1 24 BOTANY AND INTENSIVE CULTIVATION 



Biffen was able to concentrate in one individual 

 characters belonging to different varieties of wheat 

 to join together in fruitful union the disease 

 resistance of the one variety and the prolificness 

 of the other! 



The combination of characters present in dif- 

 ferent individuals is fast becoming a routine practice 

 in plant breeding, and the production of such things 

 as early, hardy, marrow fat peas, early-maturing 

 maize, wilt resistant melons, gives certain promise 

 that the science of genetics, founded by Mendel, 

 baptised and proclaimed by Bateson and practised 

 by an ever increasing number of other workers here 

 and abroad, is destined to play a great part in 

 intensive cultivation. 



If we turn to consider another important recent 

 discovery, the enhanced fertility of partially steri- 

 lized soil, we arrive no less surely at the conclusion 

 that applied science only flourishes in soil rendered 

 fertile by the spade-work of pure science. 



The credit of the discovery that soil sterilized or 

 partially sterilized by heat yields larger crops is due 

 to Dr Russell and his co-workers at Rothamstead ; 

 for although the advantages of soil-sterilization were 

 known already to sundry growers of plants under 

 glass the benefits accruing to crops as a result of 

 that practice were discovered independently by 

 Russell and first demonstrated and published by him. 

 Moreover Russell pursued his enquiry from results 

 to causes and has been able to propound a simple 



