PLANT BEEEDING 433 



complete that no process of selection could be adopted, as in 

 the case of the cotton. It was, however, found that the roots of 

 the so-called "citron," a plant of the watermelon genus, were 

 not attacked by the fungus. Watermelons were hybridized 

 with "citrons," and about a thousand varieties were grown 

 from the seeds thus obtamed. ]\lany of these proved resistant, 

 but only one was found to be resistant and at the same time 

 desirable in most other respects. This one variety is now 

 grown with good success even on fungus-infected soils. ^ 



COLLATERAL READING 



The terms " Yearbook," "Farmers' Bulletin," "Bulletin . . . Bureau of 

 Plant Industry," all refer to the publications of the United States 

 Department of Agriculture. 



A very detailed list of books and articles on plant breeding will be 

 found in Bailey, Plant Breeding. The Macmillan Company, New York. 

 Other titles not already referred to in this chapter are as follows : 



General 



Yearbook, 1898, " The Improvement of Plants by Selection." 

 Yearbook, 1906, "The Art of Seed Selection and Breeding." 

 Farmers' Bulletin 334, " Plant Breeding on the Farm." 

 Bulletin 167, "New ]\Iethods of Plant Breeding," Bureau of Plant 



Industry. 

 Cyclopaedia of American Horticulture, article " Plant Breeding." The 



Macmillan Company, New York. 

 Cyclopaedia of American Agriculture, article " Plant Breeding." The 



Macmillan Company, New York. 

 The Principles of Breeding, Davenport. Ginn and Company, Boston. 



Special 



Farmers' Bulletin 2^9, " Production of Good Seed Corn." 

 Y'earbook, 1906, " Corn-Breeding 'Work at the Experiment Stations." 

 Yearbook, 1902, " Improvement of Cotton by Seed Selection." ■ 

 Farmers' Bulletin 342, " Potato Breeding." 



1 See an address by Dr. Erwin P. Smith on "Plant Breeding in the 

 United States Department of Agriculture," before the Eoyal Horticultural 

 Society's conference on genetics. 



