skip to main content

Manual pollination

14 years ago

We have beautiful, bushy, disease free Billy Goat peppers growing in our conseratory. They are currently 3 feet tall and flowering. In the UK, it is still too cold to move them outdooors and since they are growing in a closed conservatory they have nno access to insect pollinators. We are therefore using a soft small brush to cross-pollinate. We are not having any luck...no fruits are setting. Are these chillies male or female but not both? Does anybody have any suggestions?

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (3)

smokemaster_2007
14 years ago
Each bud is both male and female.
Might try a shot of Calcium.
I use a liquid concentrate called Foli Cal.
Some people pull a bud and rub other buds with it...
Some just shake the plant.
willardb3
14 years ago
Chiles are self-pollinating and don't need any intervention. Get a small fan to move the air over the plants.
Related Discussions
Can fruit trees be manually pollinated?
Q
Comments (2)
Use a very soft paint brush work the pollen off the flowers from one tree onto the brush than brush the flowers you want
...See More
Manual Pollination 101
Q
Comments (6)
Go to the dollar store, buy a pack of cue-tips and a box of multi-color children's magic markers. Mark each cue-tip with a band of color mark each different pepper with a matching color. Stick the end of the cue-tip in the flowers and twist and turn. This only works is the flowers are fresh. If you wait till they start to fade it will just drop off. If you keep a close eye you can see the pollin as you twist the cue-tip. You can buy a vibrator tooth brush that works great but you'd have to buy extra tips for it. Not to mention they don't last long.
...See More
OK, I'm going to try manual pollination
Q
Comments (13)
I sure wish I could figure out the relationship between blossom drop to temperatures as compared to humidity!! Several weeks ago mewste was excited about how his plants loved and were even thriving in102 degree ambient temps. My experience has been pretty much the exact opposite! While I can certainly keep plants alive at high temps I wouldnÂt come anywhere close to saying they love it!! I donÂt see any pollination if temps are over 92 or soÂ Is my problem temp related or is it actually heat accompanied by high humidity? Raybo said he did lose blossoms that were exposed to the sun but indicated shaded ones werenÂt affected. Have I been struggling for the past 35+ years with a fix as simple as constructing some shade for my tomatoes??? Remember, the Godfathers New JerseyÂs death happened in a tomato patch with some kind of tarps/ceiling to (I think?) provide shadeÂÂÂ Thanks, Terry Light Oak Hill, Virginia
...See More
Adeniums: Perfect Flowers
Q
Comments (15)
Don't you just love the wildlife, I love it when I see it round our area, although it's very sparce, but it's always nice to see the odd deer, hedgehog and if lucky a badger, nothing compared to you guys mind, wild pigs lol great. Years ago I came over to the states to New Jersey and worked on a special needs summer camp in the pocono mountains. What lovely countryside in them mountains and it was bear country although we didn't encounter them. Sadly if man keeps destroying the planet and their natural habitats them there won't be much wildlife left in 20/30 years time.....
...See More
reyna1
14 years ago
I had some trouble with a bhut jolokia setting fruit last year. I shook the plant and that did the trick.
I think what willard/smokemaster suggests as well as shaking the plant will have great results if it is indeed just an issue of getting pollen to the plants.
Danny

Related Stories

GARDENING GUIDES We Bust 4 More Native Plant Myths

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Have you been taken in by these fallacies about gardening with native plants?

GARDENING GUIDES Make Sure You Read This Before Buying New Plants

By Noelle Johnson Landscape Consulting

Follow these 10 plant-selection tips to avoid buyer’s remorse

EARTH DAY Native Plants 101

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

Learn what they are, where they are and why we need them

FRONT YARD IDEAS Before and After: Front Lawn to Prairie Garden

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

How they did it: Homeowners create a plan, stick to it and keep the neighbors (and wildlife) in mind

GROUND COVERS Give Your Lawn a Taste of the Wild

Consider the joys of an irregularly trimmed meadow lawn: It’s ecofriendly, visually interesting and still good for romping

GARDENING GUIDES Put Out the Welcome Mat for Leafcutter Bees in Your Garden

By Pollination Press LLC

Provide a diversity of flowering plants from spring through fall for these charismatic native bees, and you won’t be disappointed

GARDENING FOR BUTTERFLIES 3 Ways Native Plants Make Gardening So Much Better

By Benjamin Vogt / Monarch Gardens

You probably know about the lower maintenance. But native plants' other benefits go far beyond a little less watering and weeding

LIFE The Top 5 Ways to Save Water at Home

Get on the fast track to preserving a valuable resource and saving money too with these smart, effective strategies

GRASSES 10 Ways to Use Ornamental Grasses in the Landscape

By Laura Gaskill

These low-maintenance plants can add beauty, texture and privacy to any size garden

SPRING GARDENING Enjoy the Peak of Spring Gardening — Here’s What to Do in May

By Annie Thornton

Bid the frost farewell and treasure the blooms. No matter what U.S. region you’re in, one of these guides will help your garden flourish

Sponsored