Share The Seeds
Gardening Area => Crossbreeding and Hybridisation => Topic started by: LIBERTYNY on October 24, 2016, 05:08:44 AM
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Anyone know about Trichocereus pollination ? ?
I just saw a few videos from a known vendor with a great reputation that left me with some concerns about his seed genetics. I know a little about pollination in general, and concerning one particular plant, but Not cacti / Trichocereus. So admittedly I still know very little.
Some things I saw the vendor doing that did not seem right to me
- Did not bag the flowers after pollination.
- left more than one flower open at a time while using several different donor pollons.
- used the same device to carry multiple different pollons with out washing/sterilizing first.
Im not trying to break the vendors chops or anything, as I will most likely still continue to buy seed from them, but would like to learn more about the pollination practices of the Trichocereus's
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hummm....don't sound righto me ... but I am not any kind of expert
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It is very necessary to clean tools and contain the flower if you want to cross specific strains. This vendor is in essence only assisting open pollination. Wihout a contolled environment, how can you expect a certain outcome? In this case the seeds could be any compatable genetics within a single polliators radius. Still the odds are in favor for the desired cross, just dont expect all the seeds to be the genetics advertised. I actually prefer an open pollenation approach outdoors. Especially for my hardy hybiscus. It favors genetic diversity and allows the pollinators to do their thing. Plus i never was one for labels anyway. If it has the qualities you want in a cactus, whats the difference?
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In the videos, it looked like the man only wiped off the tool with a rag, I would think at least a Brush off then a wash with alchool would be necessary.
Im of your opinion that 99% of the seed would be the desired crosses, But my big quam with the process is if one of the donor pollons was no good the seed's would be just what ever the wind blew 'open pollination' and no one would know for years if ever.
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Cross contamination is indeed a big worry when you allow the anthers to mature on a flower you are going to be pollinating. This is why I never allow the flower I am pollinating to develop pollen. Ideally, you want one flower for pollen collecting and another one for pollinating. If every flower you pollinate also has its own viable pollen dusted on or around it then you are potentially going around picking up that viable pollen and carrying it with you to another flower if you aren't using a separate applicator for each pollination or as you said sterilizing the pollen applicator between pollinations. If all your flowers have been emasculated prior to pollen forming then you can safely go dusting with one brush in theory to all flowers with a single brush dipped in pollen making all those flowers the recipient of one dad versus several dads that one would have if you allowed each flower pollinated to develop its own ripe pollen. I get your frustration.
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Well Trichocereus needs a pollen from another Trichocereus to form a fruit/seed.
One cant take pollen from same flower or another flower on the same plant and use this to impregnate the flower.
However it seem not a good teknique not to cover the flower to prevent other airborne pollens to interfere with the outcome.
If it was something important it would never had been done this way.
I dont think the breeder is so concerned about the outcome, it probably will be correct 99 times out of 100 or something similar.
If one wants to be sure, one cant skip these safety steps.
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Here is an interesting tid bit on pollination... sometimes pollen cocktails are used in the hopes of getting one pollen that would normally not take... to take. So, sometimes one does indeed want a small amount of more compatible pollen to be mixed in or pollenate the stigma. If the offending pollen was one that was not very compatible... it might very well have been advantageous to come back and mix a bit of good pollen. Sometimes this good pollen is inactivated or weakened. Other times it is merely diluted.
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;) ive been told you cant cross to identical clones but i recently got two pcs to cross think something got in there?
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Here is an interesting tid bit on pollination... sometimes pollen cocktails are used in the hopes of getting one pollen that would normally not take... to take. So, sometimes one does indeed want a small amount of more compatible pollen to be mixed in or pollenate the stigma. If the offending pollen was one that was not very compatible... it might very well have been advantageous to come back and mix a bit of good pollen. Sometimes this good pollen is inactivated or weakened. Other times it is merely diluted.
But in such a situation, the seed would have to be grown out and separated, Not just offered up for sale as the hopeful cross.