How do you do the pollen, Qtip, freezer thang?

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eastwood2007
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How do you do the pollen, Qtip, freezer thang?

Post by eastwood2007 »

Newbie needs help....! :D

I have alot of the wrong things
blooming, too. Dream Weaver is i
n full bloom!

Could someone give instructions here
on the forum on the correct way to
collect pollen on the Qtips? I have
never collected pollen, so maybe I
am the only that doesn't know
how. Thanks in advance... :oops:
Charla
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SUEDIA
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Post by SUEDIA »

Charla,
You are not the only person that does not know how to do this. I have never tried to cross with the pollen. The only seedlings are the ones that are volunteer in my hosta bed. Will have to check those out, just to see what I have. I sure would like to try some crossing with Ice Age Trail. Waiting to hear what the others tell you. Then follow instructions to see what we can get.
Thanks, Good Question :o
Sue
eastwood2007
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Post by eastwood2007 »

Hey, Sue! Ice Age Trail sounds fun doesn't it? How is yours doing?

I understand about how to freeze the Qtip from another post...I think it was malaprop.

The thing I need to know more about is how and when to collect the pollen on the Qtip. I have hostas blooming...so I want to try to save some... :roll:
Charla
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Post by SUEDIA »

Charla,
Mine is patiently waiting for me to get the grass dug so I can put in the area I need to finish for it. Will take some pictures when I get it done. How is yours doing. I also so how to freeze the pollen with the Qtip and put all in foil and put in the freezer. Yes, do we just brush off some pollen from the antler looking things(it's late & I can't remember it name) :roll: anyway them mark what hosta it is from, then what :o
Sue
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largosmom
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Post by largosmom »

I'm always up for more information! Mine are not yet in bloom, but I expect they will be soon.

Laura
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Post by druff »

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largosmom
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Post by largosmom »

I think the issue was with collecting the pollen. :D

I do know that the pollen should be "fluffy" when you collect it. I *think* that early morning is supposed to be the right time.

I've also read about doing some prep on the pod parent, removing the pollen parts and flower sepals (petals...tepals I don't remember which names are which!) the night before so that the plant doesn't self-pollinate. Also possibly about covering what remains of the flower so the bees don't pollinate it for you.

laura
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renaldo75
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Post by renaldo75 »

I've heard to remove the 3 lower tepals [petals] of the pod parent flower the nite before so that bees don't have anything to land on the next day. And to remove the anthers with the pollen at the same time. At my 1st WSM meeting, Mary Chastain said that she uses a plastic grocery bag to cover the scape that she'll be pollinating the next day. I'd tie it on below the flowers with a twist tie so it doesn't fly away.

The pollen needs to be fluffy - like in Sugar's pic - to put on a q-tip or use. You can harvest the anthers a day or 2 early and let them dry naturally inside & the pollen will 'fluff' if it wasn't when it was picked.

I need to get some more aluminum foil & some masking tape if I'm gonna get serious about this. :wink: You can also use the 'month' or 'week' pill keepers to just store the pollen in. Just have a label above each compartment on the lid with the name.
GO HAWKEYES!!!

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eastwood2007
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Post by eastwood2007 »

So, to get the pollen on the Qtip....?????

Do I just collect the stamens, or whatever, let them fluff and dry then dab them on the Qtip? It is getting the pollen on the Qtip for storage that I don't know how to do?
Charla
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largosmom
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Post by largosmom »

I didn't realize the pollen could be harvested that early. Thanks for posting the info, Renaldo.

I'm looking forward to making my first crosses!

Laura
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renaldo75
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Post by renaldo75 »

That's what I would do, Charla. Just carefully wipe the Q-tip across the pollen. I'd do it above a piece of paper or aluminum foil so that if any fell off you could dab them too. I spose you could also try tapping the pollen off onto the Q-tip.

Just passing on what I've heard [and have yet to practice] from others who have done some hybridizing. One guy gave me a demo a couple of years ago. He didn't use a q-tip. He used surgical scissors that gripped the stamen firmly & then applied the pollen to the stigma. He was also the guy who used the pill keepers to store pollen in cuz they stacked so well in the freezer & took up very little room. For frozen pollen, take it out the nite before you intend to do a cross so that it will be fluffed & unfrozen when you use it the next day. He also used different colored electrical wire to code his crosses. No need for tags - each pollen parent got a different color or combination of colors that was twisted onto the pedicile of each flower.

And I've always heard that the most receptive time for the stigma to accept pollen is when it's moist - usually in the morning. I think Patsue has a pic of me taken last summer at Jimmy Mac's giving Linda C a hosta~sex demonstration. :lol: :wink:
GO HAWKEYES!!!

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MollyD
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Post by MollyD »

Sounds a lot like I do for my daylilies. Best time is early morning. I can either use fresh pollen or frozen. I save my pollen by removing it off the anthers into an open container. Let it air dry for a few hours (moisture kills pollen) then into a bag or other container (I use these little tubes) and the freezer making sure during the whole process you've labelled everything as it's so easy to forget. I'm usually dealing with 8-10 different pollen doners at a time so I can't afford to rely on memory. This winter I set seed on a plant using pollen I had frozen last summer.

MollyD
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malaprop
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Post by malaprop »

If you've ever cleaned a kid's ears with a Q-tip, then you know how to collect pollen. The tip should be bright yellow, or the bees beat you to it.



I do have a suggestion, tho. You know those foil wrappers that Dove's Dark Chocolate are wrapped in? They're divine . Just dispose of the chocolate somewhere, and save the wrappers.
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renaldo75
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Post by renaldo75 »

:hmm: Now where would I dispose of chocolate without wasting it?? :???:

:wink:
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malaprop
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Post by malaprop »

I have another suggestion....chocolate is good for one's heart, so one could take it for medicinal purposes.

Does anyone remember the guy (Maybe Doug B.?) who made his own metal pollen lablels out of cans....Pre-numbering them, if I recall. I am so tired of standing there trying to untangle the threads on the jewelry labels after they've been whipped in the wind for 2 months....what did he use instead of thread?
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renaldo75
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Post by renaldo75 »

Maybe a little bit of thin electrical wire??
GO HAWKEYES!!!

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thehostagourmet
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Tags

Post by thehostagourmet »

Mal, try the Tyvek jewelry ring tags directly on the pedicel, or with short pedicels make a loop out of waxed dental floss, knotted with a surgeon's knot, then fold ring tag around floss. Works great. I use a Ultra-fine marker pen. Those cheap hang tags disintegrate in bad weather. Been there; done that.

George
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malaprop
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Re: Tags

Post by malaprop »

thehostagourmet wrote:Mal, try the Tyvek jewelry ring tags directly on the pedicel, or with short pedicels make a loop out of waxed dental floss, knotted with a surgeon's knot, then fold ring tag around floss. Works great. I use a Ultra-fine marker pen. Those cheap hang tags disintegrate in bad weather. Been there; done that.

George
You mean this???? The dumbell ones? If so this is the way to go! I just use one number, then record the cross in a little spiral notepad. So all I need is room for one number..


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Record keeping for crosses

Post by thehostagourmet »

Mal, I first used the dumb bell-shaped tags, but switched to square on each end. More room to write. I have a number for each plant, but also record the pod parent. This is so I still know which plant the scape came from, if I have to take the scapes indoors at season's end to mature in sugar water. Some people date the cross right on the tags too.

George
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