Effect of Storage Method on Date Palm and Pistachio Pollen Viability

This study was conducted on date palm and pistachio to establish short-, mid- and long-term pollen storage technique. Pollen was stored in room temperature (24 oC±2), refrigerator (4oC), freezer (-5oC), and cryogenic storage (immersing 15 minutes in liquid nitrogen then stored in deep freezer -80oC) for up to 52 weeks. New in vitro germination medium was modified to test date palm pollen, which consisted of 1% agar, 8% sucrose and 20 ppm citric acid. In addition, pollen viability was tested by using 1% 2, 3, 5–triphenlytetrazolium chloride (TTC) and 30% sucrose for date palm, and 1% TTC and 60% sucrose for pistachio. Cryopreserved pollen of date palm gave the best results; refrigerated pollen was conveniently stored for long period, while frozen pollen was conveniently stored for medium period. On the other hand, cryopreserved pollen of pistachio could be stored for 4 weeks, while in refrigerator and freezer just for 2 weeks.