[SmokinErb]

Hey guys, I've been having issues with the search feature on my phone and haven't had much luck with google.


First, and most important, how long does pollen stay viable for? If it's not good for more than a few days, then this whole thread can be ignored.


The methods for harvesting pollen I've seen are.... risky. I'm looking for a safe method to avoid pollinating my crop, as I'm trying to save some pollen for a future pollen chucking project for freebies. Can I just cut off a branch from the male and put it in a bag? Or does the plant have to be alive to drop pollen?

[guyyug]

It is plenty viable for at least 1 month in open air for sure, about to test some that have been dried somewhat and frozen for over a year, will try and update then.

The only safe method I would use (and did), were move them to another location, use some florescent lighting or anything really, once you see the nanners in your flower room, move them and just keep some with paper underneath them in a still air environment, shaking the branches once or twice a day onto the paper, which you can then pour into whatever you want to keep it in (I folded paper pouches with labels and dates so that it could let the little bit of moisture escape before freezing. but really, once the male parts have formed, very little light is needed to ensure they open

Take the females you want to knock up out of your room, put the pollen on the few branches (or all), let it sit for an hour, then get a strong fan to blow the rest off. I know some people will spray water all over them causing the rest of the pollen to become inactive.

I think once the male sacs are abundant and full, they will release whether they are attached to the plant or not, but I wouldn't want to take the chance that they are stunted if going through all the work to keep seeds, especially when you devote time and space to growing them out, you want them to be as strong as possible. sorry for the long post ...

[Hydro-Soil]

A closet works fine. Tip the plant sideways over tinfoil or parchment paper. A small paintbrush works great for moving the pollen into the middle in a pile for collection. SPRAY DOWN THE CLOSET WHEN YOU'RE DONE! That stuff gets everywhere. lol

Toast some flour until it's browned. Let it cool and mix your DRIED/Dessicated pollen at 1:50 or 1:100 with the flour.

Your pouches of pollen only need to be about 1/4 teaspoon each. That will make a LOT of seeds. Need more? Grab more pouches.

Put your pollen in a vacuum bottle thermos (wide mouth) and it'll last longer in your freezer.

Stay Safe!

[Hammerhead]

I just used some of my 6 month old deep freeze pollen.. GSC x Querkle ......seeds are good.

Make sure the pollen is dry before you store it. Must be in air tight container.

I used small paper pouches. Ea pouch has enough pollen to do 1 plant. All of the pouches are stored in a air tight container.

[SmokinErb]

Thanks guys! Got me thinkin' about it a bit differently now.

Checked out Marlo's "man-cave" and realized that's pretty much an ideal situation for me. Just a small isolated box with a couple of CFL's and some HEPA filteration to keep the pollen contained.

Got a whole bunch of Karma's gear (d-kush, cheesy rider, jack o nesia, biker le blanc, biker kush v2.0) and the list keeps growing, figured I'd select some males out of the packs and maybe see what I can get from a little pollen chucking experiment.

Would have to talk to Karma, but I'd like to be able to send in some freebies or auction gear to a few websites that have really helped me along as a grower in these past few years.

[RasDan]

How many days do you let your pollen dry?