THE ROYAL WALNUT 63 



The European tree had been introduced in 

 California a number of years before the time of 

 my experiments, where it thrives and produces 

 abundant fruitage. I had heard of a supposed 

 natural European hybrid walnut, and I deter- 

 mined to make the experiment of fertilizing the 

 flowers of the California species with pollen 

 from the Persian. 



The experiment itself presented no particular 

 difficulties and the results were of a striking 

 character. 



The nuts that grew from the hybridized 

 flowers were to all appearance unchanged. 

 This, of course, is quite what might have been 

 expected, for the influence of foreign pollen on 

 the ovum of a plant manifests itself in the innate 

 qualities of the seed, and not in the exterior 

 qualities of the fruit immediately produced. But 

 when the hybrid nuts were planted the following 

 season, a part of the seedlings that sprang from 

 them showed at once the effects of the inter- 

 mingling of racial strains. 



As compared with seedlings of either the 

 California or the • Persian walnut, they mani- 

 fested an enormously enhanced capacity for 

 growth. Indeed, they sprang forward at such 

 a rate as presently to totally dwarf their pure- 

 breed relatives. 



