LUTHER BURBANK 
not likely to prove fruitful and satisfactory. 
But of course grafting is only an incidental 
adjunct of the work of the plant developer. The 
impulse to progress must come through hybridiza- 
tion and selection. Here, it appears to me, there 
are great possibilities. I have hybridized the pear 
and the apple; also the pear and the quince. The 
seedlings from these unions have sometimes 
seemed thrifty, but were always infertile. They 
were highly interesting none the less. 
The most successful cross was obtained by us- 
ing the polien of the Bartlett pear upon the 
Gravenstein apple. 
The seedlings from this cross were divergent in 
appearance, and variable as to growth. One of 
the seedlings grew fully as fast as the ordinary 
apple seedling, but most of them had a sickly, 
dwarfed appearance, and some died after having 
made a foot of growth. Three or four of those that 
lived were grafted on an apple tree. They main- 
tained moderate growth for several years, but 
were never healthy or vigorous, and never gave 
any intimation of blooming. 
The results of the crosses between the pear 
and quince were closely similar. From these hy- 
brids also I failed to secure fruit. Some grew with 
great vigor for years, while others almost refused 
to grow at all. In general appearance, and espe- 
[138] 
