Seeds for the Garden 143 



day to day, carefully replacing bags. When the pistils are pro- 

 truding in abundance, sprinkle pollen over their ends by shaking 

 it from a cluster of staminate flowers (tassels). This operation 

 should be repeated each day for several days, as the pistils do 

 not all mature at the same time. After about 10 days examine 

 again, and if the ends of the pistils are dry and shriveled, the 

 bags may be removed and each ear tagged or otherwise marked 

 for future identification. 



Allow all plants to mature fully. Which ears bear seeds? 

 Which do not? 



9. To learn how to cross-breed corn. Select a stalk of a white 

 or yellow sweet corn (StowelPs Evergreen will do) bearing two 

 ears, and another of Black Mexican also having two ears. (If 

 stalks bearing two ears are not found, select two stalks of each 

 variety.) "Bag" each ear at the proper time as directed above 

 in 8. Pollinate one ear on each stalk with pollen of the other 

 variety, and the other ear with pollen of the plant itself or from 

 another plant of the same variety. Tag the ears. 



Which parent do the hybrid seeds resemble in color ? Can you 

 identify hybrid kernels of this cross when borne by the white 

 seed parent? by the black seed parent? Is black or white a 

 dominating character in this cross? 



Plant some of these cross-bred seeds from both parents. When 

 the plants flower, bag some of the ears and make self-pollinations 

 as directed in 8. Count the black seeds and the white seeds on 

 each ear. Which are more numerous? What is the ratio? 

 Do all ears give the same ratio ? Are there any kernels intermediate 

 in color between black or white, or are there other colors? 



10. To learn how to cross-breed tomatoes. Select a cluster of 

 tomato flowers in which two or three of the blossoms are freshly 

 opened ; that is, when the flowers are open but the yellow petals 

 are not expanded or the stamens cracked open (a of Figure 75). 

 First, remove all the stamens with a pair of slender-pointed, 

 curved forceps; to do this, take hold of each stamen near its 

 apex, pull outward with a gentle twist and break the anther from 

 its stem. As the pistils are not yet ready for pollination, they 

 must be left for a while ; during this time they should be guarded 

 from stray pollination. 



After removing all the stamens of the several flowers, inclose the 

 entire flowering branch in a paper bag of about two-pound size. 



