HYB: How we pollinate

I usually use the common method of applying the anther directly to the
stigmatic lip.  However this spring I found myself in a desperate
situation.  In 2001, I crossed Pond Lily with Purple Pirouette.  Only
two seedlings survived to bloom and each had very excellent qualities.
The most spectacular of the two I destroyed because of a flaw.  I was
determined to get more from that cross.  Out of a few dozen I expect to
find something really good, however Purple Pirouette is not an easy
parent.  For the next two years it had no pollen.  Our heat and dryness
shriveled the anthers while still in the bud.  This year we had a cooler
April, but PP's anthers still showed no sign of pollen.  I was
determined to try anyway.  I bought a very fine camel's hair brush.  I
gathered about a dozen of those dry PP anthers, placed them on a saucer
and scraped them gently with a sharp knife.  I gathered the resulting
dust with the camel's hair brush and applied it to Pond Lily blossoms.
This got me two good pods and over 70 seeds which are chilling in my
refrigerator waiting for our weather to get cool enough to plant.  It's
still in the 80s F. here, over ten degrees above normal for this time of
year.  I'm really looking forward to seeing that bunch in 2008.
 
Francelle Edwards  Glendale, AZ  Zone 9

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