40 REPORT OF THE CONFERENCE ON GENETICS. 
it would probably give some very good results. I successfully tried its 
hybridisation with the red Rosa rugosa, and the result is a bush some three 
feet high, broadly pyramidal, with plenty of blossoms of a light yellowish- 
pink, produced from July to the frosts. Many other combinations might 
be tried. 
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Somer DETAILS IN THE HISTORY OF THE CROSS-BREEDING OF THE PoTATO 
FROM THE YEAR 1876 up TO THE PRESENT TIME WITH THE WILD 
“ SonanumM FENDLERI”’ (?), SENT TO Mr. FENN FROM GUADALJARA IN 
New Mexico sy Mr. C. G. PrinauE In 1874. By Ropert Fenn, 
V.M.H., SuLHAMSTEAD, READING. 
In 1874 Lord Cathcart’s potato ‘Magna’ was fertilised with pollen 
from ‘Magnum Bonum.’ A seedling was obtained from this cross and 
was called ‘Antagonist’ on account of its being at once put into a com- 
petitive trial with the Scotch ‘Champion,’ which it beat in respect of both 
crop and disease-resisting power. 
In 1876 S. Fendleri was fertilised with pollen from ‘ Antagonist.’ 
This experiment was repeated for no less than seventeen years and a 
seedling at last obtained. 
This seedling was fertilised with pollen from ‘ Rector of Woodstock,’ 
which had received a First-class Certificate from the R.H.S. The result 
of this cross (Sj) was very encouraging, though not yet considered 
sufficiently good for commerce. 
In 1896 S, was fertilised with pollen from ‘ International Kidney.’ 
This again succeeded, and in August 1897 a number of resultant tubers 
(S3) were lifted, showing a distinctly progressive result. 
S;, however, still throws out too wild-long stolons, bearing the tubers 
too far away from the parent plant. This tendency has still to be 
corrected by crossing them again, and perhaps again, and perhaps yet still 
again. 
[Mr. Fenn, though now over ninety years of age, still hopes to live 
to do this work, as he considers that the crossing of potatos from the 
North American continent with those from South America ought to 
prove very valuable by giving us a new strain—new blood, as it were— 
from a new latitude. 
The Solanum Fendleri referred to by Mr. Fenn is almost certainly 
not the true S. Fendleri Heurck and Muell. Arg. from the region of 
Panama, but S. twberoswm var. boreale Gray (once published by Dr. Asa 
Gray as S. Fendleri). But Mr. Fenn’s plant, although thus reduced to a 
simple northward variety-extension of S. twberoswm, and not a distinet 
species, would bring in “new blood ” all the same, from the mere fact of its 
having been established for unknown ages in its northern habitat.—Eb.] 
he 
2 te 
Exnipit oF Peas py Artaur W. Sutton, V.M.H., Reapina. 
1 Seeds of the pure wild pea collected in Palestine. 
2. A most interesting plant raised from one of the seeds. 
8. Plants of hybrid peas. 
ar x * 
