The goal: conventional 1/4-breds with more aril traits than usually appeared in the class at the time.  I chose Tribe of Judah because it was already proving promising on the Triploid Route and I hoped it could transmit that signal to 1/4-breds with the right mate. Previous experiments had shown that pink-ground plicatas and blue-violet bitones allowed the aril traits to some through, so I wanted to try a bitone with pink standards and Sostenique had not only the pink but also the zonal pattern..

I processed well over 500 seeds from this cross, far more than any other single cross in my hybridizing career, but I felt this experiment had great potential for producing valuable information as well as the possibility of something worthy of introduction.  

On maiden bloom, I selected thirty-five siblings for further evaluation. Most were bitones or bicolors.  Standards ranged from clear white through ivory to pinkish-ivory, from pale yellow to deep gold, and through many shades of blue-violet.  There were also blends that combined pale blue and yellow into the effect of brass-brushed pewter. Falls had a similar range of colors, but tended to be deeper. Common patterns of aril traits: a large, solid signal at the tip of the beard;  a veined or stippled area at the tip of the beard; a veined or stippled area underlaying the beard.  Many showed combination of these traits, offering insight about the genetics involved.

Four were introduced.  Can you identify them among these photos?  

89-1-1	89-1-2	89-1-3
89-1-4	89-1-5	89-1-6
89-1-7	89-1-8	89-1-9
89-1-10	89-1-11	A bloomout, but my notes show that was sky-blue-on-white, in a pattern much like that of sib #6.  89-1-12
89-1-13	89-1-14	89-1-15
89-1-16	89-1-17	89-1-18
89-1-19	89-1-20	89-1-21
89-1-22	89-1-23	89-1-24
89-1-25	89-1-26	89-1-27
89-1-28	89-1-29	89-1-30
89-1-31	89-1-32	89-1-33
89-1-34	89-1-35

1989 Crosses | BreedersDigest | Photo Gallery