How to Cross Breed Flowers or Vegetables

When you act as the bee you can create your own hybrids.

Cross pollinating two different plants to create a desired mix of their traits has been going on since Gregor Mendel created the sweet pea. Whether you want to mix the colors of your two favorite roses or try to grow the world's greatest tomato, there's no reason to leave it to chance. Experiment with plant breeding to create new versions of your favorite flowers or vegetables.

Things You'll Need

• Reference book about the plant you are trying to breed
• Garden tents
• Cotton swabs

Instructions

1. Choose a species of plant in your garden that you want to change and pick two plants of that species whose traits you like. The goal is to increase the expression of the traits you like and try to eliminate any undesirable traits. The plants must be the same species -- two varieties of cucumber for example -- or they cannot cross pollinate.

2. Pick up a reference book about the plant you are interested in and find out when its peak pollination time is and how to tell it is producing pollen. Look up diagrams or pictures of the plant's anatomy and find out what its male and female organs look like, as well as if the plant can self pollinate. "Self-pollinating" means it doesn't need another plant in order to produce fruit.

3. If your plant can self pollinate you can remove or cover the pollen receptive organs on the flowers in order to prevent an unwanted pollination. If it cannot self pollinate, covering the plant with a transparent garden tent or small paper bag is sufficient to keep it from being pollinated accidentally.

4. Transfer the pollen from the stamen of one plant to the carpel of the other once they are producing pollen. Gently collect the pollen into a paper cup or glass and apply it to the carpel of the other plant with the cotton swabs. You are acting as honey bee.

5. Repeat the process a few times over the flowering season and your work should be complete. All there is left to do now is wait watch for what fruits develop, and what plants grow from the seeds of those fruits next season. In the case of flowers, collect the seeds that develop from the flowers to plant next year.

Tips & Warnings

• If you proceed to plant the hybrid fruit watch it closely, new hybrids are a gamble and can be sickly.

References

• University of Illinois Extension: Plant Breeding as a Hobby