Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Divide the patch of corn in half. One half will be used as father plants, the other as mother plants
(ideally at least 50 of each). Remove tassels from mother plants with a sharp knife. Implementation is
as follows:
Day 1
. Bag and cut ears from mother plants (B-E). Correct timing: as many ears from mother plants as
possible should be just about to send out their silks. These should, however, not yet be visible as these
have likely already been pollinated by natural processes. Carefully remove the leaf that contains the
ear so a bag can fit around the ear. Then cut off the tip of the husk leaves with a sharp knife. When the
cut is too far down the ear, not all silks will be cut. Practice on a few ears, if you have enough plants,
to get a feel for where the cut should be. Immediately after cutting, place a bag over the ear and close
with binder clips between ear and stalk. Make sure there is space between the bag and the tip of the ear
to avoid the ear splitting the bag.
Day 2
. Bag the tassels of father plants (A). Wait until they just start to shed pollen (they start to look
kind of dusty and scraggly). When tassels are bagged too early, they often cease development and pro-
duce no pollen. Shake tassels just before bagging to remove pollen from other plants that may have
landed on the tassel. Put the bag over the tassel with the tassel in the side folds of the bag. Fold the
opening of the bag over twice to ensure that pollen cannot fall out and staple shut.
Day 3
. This is when actual pollination takes place (F-H). The ideal time for pollination is late morning,
when much pollen has collected in the bags. There should be no strong winds. Shake the tassel well
while it is still in the bag to maximize pollen collection and minimize pollen that blows away from the
tassel once the bag is off. Then remove the bag very carefully, pulling toward the side and down. Pol-
len is bright yellow and fine as flour. Filter all the pollen of a variety through a metal or porcelain
colander and into a bowl. Remove the bag around the ear of each mother plant individually as you get
to each plant. Silks should have grown to be about 1-1.5 in. (3-4 cm) long by now. Brush pollen onto
the silks with your finger (pollen is accepted by the silks along their entire length, not just at the tip).
You will need about a teaspoon of pollen per ear. Replace the bag over the ear immediately after pol-
linating and close well with tape (not so tight that growth is restricted, not so loose that wind can blow
in pollen or blow the bag away). Leave the bags on the ears until they are ripe. This not only serves as
a label for which ears were hand pollinated, it also protects the ear from herbivory by birds.
Hand pollination of corn
. Preparation:
