| Ok, so you finally have some pollen on the iris at the right place, now what? |
| Well if you haven't picked out the
anther yet (as in the picture above) you might want to do
it now. It is better to do it before you pollinate, but
later is better than never. Of course pollen can be carried from one flower to another by something other than a pair of tweezers, or a toothpick, so you have to consider how much of a risk a "bee cross" is in your area. Sharon McAlister in New Mexico says one year she did crosses only in one half of her fields. She left the other half alone just to see how many crosses she got from insects, wind, or whatever. She got no unplanned seed pods, so she is no longer concerned about bee crosses in her fields. That may on may not be the same for your area. Many hybridizers think that it is very difficult for a bee or other insect to pollinate an iris. If you are worried about bee crosses, one simple trick is to cover the flower bud of the pod parent with a tube made of a length of nylon stocking, knotted at the top, and tied around the stem, just befor the flower opens. Remove it to take off the anther and pollinate the plant, then replace it until the flower dies and the pod begins to form. Ok, so you know how to make a cross, but when is the right time? The pollen must be ripe. As the anther forms in the flower, it is a long narrow pod with two longitudinal chambers along each side. When the pollen is ripe, the two chambers will split open and the pollen grains will migrate out onto the surface of the anther. If your eyes are good, it is easy to see the pollen grains. They are obvious. A magnifying glass is helpful for those of us whose eyes are not as good as they used to be. On the anther in the picture above, you can see the little pollen grains massed on the anther- they look like very small grains of cornmeal. Sometimes the pollen on a just opened flower is not ripe, give it a few hours and check again. The anther can be picked off and saved for later use. For short term storage, any small container can be used. Just keep it out of the sun and dry - moisture is death to pollen. Small condiment cups available at resturant supply stores are easy to use. For long term storage, pollen can be refrigerated or frozen. The most important aspect is keeping out moisture. Put little dessicant pouches in with the pollen (ask your pharmacist - they come in some pill bottles). Efficacy of the pollen of course decreases with time. |