APPI.ES 
ing interesting things to say on this 
point 
(4) There are variations due to the 
effect ot the environment of the plant. 
The richer the soil, the more sunlight, the 
better the care, the greater the freedom 
from insects and diseases and the longer 
the season, the more vigorous is the plant, 
the more fruit it produces and the larger 
and more pertect is the fruit. But 
though these changes and conditions pro- 
duce a direct effect upon the plant during 
its lifetime, there is no evidence to show 
that any of the variations so brought 
about can be transmitted from parent to 
offspring. The fruit grower who wants 
to perpetuate such variations, must re- 
new for each generation the conditions 
which gave him the desirable effects It 
is a question of ‘nurture, not of ‘na- 
ture.’ 
“To illustrate: A man living in 
Northern Michigan had a Spy tree which 
bore small, green scrawny Spies. He 
attributed the poor apples to the nature 
of the tree and talked much of the Spy 
tree in mother’s yard ‘back East’ that 
bore marvelous apples. He brought on 
grafts of mother’s Spy. In due time the 
crafts bore the same small, gnarly, green 
Spies. Northern Michigan Spies are 
worthless because of climate and soil and 
not because of the tree. * * * 
“A Baldwin tree taken from New York 
to Virginia produces an apple different 
from the New York Baldwin; taken to 
Missouri, the Baldwin is still different; 
taken to Oregon, it is unlike any of the 
others. If the trees are brought back 
from these states to New York, they 
become again New York Baldwins. It 
is not likely that selection can change 
this. 
“If it were true that characters ac- 
quired because of environment were in- 
heritable, the resulting medley would be 
overwhelming. Let us see where the 
transmission of acquired characters 
would lead us in a particular case—tak- 
ing, it is true, a somewhat extreme one. 
If a growing apple be put in a bottle, it 
will continue to grow and assume the 
(4) T. DP. Hedrick, N Y Cire. 18. 
145 
Shape ot its covering, making a bottle 
shaped apple If one such bottle be red 
and another blue, the color as well as 
the shape of the apples will be changed. 
If many variously shaped and colored 
bottles be used and if from their seeds 
or buds the resulting products come true, 
especially if the seeds were crossed, the 
imagination cannot compass the confu- 
sion in form and color of apples which 
would result in a few generations. 
“The Geneva station has an experiment 
which gives precise evidence on this ques- 
tion of pedigreed stock Sixteen years 
ago a fertilizer experiment was started 
with 60 Rome trees propagated from 
buds taken from one branch of a Rome 
tree. Quite as much variation can be 
found in these trees from selected buds 
as could be found in an orchard of Romes 
propagated indiscriminately and growing 
under similar conditions. Data showing 
the variations in diameter of tree and in 
productiveness can be found in Bulletin 
3389 of this station, and will go far to 
convince anyone that uniformity of be- 
havior as regards vigor and productive- 
ness of tree and size and color of fruit 
cannot be perpetuated. 
“We have another experiment at Ge- 
neva which ought to throw light on pedi- 
greed stock. Baldwin apple trees have 
been purchased from 104 nurseries in 
all parts of the Union. Some of these 
have been propagated from bearing 
trees; others have come for generations 
from nursery stock; some are on French 
crab, others on Doucin, and others on 
Paradise stocks. If allowed to come into 
bearing in the regions in which we ob- 
tained the trees we should have 104 more 
or less different trees bearing variously 
shaped and colored apples. What will 
the harvest be when all come into fruit- 
ing in the station orchard? Will they 
resemble the Baldwins from the various 
regions from which the trees come or 
will they be New York Baldwins? 
“What I have said in regard to the im- 
provement of fruit propagated from buds 
is now the accepted theory in regard to 
the improvement of plants grown from 
seed. To be of any value in plant im- 
provement a variation must be inherited; 
