Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

Good to see fruit on your tomatoes!

Mine are to the ceiling and healthy green and full of flowers. Thing is, what I really want are tomatoes!

DB - how are you ensuring polination int he greenhouse?

I have one of those green zebras with a fruit on it ATM, can't wait till it gets to that size! Amazing stuff.

Monya, it's not actually only a green zebra. It is the result of a past cross pollination with another variety.
They are getting a little inbred so I am engaging in a breeding program to get back to F1, as well as new crosses.

VB, I know nothing about artificial pollenation and I have done nothing about it. I know that is a problem.

I am trying to learn all I can in this growing season to make better choices next year. I have squash, cucumbers, broccoli, beans, tomatoes.... and I am getting poor pollination.

Any suggestions would be appreciated VB. I tried a cotton swab but not affectively. Seemed like when the male flowers were open, the female were not...frustrating. I have used a fan to blow thru the flowers hoping to get some pollination

Hayden, sounds like your knowledge of plant breeding is pretty good. I expect you will have a lot of fun and success with AP.

DB - a couple of suggestions:

With things like cucumbers and zucinni, it is important to have several plants. This helps your chances of having males and females at the same time. With these crops that have larger fruit, it is viable to polinate by hand for each fruit. Best way to do this is remove the male flower, tear off the ptals to reveal the stamen and then go around to the females and rub the stamen onto the stigma (I think I am using the right terms - but I'm sure you are getting what I am saying). You will be able to do a few females with the one male. Make sure the ones you are using have pollen on them - sometimes they do not. I also use this method for pumpkins. I have never had to do it for cucumbers (just zucinnis) but I have never grown them in a greenhouse and therefore absent of bees.

For tomatoes, although I have not done it myself, the word is that an electric toothbrush will do the same job as the expensive vibration machines. Do not rub the bristles on the flower or anything, just put the back of the brush against the top of the truss so the flowers vibrate - thereby self polinating. Toms are different to the cucurbits (zucs, cucumbers, melons etc) in that the one flower has male and female parts - so the vibrating action will do the trick.

That's some tricks. See how you go.

Also DB - in places where there a bumble bees (we don't have them in Aus) greenhouse keepers release a couple of bees into the greenhouse every couple of days. They will survive for a bit and do the polinating. Most bees will not do this as they just freek out.

Doug, with tomatoes the pollen is contained inside the anthercone, so a brush or swab will generally not be effective. Take a close look at the flower.
The tomato flower contains both male and female parts.
The cone you see is the aforementioned anther cone. This is the male part. Contained within this is the female parts, including the stigma. The very end sticky bulb of the style(rod from base of flower) is the stigma.
You can use tweezers on a flower to remove the anthercone petals one by one to see the style, ovary and stigma. The stigma is where one wants pollen. If the stigma is not visible at the tip of the cone, then the variety will pollinate easily with some vibration. If it is visible(little green tip sticking out of the anthers) they take more to pollinate like bees or intended vibration and collection of pollen to get good results. Generally a vibration will work quite reasonably though.
In breeding one removes the anthercone petals before the flower fully opens(it will be a yellowy white color showing through). This ensures that pollen has not matured to possibly fertilize the stigma. Pollen is then collected from the other plant and applied to the stigma once the flower petals have fully opened, indicating a mature female ovary(the stigma will also gain a sticky look).

As per my knowledge of plant breeding it is not extensive, self learned for a while with some experience showing results. I may consider taking a course in plant biology or greenhouse management concepts, but first I think the most effective choice is a course in aquaculture.
Thanks for the motivating words though.

I use a version of this tool to gather pollen. It is a great time saver and very effective:

http://www.acuteimagination.com/TPB-GC.htm

DB another way to help with pollination is to have one or two of those oscillating fans running in the greenhouse periodically...

The "breeze" both moves the plants around helping to distribute the pollen and the breeze aslo helps strengthen root and stem structure.....

All hydro houses use them and/or roll up side cloths.

Another advantage is that keeping the air moving around .... it only has to be gentle.... is it helps distribute and minimse problems with humidity and fungus problems....

ie. attached photo is a propagation/seedling igloo...

Good for flowers that have pollen outside the anthercone...unfortunately not always effective for tomatoes.

True, but the "vibration" caused by the plants moving in the "breeze" will help.... its a small simulation of what happens naturally.

The electric toothbrush vibration technique uses the same approach, just more directly and more effectively

Great info! I am going to put it into affect immediately.
Thank you gentlemen for taking the time to help.
As long as I do not use my wifes toothbrush, I should do fine.

Hayden, what kind of fish are you raising in your system ?