http://www.theburkelab.org/reprints/Evolution2007.pdf
I have not had time to dig into this term but I do wonder in this article I found from Gerogia on plants if there is somewhat more of a
hybred kick in the flock when you make a cross from one line say in Illionis and the other line in Tennessess. Also, a term I thought of
is Closed strain Out Crossing as a term to make it understood. A closed strain in my view is a line purchased from a breeder say twenty five years
ago and no outside blood has been introduced. You use a method of line breeding which I like Rotational Line breeding of four familys rotating a good male from one pen to the right
each year for say 16 years. Then you pick up a three year old proven hen and cross her to your pen one male and then rotate her son back to the right to pen two the next year then you put two of her daughters back into pen one and go on for another 16 years. Never again using any new blood in your line just fixing the good traits each year and culling out the bad ones having a over all flock that would lay say 200 eggs per pullet year and if scored by a old time APA judge would have a flock score of say 94 points. This would be one of the top three strains of large fowl in North America.
Clossed Outcrossing, Closed blood line Hybred vigor is a term that comes to my mind doing this.
Let me explan a story told to me by a Turkey breeder from Wisconsin who raised bronzed turkeys for us to eat each year. He had 15 familys. He rotated the best Tom Turkey to the right pen each year. He had done this for over twenty five years. Now the Tom was Artifical Assementated to the females as the breasts where so large they could not mate natualy. This is how I cam up with this term and idea for my White Plymouth Rocks and Rhode Island Red large fowl. That is how I breed my Rhode Island Red Bantams today. I called it Rotational Line Breeding.
He told me a story of a fellow in the 1920s who had a fantastic strain of Dorok Hogs from Wisconsin. He had at the time the best show line and production line in the USA. He had two sons one lived in middle Wisconsin and another lived in Southern Illinois. They both line breed thier fathers hogs for over 50 years each one would swap a sow the best one of the year every 8 years and that would give them new blood for their farm. They did ths till they grew to thier 80s and retired from even when these men where in thier old age thier hogs where equal in value and type as their father had done when they where young. boys. As I paint this picture I hope you see what I am trying to get across. If the term GENETIC DIVERGENCE applies to this method so be it.
It would not be hard to do in any breed of fowl. I am doing it with my Rhode Island Red bantams with three breeders. I have a partner in Gray Call ducks in Oregon and we have done it for five years. We have the same strain as a fellow who is a master breeder in New York. I have a new partner in Canada who has my Large Fowl white rocks and he has the same Gray Call line from New York and his line has been line breed and closed for six year. I have one of his drakes to cross onto my line.
If anyone else who has some views on this or have heard others do it please put in your two cents. I tell you again the number one reason new people fail with Heritage Large Fowl in three to five years is crossing stains. You end up with more head aches than positive results. You are in the long run money ahead to stick with a strain of say Rhode Island Reds like Don Nelson, Adraian Radamacher, or Greg Chamness my old Moahwk line then cross any of these three lines onto each other. Even outcrossing White Rock Chickens will give you three good years of cleaning up befor you get stable off sping with out naging faults. The reason for crosing in most people is fresh vigor or new blood. Look forward to your ideas. bob
