
Hybridising Gladiolus 
Species. 
PESSESSSOSe 
TO THE EDITOR. 
Sir—In view of the rapidly growing in- 
terest in the Gladiolus, I have herein 
-culled a few or the more interesting points 
made in a paper read by Dr. W. van Fleet 
before the International Plant-breeding Con- 
ference held in @ctober of this year in 
New York. 
It appears that the best of the new species 
and forms collected in the past six years 
came from Natal, Swaziland, and Madagas- 
car. One of the most promising from a 
flower lover's point of view came from Mount 
Kilimandjaro, in German East Africa (now 
spelled by the Germans Kilima-Noscharo). 
The European grower who has done more 
in recent years in the way of introducing 
these new species and forms of the Gladiolus 
is Herr Max Leichtlin, of Baden-Baden, 
Germany. 
A tall growing form of G. platyptyllus 
from Swaziland has green blooms covered 
with pencillings of bluish purple. By cross- 
ing it with the best violet blues in the 
Lemoine class a good start has been made 
towards a true “blue” Gladiolus. 
The Psittacinus group is of great interest 
as the foundation of the splendid Ganda- 
vensis strain and through it of all finest 
modern Gladioli. Dr. van Fleet has been able 
by careful and long-continued experiment to 
prove that the Gandavensis is the product of 
the crossing of psittacinus and oppositiflorus. 
This latter is of tall growth and often opens 
from 18 to 24 flowers simultaneously. 
Growers will prebably find among their 
seedlings of Gandavensis plants producing 
flowers on both sides of the spike and facing 
opposite ways, and not ranged in two rows 
down the stem and facing one way as the 
proper show spike should do. In these cases 
the old oppositiflorus species is recurring, and 
it will be interesting to producers to know it. 
Some extremely interesting results have 
been obtained, and at the same time some 
very disappointing ones. 
_ For instance, seven years’ work in pollinat- 
ing consecutive generations of the Adlami 
section of the psittacinus group with “Canary 
Bird,” the best of the yellow Gandavensis, 
produced two good yellows. ‘‘ Canary Bird” 
itself is good, but weak in the stem, which is 
practically invariably crooked ; but in every 
other point is good. These two yellows, 
however, are next door to sterile, their 
increase being provokingly small. 
In some of the species the life forces 
produced in the plant by long ages of natural 
selection take some time in overcoming, and 
it has taken as much as 6 or 7 generations of 
consecutive pollinating before their inherent 
resistance has been overcome so that really 
valuable breaks could result. 
The true and perfect ideal, from a florist’s 
point of view, in white or yellow Gladioli has 
not yet been reached. In both cases where 
the colour has been attained the resultant 
bulb has Jacked vitality, and its powers of 
perpetuation have been nearly nil. 
In other words, a blind alley has been 
DECEMBER 1, 1902. 
reached in the Gladiolus. maze, and the 
searcher after perfection has had to turn 
back and begin again. Fortunately, the 
scientist can carry on concurrent  experi- 
ments, and with a large number of crosses, 
_so his experience and his results can be 
fairly rapidly attained. Dr. van Fleet men- 
tions a bulb which was collected in Swazi- 
land in an immature condition, and lay 
dormant after planting for two years, finally 
throwing a spike of thirty-two flowers with 
pale lilac markings. 
One statement made by the essayist will 
find an echo in the experience of many in 
Australia, viz., that “all growers of Gladioli 
of the Gandavensis type know that there is a 
constant preponderance of the red varieties. 
The white and light colours tend to de- 
generate with greater or less rapidity, while 
the reds increase in number and retain their 
vigour. So rapid and complete is the rever- 
sion in some instances as to amount to whole- 
sale atavism. Considerable numbers of a — 
choice Gandavensis variety, propagated from 
and varieties, some of which will again be 
used for crossing with the above named. 
So many types with fixed characteristics 
now exist that the series of crosses that may 
be made are apparently endless. ‘These are 
increasing, consequently we may look for 
some startling improvements even over the 
present marvellously diverse collection of 
hybrids now in commerce. 
As showing the wonderful vitality of 
Gladiolus butbs, I may state that we now 
have growing a few seedling bulbs out of 
over two hundred one-year tiny seedlings 
received two years ago from Canada. ‘These 
were kept two years dry in a box, and after 
surviving over two seasons some of them 
have sprung into healthy growth. 
Iam, Sir, &c., 
FRED. C. SMITH. 
Aldgate. 
cormels in the usual way, have changed in a zeae 
single season so as to closely resemble a # 
This 
seems to confirm Mendel’s theory of domi- § 
nant and recessive factors in all hybridiza- ¥ 
Taking psittacinus as the dominant 4 
typical red and yellow Gandavensis. 
tions. 
oppositiflorus acts in most instances as the 
recessive type and tends rapidly to efface } 
itself in favour of its more virile partner % 
during reproduction by seeds, and to a lesser § 
degree during extension of a given hybrid 
plant by cormel, or in other words, bud 
propagation. 
well known to be the foundation of the 
popular Lemoinei and Nancieanus strains 
Gladiolus purpureo-auratus is } 
of commercial varieties, and G. papilio of gg 
the ‘blue’ Lemoinei kinds. These __ latter 
comprise a number of attractive heliotrope 
and purple-blue shades in the typical hooded # 
form of the parent. Papilio albus is a hand- 
some slender-growing variety, reproducing 
itself perfectly from seed. It is very pure 
white in colour, with a crimson. purple 
blotch. Crossed with the best whites among 
the Gandavensis and Lemoinei sections, it 
produces a few attractive and distinct new 
light garden forms amid a great proportion of 
inferior ones. ‘The species typified by 
Gladiolus Saundersii are of the first impor- 
tance. Saundersii in the hands of Herr 
Max Leichtlin'gave us the magnificent strain 
known in commerce as the Childsii, and the 
large flowered, brilliantly colored Nancieanus 
sections produced by the Messrs. Lemoine 
by crossing purpureo-auratus hybrids with the 
new species. Leichtlin used pollen from the 
finest procurable Gandavensis varieties on 
Saundersii, and the result is a class of 
gigantic richly coloured kinds, mostly of red 
tints, with widely expanded blooms, and 
having a nodding upper segment. When 
the reverse cross is made and the ovules of 
Gandavensis fertilized with Saundersii pollen 
the result is far less striking.” 
Among other types described by Dr. van 
Fleet, but less known to the average grower, 
‘are .Leichtlinii, 
Cruentus, and _ especially 
Princeps, one of his own raising, and of re- 
markably fine character, - Eckloni and Lud- 
wigii are also rare new species, and all of ~ 
these are being used with each other, and 
with the best forms of the older commercial 
sections to produce new and desirable types 
Howell’s Seedling Gladiolus. 
[Photo. by Rey. E. G. Moberley. } 
The Prince Consort practically created 
the beatiful gardens at Osborne, and used to 
boast that there was scarcely a tree there 
that had not been planted by himself. One 
of these is famous—the now great myrtle 
‘which was struck from a sprig of the wed- 
ding bouquet of the late Empress Frederick, 
Every bride in the Royal Family since then 
has carried a spray of this tree with her to 
the altar on her wedding day. 
GruM.—This is one of the most useful 
of our summer flowering perennials. The 
blossoms are rich crimson-scarlet, and are 
continuously produced. Spent blossoms 
should be persistently removed, thus 
keeping the plants in a healthy condition, 
There are few subjects so elegant in 
appearance, profuse in their display, and 
so capable of enricbing the hardy flower 
border. 
Worms In Lawns.—The best treatment 
for worms in lawns is lime water, 
