HYB: Seedlings as Parents
From: Sharon McAllister <73372.1745@compuserve.com>
Message text written by Betty of BG KY
>
One hybridizer I've spoken with advises using seedlings as the pod parent
whenever possible. IMHO, branching is a difficult quality to maintain or
regain and the pod parent should have good branching if at all possible. <
I'm a firm believer in the old practice of keeping "podder" clumps of
proven parents, but I also make a lot of crosses using seedlings so I'd
like to expand on this idea a bit.
I select prospective parents based on three things:
1. Plant characteristics [vigor, open growth habits, no marked
biennial tendencies].
2. Flower characteristics [depends on the line I'm working with].
3. Genetic potential [what unexpressed genes it might carry].
Often, I find the best overall candidates among my selected seedlings. So
I use them. Sometimes the seedling is the pod parents. Sometimes the
pollen parent. Sometimes both parents are seedlings. The choice depends
on the nature of the cross, not on the status of the candidates. I most
cases, they are so far along on the road to introduction that they're
registered before their offspring so this practice isn't obvious from a
cursory examination of my pedigrees.
A couple of examples:
WHIRLWIND TOUR [Sdlg # 88-7-4] was registered in 1993 as MY JOY X WHIRLWIND
ROMANCE. MY JOY was a Hunt introduction for which I kept a "podder" row.
When I made the cross in 1988, WHIRLWIND ROMANCE was still under number,
but I had registered it in 1990 so could use the name instead of seedling
number when I registered its offspring.
PIXILATED [Sdlg # 91-36-1] was registered in 1995 as 86-6-6: (GRANTED WISH
x SUNRISE IN GLORY) X PERSIAN SMOKE, while its sib [Sdlg # 91-36-11] was
registered in 1996 as ALTOGETHER LOVELY X PERSIAN SMOKE. Yes -- in the
meantime, Sdlg. # 86-6-6 had been registered as ALTOGTHER LOVELY.
Sharon McAllister
73372.1745@compuserve.com
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