﻿Unbalanced 
  Crosses 
  265 
  

  

  the 
  ordinary 
  lucerne. 
  It 
  always 
  comes 
  true 
  

   from 
  seed 
  and 
  may 
  be 
  seen 
  in 
  a 
  wild 
  state 
  in 
  

   parks 
  and 
  on 
  lawns. 
  It 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  oldest 
  

   hybrids 
  with 
  a 
  pure 
  and 
  known 
  lineage. 
  The 
  

   original 
  cross 
  has 
  been 
  repeated 
  by 
  Urban, 
  who 
  

   found 
  the 
  hybrid 
  race 
  to 
  be 
  constant 
  from 
  the 
  

   beginning. 
  

  

  Another 
  very 
  notorious 
  constant 
  hybrid 
  race 
  

   is 
  the 
  Aegilops 
  spelt 
  aeformis. 
  It 
  has 
  been 
  

   cultivated 
  in 
  botanic 
  gardens 
  for 
  more 
  than 
  

   half 
  a 
  century, 
  mostly 
  in 
  annual 
  or 
  biennial 
  

   generations. 
  It 
  is 
  sufficiently 
  fertile 
  and 
  al- 
  

   ways 
  comes 
  true. 
  Numerous 
  records 
  have 
  

   been 
  made 
  of 
  it, 
  since 
  formerly 
  it 
  was 
  believed 
  

   by 
  Fabre 
  and 
  others 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  spontaneous 
  transi- 
  

   tion 
  from 
  some 
  wild 
  species 
  of 
  grass 
  to 
  the 
  ordi- 
  

   nary 
  wheat, 
  not 
  a 
  cross. 
  Godron, 
  however, 
  

   showed 
  that 
  it 
  can 
  be 
  produced 
  artificially, 
  and 
  

   how 
  it 
  has 
  probably 
  sprung 
  into 
  existence 
  

   wherever 
  it 
  is 
  found 
  wild. 
  The 
  hybrid 
  between 
  

   Aegilops 
  ovata, 
  a 
  small 
  weed, 
  and 
  the 
  common 
  

   wheat 
  is 
  of 
  itself 
  sterile, 
  producing 
  no 
  good 
  pol- 
  

   len. 
  But 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  fertilized 
  by 
  the 
  pollen 
  of 
  

   wheat 
  and 
  then 
  gives 
  rise 
  to 
  a 
  secondary 
  

   hybrid, 
  which 
  is 
  no 
  other 
  than 
  the 
  Aegilops 
  

   spelt 
  aeformis. 
  This 
  remained 
  constant 
  in 
  God- 
  

   ron 
  's 
  experiments 
  during 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  genera- 
  

   tions, 
  and 
  has 
  been 
  constant 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  present 
  

   time. 
  

  

  