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Darwin, C. R. in correspondent 
Gardeners’ Chronicle in correspondent 
1850-1859::1857 in date 
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From:
Charles Robert Darwin
To:
Gardeners’ Chronicle
Date:
[after 28 Feb 1857]
Source of text:
Gardeners’ Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette , 7 March 1857, p. 155
Summary:

Reports that he fertilised a single pale red carnation with the pollen of a crimson Spanish pink, and a Spanish pink with the pollen of the same carnation. He got seed from both crosses and raised many seedlings. There was no difference between the seedlings from reciprocal crosses, not one plant set a single seed.

Contributor:
Darwin Correspondence Project
From:
Charles Robert Darwin
To:
Gardeners’ Chronicle
Date:
[before 13 June 1857]
Source of text:
Gloucestershire Archives (T. C. Morton deposit D1021/8/4)
Summary:

Requests information from readers on breeding of dun or mouse-coloured ponies with a dark stripe down their backs. Must one or both parents be dun?

Contributor:
Darwin Correspondence Project
From:
Charles Robert Darwin
To:
Gardeners’ Chronicle
Date:
[before 25 July 1857]
Source of text:
Gardeners’ Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette , 25 July 1857, p. 518
Summary:

CD has saved an enormous amount of labour since he replaced the chain on his deep well with wire rope. He now asks readers whether they have had experience of saving on the weight of the bucket by using some material other than oak.

Contributor:
Darwin Correspondence Project
From:
Charles Robert Darwin
To:
Gardeners’ Chronicle
Date:
18 Oct [1857]
Source of text:
Gardeners’ Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette , 24 October 1857, p. 725
Summary:

Describes his experiments with kidney beans to test the agency of bees in their fertilisation. His results suggest they are essential.

Asks what George Swayne could mean by the advantage of artificial fertilisation of early beans [Trans. Hortic. Soc. Lond. 5 (1824): 208–13].

Has observed that hive-bees, which normally suck nectar from the flower of the kidney bean, will use holes cut through the calyx by humble-bees, though the holes cannot be seen from the mouth of the flower. Suggests hive-bees see humble-bees at work and understand what they are doing and "rationally" take advantage of the shorter path to the nectar. [See also 2359.]

Contributor:
Darwin Correspondence Project
From:
Charles Robert Darwin
To:
Gardeners’ Chronicle
Date:
[before 12 Nov 1857]
Source of text:
Gardeners’ Chronicle and Agricultural Gazette , 14 November 1857, p. 779
Summary:

Asks writer of an article on weeds why he supposes "there is too much reason to believe that foreign seed of an indigenous species is often more prolific than that grown at home?" The point is of interest to CD "in regard to the great battle of life which is perpetually going on all around us". Cites analogous observations by Asa Gray and J. D. Hooker. Does writer know "of any other analogous cases of a weed introduced from another land beating out … a weed previously common in any particular field or farm?"

Contributor:
Darwin Correspondence Project