Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1907-08-29
POPP[ES

trct It from ms cts. especially bees. and
from the wind.
This pr caution IS imperative because al!
risk Of iltluence by fore!gl pollen must
D. guar Id agaius. ana most plants IN t1a
natural ori'r Of events depend Upon hav-
~ tntr own kni % :plI'n carried -
the stIGnata by Ncc' or the wind. Generally
speaking, all h~iEA " col rel flowers ar
looking out for insects, although some
such as tho sweet .,cl, Ar. fortified by
their own pollen
The amateur Burbank must write up
before MS eyes 10 n cons9' nous place
The early bird cntches the worm" ne
must catch his flower almost before 1t is
born. Just when the bud is opening take
the knife and cut away all but the young
and immature stigma, placing a bag over
It's head to protect It. When the stigma
Is ready for the pollen 1t becomes sticky
Win a sugary fluid and the pollen must
be put into It at once.
This sounds quite simple. and is even
more simple in the actual doing, 1t 10
done, ard Burbank. Jr., must SIT down
and Nai' or amuse himself in other fields
OF speculation. When the seeds In due
course have rirened they are to be har-
vested, stored and sowed, each according
to Its kini The more interesting and
desirable the cross the less the likelihood
Iot success, II is true. but that should not
discourage for equally the greater the
difficulties the greater the final achieyp-
ment
Do not expect too much. DR., Van Fleet
| In New Jersey, made 10000 crosses Of
gladlo and raised seedlings. but only
In three cases did ne consider he had pro
duced something better than the world
had before. Possibly nearly all the rest
were different, however. and there Is a
deal Of real satisfaction In having ones
garden stocked with things that no one
have. unless you choose to give Of your
abundance.
CAN MAKE 1T A BUSINESS
Every little while | get letters asking,
'Will It pay me 60 make plant breeding a
business" 20 which invariably answer,
NO. ssr-ee!' Ohough do not always use
that particular expression II is abso-
lutely hopeless as business proposition.
all the newspaper reporters In the world
to the contrary Notwithstanding It is a
long, waiting game, ana you would starve
TO death The work must be carried on as
a side issue TO the business of a SCOTSMAN
florist, nurserymau, market gardener or
fruit grower; or else you must make it
merely an amateurs hobby. You and |
could go through an acre # caulhower
seedlings ana never know which would he
worth saving, because we do not know the
points Of a good caulihower as you may
know the points Of good show dog
Anybody can cross plants and get new
varieties that are merely different from
others. In fact, you could not positively
duplicate If you tried; but the chances are
enormously against their being worth any
thing unless man works steadily toward
an ideal that the world wants to realize.
At least half, and perhaps nine-tonths, Of
the battle is To- iiuh ont what tho wor.i
really does need, 1t certainly does not need
Australian everlasting flowers and such
trining stunts"
There Is no short and easy way to learn
what the market wants and there never
WIN be- But the right way to begin Is to
collect all the best varieties of your favor
Ito plant-peony or iris or rose or poppy
and then study their relative merits in your
rden and the prices they bring in tho
worlds markets only by eVnrlastingly
keeping at 1t can YOU ever hope To find out
which is the rose that people buy the most.
and WY; what its shortcomings are. and
what ot' variety Is better in these re-
spects. 1ru YOU can combine the two
with somr prospects of success