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Huntsville Texas

We have a wonderful vine with some great female flowers, which we would like to self-pollinate, but it looks like there will be male flowers the day before but not on the day the female flowers bloom. Can we save the male flowers from the day before in order to self-pollinate them? Could we refrigerate or freeze the male flowers? I know with daylilies, it is possible to freeze pollen to use up to weeks later. Does anyone know about saving pumpkin flower pollen?

5/23/2012 11:48:12 PM

Tinykinville

one day in fridge should be good any longer i have never tried.

5/24/2012 1:06:49 AM

Western ny

i saved a 1725 harp for 3 days in a fridge and pollinated with it and it worked for me ...but that was only once. try to keep the flower in a paper bag

5/24/2012 12:11:39 PM

The North Coast

I would harvest the male flower the night before and first thing in the morning I would scrape the pollen (with a knife) onto a piece of aluminum foil, carefully fold it over and refrigerate.

This way if you need it for even a later date you will wont have to worry about the degeneration of the flower.

I have no experience using this technique for pumpkin pollen but see nothing wrong with it....(disclaimer).

5/24/2012 1:25:10 PM

Piqua, Ohio

I also put em in the fridge, sometimes I get flowers from other growers and never have trouble!

5/24/2012 6:01:58 PM