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is one chili/tomato plant capable of producing fruits on its own ? (pollination)

O

ohmatic

i recently talked to a biology student (my girleeey :oops: ) who told me that some plants need 2 different plants in order to produce fruits because they "won't properly accept their own pollen"

which means the bees have to carry a genetic load from plant A to plant B in order to successfully fertilize it. (A to A wont work)

so now i wonder, hoe about CHILIS and TOMATOS does this also apply for them ?

or is one habanero plant for example, standing totally alone on its own, going to produce fruits if a bee visits its flowers or would it need a mate ?
same questions goes for the oh so lonely tomato plant standing next to it.
(A to A versus A to B)

imput much appreciated, thank you in advance !
 
As i understand it chillis do self pollinate. However some people like to help the process along and poke at flowers with their fingertip or a paint brush to spread the pollen. I'm guilty of this :lol: It's all very sexual if you ask me :mouthonfire:
 
LancelBracken said:
As i understand it chillis do self pollinate. However some people like to help the process along and poke at flowers with their fingertip or a paint brush to spread the pollen. I'm guilty of this :lol: It's all very sexual if you ask me :mouthonfire:
Click to expand...

hehe, it infact is sexual !

how about tomatos ?
 
Most plants that require a second plant to pollinate for fruit production are dioecious, meaning they have individual male & female plants. Take pot for instance, or kiwis.

Chilis are monoecious, meaning they have both male and female parts on the same plant and are capable of self-fertilization. Same goes for tomatoes.
 
Peppers have male & female parts in the same flower, and are self compatable however... I have heard that Pepper Plants are only 50% self compatable, that is about half the flowers will not set without another plants pollen.

I'm not sure if thats true, but they WILL self polinate with or without insects. Wind blowing the plants around will knock pollen off the anthers and even raindrops falling onto the flowers work.

Though that all depends on if the pollen is even sterile... Here are some numbers I got from a few books on Peppers.

No Fruit Set (Assuming Flower hasnt dropped or been aborted):
Mean temps lower than 16'C (60.8F) or greater than 32'C (89.6F)

Flower Drop:
Nighttime temps greater than 24'C (75.2F)

Maxiumum Flower Set:
Day and Night temps between 16'C (60.8F) and 21'C (69.8F)

Pollen Germination:
Optimal temps between 20'C (68F) and 25'C (77F)
Pollen is harmed at temperatures above 30'C (86F)
Pollen is sterile if temps are above 30'C (86F) 15 days prior to anthesis (bloom)

Fruit Set:
Pollen tube growth (tube going from pollen down pistle to fruit) from stigma to egg (fruit) takes between 6 to 42 hours.
 
LancelBracken said:
As i understand it chillis do self pollinate. However some people like to help the process along and poke at flowers with their fingertip or a paint brush to spread the pollen. I'm guilty of this :lol: It's all very sexual if you ask me :mouthonfire:
Click to expand...

LOL - Just how I feel ! And a little shaking them too will help get the pollen movin !
 
Chiles and tomatos are self pollinating and they don't need to be hand pollinated but a fan or a good shake can help.
In greenhouses, tomatos are often pollinated with leaf blowers or electric pollinators(like large electric toothbrushes) to help move the pollen around and this is usually done in the early afternoon when pollen levels peaks.
 
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