garden5
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 3062
Joined: Fri Aug 07, 2009 5:40 pm
Location: ohio

Pollination/breeding questions

OK, what I know is that pollen is taken from a male flower to a female flower by insects, man, etc., then a tomato grows from the female flower. I also understand that if cross-pollination occurs between varieties, the fruit produced will be no different, but the seeds from that fruit will produce a hybrid plant, yes, I know there are exceptions. Now the things I don't know are these:

1. Can male flowers produce tomatos?

2. Do flower clusters on plants consist of only male or only female flowers or some of each on the same cluster?

3. Can a female have pollen from a male flower from the same cluster or from a different cluster on the same plant, or does it have to be from a totally different plant altogether?

I know that this is a lot to ask in one post, but thanks to all who reply.

JONA878
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Joined: Thu Aug 13, 2009 2:14 am
Location: SUSSEX

Hi Garden5
Toms are hermaphroditic. That means that the flowers have both female and male parts. So that there is no need for insect pollination.
The Anthers which contain the pollen are united in the form of a tube within which lies the Style and the pollen receptive Stigma.
Normally the Style is shorter than the Anther tube so the pollen does its job within the confins of the tube.
However in some conditions...poor light for instance....the Style can become longer than the Anther tube and can then cause poor pollination and fruit set to be reduced.
Thats why it helps to shake your plants to aid pollination.
In fact commercial growers use an 'electric bee' ....a vibrating rod...that they touch the flower trusses with to get good pollen movement.

Jona.[
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petalfuzz
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Joined: Sat May 31, 2008 3:37 pm

1. Can male flowers produce tomatos? Tomatoes don't have sexed flowers

2. Do flower clusters on plants consist of only male or only female flowers or some of each on the same cluster?Each flower is self-contained, so neither male nor female. I guess hermaphrodite would be a close term.

3. Can a female have pollen from a male flower from the same cluster or from a different cluster on the same plant, or does it have to be from a totally different plant altogether? Each flower contains within itself the ability to self-pollinate. That's why tomatoes will set fruit in the absence of bees, the wind is enough to do the trick.

Another way to encourage pollination is to buzz each flower stem with an electric toothbrush. I do this early in the season when the bees aren't out yet. If you want to experiment with cross pollination, just take a blossom off of one plant and smoosh it into a blossom of another variety of tomato. Then save the seed that grows from that fruit.

garden5
Super Green Thumb
Posts: 3062
Joined: Fri Aug 07, 2009 5:40 pm
Location: ohio

Thanks, Everyone, for clarifying things for me. Your information was really insightful.

I guess I could infer from this that every flower on a cluster has the potential to become a tomato. Is it common for some flowers not to form tomatos so that the others on the cluster have room to grow, or do you think that there is some other reason (disease, weather, etc.) that all of my flowers on one cluster do not become tomatos?

Thanks for all your helpful advice.



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