US Patent 8716551 Production of hybrid

The present invention concerns hybrid Lactuca sativa seeds which have a male sterile genotype and which are heterozygous for at least one distinct gene which provides plants derived from said seeds with a distinct phenotype. The invention also concerns a method for producing hybrid Lactuca sativa seeds, comprising a step for culture, in an enclosed medium, of phenotypically male sterile plants and phenotypically male fertile plants, a step for pollinization by diptera introduced into the closed medium upon flowering of the plants, and a step for harvesting the seeds produced by the male sterile plants.