Crossing

Cross-pollination involves the deliberate transfer of pollen from one variety to the stigma of another variety in order to combine the traits of both parent plants. From a female flower selected before it opens, the anther cone is removed before it releases its own pollen, and then pollen from the selected parent is applied. The pollinated flower should be marked and protected from foreign pollen. This is the basic method for creating new tomato varieties and hybrids.