Re: HYB: pod-setting technique - long
- Subject: Re: HYB: pod-setting technique - long
- From: Linda Mann l*@volfirst.net
- Date: Tue, 06 Aug 2002 09:21:06 -0400
Some thoughts - I was able to try to make crosses on some cultivars this
spring that usually can't even bloom for me due to my stressful
microclimate/rockpile soil combination. Or if they have bloomed, they
haven't produced normal anthers (= no pollen), or if they produced
pollen, it was all clumpy (= not viable), or no flowers would set pods.
We also hear that some cultivars are 'always' pod or pollen sterile in
some folks gardens, but are fertile elsewhere.
So, I think that maybe the low rate of success is at least partly due to
growing conditions not being quite good enough for pollen & eggs & all
the 'equipment' the iris stalks of both parents need to produce mature
seeds.
I think this also shows up in the relatively low number of seeds I get
per pod compared to pods set by hybridizers in 'iris heaven'. Just for
fun, I made a graph of the number of seeds per pod vs days from the
cross to pod maturity (no relationship). Avg number of seeds per pod
was about 30 - nice bell curve distribution - most had 20 to 40. I
think the average for iris heaven is closer to 40 or 50?
I don't have little black creepy crawlies on anthers, but do have some
gorgeous tiny little black and brilliant red critters that seem to eat
pollen. Also lots of almost invisible transparent or whitish critters
on anthers as the season progresses.
I haven't quite caught up on all the notes I took while making crosses,
but don't think there was much relationship between whether or not I
thought it was going to be a successful take (shiny stigmatic lip,
fluffy pollen, good sticking of pollen to lip, moderate humidity, fresh
flower) and whether or not it actually made a pod.
Re: humidity - Way back in the early days of the list, Sharon McAllister
said that low humidity (Arizona type low humidity) interfered with pod
set. I can't remember whether or not anybody posted anything about high
humidity interfering with pod set. Time for an archive search?
--
Linda Mann east Tennessee USA zone 7/8
American Iris Society web site <http://www.irises.org>
iris-talk/Mallorn archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-talk/>
iris-photos/Mallorn archives: <http://www.hort.net/lists/iris-photos/>
------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~-->
Will You Find True Love?
Will You Meet the One?
Free Love Reading by phone!
http://us.click.yahoo.com/it_ffB/R_ZEAA/Ey.GAA/2gGylB/TM
---------------------------------------------------------------------~->
Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
