It is not hard to buy or sell caprifig pollen.

[Rob]

This is the place where anyone can buy/sell/or just swap different caprifig pollen. It can be sent in an envelope cheaply, as I have found, and for a few hundred figs, you really do not need much. I have sent it to various countries, totally sealed as you see below, vacuum sealed, and with desiccant, and it has not failed to arrive. I have also sent it to various states in Australia. This was 3 different types of pollen, and it can be used separately to check for slight differences, or it can be mixed, and it will work fine.

20260113_150546.jpg

[Sayabo]

Would it be possible to include a phytosanitary certificate for an additional fee?

[Rob]

That is a good question, and one I will look into today for an idea of cost.

Unfortunately, for us here in Australia, the certificate would be ridiculously expensive.

[Brandonastone]

I would love to purchase some pollen from you. I have a collection of about 100 young trees and would like to see the impact of pollination on fig quality. I just started a saleeb and a fig hunter capri fig, but no fruit yet and I have been unable to find anyone around selling pollen.
I live in Texas.
Thanks,
Brandon Stone

[Rob]

I do still have some, in fact a lot of it in the fridge, but it is mentioned that I only keeps for about 3 months unless frozen, and that time is up, but I can check to see if it is still viable and get back to you. I am in Australia, but I am thinking that someone in California should have some very soon, and it would get there to you faster.

[Rob]

Looking into keeping pollen viable, I knew I had read this in the past, and even saved the paragraph, and this morning I found it in Saleeb's 1965 paper. It mentions that parthenocarpic...persistent, pollen degrades more quickly than nonpersistent pollen, in a fridge, but at room temperature, they were similar, depending on the variety. This is something that I still have not heard mentioned anywhere else, so if time permits this coming season here, I will test it.

Saleeb GENETICS AND CYTOLOGY OF SYCONIUM PERSISTENCE - Saleeb 1965_dissertation.pdf.png

Below is something interesting from Saleeb's paper, and again, it is not something I have seen anywhere else, pictures of pollen, showing the pollen tubes growing from them, proving the pollen is viable.

GENETICS AND CYTOLOGY OF SYCONIUM PERSISTENCE - Saleeb 1965_dissertation.pdf.png

Pollen degrades fast with moisture, so it needs to be dry before it is sealed and kept in a fridge or freezer, and with my method last season here, putting it in a glass vial, with a well sealing screw top, from what I see here, just shaking the vial a little the pollen flows freely on to this white paper, so it seems to show no obvious signs of dampness after about 6 months in the fridge.

20260728_133720.jpg

[arfabuck]

Will you be collecting more pollen this coming season?
I would like to start the process of caprifying some 100 trees. The season starts around December/ Jan in NZ with figlets in the 30mm size range.

[Rob]

Yes, absolutely, and generally I will have it mid December, to mid January, depending on the weather, and ideally figs in the 15-25mm are perfect to pollinate. I will be able to send you plenty.

[arfabuck]

Fantastic! Will gear up for it then. Will want to avoid the Xmas parcel rush in December so probably January shipment?
Busy pruning and swapping 100 fig varieties around the country this month.