Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

Seedy Subjects! => Grow From Seed => Topic started by: Onion on December 04, 2009, 06:07:27 PM

Title: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: Onion on December 04, 2009, 06:07:27 PM

I have seeds of Chasmanthe floribunda.

Must I sow them now or must I wait till the spring?
Do the seeds need a cold-warm term or need the only a warm term?

Thanks for the informations!

Uli

Title: Re: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: Michael J Campbell on December 04, 2009, 06:31:09 PM

Uli, have a look here.

http://www.plantzafrica.com/plantcd/chasmanduckitt.htm

Title: Re: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: Onion on December 04, 2009, 07:48:09 PM

Michael,

that's the information I need. Must sow them tomorrow !

Title: Re: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: Diane Clement on December 04, 2009, 08:00:10 PM

Quote from: Onion on December 04, 2009, 06:07:27 PM

I have seeds of Chasmanthe floribunda.
Must I sow them now or must I wait till the spring?
Do the seeds need a cold-warm term or need the only a warm term?
Thanks for the informations!   Uli   

Uli, it isn't frost hardy so won't need winter treatment.  In Britain I think it would only be hardy in Cornwall (south west) and maybe Ireland? 

Title: Re: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: David Nicholson on December 04, 2009, 08:09:29 PM

Must be used to the wet then Diane? ;D

Title: Re: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: Onion on December 04, 2009, 09:07:36 PM

Diane,

I know that it is not frost hardy. On the seed package is the information that Chasmanthe floribunda need a frost free place in winter. So you think I can sow in on the windowsill ?

Title: Re: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: Paul T on December 04, 2009, 09:15:06 PM

It actually doesn't need to be completely frost free, at least in my climate.  It survives quite happily here, flowering each year providing we don't get too must frost on the buds.  The leaves themselves are rarely touched, but the flowers go to mush when we have below a -5^oC or so on the buds.  I've grown it here for years now, but it could also be helped by the summer heat maturing the corms and making them hardier.  There are a number of things which grow well for me here colder than in the UK, but without the summers (we think that is the reason) they aren't as hardy there as here.

I've actually just harvested seed from the Chasmanthe bicolor, the first time it has ever set seed for me.  Every stem set seed but I removed all bar one early on as I didn't want it to waste it's energy on all those pods.  They have amazing almost glowing golden seeds.  It was quite a surprise when the dark pods opened to show these bright gold seeds.

Title: Re: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: daveyp1970 on December 04, 2009, 09:25:02 PM

Uli i will have some spare Chasmanthe bicolor corms when my plants go dormant,if you want.

Title: Re: Chasmanthe floribunda from seed
Post by: Onion on December 05, 2009, 03:43:56 PM

Tanks David,

but I have not the place indoor for this plant  :'(
I've got the seed by accident and don't want to throw them away. And I love bulbs from the cape. May be the situation change in the next years and I have the space to grow all this lovely species. But at the moment always the same lack of space  :'(

Uli