hot weather pollination
I was wondering after reading about keeping the female blossoms cool after pollination in hot areas ( like here), if anyone knows for how long to use ice, how much? Also on a new tangent, has anyone ever investigated the idea of cooling off the blossom BEFORE it opens. Does the same heat that can cause aborts have an affect on the still forming female? Seems strange that the heat only has a bad affect after pollination. Would a light cooling be beneficial a day or two before?
We already have overhead shadecloth @ 30% and use a misting setup...
It routinely gets in the 100's f during pollination here so we use stryofoam huts over the females for a day or two with ice #'s depending on outside temps. Anyone interested at looking at our setup can see picts at www.bigpumpkins.com in the growers diaries under
the name C @ R Kolb.
Robert in Chico, Ca
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