Pollen storage in vegetable crops: A review

Abstract

Pollen storage is one of the valuable tools for overcoming time as well as location isolation in flowering of germplasm lines in various breeding programmes, facilitating germplasm conservation and its exchange and assisting in supplementary pollinations in vegetable crops. There is need for pollen storage owing to short duration of pollen viability. Pollen viability greatly varies within cultivated species as well as between crop related species of different vegetable crops. It is also associated with cellular stage of pollen at time of its dispersal. Binucleate pollen grains have longer viability than those with trinucleate types. The duration of pollen storage can be increased by manipulating temperature, relative humidity and storage atmosphere. The use of organic solvents, refrigeration, freeze drying and cryopreservation are different methods of pollen storage. Storage at low temperature and low relative humidity is desirable for most of the crops. Collection of good quality pollen at appropriate stage and reduction of moisture to optimum level is required for prolonged storage. However, pollen should be stored at freezing temperature for seasonal hybridization and its cryopreservation becomes necessary for long term usage. Pollen storage improves breeding efficiency and hybrid seed production. Therefore, there is need to standardize the conditions for particular germplasm lines and species in different vegetable crops.