Determination of pollen quality and quantity in some currant species (Ribes spp.) from Turkey

Pollens of the currant species, Ribes aureum Ursh., R. petraeum Waif., R. rubrum L. (cv. Mulka) and R. nigrum L. (cv. Silvergieter) were investigated. The viability test with TTC (2, 3, 5-triphenyl tetrazolium chloride) and IKI (iodine and potassium iodide) were tested in vitro, and the pollen germination experiments were carried out using the "hanging drop" method in 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30% sucrose solutions and 50, 100, 200, 300 ppm boric acid concentratons. Furthermore, pollen germination was tested by "agar in petri" method using 1% agar + 5, 10, 15% sucrose. The pollen production capacity was determined by "haemacytometric method". The best results for the pollen viability and germination tests were obtained from R. rubrum and R. nigrum while the highest pollen production levels were obtained from R. aureum and R. nigrum.