Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-05-24
| MAKES PLANTS LARGER
So AS To YIELD MORE
California Wizard Sees Way 70
Increase Production on
Farm.

lalnUful8 mas 1NobufT pitnb WNffBf
Richard Diener, whose production. have
attracted consider able attention. He rays
plant and animal life may be greatly IN
creased in size and quality by a scientific
process he has discovered.
His experimental nursery is located IN
| a sheltered valley ia the shadow of farn0us
| Mount rannpais In this secluded spot
working without much danger Of inter
| ruption from the outside world, Richard
| Diener has in little more than three
years tripIed the size of half dozen we'll
known flowers. He claims 70 have made
six bushels Of wheat grow whcre one grey,
| t,efore; 90 have developed blight~proof
| tomato bearing fruits weighing three
| pounds each; potato many tifnfs The
| size Of ordinary "spuds'' and a white
| whose progeny may. lay mammoth eggt
| II IL IN be hoped that the quality Of The
| flesh Of the IIegt orns for food has been
| impr owed in proportion 20 the s'rr.
| II Mr.. Diener has produced what he
/ CLAIMS IL viii certainly pay him 70 EXHIBIT
! his products in the Fast. The Inter
| national Flower Show 20 30 Nsld in tbis
| city in March offers on excellent oppor-
/ tunity.
Diener is short, stocky man of ~, end
began experimenting with plants when
/ lad of IA in the Hertz Mountains, IN C-r-
many. The results be is now obtaining
are the fruits % lifelong srp,rirnee hrd
hard work
AZ II he began n motto. that certain
plants increased in siEe through crossing.
! II required II years forhim - master he
process.
Meantime hs rmiErrt.S - gry'snd,
wh ere he practicsd horticulture for ,,v.rsi
( wears. tn en- moved 20 Costs Rics, from
| which point he exported orchids % sH
parts oi the world In 1904 hs came =
America
In whatever part cf the World hs
might be located alwsys he WIS AZ work
crossing different varieties of fovsrs
Nybridizing species and tearing up
strains" as he described il. re net
with many failures and had numerous
! dighearteninu experiences Even after
he4had practically mastered the system
of making everything larger tbrougn
| hybridizinv-even chickens-hs found
himself suddenly without means % pros--
cute his experience, and, m desperation
appealed 10 Congressman William Kent
Of California who financed bis pfes-rt
enterprise.
Here during the early years of n.
war. he perfected his marvellous Liberty
wheat'-planting eighteen pounds -
seed 20 the scre instead ~ ths usual
sixty pounds--and reaping yield OF l5p
bushels an acre, ne against The twenty
FIVE or thirty which result from the aver
age crop.
He then turned his attention 20 eorn
and though California is not corn
country, producing It is said, an esr
weighing two pounds and a half grovn
on great twelve feet stalks that bear ss
; many az a dozen ears aplece.
Blener claims 70 have producrd
bIght-resisting tomato, perfectly round
and weighing three pounds each, and
white beans many times the Usual size
The experiments began with hovers.
resulting in carnations much larger than
ordinary flowers, large Towering gadlot
and petunias. These petunlss are con-
tinuallv in bloom ali summer long D!-
rectlv opposite 10 the ordinary petunIas
which wIther amost immediately after
thew are picked, these flowers when cIt
and nut n water will last for two or three
weeks ana new flowers will bloom wnlle
in wa ter.
Diener saws IL IS all done by scientific
crossing II requires two generations II
cross breeding and careful sclentirc re-
lection 10 develop the big flowers and
( Dlgnts. The exact process be declines 20
1iivulge al present-not because ne wishes
/ 10 keen II secret. but because he refuses
10 impart such knowledge except through
careful personal teaching. Whether
. Diener has discovered somethIng new or
1 has simply worked out veil-knoTn isws
! remains 70 be seen.
During the course OF a recent interview
/ regarding his work. Mr.. Diener said:
II believe l have conclusively proved
that any variety Of a plant, fruit, flower
/ or gram. or any variety OF animal can ce
/ enlarged At will, and the process can be
repeated until that size is obtained ~nlcn
is most desired for continuous Use. In
plants II takes only one cross 20 douols
the size of the parents. IN animals, have
had opportunity 20 try IL on chickens
only. Il takes Two crosses 20 brlng the
same result So I am sure = works with
animals as with plants, N which / have
tried il a thousand different WAYS. Another
interesting fact Is that BY reversing the
process I can make plants smaller WITH
each crossing.
This discovery means 20 muoh 20
civilization that few VIII b. able 20 grasp
us effect. Already from the common
wheat producing 25 20 30 bushels per acre
As used by the farmers here ] have pro
duced new varieties which WELD st the
rate of $50 bushels per acre and this with
the same labor, the same fertilization and
the same land.
INV new tomato Yields so 20 40 tons
OF fruit per acre, and has proven N every
respect far superior 20 snything existing
now The size OF the first fruit reaches
the weight Of three pounds, but the
average fruit weighs about one pound. is
\ perfectly illed out and does not contain
any hollows like so many other varieties,
and the surface j. as smooth as an apple.
"The flesh is more solid than any other
tomato now known, and for dehy6rstinS :
is a most valuable variety. II Is mag
nificent dark red shade, which makes DO
very attractive; il IS very sweet and free
OF the acid taste
The most astonishing thing Sbort thIs
tomato Is that it has proven 20 be sbso-
lutelv bhght-resisting. Last year thou
sands of scres in Calitornis we're de
stroved bv blight. snd this tomato was
grown alongside Of other varieties which
have been killed of entirely by blight ard
has not been in the least affected
Thus far my work has been chiefly
with flowers; IL is only since the latter
part Of 1918, at the request OF Congress
man William Kent snd with his hnsncisl
aid. that | have worked on food plants
such As wheat, corn, tomatoes, beans and
Sudan grass.