The Day After pollinating the BLC 'Rustic Spots' and POT Haw Yuan Gold

[SvenLittkowski]

For cross reference, please also see my threads about pollinating the BLC 'Rustic Spots' and POT Haw Yuan Gold 'YK #2' in this sub forum.

I made now the pollinations as mentioned in the two threads above. That was yesterday evening.

Today evening, I see some change in the blossoms. They are collapsing slowly, like closing. See the photo comparisons of both orchids before and after. The interval is quite exactly 24 hours.

I think, it is normal that the orchid blossoms close after (successful?) pollination, right?

Also, I see the first time a darker area on the stem behind the blossoms of the BLC. Can anyone read all these signs?

Also, how many seeds are in an orchid "fruit"?

[Raver]

There can be thousands even millions of seed in an orchid seed pod, well i read that somewhere lol. Yeah flowers will start closing and evetually die after you polinate them or thats what happens to mine when i do it. After a few weeks, the ovary will start swelling up and that will be your seed pod. I read that it can take from 6-9 months before a seed pod its mature enough to be used to make more baby orchids =)

[SvenLittkowski]

Raver, thanks a lot!

I have pollinated all three blossoms of my BLC 'Rustic Spots',
- one with the pollen of the own kind and when there was no reaction, with the pollen of the Cucurbiteae!
- one with the pollen of the POT Haw Yuan Gold 'YK #2'
- one with the pollen of two variants of the Vanda

I also pollinated the two blossoms of my POT Haw Yuan Gold 'YK #2'
- one with its own kind
- one with the pollen of the BLC 'Rustic Spots', and with the pollen of two variants of the Vanda

So, I am going to have some surprises (just the way I like it). Most interesting is the fact, that the BLC 'Rustic Spots' reacted only, when I put the pollen of the Cucurbiteae (here: either a honeydew or cantaloupe melon) in it. But I don't expect to get a hybrid of these two plants since their genetic pool is too different. But who knows...

In fact, let me ask you: do orchid blossoms react to pollen of totally different plants? Means: do they react to any pollination, or only to successful pollinations?

[Raver]

i'm not really an expert on polinations but i have read that sometimes an orchid will take any pollen but the seed will be sterile. In order to pollinate orchids they have to be related or something for example you cant cross a phalaenopsis with a Miltassia. alot of orchids can be self polinated but some will not accept its own pollinia.

[navyderek]

In fact, let me ask you: do orchid blossoms react to pollen of totally different plants? Means: do they react to any pollination, or only to successful pollinations?

Hey Sven, in my experience the blooms react to any pollination. If you get pollen into the right place, the bloom'll close up and die and start developing into a pod. That doesn't mean the breeding will take. Usually you'll know in a couple of weeks if the pollination is successful, but they can sometimes abort a month or two into it.

I've lost pods before, and after a week or two the new pod just kind of withers and doesn't go anywhere growthwise until it croaks out.

Also, if you get seedpods from all of those crosses, you might want to consider culling them down unless your mother plant is quite large. Sometimes the plants will abort one on their own, but...I've been told and read that multiple seedpods can be quite stressful on a plant....

Hope that helps!

[Raver]

i have pollinated 2 of my plants and they have had their seed pod for at least 4-6 weeks. They keep getting fatter lol. I was going to try to do it with one of my paph but i know i will only lose the flower and i wont do anything with the seed pod. I did it to the other 2 orchids just as an experiment

[navyderek]

i have pollinated 2 of my plants and they have had their seed pod for at least 4-6 weeks. They keep getting fatter lol. I was going to try to do it with one of my paph but i know i will only lose the flower and i wont do anything with the seed pod. I did it to the other 2 orchids just as an experiment

Well, sounds like your experiment worked out just fine! Good job! If you cant get a good guestimation of the green pod harvest date (a few of the higher end orchid books have good charts, although sometimes its still a guess depending on the amount of hybridization), you might do well to harvest once the pods finish ripening and begin to split. You'll get a lot less viable seeds to sow than if you did a green pod, but you'll be sure they're ripe and have seeds developed enough to grow at all.

[Raver]

i have read about sowing the seeds but its seems like to much work and then everything have to be really sterile and stuff so i will probably just let the seed pod die

[SvenLittkowski]

Raver, could you send the seeds to me? I would be very happy, I want to train myself to grow orchids. You would do me a huge favor. Please check my posting inside the OrchidBids section, I would have some nice things to offer to you in return.

[AtantaR]

Yah...the mix of melon with orchids wont due nor will vanda and Cattleya because its a totally different tribe. But cheers to the new babies that will mix if they survive....good luck