J^EW York Agricultural Experiment Station. 441 



SOME PLANTS THAT ARE KNOWN TO BE^ OR MAT PE0Y3 TO BE, 

 BENEFITED BY CROSSING. 



The tomato is not the ideal plant to cross for it requires care 

 and time to make many crosses, but its compensating factors are 

 the large number of seeds produced by a single fruit and the 

 increased yield of the hybrids. The cheapness of the production 

 of tomato seed will depend upon the number of seed borne by a 

 variety, and consequently, the nearly seedless varieties will be 

 the more expensive to produce. Corn is without a doubt the ideal 

 plant to cross ; for the staminate and pistillate blossoms are widely 

 separated — the former being borne by the tassels and the latter 

 by the ears — the silks being the pistils. The crossing of maize 

 may be accomplished by simply planting the varieties or strains 

 in alternating rows, and as soon as the tassels appear, remove 

 them from one variety and allow wind to perform the pollinating. 

 It is essential that other varieties not wanted for crossing are 

 distantly located from the breeding plat or undesirable mixtures 

 will certainly appear. 



Among the Cucurbitaceae are found monoecious plants, as 

 squash, melon and cucumber, which are easily crossed and aro 

 prolific in seed production. If the beneficial effect of crossing 

 holds for this family, it will certainly be a valuable addition to 

 the list of plants known to be improved by hybridizing. 



A very important field lies open to the investigators, who have 

 the opportunity and the patience to select the best strains or pure 

 lines from the complex composition of varieties propagated by 

 seed, and who have the ability to recombine these strains in such 

 a way as to obtain the highest awards given by nature. 



BIBLIOGRAPHY. 



(1) Beal, W. J. Changing seeds. Mich. State Bd. Agr. Rpt. 15: 206-207, 



1876. 

 (2) The improvement of grains, fruits and vegetables. Mich. 



State Bd. Agr. Rpt. 17: 445-457, 1878. 

 (3) Experiments in cross-breeding plants of the same variety. 



Am. Journ. Arts and 8ci. Ill, 17: 343-345. 1879. 

 ( 4 ) Crossing with foreign stock. Mich. State Bd. Agr. Rpt. 



19: 287, 288. 1880. 



