As far as I could determine the original reference to this use is:
The abstract is not available but the original report is available through universities that carry a JSTOR subscription.
There are other references to its (alpha naphthalene acetamide) use when pollinating such as:
http://www.genetics.org/cgi/reprint/46/11/1443.pdf
The following is a quote from the above:
“Inbreds of L. chileme, desired for further study of self-incompatibility in the parent plant, were obtained by treatment of individual flowers after self-pollination with one percent alpha naphthalene acetamide in pure lanolin smeared on the anther column, corolla or calyx (EMSWELLEaRnd STUART19 48). The treatment resulted in regular fruit set, and seed set at the mean rate of 0.16 seed per pollination. In comparison, thousands of self-pollinations without hormone treatment failed to set. Compatible crosses yield 50 or more seeds per pollination.”
This compound is also called “naphthaleneacetamide”. It is sold as a rooting compound and as a fruit thinner. (I wonder why it would work as a fruit thinner if it overcomes incompatability?)
http://data.pesticideinfo.org/List_Products.jsp?Rec_Id=PC119&Chem_Name=1-Naphthaleneacetamide%20(NAD)&PC_Code=056001
Link: data.pesticideinfo.org/List_Products.jsp?Rec_Id=PC119&Chem_Name=1-Naphthaleneacetamide%20(NAD)&PC_Code=056001
Yesterday and today I added naphthaleneacetamide as a pure white powder (lightly with a brush) to the stigma of a number of my crosses right after the step of adding the pollen/ferrous glyconate mixture (also done with a brush).
I did this with both normal tetraploid/tetraploid amd mixed ploidy crosses and to mothers that were good hip formers and to mothers that normally did not form hips.
I then added my normal 2 inch by 2 inch clear plastic zip lock bags.
Unfortunately, an additional variable is present. We are now in an Ohio heat wave with temperatures in the low 90s.
This is a quote from Eyster’s 1941 paper:
"The self-sterile plants can also be made self-fertile in a more simple and more remarkable manner. This may be accomplished by spraying the flowering plants with a solution composed of ten parts of alpha naphthalene acetamide dissolved in one million parts of water
(here reference 2 is cited, Sadawo Yasuda, Bot. Mag. (Tokyo), 46 (548): 510-517, 1932)
Flowers which are sprayed with this solution immediately before or shortly after they have been self-pollinated produce seed capsules filled with viable seeds in exactly the same way that normal self-fertile plants of other strains produce seeds. …Seeds from such self-fertilized self-sterile plants were found, when planted, to grow into normal seedlings and the per cent. of germination in all trials was unusually high."
Possibly adding BA3 also would even be better:
Title: Physiological studies of fruiting in mango trees. II. Effect of endogenous growth substance in fruiting.
Author: Chen, Wen-Shaw.
Authors affiliation: Taiwan Provincial Chia Yi Junior Coll. Agric., Chia Yi, Taiwan.
Published in: Proceedings of the National Science Council, Republic of China (1981), 5(1), pages 49-55.
Abstract: “The relations between growth of mango fruits and the endogenous GA3 (gibberellic acid), auxin, and ABA (abscisic acid)-like substances was studied. The effect of treatments by aq. sols. of GA3, NAd (naphthalene-acetamide), and b-NoA (b-naphthoxyacetic acid) onto the fruits on fruit set was also obsd. Higher activity of GA3 and auxins was found in the Taiwan native mangoes than in the Haden and Irwin cultivars at the young fruit stage regardless of dropped or non-dropped fruits. A reverse tendency was found in ABA-like activity. Anal. of the calyx, pulp, and seed showed that GA and auxin activities were present in the greatest quantity in the seed. Activity of GA3 and auxins in the calyx of 3 cultivars was much lower than in the pulp and seed, and diminished quickly after fruit enlargement. However, high ABA-like activity was found at the young fruit and ripening stages. Severe responses were found in the calyx of seedless dropped Haden mangoes. The promotion by exogeneous promoters of fruit set was noted by treatment with GA3 + NAd and GA3 + b-NoA onto the fruits at the young fruit stage. No significant response, however, was induced by GA3 or auxins alone.”
Title: Effect of potassium gibberellate and naphthaline acetamide on pod setting in intervarietal crosses of common bean, Phaseolus vulgaris.
Authors: Sarafi, A.; Yazdi-Samadi, B.
Authors affiliation: Coll. Agric., Univ. Tehran, Karadj, Iran.
Published in: Euphytica (1973), 22(3), pages 615-17.
Abstract: "K gibberellate (I) [125-67-7] and naphthalene acetamide [86-86-2] increased the percentage of pod setting in a crossing study with 5 varieties of beans in comparison with untreated controls. The percentage of pod setting is normally low in bean crosses due to small flowers and difficult emasculation.
Title: Improvement in the seed formation in Cineraria by using growth substances.
Authors: Bose, T. K.; Mukherjee, D. Birla Lab., Roy.
Authors affiliation: Agri.-Hort. Soc. India, Calcutta, India.
Published in: Bulletin of the Botanical Society of Bengal (1968), 22(1), pages 41-4.
Abstract: “The following growth substances were applied at 1, 10, and 100 ppm 6, 24, and 48 hr after pollination: gibberellic acid (GA), indolebutyric acid (IBA), and naphthalene acetamide (NAd). GA (100 ppm) used 48 hr after pollination produced a 100% increase in wt. of seeds over untreated flowers; IBA (100 ppm) 24 hr after pollination. NAd (10 ppm) caused a max. increase in seed yield 48 hr after pollination. Seeds produced in GA (100 ppm 6 hr)- and NAd (10 ppm-48 hr)-treated flowers showed a higher percentage of germination.”
I have finished cleaning my 2007 hips. Unfortunately, the flowers that I had treated with alpha naphthalene acetamide either did not yield seeds or yielded seeds that were smaller than expected for that particular mother. Stating this another way, its use did not result in seeds when the normal method of crossing did not result in seeds; and when seeds were expected they were smaller than in similar crosses when no alpha naphthalene acetamide was used. The only remaining hope is to see if the smaller seeds germinate faster than the normal seeds (if at all).