Hi All,
I'm collecting seed from wild and volunteer populations of
Musa here on Trinidad. Disjunct populations of nominal
acuminata, balbisiana, ornata, velutina and
laterita exist here and there.
Oftentimes I cannot revisit a mat for a month or two.
Mostly these seeded bananas grow within pollinating distance (
Trigona nigra & Partamona nigrior are 2 local wild Meliponine bees that do excellent pollination!) of locally common triploid pollen donating cultivars like Mysore, Cavendish, Gros Michel, French Plantains, multiple Orinoco types, Silk and such.
The idea is to
find potential hybrid seed & grow out possibly useful hybrids to advance my ultra low budget banana breeding.
So when I encounter a bunch, I test for black seeds and, once positive, harvest - even though the seed might not be, strictly speaking, mature.
NOW FOR THE QUESTION:
Anyone on bananas.org has specific experience in germinating underaged
Musa seed?
Thanks a lot.
shannon
shannon.di.corse@gmail.com