A horticulturist wants a plant that produces flowers with a certain size, color and fragrance but is not aware of any one plant having all of these traits. The quickest way she could achieve her goal would be to apply the process of
artificial selection
hybridization or crossbreeding.
To achieve her goal, the horticulturist can apply the process of hybridization or crossbreeding. This method involves crossing two different plant varieties to create offspring with desired traits.
Here's how the horticulturist can utilize hybridization to achieve her goal:
1. Identify plants with traits she desires: The horticulturist can make a list of plants with desirable flower size, color, and fragrance. These could be different plant species, varieties, or cultivars.
2. Choose the parent plants: From the identified plants, the horticulturist needs to select two plants to use as parent plants for crossbreeding. Ideally, each parent should possess at least one of the desired traits.
3. Perform crossbreeding: The horticulturist needs to transfer pollen from the flower of one parent plant to the stigma (female reproductive part) of the other parent plant. This can be done manually, either by using a small brush or by carefully removing and transferring the flower parts.
4. Allow pollination and seed development: After crossbreeding, the pollinated flower needs to be protected and allowed to develop seeds. This can be done by enclosing the flower with a mesh bag or by carefully labeling and protecting it from external factors that may disrupt seed development.
5. Collect and grow the seeds: Once the seeds have developed, they can be collected from the pollinated flower and stored for future use. The horticulturist can then germinate the seeds and grow the resulting offspring.
6. Observe and select desirable traits: As the offspring grow and produce flowers, the horticulturist needs to observe and select the plants with the desired traits. This may require multiple generations of crossbreeding and selection to achieve the specific combination of flower size, color, and fragrance.
By following these steps, the horticulturist can use hybridization to create new plant varieties that meet her desired criteria of flower size, color, and fragrance.