TB: HYB: Pollen use and storage

Pollen Storage and Use:  (Long)

There have been many  discussions about how to store and use pollen.  
I have a technique that I gleaned from Wilma Vallette in her book (ohhhh.. GREAT book Linda, find it!!!!!! )
written on the backs of her Robineers years ago.  I also took my 
numbering system from her.  She discusses the use of milk, dried and 
fresh, and antibiotics along with myriad subjects of as much interest 
to irisarians today as 40 years ago!  Buy it if you can!  But, I 
digress!

Pollen can be stored and saved in the refrigerator, and even in the 
freezer, although not as well there and may last better in the 
fridge.  I have used pollen of late season varieties from 
the year before with early bloomers of the current year, even on SDBs and have had takes (smaller %).

The BIG secret is to keep it dry and fluffy!  To accomplish this, I 
use a dark brown bottle that had this herbal medicince or something 
similar in it:  http://www.theherbsplace.com/snx.html ....  The shape 
(perfectly round) is important for how I keep it dry.  My pharmacist looks at me funny 
and asks lots of questions, but saves the little cannister desicants that 
they take out of medicines they are dispensing.  They come in several 
shapes but I use mainly 3 sizes of them.  They are pictured here, so you 
get the idea, in 2 sizes: http://www.polylam.com/desiccan.htm ....  In this brown bottle above, 
I can put in 7 around the edge and one larger one in the middle and 
wedge them all in tightly with one slightly smaller than a straw.   I 
then add 2 of the largest size as free floaters, so to speak: they 
are not wedged in but provide extra drying power and are not 
cumbersome when looking for the capsules.

The next ingredient is the use of "000" gelatin capsules ("00" will 
work but are too small for my big fingers)
(http://www.developed.net/capsule.htm).  The secret here is to keep 
them dry, because they will melt and shrivel if gotten wet (messy!)  
and ruin the pollen.  Next, I mark the bottle cap in magic marker 
with a letter:  say A.  Each capsule has 4 pin-pricked holes punched 
in EACH end to provide air circulation, again for drying which is the 
secret to good pollen.  After that, I label with my smaller Sharpie each of 
10 capsules per bottle with a code:  A1, A2, A3, to A 10.  You can 
add 2 of A2 or 3 of A4, but about 15 capsules per bottle is all the
dessicants can handle per bottle!  AND EACH capsule can handle only 
about 6 anthers of pollen!!!!  You need a code book.  I use a 2 x 3" 
flip top notepad.  Code the pollen in each capsule in the book: 
A1=Progressive Attitude, A2=Textronics, etc.  Leave notepad in 
fishing tackle box at all times.  I carry one with a drawer in the 
bottom to hold labeling tags gotten from:  
http://www.economylabel.com/  ( the rolled tags in 5/8" x 6" size in 
various colors, I use 4 colors), Sharpie permanent markers (lasts 
well), tweezers (my big fingers again) and extra capsules in pill 
bottles for recording crosses, marking tags and saving and labeling
pollen.  My stud book goes in the top of the tackle box, along with 
pencils, pens and the brown bottles of pollen.  The bottles are 
stored in the fridge door when not in use during bloom season and the 
rest of the year.  I end up with about 4 or 5 little jars per year and you can then 
make crosses with pollen from last year or this year.  It will only 
keep about one year.  As fresh is gathered in the new year, the old from the year before is thrown out.

I apply pollen by grasping either end of it (after it has been plucked from the flower with tweezers, of course), first one and then other and usually using one per two flowers to lightly spread in on all 6 
stigmas.  If I only have one flower open and there is pollen left, I 
put it back in the capsule.  I wipe off my fingers and blow out my 
jar lid and move on.  I only make one cross per stalk and strive for 
3 pods on each stalk (more and the plant suffers, imo).  Gives a good 
number of seeds from 80-200 and some don't take and some don't 
germinate.  If it's a great cross I might try for 6 pods!  

Naturally, some pollen will not store for a year for various reasons 
and will not be usable, but almost all will keep for 6 weeks through 
bloom season.  I have collected pollen from California and brought it 
home "on a jet plane" ... 

And YES, Virginia(sic) (joke, there is a Santa Claus) .... folks have been mailing pollen thru the mail for years.  You must find someone who blooms before you, cares enough to do the ditty, and doesn't mind spending all that time in their irises for you.  The secret:  keep it dry and not too hot....  so send it fast ..... and keep it from getting crushed... the capsule in a little box works great.... just make sure that in this day and age of terrorism.. that you.....  mark it as pollen ....  so you don't freak folks out.

Bernice Miller made retro crosses for all the years of her work and she has a few irises folks still grow.... but why try to re-invent the wheel.  Make strong crosses forward and then line cross and outcross and don't just introduce a pretty flower like lotsa folks do these days.  It's a mind game.. .ur a famous hyb.. folks expect 10 new intros each year.. you give 'em 10 new intros ....  economics ..not necessarily breeding advances.

Hope this gives some of you some ideas you might want to try!  Gary




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