Laboratory Work in Plant Breeding. 277 



LABORATORY WORK IN PLANT BREEDING. 

 By R. A. Emerson, Lincoln, Neb. 



Importance of Laboratory Work. 



It is perhaps unnecessary to say that at least a part of the in- 

 struction in any systematic course in plant breeding should be given 

 by the laboratory method. True, the average student of plant breeding 

 can learn much about practical methods and about principles upon 

 which these methods are based from lectures and systematic reading, 

 but he will certainly become more expert in practical methods and 

 obtain a clearer insight into the underlying principles if his library 

 and class-room work is supplemented by regular laboratory exercises. 



As regards instruction in practical methods the truth of the above 

 statement is obvious. No one for instance would attempt to give in- 

 struction in the selection of seed corn by lectures alone no matter how 

 well they might be illustrated by charts and photographs, provided 

 he could arrange for actual practice work. It is largely on account of 

 this fact that work in corn judging is provided for in our agricultural 

 schools. When we come to the other phase of instruction, however, 

 when we attempt to teach the principles of plant breeding, too many 

 of us depend almost wholly upon work in the lecture room and library. 

 An opportunity to work with the plants themselves is just as import- 

 ant to the student who is studying principles as to the one studying 

 practical methods. For instance, the student who has a chance to 

 hybridize a few plants and grow the hybrids for two or three gener- 

 ations will be benefitted more by this work than he could possibly be 

 by an equal amount of time spent in reading about hybrids. His 

 reading afterward will mean more to him for he has some experience 

 of his own with which to compare the results reported by others. 

 Moreover, work along this line with the plants themselves is decidedly 

 ahead of lectures and books in creating enthusiasm on the part of the 

 student. I doubt if there is anything the student will watch with more 

 interest than a hybrid which he himself has made. If the beginner is 

 not tempted to poke in to the first flower bud on his new hybrid in- 



