So pollinating alocasia are very tricky. First of all you will need pollen. And most importantly you got to watch that spadix like a hawk to see it. Believe me, it the real powdery pollen like all pollen. Don't be fooled by RU-vid videos. It's not plucking bits of the spadix off or any sticky sap...it's plain old off-white powdery talcum lik pollen. Not every flower is going to make it and not every plant is going to produce it. So you watch that flower day after day. If you want a clue, the spathe usually curls back a bit under the spadix and aoemtimes if you miss it the pollen just shows down there ever so inconspicuously and you'll see a tiny tiny heap of white powder just where the spathe wraps the spadix. That is the most important thing...collect that. It's worth more than gold. Generally once it produces pollen it can't be pollinated if it wasn't before (in aroids the pollen is produced usually after the ovaries were receptive) so cut the flower and gently move it over a dry sheet of paper and tap it gently till the pollen falls off onto the paper where it can then be stored. I actually use a black plastic type material that allows me to see the pollen properly.
I wrap the paper up put it ina zip lock, add a silica gel pack from a shoe box and throw it in the freezer. It keeps for some months if undisturbed.
This is step one.
Step two...timing the ovaries.
This is where I have the most troubles.
Ovaries are usually receptive at night and for a short period (usually only within 24hrs) and it's a small window to work in that must be timed perfectly.
If you have instruments to take a precise temperature measurement then the ovaries are receptive when the basal part of the spadix where the ovaries are located becomes warmer than the temperature it is usually at.
The other way to tell is generally the first moment the spathe actually opens up enough to reveal the ovaries below. In nature this usually happens for one night and the beetles and insects which are the natural pollinators of aroids go down into that area drawn to whatever attracts them there. The spathe usually closes up by the next morning trapping the beetles inside during which time pollen is produced and falls in the area mentioned above. The next night the flower opens up again and the ovaries would no longer be receptive, but the exiting beetles would then get dusted by the pollen on their way out and to a new flower.
So if you time it right. That first night you see the spate uncurl around the ovaries, you cut away the spathe gently with a clean sharp instrument and then reveal the ovaries.
At this point take a fine very soft paint brush, dip it sparingly in the pollen (which can be used multiple times if kept clean and dry) and apply it to the ovaries b
y passing the brush softly up and about the ovaries.
And then just wait and see.
Most times it won't work.
Sometimes you're lucky.
Sometimes it fruits with no seeds.
Sometimes the seeds are sterile.
Sometimes you're lucky.
I'll try to add some photos
7 май 2021
