Freezing pollen

Raymondo · December 9, 2008

Should pollen be dried thoroughly before freezing? If so, how long can I leave it exposed at ambient temperature to dry before it is no longer viable?
I ask because I have crosses I want to do but have had to resow some plants which means there may be precious little pollen available by the time the newly sown plants have suitable flowers.

cottonpicker · December 9, 2008

Raymondo...... A study in Japan determined that dry tomato pollen stored for up to 12 months at -30 deg. remained fully viable. Longer storage reduced viability. Don't know how their pollen was dried for the test, but the research paper did report that tomato pollen air-dried at 25 deg.C loses one-half it's viability in 2 days. Looks to me that their pollen lost about 1% viability per hour.
So, if you want a 90% germination from air-dried tomato pollen, you could air dry for about 10 hours before storing the dried pollen in a freezer in an air-tight container.
Good luck!!

**Patrina_Pepperina** · December 9, 2008

Larry, very interesting about how fast pollen at room temps loses viability.

I've tried using pollen that I stored in the freezer last year, but so far no success, altho one of the flower buds is still just sitting there after several weeks. Usually unfertilised buds drop off the plant, so it's a wait-and-see situation at the moment.

Patrina

**Patrina_Pepperina** · December 9, 2008

Ray, I've thought about putting pollen in a vial and leaving it open in the refrigerator for several hours to "dry" under cold conditions before sealing and freezing... possibly worth a try? Haven't tried it yet myself.

PP

Raymondo · December 10, 2008

Thanks Larry and Patrina. I have nothing to lose so I'll try letting the pollen dry for a few hours, then freeze some and just keep some in the refigerator. It will be at maximum a month before using it so I might as well try both.

December 9, 2008	#1
Raymondo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Saumarez Ponds, NSW, Australia Posts: 946	Freezing pollen Should pollen be dried thoroughly before freezing? If so, how long can I leave it exposed at ambient temperature to dry before it is no longer viable? I ask because I have crosses I want to do but have had to resow some plants which means there may be precious little pollen available by the time the newly sown plants have suitable flowers. __________________ Ray

December 9, 2008	#2
cottonpicker Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: SE PA..near Valley Forge Posts: 839	Raymondo...... A study in Japan determined that dry tomato pollen stored for up to 12 months at -30 deg. remained fully viable. Longer storage reduced viability. Don't know how their pollen was dried for the test, but the research paper did report that tomato pollen air-dried at 25 deg.C loses one-half it's viability in 2 days. Looks to me that their pollen lost about 1% viability per hour. So, if you want a 90% germination from air-dried tomato pollen, you could air dry for about 10 hours before storing the dried pollen in a freezer in an air-tight container. Good luck!! __________________ "Strong and bitter words indicate a weak cause". Victor Hugo

December 9, 2008	#3
Patrina_Pepperina Cross Hemisphere Dwarf Project™ Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New South Wales, Australia Posts: 3,094	Larry, very interesting about how fast pollen at room temps loses viability. I've tried using pollen that I stored in the freezer last year, but so far no success, altho one of the flower buds is still just sitting there after several weeks. Usually unfertilised buds drop off the plant, so it's a wait-and-see situation at the moment. Patrina __________________ Truth is colourful, not just black and white. PP: 2005

December 9, 2008	#4
Patrina_Pepperina Cross Hemisphere Dwarf Project™ Moderator Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: New South Wales, Australia Posts: 3,094	Ray, I've thought about putting pollen in a vial and leaving it open in the refrigerator for several hours to "dry" under cold conditions before sealing and freezing... possibly worth a try? Haven't tried it yet myself. PP __________________ Truth is colourful, not just black and white. PP: 2005

December 10, 2008	#5
Raymondo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Saumarez Ponds, NSW, Australia Posts: 946	Thanks Larry and Patrina. I have nothing to lose so I'll try letting the pollen dry for a few hours, then freeze some and just keep some in the refigerator. It will be at maximum a month before using it so I might as well try both. __________________ Ray