POLLINATION AND STERILITY 293 



which immediately develops. The experiments seem to es- 

 tablish rather thoroughly that the color or markings of a 

 fruit are not affected by the pollen used in fertilization, 

 and neither is the flavor, quality, acidity, or "sweetness." 

 That some of these characteristics are materially changed is 

 sometimes reported but they do not seem to be well authen- 

 ticated; at least such changes have not been observed under 

 controlled conditions. Careful observations have been made 

 to determine whether color of fruit could be modified by the 

 pollen parent. The conclusion is reached that color in the 

 innnediate cross is not directly influenced by the kind of 

 pollen used, since any such effect must be found within the 

 seed (endosperm) and there is no opportunity for an influ- 

 ence on the fleshy portion. 



It is not uncommon to see fruits in which the color shows 

 distinct "banding." This has been explained as a somatic 

 segregation of the characters for color, permitting a more or 

 less independent manifestation of them. The several colors 

 may appear as bands more or less parallel or a band of but 

 one color surrounded by the normal color. ^ 



The results reported in regard to size and shape, however, 

 are not in harmony. It is possible that under varying con- 

 ditions the outcome may be different. Fletcher ^ states that 

 his investigations (mostly with apples and pears) show that 

 there is "no immediate effect of pollen, and no differences 

 obviously due to mutual affinity. The cross-fertilized fruits 

 have averaged about the same in size, shape, color, and 

 quality regardless of the pollen used." Wicks ^ comes to a 

 similar conclusion from his studies with the apple. He 



^ For further details see Kraus, E. J. "Bud variation in relation to 

 fruit markings." Biennial Crop Pest and Horticultural Report. 

 1911-12. Ore. Agr. Exp. Sta. 



2 Va. Agr. Exp. Sta. Ann. Kept. 1909-10. pp. 213, 224. 



»Ark. Agr. Exp. Sta. Bull. 143 (Technical). 1918. 



