LUTHER BURBANK 



for the ancestors of our cherry in their widely 

 separated habitats and with their widely diversi- 

 fied traits and habits. 



But of course in making practical studies for 

 the development of the mental blue print with 

 its forecast of qualities of our new cherry, we 

 must perforce be guided largely by the observed 

 qualities of the parent stock with which we deal. 

 Precisely what were the qualities of the remote 

 ancestors, we can only infer. But we can see 

 for ourselves what are the qualities of the fruit 

 before us. 



We know, then, pretty definitely what we may 

 expect as to one-half the traits of a hybrid that 

 will result when we cross two varieties of cherries 

 in our orchard. The other half must be somewhat 

 matter of conjecture, to be revealed by the 

 actual product or, as is practically the case, by 

 succeeding generations. 



What we actually do, then, in practice, is to 

 take flowers from a cherry tree that has been 

 observed to bear fruit somewhat earlier than 

 neighboring trees, and with this poUenize flowers 

 of another tree that has been observed to produce 

 fruit of exceptionally good quality. PoUenation 

 accomplished, by the method elsewhere described, 

 we can only mark the branch for future identifi- 

 cation, and await results. 



[20] 



