Named Morning Glory Seed Swap this Fall?

Not sure if this idea has any merit, but it's worth posting - even if to be told it's a bad idea!

Many of us have acquired a LOT of morning glories in the past year, many varieties. I was wondering if people are interested in a MG swap this fall. If so, would you be willing to commit to hand pollinating, tagging and covering or removing petals to decrease the likelihood of cross-pollination? Not that cross-pollination is a bad thing, but I think it would be interesting to promote and trade some known varieties.

Comments? Oh Larry? Are you out there?

This message was edited Sunday, Mar 23rd 1:36 PM

Sounds interesting but someone would have to tell me how to do it.
TLC

Not sure - but Daturapod promised to show me how. I'll keep you posted.

how far apart do they have to be grown from each other, not to cross polinate?

That is the question of the month!

Got this in a mail from Larry (Daturapod) a while back.

All the experts have told me 50 ft. min. :-(
Now these are guys - that are very serious collectors ....most deal with species only. (and will grow one type / variety / species at a time and then grow the related one the next year to keep from getting crosses.....)

But the ones I want to make sure I put in my front yard a good 100 ft. and the house between my main group of glories. Then it's only one I. nil next to a I. purpurea next to a hederacea etc. Plus they are scattered in amoung the brugs.

I also put my favorites at the 4 corners of the back yard next door and the front yard here. I use 3 gal. liners and wire tomato cages. I had at least 70 (3 gal liners last year) but most were species and some were early bloomers and some late.

I stared some in the house on march 1. I planted them in pairs ( 2 - 3 gal. liners with the same species or variety in each one)

A big pain for limited room.

If you get up early I would pollinate a few blooms yourself (and tag) and then remove the most of the petal to keep it from being crossed by an insect or do it at night fall before it opens. That's the way I do brugmansia to make sure the cross is not contaminated by insects. by removing the petal there is no place to land or color to attract. (the best way)

I would hand pollinate and tag some of the first blooms you get just to make sure you are not getting a crossed. but remember crossing is how to get new ones. Also if you have a greenhouse Ipomoea root in water fairly easy so you can grow them under lights there in the winter. need a long day light to make bloom as well as higher temp. or lay the vine on the ground and let them root at the node and over winter in the greenhouse.

Other ideas, what about nylon stockings over the bloom?

What if we have hybrids, what happens to the seeds next year?

Will I. nil cross with I. purpurea, and others, or will I. nil only cross with other I. nils?

I was thinking that we might be able to just tape or tie the flowers shut that we pollinated to avoid insects from pollinating them. Anybody ever try that?

I found a new and informative yahoo group on Morning Glories.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ipomoeas/

There are some good links to Japanese sites, with a lot of pictures. I've sent a few messages back and forth to the moderator and he has been quite knowledgeable and helpful.