Best way to save pollen?

14 years ago

I know we have some experienced people on this forum who can provide some tips on saving pollen. Best time? Container to use? Take the whole stamen? Where to store till I plan to use it? Contamination by insects?

I have some new dls planted this spring which I only want to save the pollen and not set pod on it them this year. Too much stress to let it bloom and then set pod. But I do have other dls which have been here awhile which will be blooming in the coming months which I will want to set pod on.

Thanks for any and all advice.

Julia

Comments (11)

agibson
14 years ago
I hang out in the Daylily Forum too and there are some really knowledgeable friendly people there. You probably will get more answers there.
They have lots of pictures of daylilys that are blooming now, do be careful or the daylily bug will bite you too!
kstatefan
14 years ago
Is there a different forum than this one?

Here is a link that might be useful: Collecting Pollen
Related Discussions
Best way to save tomatoes?
Q
Comments (6)
We use a lot of tomatoes over the winter. Sometimes just as a vegetable. I can tomatoes and make tomato juice and freeze some. To can: I wash and rinse well, my jars. Peel and pack as many into jars as I can. No need to sterilize because of the long hot water bath. I do them whole or cut up if they are big. I whirl a few of the bigger ones in the blender until they are a chunky liquid. I pour this over the packed tomatoes, using a knife to remove any air bubbles. Then I add 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the same of sugar to pints--1 teaspoon for quarts. Then I give them a hot water bath for 35 minutes for pints--45 minutes for quarts. Screw the lids on hand tight and completely submurge the jars. To make tomato juice: This tastes like fresh garden tomatoes not at all like the kind you buy. Cut the stem end out and any cracks or brown spots. cut into large wedges and boil for 10 minutes stiring often so they don't stick. Put through a pulper or anything you have that will allow the juice and pulp to go through but not the seeds and skins--my friend uses a potato ricer. Some small seeds will go through but you never notice them when you are drinking it. Bring the juice back to a boil and pour into serilized jars add sugar and salt as above and give a hot water bath for 10 minutes. In the 25+ years I have been doing this I can count on 1 hand the number of jars that have gone bad and sometimes they are down in my canning cupboard for 2 years.
...See More
Best way to save a bamboo after cutting off rotten roots
Q
Comments (2)
It's not bamboo. You have a houseplant that is marketed as Lucky Bamboo, but is really Dracaena senderiana. There is a separate, Lucky Bamboo forum at GardenWeb for folks who have this plant.
...See More
what's the best way to save/store a serrano harvest?
Q
Comments (11)
hm, I thought about that too. What do you do with the serrano powder? Are you using it as a general purpose medium-hot seasoning? I haven't yet figured out what serrano powder would be good for. I can think of a lot of things to throw serrano rings into, but no doubt powder is a lot more convenient to store.
...See More
Best way fo saving tomato seeds
Q
Comments (1)
The video is not visible.
...See More
Julia WV (6b)
Original Author
14 years ago
Thank you kstatefan. Lots of good info. This is the only Daylily forum on GW. Perhaps agibson thought they were on another forum.

Just one last question which I didn't see mentioned in the link. Any fool proof method to get the stamen before the bees/insects contaminate it? Or is that a silly questions to ask?

Thanks for any advice.

Julia
Ed
14 years ago
Bag it Julia.

Use a bag you can see through and tie it with a twist tie under the bud.
Ed
Julia WV (6b)
Original Author
14 years ago
Ed: Will a bud still open with a plastic bag over it?

Julia
organic_kitten
14 years ago
Thanks for all the comments. Not my thread, but I learned from it.
kay
Ed
14 years ago
Julia,
Yes it will.

I use the translucent white type of plastic grocery to bag blooms to save the pollen from insects and rain. Sometimes the bloom has limited room, but opens enough to get the pollen or pollinate it. Just don't use a bag that is very floppy and lays on the flower.
Ed
farmerbell
14 years ago
A word of caution. I put a plastic grocery bag around a bud to save the pollen from rain and used a clothespin or two to connect the ends of the bag. We had a big thunderstorm and I found the entire scape broken off, lying on the ground. It was a new arrival so I put the scape in water inside and did manage to get 3 blooms, but they kept getting smaller and smaller. Maybe the clothespins made the bag too heavy - I am not sure.

Here is what I am doing now. I have a lot of plant supports that are 3' tall from the big box stores. They have a circle on the top (sort of) so that one can put the stem of a flower into the circle. This circle is parallel to the ground and about 3-4" in diameter. I now put three of these into the ground around the daylily I want to protect and place a white garbage bag over the plant supports. The circles on the top provide a platform for the bag to rest on and keep it off the bloom. I use clothespins to connect the bag to the plant supports very close to the ground. It has worked very well for me. Doesn't look too great to have a bunch of tents out in the garden, but if I want the pollen it is worth it. If I want to pollinate the flower when it is raining, I can do so (under an umbrella) and place the bag back on for that day.

Good luck!

Ann
Julia WV (6b)
Original Author
14 years ago
Ed and Ann: Thanks so much for the comments and explanations.

I was thinking to take the anther off, place in tube, close the cap and mark it. Would this be a correct method to use or do I have to wait a certain amount of time for the pollen on the anther to be dry before closing the cap? I'm a little confused on that part of the process.
Not storing it in the freezer. How long will the pollen be good for if not frozen?

Julia
Ed
14 years ago
Ann makes a good point. You must secure the bag well around the stem. If it gets loose and it gets windy, the bag becomes a parachute and can cause serious damage.

Julia, I collect pollen anthers around 10-11 in the morning and let them dry till 9-10 at night before putting in micro-centrifuge tubes. The pollen needs to be dry before freezing. If you just put it in the fridge, it will probably keep for a week or so as long as moisture doesn't get to it. Freezing will make it last years.

Lee Pickles of Chattanooga Daylilies just posted some pictures of the way he processes his pollen on his website. Pretty easy to follow. Link below.
Ed

Here is a link that might be useful: Chattanooga Daylilies
Julia WV (6b)
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks Ed for the help.

Julia