Re: [CH] C. pubescens
Brent Thompson (brent@hplbct.hpl.hp.com)
Thu, 26 Aug 1999 08:52:57 -0700
re C. pubescens crossing with C. cardenasii and C. eximium:
> Do they cross both ways and are the results fertile?.
Yes, they cross both ways and both ways the F1 progeny are viable and even
fertile, too.
> Have you any experience with wind pollination in the abscence of insects?
> I have a tunnel house covered in wind-break cloth in a very sheltered area
> so only light breezes can get in and no bees.
First of all, plenty of insects pollenize chiles besides bees. In fact, in
my observation, it would seem ants, small flies, and perhaps thrips are the
main pollenization vectors of chiles, not bees. Maybe honeybees and
bumblebees are important for C. annuum crops, with their typically
considerably larger flowers than other species of chiles, but not so with
those other species, as far as I have seen.
But anyway, the only chile I have seen produce reliably without presence of
any insects, breezes, or manual intervention is C. baccatum. However, your
tunnel house conditions offer much greater opportunity for natural
pollenization than the rigorously isolated conditions I've tested, so I
really cannot speculate what your pollenization rate might be (though I bet
it will be high unless you have no ants and that wind-break cloth has such
extremely fine holes it prevent even the tiniest flying insects from
entering).
--- Brent