November 6, 1905 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
5 
Fertilization. 
It is a curious fact that though single petunias 
are grown in unlimited quantities, seed of the 
best strains are usually scarce, and I have proved 
that when it is saved in the ordinary way—that 
is, from those which seed without artificial aid 
—that is, from those without deriosration in the 
progeny ; with care, however, the best strain will 
seed well, but it must be done by artificial fer- 
tilization, or rather, by human aid. There is 
no difficulty in transferring the pollen from the 
anthers to the pistil by the aid of a soft camel’s 
hair brush (or pencil, as it is usually termed ; 
yet a little judgment should be exercised), 
indiscriminate crossing of different colors will be 
fatal. Starting with whites, if it is desired to 
keep to pure whites, the best formed flowers 
should be impregnated from another of equal 
quality, or at least of the most pure shade, and 
working up if each sepirate shade can be had in 
flowers of good quality on plants of good habits. 
Intercrossing should be avoided as far as possible; 
yet may be advantageous to take pollen froma 
good bright color and apply it to a white of good 
form I have found in crossing it requires some 
discrimination, and it is only observation and 
actual practice that will secure the best results ; 
and it is a curious fact that all the “rogues,” or 
those of inferior quality, seed freely, without aid; 
this accounts for so many of inferior quality 
seeding freely, withoutaid; this accounts, also, for 
so many of inferior quality from seedthat has not 
been carefully selected. The work of fertilized 
will give more seed than a large batch left to 
fertilize by natural agencies. 
In gloxinias we have similar results. I have 
had more seed from a dozen plants which I have 
fertilized by the aid of the brush than from 
hundreds of plants which have been left to 
natural agencies. In almost all gloxinias the 
pellen will be found to be abundant, yet some- 
‘how or other it seems to fall short of the pistil, 
or it may be that the pollen taken from another 
flower is more efficacious. At any rate gloxinia 
seed saved from a choice strain makes a fair 
price. I am not quite sure what the ordinary 
price would be in the trade, but going back to 
the petunias I have known seed sell at £12 per 
ounce, but for a fairly good strain from 50 shillings 
to £5 is about the usual price. Thisreminds me 
that petunia seed may be kept for a long period, 
I have had seed four years old which has ger- 
minated as freely as that saved the previous 
Autumn, but it had been kept in a close tin 
box in a cool place ; yet gloxinia seed kept under 
the same conditions failed after the first year. 
lt is possible, however, that the gloxinia seed 
kept under the same conditions failed after 
he first year. If the gloxinia had been 
ept in a warmer position it would have 
survived and retained its vitality for a longer 
period. I may mention corms which have been 
kept in a cold place, even if not touched by 
by frost, and appear quite sound when put into 
warmth to star. them, will fail to “start, though 
the corms may appear quite plump and sound, 
while those which have been stored in a warm 
dry place and shrivelled will start when given a 
little moisture and other genial conditions. — 
Metropolitian, in Horticultural Advertiser, 
England, “oF 
Florists, both amateur and professional, were 
very much interested in the cactus dahlias exhi- 
bited last season by Mr H. Kemp, of Unley, 
He now announces that he has flower seedlings 
for spring and summer planting at 2s 6d per 1C0, 
post free, 
F. ARMBRUS-ER& UHLMANN 
m anoint | 
AND 
Retail 
Nos. 9 and 151 Rundle Street 
And 82 KING WILLIAM STREET, 
ADELAIDE. 
Tobacconists 
Sole Agents for— 
FLOR DE CRETA CIGARS 
STERLING SMOKING MIXTURE 
MY PET TOBACCO—Twist, Plugs and Cut 
: Dark and Aromatic. ; 
Waste Tobacco for Spraying and Fumigating. 
SERGEY as Aut AE. Saar 
Gloxinias. 
The Ideal Country Home for the 
Man of Modest Income. 
BY OGLESBY PAUL, PHILADELPHIA. 
FO doubt many of you will laugh at the 
4%, title of this article, ‘The Ideal Home,’ 
and yet seriously, how many people have ever 
thought this subject out and reached a definite 
idea? Most people, I have found, are lice sheep 
in their home-making, following where others 
lead, and judging from the evidence at hand, 
the leaders usually were -blinders. Take the 
average suburban settlement, for example, 
where the properties are an acre or less in 
extent, and it is of small places only that [shall 
refer to. The houses in such places are usually 
comfortable and attractive now, thanks to the 
skill of our architects, and the real estate man 
may usually be trusted to see that they have all 
modern improvements of water supply, drain- 
age, lighting, good roads, and the like, of the. 
necessities, as we call them, of modern life 
The land, too, has been improved—the roads are 
shaded by trees, and the gardens are neat lawns 
with here and there a tree or clump of bushes. 
So far so good, but after all, does this represent 
the ultimate perfection of home-making? ‘The 
houses are vastly more homelike aad interest- 
_ing than those of thirty years ago, almost as 
homelike as those of our grandfathers’ day, 
some malicious critics would, say; but the gar- 
dens are wofully bare and dull. Think of what 
one can do with half an acre. Yes, and what 
paradises they so often were in our grandfathers 
day. Then wonder at the bare half acre you 
see now. Surely the house and grounds together 
form the home, and the grounds even more than 
the house should reflect the personality of the 
owner. Study, and the mental picturing of your 
grounds as you would have them appear, alone 
make this possible, and then, remember that 
planting and once again planting, is the secret 
of success. How many handsome houses do you 
see in a day on lots bare of individuality and 
interest, dotted with afew trees and scattered 
say? 
