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Old December 29, 2017   #182
dfollett
Tomatovillian™
 
Join Date: Dec 2012
Location: Utah
Posts: 693
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Quote:
Originally Posted by POAJoan View Post
This would be right up my alley. Micro dwarfs. I usually grow 30-40 full size plants, 15-20 dwarfs, and is getting to be way too much as I do not have the help I had a few years ago. I could grow a whole bunch in the greenhouse and be able to have my helpers managed them much more easily. It would also be very easy to put them on one of my rolling carts to move them in and out early in the year. So I would be more than happy-happy dancing wheelchair-to try to grow 20-30 micro dwarfs. So please consider me. Joan
Quote:
Originally Posted by maxjohnson View Post
If there's going to be a microdwarf project, I'm willing participate.

Alas, there is no Micro-Dwarf Project. It would be great if there were, but…. Now, if someone wanted to put one together and coordinate it, I’d contribute lots of unstable crosses people could micro hunt with. But I don’t have the inclination, desire or organization to keep track of all that would be needed to do one.

I am more than willing to send seed to anyone who says they want to help grow them and will share results (and seed back to me for anything that is worth growing again). Between this thread on micros and another thread about multiflora dwarfs, I’ve sent seeds to lots of folks. Unfortunately, I never hear back from most of them.

If you want to try some and at least intend to report back results, PM me and I’ll work with you and send you some seeds that MIGHT give you what you are looking for. Those in the photos I just posted are F4s so they should start coming more consistent with the next generation.

I have my ideas why so many people don’t report anything back – they don’t get the results they were expecting and not much worth growing. They probably start only a handful of seeds and grow out most of those they start. As I’ve worked more and more with these crosses, I’ve come to realize how much I didn’t know when I first started with them. I probably led people to believe the F3s they grew would be more like the F2s I described they came from than they were. I didn’t realize how much variability there would be and how many you need to start to find a few worth growing. Most turn out not to be worth growing again. So, if you only start 6-8 seeds and grow 2-3 plants, you probably will not find anything worthwhile.

In the F2 and F3 generations, I probably start at least 50-100 seeds for each one I grow to maturity. I'll shut up now.

Oakley, if you want to work another line, let me know and let’s get you some seed.
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