RE: HYB: Getting It Straight For the Simple Minded - RePost

Actually, I do actually do a bit of daubing of pollen in my retirement, as a
couple photos I'll post to Iris photos tonight will attest.

Just one comment I'd like to add.

Breeding irises and getting results is more a matter of intuition and just
plain luck than it is knowledge, even though a bit of the latter can help
the process along at times.
The best illustration of what someone can do even if they don't know a thing
about the subject is the variety DEBBY RAIRDON.

Mrs. Kuntz, Wenatchee, Washington, made only one cross, so I hear, didn't
even keep a record of the parents, although there are anecdotes about what
was involved in a general way, and was awarded the Dykes Medal for this
baby.

It still is a spectacularly beautiful white with creamy yellow edges, and it
was introduced forty years ago.

I dig into the subject of genetics because I think it is an absolute
delight.  I love the subject.  Trying to outguess the complicated genetic
makeup of modern irises, however, defies description.

Even for those of us that do know a little about the subject, or even a lot,
the breeding of superior iris is still more a matter of intuition and luck
plus sheer numbers grown.  The major players raise seedlings by the tens of
thousands per year and have huge compost piles to show for it.

Neil Mogensen  z 7  Reg 4  western NC mountains

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