Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
Specific Families and Genera => Amaryllidaceae => Topic started by: jshields on June 30, 2011, 08:32:06 PM
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Sprekelia howardii is blooming. These are growing in 5.5 inch square pots; the flowers span about 5 inches across the faces. The tepals are quite narrow.
Jim
in Westfield, Indiana
USA
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WOW :o
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WOW :o
Can i add my WOW as well :o
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Sprekelia howardii is blooming.
You guys are so boring... that's not just a WOW, that's an OOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHH!!!!
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How true Maggie, you express it much better !!!!!!!!!!!!
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;D ;D Thanks Peter, I pride myself on my perspicacity in such matters! ;) ;)
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Jim, this is exceptionally rare in cultivation. What an accomplishment! Are they separate individuals?
Like the other, formosissima, they are both from North America.
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And Jim
Do they make seed ???
Roland
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The seeds these bulbs grew from were given to me by David Lehmiller. I think Dave may have collected the original bulbs in Mexico with Thad Howard -- I have forgotten the exact details. Some of these bulbs are starting to make a few offsets. Some of them also produce a second scape right after the first.
The bulbs are each growing in an individual 5.5 inch pot. Dave said that they really hate to have their roots disturbed, so I have not repotted these since planting them. They are fertile, but self-sterile. I have several seedlings so I have produced some seeds in the past. I am trying to pollinate these to make more seeds, of course. I don't know the shelf-life of these seeds, but I suspect it may be somewhat short. So I will probably donate any seeds I get to the Pacific Bulb Society BX for immediate distribution.
Jim
in Westfield, Indiana
USA
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Very Beautiful Sprekelia Jim!
Congratulations!
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I grow these outdoors on our deck in summer. That means they get natural rainfall here in Indiana, anywhere from 2.5 to 6 inches per month -- quite variable from month to month and year to year. They are planted in a gritty mix: Promix + sand + granite chicken grit, 2 : 1 : 1 by volume.
In winter, they are kept bone dry in the cool greenhouse -- the one with the winter-growing Haemanthus in it. Temperatures stay above freezing.
Jim
in Westfield, Indiana
USA
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Thanks, Jim, for the info. They hate to have their roots damaged as all amaryllids do, but can be moved without problems with the root ball undisturbed.
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CONGRATULATIONS and SOOOOOOOO beautiful !
never seen it before.. Many thank's !
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Had to have a look, a name like that it had to be something spectacular and wasn't disappointed 8)
Thanks for sharing
Angie :)
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Jim
I rest to ask that dimensions have your bulbs? I cultivate S. howardii, but still nothing flowers
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I haven't dug around the bulbs to see how large they are. I suppose perhaps an inch in diameter, maybe? The pots are only 5.5 inches square. Maybe I'll see if I can tell in autumn after they go dormant. I don't want to disturb the roots.
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Thanks Jim
my bulb being approximately 2 cm, creed is well not to disturb
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I've ended up with only two seed pods on my howardii, in spite of having pollinated a half-dozen flowers. If I can catch those seeds just as they ripen, I'll send them all to the Pacific Bulb Society BX. If I miss them a day, they'll be scattered to the four winds.
The larger seed pod is about an inch (2.5 cm) in diameter.
Jim
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Jim
Why don't you use T-sac tea bags
see: T-sac (http://www.englishteastore.com/tsac.html)
Roland
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Roland,
That is an excellent suggestion! In fact I have some cloth string-bags in my work room. I bought them many years ago, but I just never think of them.
Jim
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Hosiery works great as well!
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I don't think I know anyone who owns hosiery! I haven't seen my wife or daughter wear any in years. I'd better stick with the string bags.
I have used the string bags a few times in the past. They are strictly a short-term solution; they hold water and promote rot if left in place more than a couple days.
Jim
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T-sac tea bags cost only a few cent
and most important , they breathe
the ones in the poly-tunnels , I reuse a few times
I use mini clips to close them
Roland
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The first seed pod split open this morning and I collected all ca. 50 seeds. The second pod is almost ready to pop.
Jim
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Sounds promising :)
maybe 100 seeds 8)
Roland
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Congratulations Jim, We are all watching the PBS BX postings, ;)
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The second seed pod started to split so I collected it as well. It looks like a total of around 75-80 viable seeds were obtained, since the second pod was rather smaller than the first. As soon as they dry just a bit more, I'll send them off to the PBS BX.
I look forward to a geometric increase in the number of bulbs of Sprekelia howardii growing in cultivation in the future.
Jim