Sunday 25 April 2010

Luna Trick F4 seedlings go forth

Luna Trick F4 seedlings
Luna Trick F4 plants all tagged up and ready to plant out

Well both my F4 Luna Trick batches are now planted out in the garden - the standard version and the sugarsnap version. They were sown a couple of weeks apart, in the hopes that their development will be staggered somewhat and I will be less overwhelmed by the workload. Growing peas is not in itself much of a workload … they are independent little dears. But breeding projects have a habit of being very time-consuming, especially this one, because I'm being very careful about collecting individual data on each plant. It takes a lot of effort to label and track every single plant in the project and write down detailed notes for all of them. But it will save me time in the long run because I will be able to select more precisely for the traits I want - and it will teach me a lot about the genetics involved, and pea genetics generally. By labelling every plant with its own number, which includes a code for its specific pedigree, I can identify which lines are true-breeding for dominant traits such as tallness. I'll be able to see which pedigree lines are entirely made up of tall plants and save seed only from those, which should eliminate unwanted recessives very quickly. If I pooled the F4 seed and selected from the whole group, I wouldn't know which of the tall ones were hiding unwanted recessives. So although it would save me a lot of note-taking for this year, I'd be weeding out unwanted dwarf types for years to come.

Luna Trick F4
Luna Trick F4 plant, photographed today. This one is the offspring of LT10, which so far looks to be the only line which is true-breeding for tallness.

As these plants are so important to me, I take extra care with them. They have been raised in rootrainers, which in my experience are far more reliable than any other method for producing strong seedlings and healthy plants. The expense of rootrainers doesn't necessarily make them a good option for pea cultivation generally, but for me they are a worthy investment. The next important thing is soil preparation. I don't bother with fertilisers because peas don't really need them … they have a unique mechanism for producing their own. But what they do benefit from is a digging in of organic matter of some kind. Compost is good. Horse manure is excellent, but in the light of the disgraceful aminopyralid poisoning of Britain's grasslands, I'm not using manure in my garden at the moment. Removal of perennial weeds such as couch grass root is also important, because it's difficult to weed around peas once they get established.

The other special care I provide them with is protection from the weather. Peas are hardy, and I'm not at all worried about the April frosts. The cold nights we're getting at the moment are bringing out some lovely red colour in the leaves of peas capable of producing red colour (which Luna Trick isn't) but it's not harming them in any way. What peas do suffer with though is the cold blustery winds that are so common at this time of year. Having said that, this year has been astonishingly warm and settled, so it hasn't been an issue. They are only really vulnerable to this when they're young and first planted out … the cold winds wither and damage the young growing tips. Once they've got established after a couple of weeks, they are a lot more robust. So what I do for precious peas when first planted out is set up a netted fabric screen round them. Horticultural fleece is the conventional choice, but the lovely old lady who lived in my house before me has saved me ever having to buy any. The house was festooned with about 30 miles of net curtains, which do an admirable job in taking the edge off the winds without losing too much sunlight. I'm growing Luna Trick in a frame made of bamboo canes, so it's the work of a moment to attach the net curtains round it with clothes pegs. I do have to be careful to lay a few unwelcoming heavy twigs around the outside as well, because my cat finds it amusing to charge into the net curtains at high speed.

Protecting pea seedlings the cheap way
Doesn't that look grand? Well all right, it looks bloody awful, but old net curtains are very effective at filtering the English spring breezes while the seedlings get established. I make no apology for the state of my garden ... the breeding and heritage conservation work is so time consuming I don't have time to make it look pretty as well.

I keep each of my breeding projects in their own personal filing containers, made from ultra high-tech re-used cat food boxes. When I picked up an empty box the other day for a new project I'm starting, it turned out not to be empty. Rattling around inside were about a dozen lovingly sorted and labelled bags of Luna Trick seed from the best of my F3 lines, and three unmarked whole pods left loose in the box. I'm afraid I do have this bad habit of failing to label things and then forgetting what the hell they were. These seeds were all harvested earlier in the season, when I was selecting the best plants and harvesting the pods as they matured. I remember harvesting them but don't remember shelling them and boxing them up, which serves me right for smoking too much weed in my youth. There were about twelve pedigree lines in labelled bags, including a load of extra seed from my best plant LT10 … so I've sown another fifteen of those. You can never have enough LT10 as far as I'm concerned. And by starting off another batch of them now, in addition to the ones sown about a month ago, I'm greatly increasing my window of opportunity to make crosses with them.

The loose pods were something of a mystery, but there had to be a good reason I kept them separate instead of bagging them up like I did the others. According to my pollination records, which can also be a bit sporadic when I'm busy, I did some crosses between the best Luna Trick F3 plants and one of the trial varieties I grew in 2009, Buerre Cosse Rouge. This latter is quite a special little variety because it has red-sploshed pods … not quite the deep consistent crimson I got in my red-podder project, but reasonably close to it. And it's a sugarsnap type. It does have some frustrating weaknesses though. The plants (in my trial at least) were tiny and not very strong, and the yields absolutely miniscule. It produced miniscule pods that have about three peas in them, and more often than not they withered and fell off before they reached maturity. I didn't even get to taste Buerre Cosse Rouge, because I was struggling to scrape together enough seed just to regrow it this season. In doing these crosses, I had in my head the idea that I might get some red-pod gorgeousness into the voluptuous sweet abundance of Luna Trick. There is a chance - only a chance mind - that these loose pods had been kept separate because they were hybridised ones.

Fortunately for me and my slack incompetence, I should be able to find out fairly quickly. My old friend gene A will help me out. It's the gene which switches on the colour pigment in peas. Luna Trick doesn't have it - it's true-breeding for the recessive a a genotype which cannot produce anthocyanin pigment. Buerre Cosse Rouge presumably has the dominant A A type, because it has lots of anthocyanin colour. Crossing the two will give me the a A genotype, in which the recessive colourless gene gets elbowed out. In other words, if the seedlings show any trace of red colouring, I will know they are from a cross. If they turn out to be the normal unpigmented Luna Trick type, then I'll know they weren't from a cross. Thus nature sometimes forgives us for poor labelling.

(The seedlings have now emerged and so far are not showing any obvious traces of anthocyanin. Arse!)

30 comments:

Kath said...

'Mystery' sounds like a good pea name!

I'm enjoying your pea posts immensely. You know why!

Speaking of Arses, I found a weedy pea seedling of my F2 crosses lurking behind a stronger plant and it hadn't been labelled and incuded in my table. I now have an 8a! Pink, wobbly arse!

Uzuitengen said...

ISC888 สล็อตออนไลน์ เว็บเดิมพันสล็อตออนไลน์ ทุกรูปแบบ เกมเดิมพันออนไลน์ทุกรูปแบบให้เลือกเล่นมากมายกว่า 1000 รูปแบบ.

be-ready said...

Semua permainan slot online, judi bola online, poker online yang PRODEO88 sediakan dapat dimainkan dengan bet kecil dan bet rendah.

Assignment Help said...

I am always looking forward to read the neat and clean quote. For this purpose, I found your content slogan effective and impressive. If we make to amicable environment to do work prosperity, then you attach with quotation of Online Assignment Help. In fact, it would be really helpful for you. Not only for you, but other people can access great knowledge with you.

casinositezone∞com said...

Hi, this weekend is fastidious designed for me, since this
occasion i am reading this impressive educational piece
of writing here at my home
토토사이트

Jone Marsh said...

students must require Law Assignment Help experts to enhance their knowledge and writing skills. After getting help, students also acquire higher grades in their academic sessions. However, when you are availing our services for any law topic, it assures accuracy and good scores. So, homework help is a good option for your difficulty in subjects.

Do Assignment Help said...

Great post I must say. Really amazing topic and easy words you choose in your blog. I am seeing there are lots of viewers you have. Just like you, I am also tried to write content, so please check my Assignment Help website and let me know if you are getting any types of issues.
Want to know about Nursing topics? If yes then please visit best nursing research topics list.

mrbobystone said...

This is one of the best posts I’ve read. It contains some very valuable and helpful information. Thanks for sharing. Teddy Bomber Jacket

Jobi Johnson said...

I really enjoyed reading your article. I found this as an informative and interesting post, so i think it is very useful and knowledgeable. I would like to thank you for the effort you made in writing this article. Jim Morrison Jacket

eddielydon said...

Thanks for posting this info. I just want to let you know that I just check out your site Knight Rider Jacket

Anonymous said...

Good post. I learn something new and challenging on blogs I stuiate you for sharing! Greetings! Very helpful advice in this particular article! It’s the little changes that produce the largest changes. Thanks a lot for sharing! 먹튀폴리스

Anonymous said...

An impressive share! I’ve just forwarded this onto a co-worker who had been doing a little research on this. And he in fact ordered me dinner because I discovered it for him… lol. So allow me to reword this…. Thank YOU for the meal!! But yeah, thanx for spending the time to discuss this subject here on your blog. Your style is very unique in comparison to other people I have read stuff from. Thanks for posting when you have the opportunity, Guess I will just book mark this site. Good post. I learn something new and challenging on websites I stumbleupon everyday. It’s always interesting to read content from other writers and use something from other websites. 토토사이트도메인

Anonymous said...

Next time I read a blog, Hopefully it doesn’ to pu ared to other folks I’ve read stuff from. Thanks for posting when you’ve got the opportunity, Guess I’ll just book mark this blog. 파라오카지노주소

Anonymous said...

Entertainment can be more fun with Hulu as here you ge Ge help me to create my own blog. if you dont mind can you give me an advice? thanks alot!!! This is my first opportunity to visit this website. I found some interesting things and I will apply to the development of my blog. Thanks for sharing useful information. 먹튀검증

Anonymous said...

Having read this I thought it was very informative. I appreciate you taking the time and effort to put this article together. I once aga still odness I found it on Bing. You’ve made my day! Thanks again! I just couldn’t depart your web site prior to suggesting that I really enjoyed the standard information a person provide for your visitors? Is gonna be back often in order to check up on new posts 먹튀신고

sree said...


Bottlecaps | Learn all about Red Wines

We at Bottlecaps are all about drinking wine and feeling fine. After all, we offer 360 degree e-commerce liquor solutions from where you can also order your favorite liquor online.

If you’re looking for more information and/or reviews, visit Bottlecaps e-commerce platform. Bottlecaps merchant is also a liquor store delivery app that allows you to get your favorite liquor in the comfort of your home.

Unknown said...


colorado dispensary shipping worldwide
colorado dispensary shipping worldwide
weed dispensary that ships out of state


Diploma Assignment Help said...

Great Blog
At Diploma Assignment Help UK, we provide complete assistance for your BTEC assignments. Our team of expert writers helps in producing quality assignments that are backed by extensive research and analysis. All the assignments are written from scratch and delivered on time so that you can meet your deadlines. We offer tailor-made solutions to all your academic needs and provide guidance throughout the process.

Ciara Ryan said...

We guarantee timely delivery of completed QQI assignments. With our QQI assignment help Ireland services, students can receive their completed assignments on time and with the highest quality. Our services are designed to give students peace of mind, knowing that they have the necessary support and guidance to succeed in their academic endeavors.

Malaysia Translators said...

Nice post
If you are looking for Japanese translation services in Malaysia, look no further than Malaysiatranslators.com. Their translators have a wealth of experience and knowledge in the Japanese language, culture, and business practices, ensuring accurate and culturally appropriate translations that meet the highest standards.

Outlook Support said...

How to get outlook working offline, click on the "Send/Receive" tab, then select "Work Offline" to check it. This will disconnect Outlook from the internet and allow you to work with your offline data. To switch back to online mode, simply uncheck "Work Offline." For more information visit our website.

Assignment Helper Malaysia said...

Excellent post!
When it comes to getting assignment help, affordability is often a concern for students. Assignmenthelper.my understands this and ensures that their assignment helper price remains accessible to students from all backgrounds. They believe that academic assistance should not be a luxury but rather a resource that can empower students to excel in their studies.

Insta Info said...

I find this article truly inspiring. I'm very pleased with the excellent work you've done. The information you've provided is incredibly helpful. Please continue your efforts and keep writing more blog posts.How long does it take to deactivate instagram acount

Readmore
released a formal update timetable

official release of Android 13

Instaguide.Info

Pencil Guide said...

Keep the main points of the presentation in mind while you create your pitch deck. Give a succinct summary of the key characters, the story, and the intended audience. Give a clear indication of the episode's genre, tone, and most likely structure. If you want to set your work apart from other media, consider the elements that readers will find fascinating. Draw character sketches, mood boards, or other graphics to help you visualise your ideas.

Readmore
instaguides.info

partnership between Fortnite and Star Wars has begun

partnership between Fortnite and Star Wars has begun

Snab Info said...

Do people often see you singing Taylor Swift songs? Consider yourself a devoted Swiftie or supporter? If that's the case, Swiftle is the perfect game for you. It was made just for Taylor Swift fans and is the most recent example of the Wordle and Heardle genre. Swiftle will be covered in great detail in this blog post, including where to play, how to play, as well as some helpful advice and winning tactics.

Greece Assignment help said...

Great blog
Looking for top quality programming assignment help online Greece? Our native programming assignment writers provide online assistance. Buy programming assignment help online and get your projects done by experts at GreeceAssignmentHelp.com.

Malta Assignment Help said...

Great Post
High-Quality College Assignment Help - Expert Writers, Customized Approach"Experience high-quality college assignment help with our team of expert writers. We provide a customized approach to meet your unique requirements and help you excel academically.

My Translation Services said...

MyTranslationservices.com takes pride in offering certified driving license translation services in UK. We understand the importance of precise and legally valid translations for driving licenses. Our dedicated team of translators ensures that your license is translated accurately, maintaining its integrity and complying with UK regulations.

Antony said...

Very nice information, it is valuable and useful to so many people. Thanks for sharing this topic.
Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer

New Year Clothing said...

Your blogs are fantastic and have the capability of change. Hats off to the entire team. New Year Clothing