Isolation Distance
Lisa,
I usually separate my PL varieties by 6 to 8 feet in all directions and get cross pollination rates of about 3%.
Is it the dry climate and low humidity and the corresponding low insect populations, or the fact that all my growing is entirely in containers where I can train my plants in a narrow tall profile, I don't know. All of these factors I'm sure work together to lower the crossing percentage.
I have very few bees and other insects here and the bees avoid the tomato flowers, only visiting them when there are no other flowers available.
Maybe it is the daily shaking I give each spudleaf with my electric toothbrush and stake hitting that causes a lot of self pollination before the insects can get to the blooms.
I'll find out this year if I see increased cross pollination as I'm planning to growout 80 different spudleafs with minimal spacing of 5 feet in all directions between plants. "The squeeze is on in spudleaf country!!"
Spud
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