146 BREEDING CROP PLANTS 



Later more attention was given to the selection of parents on the 

 basis of habit of growth, fruitfulness, and position of pods. The 

 necessity of a selection of parents on the basis of desired char- 

 acters can not be over-emphasized. Whippoorwill and New Era 

 are desirable varieties with respect to the three characters men- 

 tioned above. 1 The variety Monetta was the best segregate 

 obtained by Orton from a cross between Whippoorwill and Iron. 

 Brabham, a variety which has consistently shown itself superior 

 to Monetta, is the result of the same cross made by a farmer. 

 Both of these varieties of hybrid origin possess disease resistance 

 and to a certain degree the other desirable agronomic characters. 

 More recently Morse, of the Forage Crop Investigations Office, 

 Bureau of Plant Industry, has crossed Brabham with Groit (a 

 hybrid of Whippoorwill and New Era). Victor, one of the segre- 

 gates of this cross, will be distributed in the near future. Con- 

 cerning the merits of this new variety, Piper makes the following 

 statement : 



"Victor cowpea is absolutely resistant to nematodes and wilt, is a tall 

 bushy variety, extremely fruitful, and, all in all, it seems conservative 

 ^o say it is by far the best variety of cowpea ever yet developed." 



SOYBEANS (Soja max) 



Origin. The soybean is of ancient cultivation. Japan, China, 

 Korea, Manchuria, northern India, and the Islands of Java 

 have grown this plant for centuries both as a human food and as 

 feed for animals. In Japan and Manchuria the cultivated soy- 

 bean is erect in growth. Its nearest wild relative is a small- 

 stemmed, trailing plant with smaller flowers, pods and seeds. 

 This wild form is found in Japan, Manchuria, and China. The 

 varieties of soybeans found in India are intermediate between the 

 two types just mentioned. According to Piper and Morse (1910) 

 all inter grades between the wild plant and the cultivated erect 

 form may be found, so there is little doubt that all forms belong 

 to one species (Soja max). 



Classification and Inheritance. The numerous varieties of 

 soybeans show many different combinations of characters. 

 Varieties differ in habit of growth, some being erect, others more 

 procumbent and several truly vining. Color and shape of seed 

 and pods, color of flowers, color of pubescence of the pod and 



1 The following information was furnished by the courtesy of DR. C. V. 

 PIPER. 



