Forum area for discussing hybridizing tomatoes in technical terms and information pertinent to trait/variety specific long-term (1+ years) growout projects.
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June 28, 2015 | #1 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Southern WI
Posts: 2,742
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Pollen Collection for Crossing
I've been reading:
http://tgrc.ucdavis.edu/guidelines_e...g_tomatoes.pdf I'm thinking I might make a cross or two this year, nothing planned, just if I'm eating something and something pops to my mind I may give it go. Regarding the dissecting needle. I don't have one. Do I really need one? Or is there something you use to collect pollen to make a cross? Any other advice that deviates from the above guide? |
June 28, 2015 | #2 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: Vancouver Island
Posts: 5,931
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No fancy equipment is required. I use an electric toothbrush to collect pollen on a sunglasses lens... Learned on YouTube just to show that hand Pollinating tomatoes isn't rocket science
Watch some videos. I use a toothpick to remove the anther cone to emasculate an unopened bloom. The tricky part really is selecting the bloom to pollinate at just the right state of readiness before it opens and self pollinates. Luck and weather also are big factors KarenO |
June 28, 2015 | #3 |
Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a
Posts: 21,169
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Please also consider reading about pollen at:
http://www.kdcomm.net/~tomato/ This is the superb website of Keith Mueller who got his MS degree with Dr, Randy Gardner who has bred many wonderful varieties including the Mountain series. Keith himself has bred some outstanding varieties such as Liz Birt and many others which are also shown at his site, with pictures, parentages, etc. Start by clicking on Culture and then go down to How To make Crosses. But at some point take some time to look around his whole site, especially his explanation of genetic segregation, using cartoon like colored eggs. You'll also find there links that you won't find anywhere's else. Hope that helps, Carolyn
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Carolyn |
June 28, 2015 | #4 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Southern WI
Posts: 2,742
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Thanks for the quick replies! Will do what both of you recommend. I've used Keith's website for learning about tomato genetics, so I look forward to reading his crossing section.
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June 28, 2015 | #5 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Southern WI
Posts: 2,742
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After watching these I think I've convinced myself I do not need special equipment and I can just do this leisurely with my hands out in the garden. I lean toward the electric toothbrush method for collecting pollen and rubbing the stigma around in the collected pollen. I would think removing anthers for a variety with an extruded stigma may be a little more difficult and require some loosening near the flower base so you wouldn't damage the stigma.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nMrcEC_Zvc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1Riedng9WY I've got some currant tomatoes growing this year so I don't have a shortage of blossoms to practice emasculating a few. |
June 28, 2015 | #6 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Cache Valley, N/E of The Great Salt Lake
Posts: 1,244
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I'm a brute-force type of guy when pollinating tomato flowers... I tear the mother's anther cone apart with my bare hands. If the style gets damaged then I move on to the next flower. Then I go get a pollen donor... I tear the anther cones open until I find a flower that is shedding pollen, and swipe it against the stigma. Then if I got that far, I tear off all the other flowers/fruits on that flower cluster and put a flag on the stem of the cluster.
I'm not much for trying to keep track of tools, or for dragging them with me into the garden. There are usually enough flags laying around the garden on other crops that I can use half of a flag that was used on something else. |
June 29, 2015 | #7 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Raleigh, NC
Posts: 1,448
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To tease apart the cone I use a pair of stainless steel needle point tweezers for small anther cones like cherry toms and micro-dwarfs. Their styles are hair thin and it takes a steady hand. Larger ones can be removed with fingers pretty easily. I collect pollen with an electric toothbrush and black plastic spoon. I'd say I have about 95% success rate.
Be forewarned, crossing toms becomes addictive!
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Blog: chriskafer.wordpress.com Ignorance more frequently begets knowledge: it is those who know little, and not those who know much, who so positively assert that this or that problem will never be solved by science. --Charles Darwin |
June 29, 2015 | #8 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Cache Valley, N/E of The Great Salt Lake
Posts: 1,244
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Crossing is the easy part... My problem comes in growing enough F2s to find the traits I want among the offspring.
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June 29, 2015 | #9 | |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Southern WI
Posts: 2,742
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I am afraid of that.
Quote:
Although I could see myself crossing with some dwarf tomatoes--which will make the F2 growouts easier since you can detect dwarf vs non-dwarf very early on. |
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June 29, 2015 | #10 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Newfoundland, Canada
Posts: 6,794
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My thumb and index finger nails are fairly long, and turned out to be handy for prying apart the anther cones. My nails are sharp enough to clip off the petals and sepals too. I always clip them because I don't always destroy other flowers or fruit in the cluster, so there's no confusion as to which one is the cross. I like to get the first opening flower or two in a cluster, so there's no pollen shedding just above or near them.
I collect pollen by tapping the flowers against the glass inside the lid of some small containers I have for the purpose and use them upside down. The lid is shallow so it's easier to use for dragging the stigma through the pollen. The dragging is the harder part of the operation, for me, and it's when I'm most likely to break off the stigma. I try to repeat the cross pollination three times - as soon as the female is prepped, and for two days afterwards. You can see that the stigma matures, as a noticeable knob forms on the end, and when it's receptive, it is sticky and will make a line as it drags through the pollen. I keep the pollen in labelled containers, and add fresh pollen to it each day before repeating the cross. |
July 1, 2015 | #11 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Honey Brook, PA Zone 6b
Posts: 399
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I don't like the toothbrush method to gather pollen. I have experienced a few times of great success, but many more times where I got no pollen at all.
I much prefer to gather fully opened flowers. Strip the flower down to the anther cone and let the cone dry overnight. then I tap (or scrape), pollen onto a sunglass lens (wire frame sunglasses from dollar store are a great source [although a black plastic spoon would be great too!]). And then I store the lens in a plastic container w/ a "dehydrator" from a pill bottle in the refrigerator until I'm ready to use it (The Nightshade family of pollen tends to stay viable for a long time. Under proper conditions, it can last six months, although I generally only store it for up to a month or so.) |
July 6, 2015 | #12 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Honey Brook, PA Zone 6b
Posts: 399
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I realize I need to modify my statement here ... I'm being too absolutist here. The vibration/"toothbrush" method is fine, even great! ... if it works. The process I described is good for those times when the toothbrush method doesn't work, or needs supplemented.
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July 1, 2015 | #13 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Cache Valley, N/E of The Great Salt Lake
Posts: 1,244
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crmauch: What's your pollen storage method?
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July 1, 2015 | #14 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: May 2013
Location: Honey Brook, PA Zone 6b
Posts: 399
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The pollen's been placed on a dark lens. Some medicine bottles either have a pouch or a small canister that aids in keeping the moisture from the pills. I put one of these and the lens in a small plastic container (say 1 Cup to 1 1/2 C size) and close the container. I try not to have the lens bounce around or anything. I then store these containers in my refrigerator. You have to let the outer containers warm up slightly (depending on your weather and environment), when you're going to use them so that when you remove the lens you don't get condensation on the cold lens.
Does this help? I was planning on documenting my method w/ pictures. I'll try to get it posted shortly. |
July 1, 2015 | #15 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Alabama
Posts: 2,250
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There are two very good methods of collecting pollen. One is with a Vegibee and the other as CrMauch describes by collecting anthers and letting them dry to the point pollen drops.
http://vegibee.com/ |
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