BRAINCAKEMendel
Gregor Mendel was a monk working in what is now the Czech Republic. In the 1850s and 1860s he carried out breeding experiments on the garden pea, Pisum sativum, and his results are the basis of modern genetics.
Peas were a good choice because they grow quickly, produce many seeds, and normally self-fertilise, so Mendel could control which plants were crossed by transferring pollen by hand. He studied seven characteristics that each had two clear forms, for example tall or dwarf stems, round or wrinkled seeds and yellow or green seeds.
His method was careful and quantitative:
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