1 he Origin of Chrysanthemiun Scgctnm Plenum. 189 



saved 17 seed-parents with 48-67 rays in their terminal 

 inflorescence. From these I collected the seed from the 

 flowers which bloomed in July separately from those 

 whose flowers had opened after the selection had taken 

 place. But from the former specimen I raised only 

 three plants that flowered (with 41-44-47 rays in their 

 terminal head), which evidently could have no effect on 

 the shape of the curve and were soon removed. Fertili- 

 zation in 1899 therefore was again very pure. 



Having arrived at the end of the account of our ex- 

 periment, all that remains is to compare the course of 

 the selective process in this case with the ordinary pro- 

 cess of selection carried out in the improvement of agri- 

 cultural plants. I refer the reader to Fritz Mueller's 

 experiment with the many-rowed maize already de- 

 scribed.-^ 



That the difference is essential will be clear from the 

 description given. In the case of the maize the object 

 was to intensify the racial character (12-14 rows) as 

 much as possible by selection; in the case of the Chry- 

 santhemum the object was to uncover a latent character 

 and to bring this to its full development. In the first 

 case a visible character that had been known for ages 

 had to be increased as much as possible; in the second, 

 according to current conceptions at least, a new char- 

 acter had to be called forth. The 26-28 rowed ears fall 

 within the range of fluctuation of the 12-14 rowed race; 

 and they would without doubt have appeared within it 

 without any selection, if cultures of sufficient extent, 

 which could be calculated beforehand, had been grown 

 (Vol. I, p. 162). 



Without any doubt my crop of 1807 would have 



^ See the pedigree in Vol. I, Fig. i8, p. jt^. 



