If you plant seeds from hybrids you will get very varied results. Plant
enough ( hundreds ? ) and you might get a few decent ones, one or two
outstanding ones, and the remaining hundreds will be dire. This is how
the breeders do it. They plant hundreds, find the few outstanding ones
then propagate vegetatively - or aquire "sports" ( chance genetic
mutations) from Joe Public and again propagate vegetatively. Not all
these will be stable and may revert over time to indifferent forms.

You might complain about the prices of named hybrids, but they are very
expensive to produce and a high proportion of the outlay can never be
recovered as the results are not suitable for sale. Also several
generations may have to be raised to reassure the grower that the
cultivar is stable ( and robust enough to survive normal garden
conditions).

It is like a pharmaceutical company producing a new drug - the R & D
costs are immense.

.........and no I do not work in horticulture - but I am happy to pay
the price to get a good plant.

Malcolm






kaspian wrote:

Yeah, I dig all that, and I'm sorry if my query was unclear. What I'm
curious about is what MIGHT come out of the genetic lottery in these
cases -- which is why I wondered if anybody has experience with raising
seedlings from the new hybrids. As I mused above, it seems to me that
with these interesting gene combinations bouncing around, you might get
something unusual.

I would say strictly speaking that it can't be the *seed* companies
making money from these plants, but rather the original breeders who
(at least in the case of varieties protected by plant patents) control
the propagation rights, and secondarily the vendors who seem to be
charging $15 or so for a single plant.

Also, with regard to coming true from seed, there is the special case
of F1 hybrids, which do come quite true to type as a result of
laborious breeding and hand-pollination, and are priced accordingly. I
used to raise geraniums from T&M seed every year, but it isn't really
much cheaper than buying young plants from the garden center.


On 2006-11-04 03:50:57 -0500, "Laura at theGardenPages"
said:

The only way to get the same exact plant it to root cuttings.
Hybrid seeds won't grow true. Generally, the plant won't match the
hybrid parent. From a Seed Company standpoint that's sort of the point
of a hybrid. You can only get if from them and they can trademark
their product.
sorry!


--

Wundern kann es mich night, das unser Herr Christus mit Dernen
Gern und mit Sündern gelebt, geht's mir doch eben auch so.

I can't be surprised that our Lord, Jesus Christ, liked to hang out
With sinners and harlots. That's how it is with me, too.
-- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, 1749-1832