HYB: wide crosses

John Reeds, I think it was you who said a year or so ago that you didn't
see much difference in fertility or  germination rate in wide crosses vs
crosses within related lines.

I find myself walking around, thinking about which crosses to try this
year, and keep thinking - "well, that probably won't work; no that's too
wide a mix; no, even if I get seeds, those won't germinate".

Based on my limited experience here, always working with stressed
plants, the crosses that I think I know won't work very well are ones
with mostly yellow ancestry crossed with lines with mostly blue/white
ancestry, especially if those lines have been selected in very different
climates and are fairly inbred.

====Anybody else have that experience?

Paul Black told me several years ago that once I got my own lines going,
I would have better fertility and germination rates than the abysmal
results I was getting at first.  From Sharon & Donald's recent exchange
on the photos group, & the ridiculously wide crosses I've been trying to
make, that all makes sense.

Last year, 2 pods from a half-sib cross had total of 106 seeds.  Not
sure how many came up, but about 60 are still alive.

Just thought I'd share that in case any of you other daubers are having
similar experience.

Frost in surrounding counties last night.  Ridiculous for this late in
the year.

--
Linda Mann east Tennessee USA zone 7/8
East Tennessee Iris Society <http://www.korrnet.org/etis>
American Iris Society web site <http://www.irises.org>
talk archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-talk/>
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