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known  fact  that  oftentimes  the  progeny  of  a cross  is  more 
variable  than  either  of  its  parents,  consequently  when  new 
types  are  desired,  crossing  is  a fruitful  method  of  producing 
such  types. 
The  second  step  in  the  practice  of  plant  improvement  is 
selection.  As  variation  has  been  either  found  or  induced,  the 
individuals  embodying  the  desired  characteristics  must  be 
found  and  propagated.  It  is  in  this  process  that  the  best  judg- 
ment is  demanded.  One  must  be  intimately  acquainted  with 
the  plant  with  which  he  is  working,  and  must  exercise  good 
judgment  as  to  the  excellencies  of  the  individual  selected.  In 
order  to  facilitate  the  work,  it  is  generally  recognized  that  to 
select  the  individual  for  as  few  characteristics  as  possible 
brings  the  best  results.  At  the  same  time,  however,  it  must 
be  remembered  that  there  are  certain  characteristics  in  plants 
that  may  be  antagonistic.  Productivity  is  often  antagonistic 
to  susceptibility  to  disease.  Large  size  is  often  antagonistic 
to  high  color  and  flavor,  and  high  yields  are  often  antagonized 
by  high  qualities  in  fruit  and  seed.  In  selecting,  one  must  also 
exercise  judgment  that  the  individual  selected  will  reproduce 
its  characteristics  in  accordance  with  the  environment  to 
which  it  is  to  be  subjected.  For  instance,  it  would  be  useless 
to  select  large  seed  from  a large  plant  growing  alone  when 
it  is  desired  that  the  plants  should  grow  close  together.  The 
probabilities  are  that  the  excellencies  of  the  seed  of  the  plant 
growing  alone  have  been  brought  about  not  by  inherent  quali- 
ties of  the  plant  but  because  of  space  or  food  supply  or  cultiva- 
tion or  some  other  agency. 
The  third  step  in  the  process  of  plant  improvement  is  to 
test  the  selections  made.  This  often  requires  three  or  four 
years  or  even  longer  in  the  case  of  trees.  With  plants,  often- 
times not  all  of  the  selections  prove  desirable  and  it  is  only  by 
testing  the  selections  made  that  the  undesirable  ones  may  be 
cast  out  and  the  strain  founded  on  superior  stock. 
In  connection  with  these  steps  it  should  be  noted  that  the 
plant  breeder  has  the  advantage  of  the  animal  breeder  in  that 
he  can  make  use  of  large  numbers,  which  is  very  desirable. 
In  producing  the  carnation  whose  bell  does  not  break  open, 
selections  were  made  from  more  than  60,000  plants.  A famous 
English  breeder  of  hounds  when  asked  the  secret  of  his  suc- 
cess in  breeding  superior  individuals  remarked,  “I  breed  many, 
and  hang  many.”  The  advantage  to  the  plant  breeder  is  that 
oftentimes  his  progenies  can  be  tested  yearly,  whereas  with 
animals,  especially  cattle  and  horses,  several  years  are  required 
before  the  performance  record  of  the  individual  can  be  ob- 
tained. 
It  should  also  be  noted  that  with  the  plant  breeder  the  ideal 
of  the  individual  desired  often  originates  in  the  breeder’s  mind 
and  is  afterwards  worked  out  from  the  large  amount  of  mate- 
rial available. 
