Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

Cultivation => Cultivation Problems => Topic started by: johanneshoeller on January 31, 2007, 02:54:06 PM

Title: Petrocosmea
Post by: johanneshoeller on January 31, 2007, 02:54:06 PM

I have found a lot of frozen and dry Petrocosmea in the dust bin of a nursery. :-*
After 2 weeks the plants are green again and have started to grow very well.
Who cultivates Petrocosmea and how have I to grow them so they will flower (green house or not, temperatures, dry season,...?   ???

Regards
Hans
from Austria

Title: Re: Petrocosmea
Post by: Maggi Young on January 31, 2007, 03:33:29 PM

Hans, I hope you will get a reply from my friends and near neighbours, Brian and Maureen Wilson, who are most experienced and successful Gesneriad growers.    I will send you privately the email and name of a particular friend who grows these, too. He may be able to share some of his experience with you.
They are charming plants and I am delighted to hear that you have made this rescue effort. I am horrified that any nursery would allow such important little plants to suffer like that though!

Title: Re: Petrocosmea
Post by: Luc Gilgemyn on January 31, 2007, 04:38:48 PM

Hans,

Have a look at

http://www.gesneriads.ca/genpetro.htm

good hunting.

Title: Re: Petrocosmea
Post by: Maggi Young on January 31, 2007, 05:00:49 PM

Luc, great site, another new one to me: I must get "out" more!

Title: Re: Petrocosmea
Post by: Jozef Lemmens on January 31, 2007, 06:42:06 PM

Hi Hans,

I have about 15 species of Petrocosmea. I keep them in my (more or less) frost-free alpine house, because I am not sure whether they are really hardy. I never tried to grow them outside. I keep them in plastic pots. They flower in the autumn here in Belgium. Some of them have still a few flowers at the moment. You can find a few pictures on my website.
Propagation is rather easy by leaf cuttings.
BTW; I am always interested in exchanging Petrocosmeas and other Gesneriaceae.

Jozef

Title: Re: Petrocosmea
Post by: jomowi on January 31, 2007, 07:22:17 PM

Hans

I do indeed grow them.  You are lucky they survived as they are not really hardy.  Keep them in relatively shallow pots (they are not frost hardy) in a frost-free greenhouse with good summer shading.  They benefit from  relatively high humidity.  You can propagate them from leaf cuttings.  Yes they flower in the autumn.  They will benefit from some extra light in the winter. 

Brian WIlson

Title: Re: Petrocosmea
Post by: johanneshoeller on February 05, 2007, 01:03:08 PM

Thank you for the replies!
The last question: Need Petrocosmea a dry season?
Hans