HYB:Wide or Wild crosses

Someone recently asked me what I considered a Wild cross.   <vbg>
 
I suspect the main difference in a wide cross and a wild cross are the  
intentions of the hybridizer!  <vbg>
 
When I first joined this group, I thought a wide cross was something like  
white x red.  As a TB lover, I thought all discussions evolved around tall  
bearded irises! 
 
Then I was told that, traditionally, wide crosses are between classes of  
irises.  Still others feel that anything out side of blue on blue (example)  is a 
wide cross.  
 
Since my personal breeding program is tall bearded irises, an occasional  
oncer, but primarily rebloomers, my examples would be different from  others.  
Recently, I've been trying to adopt Barry Blyth's advice, and  cross everything 
to everything and be surprised at the results!  This may  be harder for me 
than people realize.  Given my limited goals this  will only work for a 
generation or two!  
 
A wide cross (for me) might be something like STAR GATE (dark blue purple)  X 
SUMMER RADIANCE (yellow).  To play this one out another generation . . .  we 
have FEED BACK, VIOLET MIRACLE, LEMON REFLECTION, & HINDENBURG.   What would I 
expect from this?  It would give lots of rebloom.   Mainly white rebloomers.  
We don't need more white rebloomers!  But,  what else might show up?  Would 
it be worth a try?  Maybe.  
 
Early on, I was told that plicata by self crosses gave selfs with muddy  
hafts.  I tried to stay away from these crosses.  
 
I had a text book idea of what I'd get from RADIANT BLISS X  SUMMER RADIANCE. 
 They are both in the same color class but one is a  plicata while the other 
is a self.  This was more of a compulsion cross,  but I'm really glad I made 
it.  May be one of my favorite crosses to  date.  
 
Still, most of my most enjoyable crosses have come from frustration  crosses. 
(or compulsion crosses.)  Lots of pollen with no 'normal' pod  parent!  I'm 
not one to let good pollen go to waste!  However, my mind  set is to look for 
similarities rather than differences.  This showed up in  my response to Griff 
on his lovely dark seedlings.  
 
Does this make me a line breeder at heart??  <vbg>
 
 


 
Make more crosses!  If you don't cross them, you can't   plant them! 
Betty W. in South-central KY Zone 6 ---
Bridge In Time Iris  Garden@website:
_www.thegardensite.com/irises/bridgeintime/_ 
(http://www.thegardensite.com/irises/bridgeintime/) 
_Reblooming Iris - Home Page_ (http://www.rebloomingiris.com/)  
_iris-photos archives_ (http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-photos/)  
_iris-talk archives_ (http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-talk/)  
_AIS: American Iris Society website_ (http://www.irises.org/)   

---------------------------------------------------------------------
To sign-off this list, send email to majordomo@hort.net with the
message text UNSUBSCRIBE IRIS
Other Mailing lists | Author Index | Date Index | Subject Index | Thread Index