Decorah-posten., 1898-03-25
Edited by PRor G A. ouvrR
New Sweet Peas introduced in
1897.

tS't.
Never before i'll the history o.
the sweet pea have there been SC
many new varieties offered by thl
seedsmen. The interest in the
sweet pea the last few years has
been so great that every sport or
chance variation has been seized
upon, and in addition many new
specialists are working to produce
new variations in shape and color
by cross fertilization. The interest
taken by sweet pea lovers in new
kinds has stimulated the dealers
to supply the demand, and some
kinds have been sent out that are
no Improvement on existing varlc-
ties, and many are sent out too
soon, before the type is properly
fixed. The high prices paid for
new varieties prove too great a
temptation for the average grower
to withstand, and varieties are sent
out before they have got over the
tendency To revert to the parent
type, which is inherent in all var
iationS, whether they originate from
sports or are the results of scientific
hybridizing. 1t takes several years
careful selection and persistent
'rogueing', or pulling out OF all
plants that do not come true to
type, before a variation is sufficient
" we'll fixed to be offered for sale as
a new variety.
\ very marked feature OF new
peas OF the past season a their
poor terminating power, particu-
larly by the American varieties.
Several OF them did not grow at all,
under circumstances that made t
perfectly certain that the seed was
at fault. Red Riding Hood and
Maid OF Honor we're most Wig
orouS growers. while along side Of
them in the very same soil, Brilliant
and Creole did not have a single
fertile seed. In their anxiety 10
save allie the seed possible, the
growers had evidently pulled the
pods before they were properly rip
Among European novelties,
Eckfords 81 set heads the list with
six numbers: Coquette, Lovely,
Prima Donna, Mars, Royal Rose,
and Countess OF Shrewsbury. OF
these the finest is Coquett, consid-
cred the finest of all sweet peas.
Large size and fine hooded form,
the standard close to the wings,
curved forward at the sides. flushed
lavender, wings clear primrose. A
strong, vigorous grower, stalks
frequently four lowered.
Lovely-A beautiful, shaded shell
pink of good size and fine hooded
AS it fades with age to rose
pink, much of its beauty dissap-
pears.
Prima Donna, next to Coquette
the best OF the set, a very beautiful
shade OF shell pink, wings very
and expanded, stalks long,
three to four flowers, a more uni
color than Lovely.
Mars-Though not perfect is up
on the whole the very best red 70
date, being much larger and finer
form than FREELY, the best of the
old reds. Its weak point is that the
color, a cherry scarlet, does not
hold well with age, turning a dull
red before fading.
Countess of Shrewsbury should
never have been sent out, being
anything but attractive either IN
color or form.
Royal Rose. is another pink. and,
though quite large, is not an attrac-
tive shade.
What might be called Burpee's
81 set, contains one-half the new
American varieties, and by far the
best hall, consisting of Aurora.
Maid OF Honor. Golden Gate. New
Countess, Creole. Brilliant. Red
Riding Hood and New California.
Aurora-Streaked salmon, large
and fine in form, a unique color and
a decided acquisition, a rather weak
germinator, not half OF the seeds
growing last season.
Maid Of Honor-A selection from
Butterfly with an attempt to get rid
OF the notches Objectionable in the
old iavorite. Not a complete sue
cess yet, as many flowers are the
same in shape as Butterfly. When
true it is a decided advance on
that variety, being much more