My method involves more time, I think, and probably no one else would
want to do it because of that. At the most I believe I've made around 5000
or more crosses this way. Of course, that covers a few years.
I cut surveyor's tape into small strips, like to use green so it blends with
the garden. Mark pod, pollen, and date with a painter's pen, and tie it on
with my old stash of yarn cut into strips. The date added tells me when
to begin looking at pods for maturity in about 30 days. The labels
stay with the pod, and are then transferred to pots when seeds are planted.
A hole is made on the rim of the pot to tie on the label. Labels are still legible
when we plant seedlings in the ground the next spring. We discard the
labels each year, and begin the process all over again.
I do this because I use so many different combinations of pod and pollen,
and is easier for me to keep up with. Hybridizing, for me, is experimentation.
I want to see the results of crosses as to what may be dominant and recessive
traits in various combinations.
Edited to clarify.
