Starting a pollen library

[pepperoo81]

Been really into crossing peppers and started wondering... Can you actually store pollen and use it for later? How long does it stay good for? I was thinking, if you had a little collection of pollen stored, you could maybe do a bunch of crosses on the same plant over time. Anyone ever tried storing for quite some time?

 

[Hotashell1]

Yup, you can store pollen, but you need to make sure you do it right. Collect the polen preferably in the morning and leave it for a few hours to dry. Place it in a container and add a bag of silica gel just to get any remainin moisture out. You can keep it in the fridge for about a week or two or if you want to hold on to it for longer you'll need to put it in the freezer. Before use, bring it to room temp to avoid potential damage from moitusre.

 

[Pepperoni]

Been really into crossing peppers and started wondering... Can you actually store pollen and use it for later? How long does it stay good for? I was thinking, if you had a little collection of pollen stored, you could maybe do a bunch of crosses on the same plant over time. Anyone ever tried storing for quite some time?

Yeah, you can store pepper pollen and it's actually more common than we'd think, you just have to dry it properly first then let it sit in a cool, dry place for a few hours after collection (silica gel packs help), then stash it in a small airtight container or tiny zip bags or micro centrifuge tubes then store in the freezer

 

[MildToWild]

I actually experimented with this a few seasons ago when I was growing ornamental peppers. I gathered pollen from a few plants that I particularly liked, let it dry overnight with some silica gel, and then stashed it in little film canisters in the freezer. A couple of months later, I used it for a few late-season crosses, and to my surprise, I got really good germination rates from the seeds!

Freezing works great as long as the pollen is dry before you put it in. Have you thought about how long you'd want to store yours? I've only gone a few months, so I'm curious to know how long others have been able to keep it.