Re: HYB: average ugliness

Neil writes,

> The problem gets large when  taking substance, form, branching, bud count
> *and* color, let alone more abstract qualities such as charm, presence
......

This addresses the intellectual versus the emotional in regards to how one
reacts to the iris that is seen.  One of Joe Ghio's new introductions  is
CURRENT EVENTS with the following partial quote "Bringing our efforts to
produce a modern version of the old classic, Edenite, close to fulfillment."
That's a worthy endeavor because EDENITE has superlative finish and color.
The photo on his webpage shows a beauty.  That's my intellectual take.  But
for me what makes EDENITE a classic is not only the color and finish, but
the mournful droop and closely held blooms that work with the color.  I
thought of EDENITE recently when I was looking at the photos of the grieving
women wearing their black chadors after the disastrous earthquake in Bam,
Iran, clutching at each other in their grief.  That expression of human
grief that goes beyond any religion or culture and becomes something much
more elemental and human, losing all the baggage of what is intellectual is
purely emotional.  For me, that is what makes EDENITE a truly great iris and
it stems from the emotional rather than the intellectual areas of my
response.  That doesn't take away from Ghio's achievement, but the
achievement will also not supplant the original because the presentation
gives an entirely different feel.  One day I'd like to be growing both.

> The "rule" of
> Regression Toward the Mean describes a generality, not predicts a single
> event.

There is one more thing not mentioned.  That is the interest and information
on what a cross can give you.  In that, the dogs have their own kind of
merit.  Perhaps especially true when parents yield both dogs and beauties.
The why of what you get is a fascinating part of growing something from
seed.  In the end it doesn't matter so much if ends up on the compost pile
or not.

> The ones that hurt the most are those
> that are *almost* good enough--or are wonderful, but look so much like
> something Schreiners introduced two years ago that you keep it, maybe even
> breed with it, but leave it in the kennel hidden behind some shrub or
other.

I guess that depends.  I have the group I call my 'Schreiner blues' and I
certainly don't hide them.  They are far too spectacular when in bloom to do
that anyway.  I'm content to enjoy them until I need their space.  They
aren't what I'm interested in fooling with, but as a gardener I have to
appreciate their contribution during bloom season.  It's unavoidable.

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

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