Dear Sir

I have read with great interest y^r two articles at the Congress, published in the Gardener’s Chron., copies of which I owe to the kindness of some one with the initial “D”, perhaps to you.¹ I have thought that you w^d perhaps excuse my asking you a question. Is the D. of Cornwall Pelargonium fertile with its own pollen, as well as with that of the 2 or 3 vars mentioned by you, whilst it is sterile with other reputed vars? Or is the Duke sterile with its own pollen & fertile only with certain vars? This latter fact is highly remarkable & w^d deserve to be published in full detail—i.e. the number of trials on father’s & mother’s side &c. But the former case w^d be quite new, & in my opinion of the highest importance. Might I also ask whether you have repeatedly tried to fertilize other vars of the Ivy-leaved Pelarg., besides Peltatum-elegans, with pollen of the Zonal, & have always failed; whilst, as I understand, you have succeeded easily with var. peltatum.² Very few such cases have been recorded, & here again I hope to see full details hereafter published.³

Your statement that the transmittance of characters from either parent depends in large part on strength of constitution is quite new to me;⁴ & it w^d be very interesting to discover whether the same rule holds with other families of plants. With respect to transmittance of character, when both parents are of equally good constitution, I sh^d expect from what little I know that different rules w^d hold in diff^t families.⁵ If you are not already acquainted with Gärtner’s 2 works, you w^d find them valuable & interesting.⁶

I hope that you will forgive the liberty I have taken in troubling you, & I remain with much respect | Dear Sir | yours faithfully | Charles Darwin