420 



The Journal of Heredity 



4. Increase in Si-:-e of Fruit Cluster 



The success of our efforts to increase 

 the size of fruit cluster by intercrossing 

 emphasizes how easy it sometimes is, in 

 plant-brccdinj^, to get combined im- 

 provement along several lines, jarovided 

 these are not antagonistic. The efforts 

 just described to increase productiveness 

 by increasing the size of flower cluster 

 necessarily resulted also in increasing 

 the size of fruit cluster. Again, the 

 transformation of the large male-ty])c 

 bloom into a perfect hermaphrodite 

 bloom has resulted in increasing the 

 size of fruit cluster. A third way in 

 which intercrossing has resulted in 

 increased size of fruit cluster is through 

 the pollination of small-clustered varie- 

 ties with i^ollen from the largest- 

 clustered male seedling in. groups of 

 seedlings descended from the largest- 

 clustered fruiting varieties. 



While a considerable increase in size 

 of fruit cluster has been obtained by 

 intercrossing and selection among result- 

 ing seedlings, the greatest progress along 

 this line is to be expected from 

 hybridizing with the large-clustered 

 species of Eiivitis. 



5. Better Berry Adherence 



From a commercial standpoint, our 

 im])ro\-ement of the adherence of berry 

 to ])edicel by intercrossing is of great 

 imixjrtance, since it makes possible 

 the shii:>pin.g of desirable varieties to 

 distant markets. The standard Musca- 

 dine table varieties can not be success- 

 fully shipjjcd, because the berries tend 

 to shatter from the pedicels and in 

 doing so the skin frequently breaks at 

 the jjoint of attachment, allowing juice 

 to exude. This juice coats the berries, 

 making them unattractive, sticky, and 

 fermenty. Certain other varieties too 

 coarse for table use and therefore unde- 

 sirable for shii)ping, notably Flowers, 

 have excellent berry adherence owing 

 to full develo])ment of the fibrovascular 

 bundles connecting the berry with the 

 pedicel. By using male seedlings of 

 Flowers and similar varieties in crosses 

 with Scu])i)ernong, Thomas, and other 

 high-f|uality varieties f)f jjoor adherence, 

 some desirable new ty|)es have been 



secured which combine quality and 

 adherence. 



6. Increased Sus,ar and Decreased Acid 

 Content 



The principal means used of reducing 

 acid content has been to use parents 

 and select offspring having a minimum 

 of puljj juice and a inaximum of so- 

 called free-run juice, /. e., the juice 

 between skin and pulp of berry, as 

 most of the acid content of the total 

 juice of Muscadine and other native 

 grapes occurs within the pulp. Sugar 

 content is being increased by using such 

 ]jarents as Latham, Thomas, and Mish. 

 A seedling of Latham parentage repre- 

 sents the greatest advancement in 

 sugar content so far secured, but 

 unfortunately has very small clusters. 

 It is confidently believed that one or 

 two more seedling generations will yield 

 marked results in the effort to increase 

 sweetness and reduce acidity. In this 

 direction, however, greatest results are 

 to be expected from hybridization with 

 V. vinifera, the European grape. 



7. Improved Pulp Quality 



A number of seedlings of different 

 parentages have been selected as having 

 improved pulp qualities (smoothness, 

 softness, and free liberation of seed.) 

 In one lot of seedlings, however, the 

 improvement has been especially 

 marked. Among the first seedlings 

 produced, one female seedling was 

 selected as being exceptionally good 

 because it combined with light-colored 

 fruit and excellent berry adherence a 

 remarkably melting pulp. In fact, there 

 was no true i^ulp, the berries being 

 merely globules of fruit juice. The 

 juice, howevet, seemed a little too high 

 in acid, and efforts have since been 

 made to increase the sugar of this tyi)e 

 while maintaining the desirable pulp 

 and other qualities. A male seedling 

 of the same cross as this exceptional 

 one just described has invariably been 

 found to imi)art the melting i)ulp 

 character to its ofTsj^ring. As a result 

 we now have a considerable collection 

 of melting-pulp seedlings of diverse 

 parentage. These fniited for the first 

 tin^e in 1916 and will therefore require 



