Nonconformist

Not at all typical of seedlings produced by crosses between the tetraploid arils and halfbreds. Dominated by pale blue-violet domed standards that are open enough to show off greenish-buff style arms with blue-violet midrib. Greenish-buff falls are almost covered by rust stippling that converges to a burgundy signal at the tip of a bushy bronze beard. The plant is much like that of its regelia ancestors, but the flower is much more onco-like. Werckmeister's Beauty X Whirlwind Tour.

Old Fashioned Girl

OLD FASHIONED GIRL (McAllister, 1993) OGB-

White ground pseudo-plicata with light violet veining around edges of standards and burgundy veins edging the falls. Burgundy veins also flank the burgundy beard. Not tested for fertility. The name? As in flirtatious southern belle. (((Kalifa Baltis x Kalifa Gulnare) x Esther the Queen) x Tuesday Song) X Asha Michelle.

On Bended Knee

That's how hybridizers will usually view it. (If you've ever ordered from the Gene Pool, check out its seedling number). Billowing pale blue-violet standards are lightly marked with fine, light blue-violet veins. Broad, buff falls have a contrasting burgundy-black beard. No signal, just a few deep burgundy lines that enhance the beard – like lush, brown eyelashes call attention to deep, brown eyes. This is the closest I've come to Gene Hunt's prized buff & blue arilbred that many visitors have seen in my garden – and it's on a strong, gardenable plant. 

Opals for Ethel

An opalescent light blue self with blue beard that blends to yellow in the throat. Has no pollen. Sometimes pods to half-bred pollen, but none of its offspring have been worthy of introduction.  A quarterbred from Patricia Craig X Capitola. This is the only picture in the Gallery I didn't take myself. The late Cope Goodwin sent it to me when I'd given up working with quarterbreds, thus inspiring me to resume my experiments. So even though it has no registered decendants, in this way Opals for Ethel and Cope Goodwin were responsible for my newer line of quarterbreds. For show aficionados, its ASI code is OB-.

Ethel was my elderly grand-aunt who kept urging me to introduce this particular seedling. I really wanted to name it for her, but I had no worthy seedling to name for my other grandaunt, Opal. Fortunately, the flower is an unusual opalescent light blue self so "Opals" actually describes the color of the flower and the complete name served to honor both of my grandaunts. 

Opposites Attract

OPPOSITES ATTRACT (McAllister, 1995)

Pale grey standards have a violet cast on opening. Buttercup yellow falls have a large area of intense reddish-brown veining surrounding the tip of the bushy orange beard.  

A novelty that was introduced because of its popularity with garden visitors. Sometimes it's quite clear, sometimes splashed with violets and browns – two diametrically opposed images, yet always striking and attractive in either form.

A fully fertile halfbred from Welcome Reward X Esther, the Queen. It has a strong, but essentially unexplored, potential for pink offspring. (Too many seeds given away!)  

For show aficionados, its ASI code is OGB.

Palimpsest

Soft pewter standards have brass veins radiating from the midrib. Falls are a blend of tan/rust/brown, with reddish-brown signal spot and an area around the beard where the white ground shows through.  From Sostenique X Tribe of Judah, a cross that can produce abbb-type tetraploids or abb-type triploids [both classified as quarterbreds in the current system]. Not tested for fertility, but with a pattern that suggests trying it with both halfbreds and tetraploid arils. Strictly for experimenters.  In the days before paper was invented, writing material was precious and scrolls were prepared for reuse by scraping and bleaching them so they could be written on again. A palimpsest is one of those written-over scrolls on which earlier writings are still visible. This flower is similar to one of those written-over scrolls in that it is a panoply of colors in a series of overlaid patterns. 

For show aficionados, its ASI code is OGB-.

Pixelated

Point Well Taken

POINT WELL TAKEN (McAllister, 1998)

Pinkish-ivory standards are lightly veined golden yellow. Golden tan falls are heavily stippled with rust around the beard, while a rust wash extends over the blade. A dime-size brownish-black signal is almost lost in the intricate needlepoint-inlay effect of the other markings. 

The name "Needlepoint" was already taken, but the point pattern is so distinct and  well-defined that I couldn't let go of the idea. A bit of word-association led to this phrase. . 

A fully fertile halfbred, from Sandy Dandy X Whirlwind Romance. A promising parent, but too new to be completely proven. 

For show aficionados, its ASI code is OGB.

Prim and Proper

PRIM AND PROPER (McAllister, 1996)

Clean white standards over primrose yellow falls that are sharply accented by an arrowhead-shaped near-black signal.

From Wished for Child X I. kirkwoodii. This ¾-bred is unusually fertile for the type, although not as fertile as the ½-breds. An exceptionally gardenable plant, which passes that trait on to its offspring and has already proven valuable to me in work with the Triploid Route. 

The name is still another double-meaning, in that "Prim" is short for primrose and "Proper" describes its classic smooth, rounded form and prominent signal – but taken together they form a phrase that depicts the overall impression.  

For show aficionados, its ASI code is OGB+.

Proud Papa

Not a masculine flower: white ground standards, veined pale pinkish violet; soft yellow ground falls, faintly washed with violet to produce a blend of pink and yellow. So why such a masculine name? From its pedigree (Persian Pansy X Heart Stealer), it had to be registered as an OGB+, a category that's usually presumed infertile. Although it's presumably an unbalanced tetraploid, and has never set a pod for me, it's a surprisingly enthusiastic pollen parent that has produced a number of seedlings when crossed onto halfbreds and TBs. As is typical for this type of cross, relatively few of them have survived to bloom size – but I wanted a name that would reflect its unusual proclivity for parenthood. 

Pure At Heart

Snow-white standards marked with violet plicata-like stitching around the edges. Yellowish-ivory falls have heavy burgundy dotting and veining underlying a mustard and maroon beard, with finer veining extending out over the blade. The brilliant golden yellow style arms are relatively unmarked and showcased by erect, slightly open standards. This gives the flower a striking inner glow. 

From a line of intricate pastel patterns that I expect to produce even more surprises in the next generation. "Pure at Heart" is both a literal description of the color and an overall impression of the flower. Always grabs the attention of garden visitors, who then stop to examine its intricate pattern.  This is a fully fertile halfbred, from Sunrise in Glory X 85-3-17 (Boaz x Jean Ralls. It has proven useful for producing pastels, intricate veining, and pseudo-plicatas. 

For show aficionados, its ASI Code is OGB.

Quick Change Artist

QUICK CHANGE ARTIST  (McAllister, 1995)

When the flower opens, the veining covers the entire fall in typical arilbred pattern. Then it fades so that only the markings around the rim remain and it looks like the plicata pattern found in TBs. This picture, which was taken in the late afternoon of the first day the flower was open, catches the veining just before the center of the falls fade to white. A clump, with flowers of both types, leaves garden visitors either speechless or full of questions.

A quarterbred from a White-ground Plicata X Whither Thou Goest, ASI Code OGB-.

Quincenera

QUINCENERA (McAllister, 1998)

Its white standards are marked only by a few yellow veins, while its greenish-ivory falls have veins that range from thick chocolate around the beard to faint rust at the edge. When the flower opens, the falls are also marked with an intense violet blaze in the center - but this fades as the flower ages.

The name is Spanish - a special "coming of age" celebration for a girl's 15th birthday. The flower is reminiscent of a young girl's party dress, a pastel confection rarely found among the near-arils. 

After decades of getting little except shades of purple in this type, intricate pastel patterns have come on the scene. This one, which combines a delicate pattern with rounded, onco-like form, has proven to be one of the most popular of my recent selections of the type.

This is a three-quarterbred, an unbalanced tetraploid from Werckmeister's Beauty X Whirlwind Tour. Like most of this type, it has shown little interest in parenthood. For show aficionados, its ASI code is OGB+.