A method for producing a transgenic plant comprising; (a) transforming at least one cell in the plant with the gene expression system comprising: an activation cassette comprising, under control of a constitutive G10-90 promoter and in operative association therewith, (i) a GAL 4 DBD that recognizes a response element comprising five copies of GAL4 response element; (ii) an ecdysone receptor LBD; and (iii) a VP16 AD which is activated in the presence of an inducing composition, wherein the components in the activation cassette are present in the following order 5' to 3': the ecdysone receptor LBD is downstream of the GAL 4 DBD, which is downstream of the VP16 AD; and a target cassette comprising (iv) an inducible promoter comprising, in operative association, the five copies of the GAL 4 response element and the minimal 35S promoter responsive to activation of the VP16 AD, the inducible promoter controlling expression of (v) a nucleic acid sequence that encodes a mutant ETR1 protein; wherein interaction among the components of the activation cassette and the targeting cassette, when in a plant cell, with an inducing composition, modulates expression of the mutant ETR1 protein; (b) generating a plant from the transformed plant cell; and (c) selecting a plant comprising a transformed plant cell, which plant demonstrates selective modulation of ethylene insensitivity when the plant is contacted with an inducing composition, the modulation controlled by the timing, the concentration, and the duration of the application of the inducing composition. (a) transforming at least one cell in the plant with the gene expression system comprising: an activation cassette comprising, under control of a constitutive G10-90 promoter and in operative association therewith, (i) a GAL 4 DBD that recognizes a response element comprising five copies of GAL4 response element; (ii) an ecdysone receptor LBD; and (iii) a VP16 AD which is activated in the presence of an inducing composition, wherein the components in the activation cassette are present in the following order 5' to 3': the ecdysone receptor LBD is downstream of the GAL 4 DBD, which is downstream of the VP16 AD; and a target cassette comprising (iv) an inducible promoter comprising, in operative association, the five copies of the GAL 4 response element and the minimal 35S promoter responsive to activation of the VP16 AD, the inducible promoter controlling expression of (v) a nucleic acid sequence that encodes a mutant ETR1 protein; wherein interaction among the components of the activation cassette and the targeting cassette, when in a plant cell, with an inducing composition, modulates expression of the mutant ETR1 protein; an activation cassette comprising, under control of a constitutive G10-90 promoter and in operative association therewith, (i) a GAL 4 DBD that recognizes a response element comprising five copies of GAL4 response element; (ii) an ecdysone receptor LBD; and (iii) a VP16 AD which is activated in the presence of an inducing composition, wherein the components in the activation cassette are present in the following order 5' to 3': the ecdysone receptor LBD is downstream of the GAL 4 DBD, which is downstream of the VP16 AD; and a target cassette comprising (iv) an inducible promoter comprising, in operative association, the five copies of the GAL 4 response element and the minimal 35S promoter responsive to activation of the VP16 AD, the inducible promoter controlling expression of (v) a nucleic acid sequence that encodes a mutant ETR1 protein; wherein interaction among the components of the activation cassette and the targeting cassette, when in a plant cell, with an inducing composition, modulates expression of the mutant ETR1 protein; (b) generating a plant from the transformed plant cell; and (c) selecting a plant comprising a transformed plant cell, which plant demonstrates selective modulation of ethylene insensitivity when the plant is contacted with an inducing composition, the modulation controlled by the timing, the concentration, and the duration of the application of the inducing composition.