Re: HYB: TB: New seedling

Francelle,

That looks great!  I hope it does well.

You were musing on iris-talk (not a member - just read the archives)
about branching, bud count and the weather in connection with 
evaluating seedlings.  Weather certainly has an effect.  Last year, 
e.g., ALPENVIEW bloomed with three stalks having 3 buds each.  No 
branching.  I don't know what its supposed to have, but I'm sure 
what I saw is not what it is capable of doing.  My own opinion is 
that if you see good branching and bud count on a plant, whether a 
seedling or a more mature plant, then that plant contains the 
genetic blueprint to give those characteristics.  The conditions 
required to have that plant fulfill its potential would be the 
guesswork.  Under my harsh conditions, bud counts exceeding seven 
buds are a waste of time.  They are miserable if they don't simply 
dry up on the stalk.  Branching is a plus, but it is variable from 
season to season.  Here the ability of a clump to produce stalks has 
more value than high bud counts.  Some clumps produce those stalks, 
some are stingy.  But a plant with four stalks having five buds 
compared a similar clump only have two with eleven buds of which 
only seven are going to look decent....well, you can do the math.  I 
think a lot of plants with considerable merit are going to be 
overlooked and not introduced, especially from areas of extreme 
weather patterns, if the hybridizers get too tied to bud counts and 
branching.  Neither of those in themselves guarantee a good garden 
subject.

My opinion.

Donald Eaves
donald@eastland.net
Texas Zone 7b, USA







 
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