large black plum

[agamemnon]

Thanks Habitat and Carolyn,

Carolyn, agamemnon was just one of those things. i was just tossing the unusual name around one day, and had to wake up early for a flight. alarm clock went off at three in the morning playing NPR, and they were discussing agamemnon! so, that was it from then on, just an alternative or nick name from out of the blue.

[agamemnon]

Carolyn,

One thing i've decided to try is a Opalka x Wessons Purple Pride. Since you introduced the Opalka, any idea what I might expect with the f2s?

[travis]

Opalka has a very fine and fragile pistel and it's tricky to apply the pollen to the emasculated pistel without breaking it. I never have emasculated a Wessel's Purple Pride blossom, but I imagine the same applies since all the linguisa shaped tomatoes I've ever emasculated had these nearly hair thin pistels.

When you apply the pollen, you might actually remove fully bloomed flowers from the pollen donor plant, hold them just above the pistel of the seed plant, and vibrate the blossoms to release the pollen down onto the stigma without touching the receiving pistel. I say this because I broke almost every Opalka pistel when I tried to dab pollen on the stigmas.

You'll be able to tell the best pollen donors by examining blossoms looking for fully bulged, pregnant looking anther sacs, yellow with no greenish tint. Carefully remove them at the stem taking precautions not to jossle the flower or it will release the pollen before you carry it over to the Opalka. In fact, I'd grow the two plants to be crossed in the same cage so you can simply pull the entire shoot on which the pollen donor flowers grow, pull it over to the flower you intend to pollinate, and one by one vibrate the open flowers on the entire truss over top of the emasculated Opalka stigma.

With regard to Opalka x Wessel's, or the reciprocol, you should expect a red sausage shape in the F1 since the red is dominant over gf. In the F2 you can expect 25% gf, "black" more likely than "purple" because the yellow epidermis of Opalka dominates. However, you would have a likelihood of getting a pink and a "purple" (clear epidermis) sausage in the F2s if you plant 16 to 32 plants, and if your Wessel's is a clear skin gf, as mine is.

Someone with more math skills may correct me on that, please

[agamemnon]

Thank you Travis. Still learning and very much appreciate the response. This is going to be fun. Why haven't I been doing this for years?

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by agamemnon

Thank you Travis. Still learning and very much appreciate the response. This is going to be fun. Why haven't I been doing this for years?

Yes, I did introduce Opalka but I also knew that Travis had suggested the Wessel one and was hoping he'd stop by to gove you more info on the speficis of your cross, and I'm certainly glad he did.