Significance of freeze-drying in long term storage of date palm pollen

The authors attempt to determine the optimal conditions for maintaining long term viability of date palm pollen using a special method of freeze-drying. They have undertaken a systematic study of the viability over time of a sample of the same pollen stored and conserved under different conditions (freeze-drying, temperature, gaseous atmosphere and storage time). The results are thoroughly analysed by means of different approaches of multiparametric modelisation. These numerical treatments permit us to: 1. demonstrate that such a phenomenon submits to the usual laws and can be modelled 2. propose a general approach for the study of the ageing of pollen with lime and with respect to different conservation and storage conditions.