126 STUDIES IN INDIAN SUGARCANE SEEDLINGS 



relation between vigour and richness in the juice, a similar tendency ha vine; 

 been noted in indigo and cinchona and doubtless other plants. ^ The whole 

 question is, however, complicated by the fact that the land at Chettipalayam 

 is still largely influenced by having been irrigated by brackish water wells for 

 thirty years and more, and is not of equal suitability for sugarcane growth in 

 different parts. 



It has been noted in the description of the seedlings of previous years that 

 those of some parents lacked vitality. Java and Red Mauritius (and jierhaps 

 B 208) were characterized by great fertility of arrows, and produced enormous 

 numbers of seedlings in the pans, which, however, soon died in spite of every 

 care. In Poovan and Fiji C, on the other hand, the seedlings lived until 

 planting out time and then gradually failed, so that the plot in which they 

 were planted became more and more empt^y towards harvest. It was argued 

 that such varieties would form suitable parents if crossed with hardier kinds, 

 and that, if the seedlings obtained grew with vigour, there would be prima facie 

 evidence that true crosses had been obtained. This line was accordingly taken 

 during the 1914-16 season and a large number of crosses were attenij)ted, chiefly 

 with North Indian canes. Unfortunately, the latter had few open anthers and 

 had to be used as mothers and this particular experiment had to be postponed. 



Owing to the great quantity oijava arrows obtainable at Bangalore, it was 

 decided to obtain pollen from the canes growing there, foi' dusting the local 

 arrows at Coimbatore. This led us to a study of the pollen and its vitality. 

 Unexpected difficulties were, however, encountered, in that sugarcane pollen 

 proved very hard to germinate in any of the media usually employed for this 

 purpose, and it was of course necessary to germinate it in oidei' to test its 

 keeping (jualities. Some success was ultimately obtained by ciiishing the 

 stigmas of wild plants flowering at the time, and germinations seem to succeed 

 especially with solutions prepared from the flowers of the juickly pear and 

 Porfia tree {Thespesia po^nilnea). Pollen of Sacc/iarum spoulatieutn appeared 

 to retain its vitality much longer than expected, and after 14 days some ol tlic 

 grains still germinated in these solutions. The sending of the pollen by ]>ost 

 would a])pear to be feasible in small gelatine capsules which are easily pro- 

 curable and can be readily trans]uitted without any chance of the polh^n 

 drying up. 



As a large number of arrows were obtained from Bangalore, it was con- 

 sidered advisable also to test the vitality of cane seed, usually regarded as 



' Barber, C A., Some Difiiciiltics in tlip Iiiiprovciucnl of Indian SuKiUcancs. Anmth of 

 Applied Biology, a'oI. I, uos. 3 & 4, Jan. 1915, i\ 21-1. 



