Re: Bloom Stalks

Dana,
 
I guess it's a pretty soft bristle.  It's just one of those type brushes that come with those old 'paint by number' kits.  I call them artist's brushes. I don't know if it's long bristled or short - just looks regular to me.  Pollen grains cling to the tips pretty readily and I just carefully hold the style arm and lightly brush across the stigmatic lip.  I don't tear up the blooms when I'm pollinating and it aggravates me on the occasions when I damage a bloom.  That makes it a slow process, but I'm growing the things for the bloom and just am not willing to tear one up to get a pod.  It would be faster if you don't care about damage to the bloom.  I use the end of the brush to flip the anthers over and around in the Dixie cup.  A lot of the pollen grains will shake loose in the container, but the brush is small enough that it can be brushed over the anthers (or scrubbed, if you like) with pollen or used like a broom to sweep around in the bottom.  It's pretty efficient about collecting the pollen.
 
Does that help at all?
 
Donald

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