More patterns and new seedlings today

This is seedling 8110 on its second bloom - not quite as
dramatic as day 1, but still very interesting - someone thought
the marks look like giant Sequoia trees. More blooms to come,
and I wonder what look it will have next. The seedling below
(6410) has the same pollen parent as 8110. Note the lighter
"watery" pattern in the eyezone.

While I'm thinking of eyes, the next one is 12310, a grandkid
of 47607, and the one after that is 10910 - also out of 47607,
which consistently throws what I call "echo" eyes.

Also new for today is this sharky beauty 12510, out of two super
sharky parents - 35502 x 11808.

Seedling 12610 is Born to Run x 36109. (You can see all
the seedlings ending in 09 on the website under 2009 GH
seedlings, 09 under 2008, etc.)

Startling new pattern

New seedling this morning - 8110 - a pattern I have never seen
before (note that continues onto the sepals). No idea how it got
there given its parents, although Desire of Nations makes some
funky looks every once in a while. Anyone have a way to describe
it? See close-ups below plus the 2 parents.

Pictured below is the pod parent 27507. Out of my 8305x6205,

which includes sharky 35502, a double dose of 21303,etc.

The pollen parent is 26709 = (Kingdom Without End x 29504)

x Desire of Nations.

Wish I knew what I did so I could repeat it:-)

Powerful parent

Every once in a while you stumble across a parent that is
magic for you and for others who use it - where a large
percentage of the kids are keepers - like Heartbeat of
Heaven (pictured at the top of the blog). Or a cross of 2
parents where most of their kids are great. And then
there's the flower that comes across perhaps once in a
lifetime - where virtually everything you cross it with
produces beautiful, distinctive faces. (Obviously, not all of
those kids will pass final hardiness and budcount and lack
of spotting tests). For me, that flower is 47607 (below).
Hardy and well-branched and passing that on to its kids.
Not a perfect flower, though, as it starts to open the day
before - so is subject to spotting some days from the dew.
(Because it's such an important parent to take me in new
directions with hardy, well-branched, "neon" eyes, it won't
be introduced any time soon.) Complicated parentage, but
includes Heartbeat of Heaven kids and Fountain of Life.

What follows are just some of the many offspring I've seen
from 47607. In order, they are 0910, 2210, 27609, 17809,
33109,17609,17409. Others previously pictured on the
blog include 1809, 2310, and 13909 (you can find them by
going to the beginning of the blog where it says Search this
blog - a very handy gadget that the website provides).

Easter morning

I love waking up Easter morning to a greenhouse full of
bloom. After downloading the pictures I took this morning,
I discovered that the flowers which had caught my eye tell
the story of Easter. The first flower is COSMIC STRUGGLE -
the battle going on in the world between good and evil.
("Our struggle is not against flesh and blood...but against
the spiritual forces of evil...")

VIA DOLOROSA (meaning Way of Suffering) was the path
that Jesus walked, carrying his cross, on the way to his
crucifixion.

On Easter, He rose and became our DELIVERER.

And our STORM SHELTER (shelter from the storm).

Today's favorites

One of my favorite flowers (above) is Kingdom Without End. It's out
of (Tim Kornder x Born to Reign) x Darla Anita. Its rich color comes
from Born to Reign. Perfect every day - no spots, easy and early
opening, self-cleaning, good scape, large flower, good breeder.

I like large flowers in bold colors with velvety, saturated finishes, as can
be seen below in 35208. Note that the sepals are just as saturated as the
petals. Not everyone looks at sepals, but I think they're just as important
as the rest of the flower and can "make or break" it.

Below is new seedling 4110, About 6-1/2", and out of Be Fruitful
and Multiply, Intelligent Design, Entwined in the Vine, etc. I like the
color contrast, the dark velvet eye, the pattern in the sepals and the
green throat.

Neon eyes and more hot pinks and roses

I love neon lavender eyes that look like they could glow in the dark,

like this new one today - 3910. The self color is darker and more saturated

than pictured due to low light levels today, but you get the idea.

Parents are 1909 and 13909 (below), which go back to my

1604, 15207,13107,47607, etc.

Lots of new hot pinks this year. The first one below is 1510, out of

5108 (which goes back to Man of Sorrows, Heartbeat of Heaven,

Shores of Time) x 1209 (out of HOH, SOT, etc). The second is

2710, out of 3409 (HOH, Secret of Contentment, SOT, 47607, etc) x 1209.

A couple blooming from last year (below) are 37209 (5006x36207) and

46109 (34406x36207). Love the lavender pink eyes. Most of the

seedlings numbered are on the website. Wish I could show the

whole lineage, but there are so many seedlings in the mix. The

third picture below is 36207, which is in both of them. It's great to
finally have a critical mass of hardy pinks to work with. In my early

years, I tried to get hot pinks using the stunning pink Tet Painted Rose

from Tom Wilson and crossed it with Pat Stamile's pinks. No hardiness

in the line, so am back at it more than 10 years later on firmer ground.

Be still my heart

What a day it was! Seedling 34709 from last year (above) was
really showing its stuff as I entered the greenhouse, and it ended
up being put on the pinks and roses and reds. And then I saw the
heart-stopper below. I promptly gave it a number (2310) and
began spreading its pollen to the music of the Messiah.

Two exceptionally nice pinks also bloomed for the first time, now
numbered 1610 and 1110. The paler one is out of Arctic Lace and
a hot rose seedling. The season has sure started out in an exciting way:-)