I think it would be awesome to pollinate a Masdevallia barleana.
In fact, I would love to be able to pollinate a Masdevallia compared to the small to tiny flowered Pleurothallis or Scaphosepalums.
You're lucky. Masdevallias have flowers that are more open, so their sepals and petals don't get in the way of your tools or fingers.
However...you need a jeweler's loupe. (Love those catches don't cha!?) Another thing you may have to do is to somehow find a way to get the loupe over your eye like a monocle so you can use both hands. I tend to use twisty wire to fasten it over my eye.
You may also need some wires to prop the flowers in view. Be careful, it's easy to snap the flowers off the plant. (You see the beautiful Pleurothallis sp I have up for my avatar pic? That's what happened to it. I got over zealous and broke the flower off while trying to pollinate it. Sadly, it was also the only flower on the plant.)
The column is short and the petals and lip are tiny. In fact the stuff you see without a magnifier are actually the flower's sepals (you know, the part with the sepaline tails or pointy parts).
You need a needle to get to the pollinia which is hidden behind the anther cap.
The easiest reference to make is if you look at the Masdevallia's close cousin Draculas, Draculas have a monkey face to them right?
Well, the tiny button nose between the two eyes (the eyes are actually the petals), is the column where the anther cap is. Use the needle to pop off the anther cap and get to the pollinia which resemble tiny bunny ears when they attach to the needle.
I may have used Draculas for reference, but it's the same with Masdevallias, just Draculas have flower parts that are easier to spot than Masdevallias upon first glance.
Next you gotta find the stigmatic opening. This opening is behind the anther cap, but underneath the column (don't confuse the stigmatic opening for where the depression on the front part of the column where the pollinia were being held in place). I imagine for a Masdevallia it is tiny. Once you find the stigmatic opening, stick the pollinia in the hole.
Do not leave any part of the pollinia hanging out of the stigmatic opening. Make sure it's in there and stays in.
In a few days the stigmatic opening will close and the flower will wilt. The ovaries right behind the sepals will harden and start turning green and swell up.
If all is well, you can harvest the seed pods after about 1 to 3 months after pollination (depends on the species).
Keep accurate logs for future reference.
Pollinate as many flowers as you can. They don't all take.
Another warning is that some orchids don't self pollinate. So if none of the pollination attempts take, you must find another person with Masdevallia barleana and trade pollinia. Or buy another colony from another dealer (a genetically different plant will offer better pollination success and hardier seeds).
Have fun and good luck.
Last edited by King_of_orchid_growing:); 08-22-2009 at 12:16 AM..
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