Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1871-08-05

experiment. We have accepted the challenge
of Europe, and, it is believed, we will within
II few years command their respect and re-
ccive their orders.
To refer again To achievements of foreign
florists; the French and Belgian hyblidists.
beginning with half dozen species of the
gladiolus, have IN thirty years accomplished
as much for that flower us the Dutch did for
the tulips by centuries of seeding. 1t is i'm
possible to convey by words an idea of the
extreme beauty and diversity of the choicest
varieties of the gladiolus, or of the exquisite
shadings and blcndings of color painted by
the hybridist's brush.
The azaleas, too, coming into Europe one
from India and Japan, one from the Orient,
and four from America, found mt Ghent dis
tingulshed amateurs, who, by .judicious hy-
pridlzation OF the various species, produced
FOR us one Of the most brilliant plants of our
collections. Foremost among those amateurs
was Martin, baker, who devoting his leisure
to crossing the Oriental species with those
from America, laid the foundation for all
Others to build upon. 1t Is worthy of re-
mark, in passing, that the Azalea, more than
once, has been successfully crossed with the
rhodOdendron. Such union of distinct
though probably closely related. genera has
in but few instances been effected, Gas when
Sageret fertilized the radish with pollen of
cabbage, and Wigman the English garden
bean bean witi..,that Of the lcntf1 It hints at.thc
imperfection of our present botanical classi-
fication, which places in different genera two
plants more closely related, physiologically,
than others which are included under n COM
mon specific name. For it is only between
closely related species that II union can oc-
cur. The most eminent botanists or skilled
hybridists have never succeeded in crossing
the apple and the pear, nor the currant and
the gOosebel1y.
But time would fail me to speak of the
numerous and remarkable exploits of the
English and Continental hybridists. Receiv-
ing ut the hands of collectors of plants from
distant corners of the earth single species,
or mt most but few Species of plant, us
the petunia from South America, the tahia
and the znnia from Mexico, the astor from
China, and the camellia from Japan; they
have caused the single flowers to become
double, and have endowed them with every
possible beauty of form and magnicence of
color.
But, if hybridizaton is limited to closely
related species, it also happens, sometimes,
that we have but II single species of II plant
we desire to improve. Here hybridization
can avail us nothing; we have nothing with
which to cross our plant. But let us not dis
palr IN such Il case. Subjected to II course of
liberal cultivation, our plant will in time
give us some slight variation. These are to
be seized upon and crossed with each other
diverse new characters will speedily appear.
have said that hybrdization was Il new
art, but among the flowers under my win
dow this bright June morning are myriad
OF hybridists ut work, and thus they have
piled their art ever since flowers boomed
and sun shone. The humming bird, lightly
posing in air above each flower, his plumage
glistening with gold and green, and his long
beak dusty with pollen, which unwittingly
he carries from flower to Hover; the buster
ing bumble-bee, in yellow and black, stirring
up the precious fertilizing dust gaudy but
teriles furnished with the most delicate
brushes conceivable, and flies and other in
sects of every name and degree; who shall
say that nearly all Of these variations and
sports, and chance seedlings which occur
naturally, rs we speak, may not be traced
back to these busy operatorsP The adapta-
tions provided by nature for securing the
impregnation of flowers by other pollen than
their own, suggest, rs observation shows, the