336 REPORT OF THE CONFERENCE ON GENETICS. 
THE BREEDING OF OATS, BARLEY, AND WHEAT. 
By Professor C. A. Zavirz, Ontario Agricultural College, 
Guelph, Canada. 
THE fact that this international convention on hybridisation and plant- 
breeding, representing more than a dozen of the different countries of the 
world, is now being held in London gives some indication of the interest 
which is being taken in the study of heredity. ‘There is probably no 
subject which is engaging the attention of the scientific world to a greater 
extent at the present time than that of breeding. It is a subject among 
subjects, and one which is deserving of deep thought and thorough, 
painstaking, and persistent investigation. Not only does it concern the 
affairs of the world from a financial standpoint, but it has an influence 
on life everywhere, whether of animals or of plants. May the discussions 
which are taking place at this international convention stimulate students 
in different parts of the land to assist more and more in the work of 
obtaining that information which will enable the people everywhere to 
understand better the principles of breeding, so that improvements can 
be made in those forms of life which come so much under the influence 
of man. 
That phase of the general subject of plant-breeding allotted to me 
for discussion deals more particularly with the breeding of cereals. I 
shall discuss the subject under four principal headings, namely, the 
selection of varieties, the selection of seed, the selection of plants, and the 
production of hybrids. 
SELECTION OF VARIETIES. 
I am convinced that the proper selection of varieties of cereals is of 
great importance, not only from the farmers’ standpoint, but also as a 
part of the work in the improvement of cereals by plant-breeding. After 
erowing, examining, and ascertaining the comparative productiveness of 
over two thousand varieties of farm crops in each of five years, and then 
observing the behaviour of some of those varieties in general cultivation, 
I wish to emphasise strongly the importance of variety in this work. 
Certainly great differences exist between different varieties of grain crops— 
in length of straw, strength of straw, date of maturity, susceptibility to 
rust, productiveness, quality of grain, and in many other respects. As 
some breeds of live stock have been bred for many years to fulfil certain 
purposes, so have many varieties of farm crops been raised for long 
periods of time with different objects in view. Some varieties are well 
adapted to rich loamy soils, others to heavy clay land, and still others 
to soil of a light character. For instance, in Ontario it would be unwise 
to grow the Joanette oats on a light weak soil or the Black Tartarian 
oats on a rich bottom land. It would be equally unwise to grow the 
