AndreaD said:Jan, Your seedling is lovely. What was the cross?
That's a long story, Andrea. Two years ago, when I first ventured into pollen-daubing,
I was using a soft artists brush to gather the pollen and was shaking out the brush vigorously
when I was done with one and going on to the next...WRONG! What I thought I was crossing was
Care to Dance x Rio Rojo. I was told by Someone Who Knows, that no way could the resulting seedlings
be from that cross. I was also breeding with Whisper Her Name pollen that day and all the seedlings
from that cross have that coloring. Just one grain of pollen is enough to fertilize an iris!
Live and Try to Learn is my motto!
What I do now is pretty simple. I choose a pollen-providing iris that's a couple of days old, snap off
the whole bloom and carefully peel away the falls, the standards, and very carefully, the style arms, revealing and leaving intact the pollen-bearing anthers,which can be used as a tool, a little wand to spread the pollen to the fresh pod parent's stigmatic lip. I'm always a bit sad to destroy the pollen-bearing flower - that's one of the reasons I choose one that's been in bloom for a few days. I also think the extra day or two gives the iris a chance to "ripen" the pollen. So
often the anthers are smooth that first bloom day - not displaying any pollen grains. I find the "wand" easier to manipulate than tweezers, or, heaven forbid, a brush!
