Experiments in Crossing a Wild Pea from Palestine with Commercial Peas. 3 



N.B. The Pea most nearly resembling this wild type from Palestine in general 

 habit of growth appears to be one which I obtained a few years ago from Kew 

 under the name of Pisum quadratum, which, like the former, has no colour in the 

 axils. Pisum quadratum, however, is a little stronger in growth, the blooms are 

 bicoloured instead of self-coloured, and the edges of the leaflets are practically 

 entire. The seeds, which are very small, also differ from those of the Palestine 

 Pea in being still rounder and not so dark in colour. 



Tschermak had a Pea from Tadin of Svalof which had coloured flowers, but with- 

 out colour in the axils. (Zts.f. d. landw. Versuchstvesen in Oesterr., 1902, p. 24). 

 This is probably identical with a Pea I had 

 from Svalof under the name of " Soloart," 

 which grew to a height of 6 to 7 feet and much 

 resembled the " Dun " field Pea, except that 

 it had no colour in the axils. It is, however, 

 perfectly distinct from the Pisum quadratum 

 and the Palestine Pea. These three Peas (the 

 Palestine, Pisum quadratum from Kew, and 

 the Soloart) are the only instances known to 

 me of Peas having coloured flowers but with- 

 out colour in the axils. 



In 1905 and during successive years the 

 Palestine Pea was grown in the Reading 

 Experimental Grounds, and each year, as 

 opportunity permitted, crosses were made 

 between it and various forms of white- 

 flowering culinary Peas (Pisum sativum) and 

 between various forms of coloured-flowering 

 Peas (Pisum arvense). 



The method of culture adopted both for 

 the pure strain of Palestine Pea and for the 

 the hybrids was to sow the seeds in pots in gentle heat and afterwards to transplant 

 to the open ground. 



Altogether 40 crosses are here recorded, 24 being with white-flowering culinary 

 types (forms of Pisum sativum) and 16 with coloured-flowering types (forms of 

 Pisum arvense). In some of the crosses the Palestine Pea was used as the pollen 

 parent and in others as the seed-bearing parent. Of these 40 crosses it was only 

 found possible to continue the progeny of four to F3 (or farther), two of these 

 being hybrids with the white-flowering types and two with the coloured-flowering 

 types, and of these four hybrids only three are being grown during the year of 

 writing (1911). 



The fourth fertile cross (with a white-flowering type) was grown on to F4 and 

 then by accident lost. It is described under " Crosses with degenerate plants 

 produced by large-podded English Garden Peas." 



A FEW OBSERVATIONS CONCERNING THE HYBRIDS. 

 Seeds Fl. 



When the Palestine Pea was used as the pollen parent the resulting seeds of the 



Fig. 2. Pods and Foliage of Palestine Pea, 



to show serration of leaflets and email 



size of pods. 



