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Appalachian Mtns.

For the newer folks, a little primer.....
If you want to insure that the cross you just spent all that time planning for, and waiting for, is *really* the cross you say it is, there's a few things to know.
#1) You will *not* beat the bees out to the patch the next morning. I have gone out at 3 am and they're there.
Cover the female completely (re-read completely) the night before it opens. Experience will tell you when the flower has the "look" that she'll be opening the next day. But when in doubt, cover it a few days ahead of time. Sometimes they'll fool ya' and besides, it's not going to hurt anything. If you get up and go out and pollinate a flower that is already open without cover, consider the cross an "open".
#2) The same goes for males. They too get that "look" and again, when in doubt, cover early OR, better yet, cut and bring inside. You can put them in water in the fridge overnight, but since Mom Nature doesn't cool things down for 'em the night before in the patch, I don't bother...I just leave 'em in the garage, in some water.
If you go out and grab a flower that's open, without cover, and pollinate a female (covered or not), then consider the cross an "open". Bees go from open flower to open flower, and spread pollen from one to the next. You don't know then if the pollen you're using is the flower you think, or the plant next door, or the Hubbard squash a mile down the road.

7/1/2004 6:09:43 PM

Appalachian Mtns.

cont.....

3) If you want to properly, truely, and correctly preserve the genetics you are trying to mix, then you *must* be in total control in every aspect of your pollinations. For folks to want your seed to grow because of the genetics in your crosses, they need to know that they are, what you say they are.
For us "all" to preserve the integrity of the lineage we are trying to create and share, then we "all" need to follow some simple rules and do things correctly. Otherwise we're "all" just growing open pollinated pumpkins and noone has any idea of what they're really growing.
If you're gonna call a seed a certain cross, take the extra time to do it right or be honest and call it an "open". I know I'd sure appreciate it if you send me your seed for me to grow.

7/1/2004 6:10:11 PM

Appalachian Mtns.

Cont...

And after pollinating, you *must* cover the female back immediately. A bee could come right behind you, drop some Hubbard squash pollen right down the pipeline, past your intended pollen, and beat you to the punch.
It can happen, believe it.
Do it right, or just let the bees do it anyway and sleep in. You owe it to your fellow growers, and most of all, to yourself. Nothing like walking around in self-doubt to tear at you, just after you mailed off that bubble to a grower who is so eagerly looking forward to your "bob x jane" super-cross....or was it?

7/1/2004 6:18:12 PM

[email protected]

Good post Kyle.

Covering females is sort of no-brainer stuff. But open males are just as likely to destroy a cross. Experience will teach you which ones are about to open. These I prefer to remove the night before & bring inside to place in a vase.

But this only works if you're using ONLY ONE male pollen donor. Bring 2 different sets inside & there is no possible way to insure genetic purity. So if more than one male contributing to the following days genetic menu, then covering the males on the plant is probably the only choice.

For those of us who don't like to cover, clothes pins or clips work very well on females. For males I prefer the wife's discarded nylons cut to size. My son's socks are a close second best.

Multiple males as pollinators has never made any sense to me. But some growers do it. In which case, I'd just let the bees have at it & call it an open pollination.

Another note: Cancle the irrigation cycle. Wet flowers are a real pain in the butt.

7/1/2004 6:51:12 PM

red bluff, california, usa

Thanks Southern for the post, I started expermenting with hand pollinating early & glad I did (have removed the ones that did take). found a good portion of the pollen was already gone by the time I got to the males so I started using cloths pins on a doz males each night, the flower part is a little droopy in the morning but the stamen doesn't seem to be damaged. I've been tieing the females shut w/ thread before and after then labling each set w/ male and date

7/1/2004 9:46:15 PM

Kenyon, Mn.

Good post Kyle, There are many who do not understand the pollination process, aside from the act itself. Gardening and raising heirloom variety vegetables for years, I have hand pollinated and protected both by isolation and barriers , successfully keeping many strains of some wonderful squash and pumpkins and many very hard to find vegetables pure and true.

7/3/2004 11:25:19 AM