Orchid Pollen Storage

Since I have been pollinating my orchids, I have obviously been harvesting pollen.  In addition to using it fresh to cross two blooming plants, I have been saving some pollinia in the refrigerator for future use.

Supposedly orchid pollen can stay viable in the refrigerator for months, allowing crosses between plants whose blooming times don't coincide.  I already have at least one seed pod developing nicely that was made with refrigerated pollen.

Well as I began to make more crosses, I accumulated more and more folded paper pollen packets in my refrigerator.  Today I decided to upgrade the way they were stored and organized.

Orchid Pollen Storage in the Refrigerator

I used a small 15 drawer organizer that previously held random screws and bits in the garage.  Now, every time I open the refrigerator I smile at how geeky this looks . . .