CoronaCactus Gardens and Nursery

Pollinating flowers is done in order to produce seeds and continue growing new plants. If you have no desire to raise plants from seed, there is no need to pollinate the flowers. Just sit back and enjoy them!

This article will discuss how to pollinate a Pachypodium flower. There is very little info in books or the web about pollinating these flowers. So with some trial and error and having talked to some veteran growers, we’ve put together this article to help others with this task. Please be aware that this method works for us and may not work for you. It takes practice to get the feel for it, so don’t be disappointed if you do not produce seed horns your first try.

They aren’t like other flowers, in that the stigma is reversed and encapsulated deep within the stamens.

If you are producing seed for experimental growing or just for practice, crossing different species is fine. However, if you plan to trade the seed or offer it to others in the hobby, it may be better to keep the species as true as possible and not cross-pollinate creating unpredictable hybrids. If you do cross with different species, it’s important to keep notes and documentation on your crosses and include them with the seed when trading.

This same method can be applied to most other Pachypodiums (P. lamerei, P. griquense, P. namaquanum, etc.)

P. brevicaule

Well, the first things you’ll need are at least 2 plants in flower. In this case, we have 4 plants. 2 are P. brevicaule and 2 are P. brevicaule x densiflorum. Since the latter is already a hybrid, we’ve kept the strain going. Keep in mind, that all hybrids will have some slight differences that may or may not cross over to the new plants grown from the seed. If you have multiple plants in bloom, you can still pick out the best forms for cross-pollinating and hope the traits cross over.

Small plants blooming for the first time may not be ready to reproduce just yet. In some cases, it may require you to wait another year for the next set of flowers.

Mature plants in flower should be left to do their thing for the first few days as the flower is opening. Pachypodium flowers can remain active for several days. We generally wait at least 2 days for the flowers to mature and produce pollen.

P. brevicaule x densiflorum

P. brevicaule seedling with it’s first bloom

P. brevicaule

Step 1 - Cutting the petals

We find it best to work indoors in a controlled environment without any wind, insects or any other outside elements in the case of any pollen getting airborne and accidently pollinating something we aren’t aware of.

With your 2 plants in front of you, we’re ready to go.

Step 1 - Preparation

First peel back the petals, as Pachypodium flowers are deep tubular types and have all their reproductive organs deep inside. We use a pair scissors to snip the petals, as they can be a bit tough and you run the risk of tearing the flower apart. Repeat for each flower you want to pollinate.

Take note, that the cut flower tube will secrete sticky nectar. Either be extremely careful to not touch it or use a Q-tip and dab the nectar drops, but not touching the inner part of the flower. Discard the cut away petals, they have no further use.

Peeling back the petal

Snipping the petal at the base

You’ll soon have a pile of petals

Step 2 – Pollination

(Note the droplets of nectar)

Step 2 – Pollination

Once you have all the petals peeled back on the flowers you want to pollinate (on both plants) you’re ready to get to it.

In the photo to the left, you can see the droplets of nectar. This indicates the freshness of the flower and that it’s ready for pollination. You can also see the small pointed part at the bottom of the flower tube. This is the area were the reproductive organs are.

Using a single bristle from a paint brush, a spare cactus spine or any equivalent tool, probe the bristle into one of the slits in the pointed part and swish it around. Then slowly pull it up from the bottom and out the slit near the top. This gathers the pollen on the bristle.

Now carefully move to the next plant and probe its flower with the bristle the same way as the first. The stigma and pollen are down inside that pointed part. As you swish it around and remove the bristle, you’ve just done 2 things. Pollinated the stigma with pollen from plant 1 and gathered new pollen from plant 2.

Continue this process until all flowers on both plants have been pollinated. It’s very important to switch back and forth between plants, as these are not self-fertile and will not set seed with its own pollen. It must be from another plant.

Swish the bristle around on plant 1

The pollen is very fine; take extra care when moving from one plant to the other.

Swish the bristle around on plant 2

Developing seed horn –

4 weeks old

Step 3 – The waiting game

Once you have all the flowers on both plants pollinated there’s nothing left to do but sit and wait. We do recommend putting the plants back where they were to keep them in the same conditions they were in when flowering. As an added precaution, covering the freshly pollinated flowers with small paper or plastic baggies is a good idea. This blocks out any potential insect pollination or cross-pollination.

Do not leave the covers on the flowers for very long; a day should be fine.

Depending on various conditions, and if successful, you’ll see seed horns start to form in 2 to 4 weeks. The seed horns look like flower buds at first, but develop into two separate lobes. The lobes will eventually split apart and the seeds will be released.

Straws on seed horns

Stapelia paniculata v. scitula

Elastic bands on seed horns

P. saundersii

Seed horn open and seeds released, but still encased in the straw

Straws on seed horns

Baynesia lophophora

Straws on seed horns

Baynesia lophophora

Close-up of the inner part of the flower

Developing seed horn –

4 weeks old

Step 4 – After care

Again, depending on the conditions, the seed horns will grow and expand. Once ripe, the lobes split open. Each seed has a small tuft of fluff attached to it. This is designed to be taken by the wind and dispersed all around. Sometimes called a *Seed Parachute*. Since we want to capture ALL the seed, some precautions need to be taken.

As the seed horns are ripening, you’ll want to prevent them from splitting open and letting the wind take your seeds away or having them spill over into other pots in your collection. This can be done 2 ways. If the seed horns are thin enough a drinking straw cut to size can be slipped over the seed horn. If the seed horn is too thick for a straw, small elastic bands can be placed on the seed horns. Do not use the straw if it’s a very tight fit and do not make the elastic bands too tight. You don’t want to prevent the seed horn from splitting open naturally; you just want it to only open a little bit.

Once the seed horn has split open, remove the straw/elastic bands and place the seeds into a small paper envelope. The small tufts of fluff can be removed from each seed at any time. These have no use anymore. Write the plant name and the date on the envelope. If it was crossed as a hybrid, write the parent plants names as well. The mother is the plant that received the pollen and the father is the plant that provided the pollen. The pollen donor name goes first in the plant name. As an example; If you took pollen from P. brevicaule and successfully pollinated a P. succulentum flower, the resulting name would be: P. brevicaule x succulentum

Update 6-2-2009

Below are some photos of seed horns that have opened and what the seeds look like.

Open seed horns of

P. saundersonii

Small tufts of fluff on the seeds

“Seed Parachutes”

P. saundersonii

Close-up of a seed. These are very small, 2-3mm.

P. brevicaule

Contact

Jen and Darryl

Email: CCN@coronacactus.com

Mammillaria guelzowiana cactus flower

Mammillaria guelzowiana

Mammillaria boolii

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