Effect of sodium chloride, PGDO and Arabic gum in pollen liquid diluent on suspensibility of kiwi pollen

Abstract

This study was conducted to develop the pollen liquid diluent suitable for the artificial pollination of kiwi. The pollen of ‘Matua’ kiwi was collected at 1 day before flowering. Five concentrations of sodium chloride (0, 50, 150, 250, and 350 mg․L^-1), four concentrations of poly (glycolide-co-p-dioxanone) (0, 7, 14, and 21 mg․L^-1), and four concentrations of arabic gum (0, 150, 350, and 550 mg․L^-1) were tested on an absent condition of each component in the pollen liquid diluent. Twenty mg of pollen was distributed in beakers containing 10 mL of the pollen liquid diluent. Suspensibility of the pollen liquid diluent was measured by the sensory evaluation and particle size analyzer. The addition of sodium chloride in pollen liquid diluent was effectible for the suspensibility improvement and the promotion of pollen growth in kiwi pollen. The kiwi pollen in pollen liquid diluent could be suspended without damage in pollen germination at low concentration of poly (glycolide-co-p-dioxanone) (PGDO), which has been known as a safe surfactant. The addition of Arabic gum would be highly advantageous to the stabilization of the pollen liquid diluent without any contamination for pollen growth. Kiwi fruits were set and grown well by the artificial pollination using the pollen liquid diluent. Therefore, the use of the pollen liquid diluent in the artificial pollination of kiwi fruit should be an effective practice.