THE CROSS-BREEDING OF PEACHES AND NECTARINES. 468 
THE CROSS-BREEDING OF PEACHES AND NECTARINES. 
By H. Somers Rivers, F.R.H.S. 
Havine so little definite result to point out in the breeding of fruits, I 
feel rather an impostor in undertaking to make some remarks on the 
subject. 
I do not mean definite result as regards new varieties of fruits which 
have proved of value, but as to relationship, inheritance of characters, and 
so forth. 
The time which elapses before a seedling’tree can be judged by its 
fruits, and the space it occupies whilst arriving at maturity, militate 
against experiments being carried out on a sufficiently large scale. There 
is no direct commercial gain to justify any great outlay in obtaining new 
fruits. When a new fruit is once known and of proved value, it is quickly 
propagated ; the raiser has no monopoly. 
I propose to deal with peaches and nectarines, since it is with regard 
to the cross-fertilisation of these that I have the fullest data. With the 
older varieties raised at Sawbridgeworth, record was kept only of the seed- 
parent. Indeed, at first the pollen-parent was entirely disregarded, but 
as many varieties of peaches and nectarines were grown together in the 
different houses, the bees must have cross-fertilised them. 
In a paper my grandfather read in 1866 at the International Horti- 
cultural Exhibition and Botanical Congress, “On Raising Peaches, 
Nectarines, and other Fruits from Seed,” he stated that his idea forty 
years before was that the old varieties of fruits would reproduce them- 
selves in an improved form if successive generations were raised from 
seed. Later, though the crossing was carefully effected between the two 
selected parents, no note was made of the pollen-parent, the offspring 
being recorded with the name of its mother only. 
From the peach blossom which has been cross-fertilised this spring, 
we may confidently expect to be able to judge the result of the combina- 
tion ten years hence ; if nothing untoward has happened to the seedling in 
the meantime, possibly a year or two sooner. The seeds do not always 
germinate the first year. To ensure this early fruition of one’s hopes, the 
tree must be carefully tended and grown under glass; by the time it is 
four or five years old, it takes up as much room in the orchard-house as 
would a pot tree which is giving a good crop of fruit and requires as much 
attention. Probably, after all, the new variety will have no special merit 
to warrant its retention, and, of no use for firewood, the tree will be burnt 
on the rubbish-heap. 
It is a labour of Sisyphus, but the stone occasionally lodges on the top 
of the hill. 
