420 



JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



Whatever difficulties may be met with in selfing hybrid Orchids, 

 no such difficulty is apparently encountered in selfing certain species 

 and varieties. I have found no special difficulty in raising seedlings of 

 selfed species and varieties of Cypripediwn, and many records are to 

 be found in this and in other genera in Orchid literature.* In view, 

 however, of the great successes achieved by Orchid breeders in the 

 hybridization of diverse species and genera, it is hardly likely that 

 selfing will be resorted to now to any great extent either in species or 

 hybrids. 



As we have seen, cross-breedirig is a far more effective method of 

 analysis than selfing, even from the point of view of Genetics. The 

 crux of the whole problem, however, lies in the identification of in- 

 dividual plants. Unless this is done all the rest is vain. Unfortu- 

 nately, with a few brilliant exceptions, our multitudinous Orchid 

 records and labels are almost useless for this purpose. Some of these 

 brilliant exceptions consist of certain unique hybrids to which their 

 owners gave a distinctive name, proudly refusing to conform to the 

 technical rules laid down by the authorities in nomenclature (and by 

 the irony of fate the writer happened to be one of the latter). Many 

 of these names can be traced in the " Orchid Stud Book " as synonyms, 

 and it is possible that the natural conservatism of Orchid breeders has 

 caused them to retain many of these old names on their labels. If such 

 is the case, the identification of some of our best stud individuals may 

 not be so difficult after all. 



In most cases, however, the adoption of genetic methods will necessi- 

 tate the making over again of the best hybrids, using as parents the 

 best individuals of the best varieties of the best species of the best 

 genera. The primary hybrids thus obtained would be pedigree hybrids, 

 and the best individuals of these might be further utilized in accordance 

 with the particular aims that the breeder may have in view. In this 

 way the Orchid breeder would be able to build up a pedigree strain made 

 up of superior individuals, and the reversions and recombinations that 

 he would obtain among the secondary hybrids would alsO' tend to be 

 superior to those bred in the ordinary way. 



In breeding on these lines the Orchid breeder will soon discover for 

 himself that while a few stud individuals may be homozygous, or pure 

 for the good qualities required, the majority will be heterozygous, or 

 impure for those particular characters. For stud purposes these impure 

 forms should be discarded at once, no matter how good-looking they 

 may be, and only the pure forms should be used for future breeding. 

 Should the pure forms not turn up quickly enough for his purpose, the 

 breeder can always make them from the impure forms in the ordinary 

 Mendelian way. In many cases, no' doubt, this will be well worth doing. 



This rigorous elimination of the impure plants that throw unwanted 

 forms may sometimes require considerable courage on the part of the 

 Orchid breeder, involving as it does the sacrifice of certain prejudices 



* Cf. the case of self -sterility in Oncidium flexuosmn ; Hukst, C. C, " Curiosities 

 of Orchid Breeding," I.e. p. 460. 



