A PROMISING VAKIETV FOK THE GRAPE BREEDER 



The clusters of Luola, above shown, arc really respectable in size, and it also has a fairly good 

 flavor. As rotuntlifolia grapes are admirably adapted to the section in which they grow 

 wild, it is believed that the production of a few superior varieties will ensure a very large 

 industry in the Carolinas and neighboring States. (Fig. 4.) 



Vitis rotundifolia drops from the \inc 

 as soon as it ripens. There are some 

 vines, however, whose fruit chngs more 

 tenaciously to the pedicels than many a 

 grape of the so-called bunching varieties. 

 In this case it again is simply a matter of 

 transmitting this character by careful 

 crossing to the desired seedling vines. 



In this .same way all of the many 

 other desirable characters from other 

 varieties but of the same species can be 

 assemliled, or corralled as it were, the 

 undesirable ones eliminated, and the 

 resultant seedling would still be a 

 rotundifolia gra})e vine true to type. 



The out-crossing method for the 

 improvement of this group of gra])es 

 consists essentially of the crossing of 

 .selected vines with those of a related 

 species, thereby introducing characters 

 that arc foreign to the grouj). This is 

 often a more ra]Md method for securing 

 improvement but to the breeder the 



254 



i(lenlit\- of the species is thereby lost 

 either in part or altogether. The 

 general public, however, cares little 

 about such fine points in methods of 

 achievement and is interested only iti 

 the final product, a good table grajie. 



TECHNIQUE IN CROSSING 



The reader, it is presinned, is suffi- 

 ciently informed as to the methods that 

 are generally used in the crossing of 

 flowers, therefore I shall dwell chiefly on 

 l)oints which may be a departure from 

 the general rule and which might be 

 ai)i)lical)le specifically to Vitis rotundi- 

 Jolia. 



(irai)e pollen may be gathered and 

 handled in several dilTerent ways. One 

 method that was found to be very 

 convenient is the following. Pollen 

 material is best collected in the morning 

 hours, between 7 and 9 o'clock, because 

 at this lime of dav verv few if anv of the 



