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How do you store heliamphora pollen, or any pollen for that matter

Standard procedure:

1. Immediately place pollen in microcentrifuge tubes
2. Place open microcentrifuge tubes into a bed of color indicating silica gel desiccant
3. Close up the container of desiccant for 24 hrs to allow pollen to dry.
4. Remove microcentrifuge tubes, close tubes and freeze for long term storage

Ok, now what is the shade tree methods when you dont have microcentrifuge tubes and a cup or two of Silica gel.

Gotta be some ghetto techniques using crackers, duck tape and visegrips (LOL, teasing of course) or something....

Talk to me you Bio majors :p

---------- Post added at 06:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:44 PM ----------

Well lets try bunch of crushed up saltine crackers and small silica gel packet from bottle of meds wth the pollen placed in folded newspaper


:p
 
Film canisters make good containers but are on short supply these days. Any small jar with a tight sealing lid will do - baby food bottles for instance.

Uncooked rice is an excellent desiccant.

Put a 1/4-1/2 inch of uncooked rice in the bottom of the container.

Put pollen in small paper bindles, tape isn't necessary if you make sharp creases. Label the bindle. Several bindles can be placed in a container.

Seal the container and put in the refrigerator for a couple days. Then transfer to the freezer. Placing it in the refrigerator first allows the moisture to be absorbed by the rice before freezing. Expansion of water as it freezes in the pollen could rupture the pollen walls.

Some pollen only remains viable for a few hours at room temperature. Dessication in the refrigerator can extend the time some species remain viable.

If you want use only a few bindles at time thaw them out in another sealed container. The paper will absorb what little moisture that occurs during thawing. You could also add some uncooked rice. Refreezing the pollen is probably not a good idea.
 
well pretty much what i did with the exception of using crackers instead of rice

:)
 
Well.... a TF member emailed me and said he had beau-coup microcentrifuge tubes
And I ordered 250g of Orange to green color changing silica gel from an ebay source for 8.00 delivered
(Hong Kong source)

so if ghetto doesnt cut it ;-)

Amp, wouldn't the wax paper prevent the moisture from being drawn out of the pollen?
 
I second the rice notion and have used it in the past when silica gels were unavailable; and I have stored pollen in either filter paper or squares of parchment paper . . .
 
Please excuse my stupidity/ignorance/"ign'ance"
But what exactly is the purpose of color changing silica?
 
Amp, wouldn't the wax paper prevent the moisture from being drawn out of the pollen?

thinking about it, yeah. you're right....i guess you could use one of those silica packets... :p
 
Please excuse my stupidity/ignorance/"ign'ance"
But what exactly is the purpose of color changing silica?

It helps draw the moisture from the pollen so it can be frozen for long term storage without damage from ice crystals.

The color changing variety of silica just makes it easier to know when it is saturated. It can then be recycled by putting it in a 200f oven.

HTH's
Av
 
  • #11
I tell ya what, express a need and a certain member comes to the rescue...

Opened a USPS package today to find Silica gel and Centrifuge tubes...

To my esteemed benefactor.... Thank you kind sir, once again your largess humbles me

:hail:
 
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