88 MAINE STATE COLLEGE 



the most prolific sort grown, but its color would condemn it as a 

 market sort. A specimen of this type is shown as No. 7 in the 

 frontis-piece. 



Series C. 



Long White X Black Pekin. — In 1890, the first generation, 

 the effect of the staminate parent was very marked in giving color 

 to the foliage, much more so than was the case in series A in 

 ■which the male parent was also Black Pekin. The plants were 

 uniformly tinged with purple, and in some instances the color was 

 nearly as dark as in the male parent. The fruit was of inter- 

 mediate color with the purple predominating, but in form was 

 quite variable. Some individuals resembled the staminate parent, 

 other the pistillate, and others were entirely distinct. 



This was the least promising of the series and though four fruits 

 were again crossed or selected, but one, C 4, was brought by th'> 

 writer to Maine. Of the others, grown at the Cornell Experiment 

 Station in 1891, Professor Bailey reports: "In these lots the fruit 

 pollinated from the same plant, C 1, gave a variable and very 

 unproductive offspring. C 3, into which Black Pekin has gone 

 twice gave only purple fruits."* 



C 4 was not artificially pollinated, but was selected because of 

 its excellent form, being almost cylindrical with very abruptly 

 rounded ends. Seeds were sown in 1891 and of the resulting 

 plants only two showed a tendency to perpetuate the type of C 4, 

 and these failed to mature fruit. There was a variation in the 

 direction of both of the original parents but in general the plants 

 were of the type of the previous generation. 



Selections were again made, and in 1892, there was almost com- 

 plete reversion to the original male parent in the habit and color 

 of the plants. They were hardly distinguishable from the plants 

 of Black Pekin in adjacent rows. The form of the fruit, however, 

 was still quite variable. 



Coiiclusions as to Effects of Crossing: As a result of four 

 years of breeding, we have as yet obtained no type sufficiently 

 constant in color to be of commercial value. We have found, 

 however, a marked increase in vigor and productiveness as a 

 result of crossing. 



* Bulletin 49 CorneU Univ. Exp. Sta., Dec, 1892, p. 344. 



