some other spot indoors. They remain 
there in water until the evening or after- 
noon of the following day. We then 
carry these “pollen parents” back to the 
field, select the crosses we wish to make, 
and we then proceed to snap the anthers 
out of the pollen parents with tweezers, 
and use them as tiny brushes to apply 
the pollen from them unto the “pinned 
up” stigmas of the seed parents. 
We then attach a “tag” or streamer 
on which we write certain data with 
weather-proof pencil. We hang the 
marker just above first floret crossed, 
and break off spike one or two buds 
above the last floret we worked on. We 
figure to bring all the energies of the 
plant into producing the desired seed. 
The data noted on these tags or markers 
must contain the following information: 
name of parents, number of blooms 
crossed, date of crossing, condition of 
weather, and condition of pollen. We are 
always interested in the pollen parent’s 
condition, as we once were advised by 
a prominent hybridizer that pollen will 
lose its potency in twelve to fifteen 
hours. We believe he is right. In some 
cases, pollen will harden or “cake” very 
shortly after it is exposed to air. In 
other varieties the pollen will easily be 
shaken off. Other varieties produce it 
very sparingly. In some cases we use 
green pollen by the following method: 
We dismantle an unopened bud, and pull 
out the green anthers before they have 
opened the pollen-sacs at all. By giving 
these a quick twist with the fingers, 
they can be forced to expose the pollen, 
and we then apply it green, or in moist 
condition. We are sure of one thing— 
it is not contaminated by any insect. And 
it works! 
There are hybridizers who contend 
that the stigma much reach certain 
stage of developement or “readiness” be- 
fore the pollen will have effect. We do 
not subscribe to this thought, 100%. We 
have occasionally proven that freshly 
opened blooms, with undeveloped stig- 
mas, and the cilia hardly appearing at 
all—will respond to crossing readily and 
produce a plump capsule of seed! In 
some-other varieties this does not seem 
to. prove out, however. 
There are some varieties that seem 
to be sterile, and in other cases certain 
' varieties will cross readily, while an- 
other “new variety” will fail to’ bring a 
seed capsule at all. Most of the old re- 
liable varieties will produce a plump seed 
capsule, containing from 35 to 50 seeds. 
Four blooms on a seed spike should pro- 
duce 100 seeds or more. We once counted 
146 seeds in one capsule from Mother 
Machree. The pollen parent was Bar- 
carole. There were no outstanding seed- 
lings from the cross however. White and 
yellow varieties produce seed abundantly 
as a rule. Blues and Reds are rather 
stubborn in our garden. 
We believe that crosses made in the 
afternoon or evening are the most de- 
pendable. Some growers re-touch their 
crosses a second time. We never re-visit 
a cross once it is made and tagged. We 
use many of our seedling plants as par- 
ents, and some exciting blooms appear 
from such parentage. Our champion 
Seedling in the Omaha Show, 1949, has 
a seedling seed-parent. We try to have 
a plan, or objective, in every cross we 
make, altho many crosses produce very 
common-place off-spring. We have fre- 
quently noticed that our young seedling 
bulbs, often no larger than a nickle will 
produce plants that grow with unusual 
vigor and gusto, and bloom with great 
pride and joy! And perhaps they may 
never attain that splendour again. Some 
growers tell me it is the “HYBRID 
VIGOR”. Is that what makes our Iowa 
corn so tall? Maybe so Mister, maybe so. 
——————“—. 
PUZILE: How Olt fre They? 
SAYS ROBIN TO RICHARD, IF I EVER COME 
TO THE AGE YOU ARE NOW BROTHER MINE, 
OUR AGES UNITED, WILL AMOUNT TO A SUM 
OF YEARS MAKING NINETY AND NINE. 
SAYS RICHARD, THATS CERTAIN, AND IF IT BE 
FAIR 
FOR US TO LOOK FORWARD THAT FAR, 
1 THEN SHALL BE DOUBLE THE AGE THAT YOU 
WERE 
WHEN I! WAS THE AGE THAT YOU ARE. 


—— eee 
