ANNUAL REPORT. 1940 89 



desirable character ot being hard to pick. About 25 lines were grown 

 and many were discarded as undesirable. 



Wyman Crosby Beet. The seed crop of this beet, which was to be sent to 

 growers for trial, was almost a failure. As the seed becomes available, 

 it will be put on trial. 



Of the 12 self-pollinated lines grown this season, 2 were definitely out- 

 standing as to internal color. Several were discarded because they were 

 too light in color. 



A change has been made in the technique of growing and selecting the 

 best beet roots to better show up those specimens lacking in proper color. 

 This diflferent method will also speed up the program through the pro- 

 duction of seed in the greenhouse. 



Green Sprouting Broccoli. In the spring crop of broccoli 14 selfed, selected 

 plants were compared to the 15 best commercial lines. There has been 

 extreme variation in the time required for broccoli plants to produce a 

 head, but comparing the two groups as a whole there was not much 

 difference in their behavior. At the time of the first cutting, 33 percent 

 of the plants in each group were harvested. In some lines in the selected 

 group, as high as 85 percent of the plants were harvested. In the best 

 commercial line, less than 50 percent of the plants were cut. Three weeks 

 later, at the time of the last cutting, less than 5 percent of the plants in 

 the best selection had not matured a head. This planting demonstrates 

 the need for a better strain, and many selected plants were lifted from 

 the field and self-pollinated. 



Some of the same seed used for the spring crop was planted for fall. 

 The best lines in the spring crop were not the best in the fall, indicating 

 the need of two strains for the two seasons. Hybrids have been made 

 between some of the best types and the early, poorly headed types obtained 

 from Itah". Growers have contributed strains on which they have done 

 work, and crosses have been made with these types to provide a redistri- 

 bution of characters. 



Greenhouse Cucumbers. During the year the work with cucumbers has 

 been to collect all the desirable types possible from local growers and 

 seedsmen which were not on hand from last year. These lines were grown 

 in the field and self-pollinated to true up the lines before hybridizatioi^. 

 work. Mosaic was very severe in the field and only the early fruits were 

 of value. A spring crop was grown in the greenhouse and some of the 

 lines tested. From the vigor and yield of one hybrid under trial, it would 

 seem that hybrid seed which growers could produce themselves would 

 solve the problem of a better cucumber. The work of determining the 

 best parents for such a cross will be continued in the greenhouse and field. 



Rhuba]-b. In an attempt to find a better forcing rhubarb, a collection of 

 varieties has been assembled and preliminary forcing studies made in one 

 of the growers' forcing houses. Some of the strains had better color 

 than Victoria, the variety generally used locally, but most of the strains 

 did not have high yield. Keeping quality after harvest was studied and 

 it was found that wrapping the rhubarb in moisture-proof cellulose sheets 

 prevented deterioration. Further study on the variety problem is needed. 



