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We're leaving this afternoon for a weekend long Scout Camping event about 20 miles away. Two prime potenial hotties await "servicing". Five options exist:

1.) Open pollination by bees - yuck.
2.) Beg housesitter to ruin patch trying to make the cross.
3.) Bag & beg a fellow area grower to make the cross.
4.) Rip open the hotty & pollinate early.
5.) Sneak away before dawn & risk the domestic tranquility.

Option 1 stinks for such a prime location. Option 2 has already caused the demise of prime plant material here before. Option 3 is the best case scenario but might not be possible. We'll know later. Option 5 isn't fair to the family.

Has anyone ever ripped open a female prior to "the time"? Did the pollination take?

Need quick reply.

Thanks,

Steve

7/9/2004 7:02:41 AM

Knopp, Germany

Steve, do to a commitment at work last year i forced one open at 0530 in the AM and pollinated it with males from the day before that i had in the fridge. it took. it wasn't open at 0530, but i think it would have later that morning. Good luck, you and all of us need it.

7/9/2004 7:06:42 AM

Knopp, Germany

I forgot to mention Steve, on that one I cut the end of the male off and tied it up inside of the female flower, no idea if that helped any later in the day, but it didn't hurt it.

7/9/2004 7:14:25 AM

Appalachian Mtns.

I did it last year on two because we had to go OOT, and they failed. Both females were a day early and I used fresh male pollen.

7/9/2004 7:31:23 AM

Long Island,New York

Your best bet steve...in my opinion...is to settle for the "technically open" classification but make assurances for your seed....what I mean is prune off all males on the other plants in the area that would contaminate the pollination and set the chosen males in a glass of water beside the female...they will open , the female will open...the bees will visit both, and the bees wont have alternate pollen to bastardize the cross...still "open" and may still be contaminated, but the chosen cross will be represented in a good % of the seeds. If we're talking the school courtyard I think thats the best bet....G

7/9/2004 7:35:02 AM

[email protected]

Thanks for the replies but Mother cooperated after all. While I pollinated the older/larger girls, I left the shy one untied. She came to the party on her own. Small but willing. 842x845 since the 805 had just been de-maled last night.

Thanks again.

Steve

7/9/2004 8:04:28 AM

[email protected]

We must have 10 open pollinations on the 842 secondaries this morning. Culling all these ought to be a hoot so long as the main sets stick this time.

7/9/2004 8:06:14 AM

Western Pa.

I forced many, and I've found that most of them took! (I just got back from scout camp!)

7/10/2004 5:01:59 PM