I know someone who collects and stores pollen from cacti. I'll check with him but don't know if it applies to peppers.

john

Question to friend

> Question came up on one of the pepper forums about collecting and
> freezing pollen. I know you save pollen from cacti. Do you freeze it?
> How long is it good for? Do you think the same thing would apply to
> peppers?

Answer

Hi John,

I think Capsicum pollen might do well for some months, maybe longer.

I do store pollen, and I do freeze it. Usually, I store it 2 ways: 1) room dried, and 2) over a desiccation chemical (Drierite or silica beads).

I take the pollen as fresh as I can get it, just after the anthers open. I let it sit indoors for a day (24-36 hours) in an air conditioned room, and then I store it.

I often take the anther tips with the pollen attached and just drop them on a saucer and let them sit for a day or two. Then, I drop them into a coin envelope, or even the corner of a typical letter envelope.

Once in the envelope (if I'm sure the pollen is dry), I put the pollen (or anther bits) in an airtight tupperware-type container and freeze them. I find that they do best in a freezer that is NOT frost-free, but frost-free will work OK and can be useful for storing some pollen for a year or more. Frost-free freezers warm up a bit and then get colder, this is part of how they do their "frost-free thing." Old-type freezers just stay at one temperature and are quite useful as long as you don't open them often; if you open and close them they freeze the new air and made a lot of frost.

Anyway, sometimes I put Drierite or silica beads (as for drying flowers) into the tupperware-type container. Such beads pull even more moisture out of the air than you can achieve by room drying. The airtight container is important; it does no good to use a plastic box that lets air in and out over the months. The main thing is dry, dry, dry, and not to warm up the pollen too often. Some plastic boxes are not airtight and allow air to enter over time; the incoming air brings moisture. Fluctuations in humidity (in my experience) do more to shorten pollen life than do fluctuations in temperature.

I have tried a method that is very simple. Take a cotton ball, pull it a bit to make it twice as long as wide. Then, use the cotton ball and your fingers to pinch the stamens--be sure to get a lot of pollen on the cotton ball. Then, I dry for 1-2 days in an air conditioned room (because less humidity) and then I freeze as above (with or without a desiccating agent).

The actual longevity can only be determined by experimenting.

I have used taken fresh pollen and put it into a plastic baggie with a bit of silica beads (the pollen was in an envelope or on the cotton ball), and I have mailed it. The pollen was good for 2-3 weeks in the U.S. Mail and the recipient used it to pollinate plants.

So, just remember:
1) fresh pollen
2) dry for 1-2 days in a non-humid environment (not your garage)
3) dry at room temperature or approximately so
4) use a desiccating agent if you can find it (hobby stores)
5) use an airtight container (ziplock bags leak air over several weeks)
6) freezing can help
7) Frost-free freezing might even be more helpful if you can find an older freezer.

Johnf

Thanks John You have been helpful

Site of the man who provided the info.

Here is a link that might be useful: Opuntiads

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