Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum

Bulbs => Bulbs General => Topic started by: David Nicholson on February 27, 2012, 11:37:20 AM

Title: Romulea 2012
Post by: David Nicholson on February 27, 2012, 11:37:20 AM
I'm sure these are not the first Romulea to be posted this year although we did use to have a specific Romulea thread. If these need to go somewhere else Maggi would you move them please.

My first Romulea to flower this year-Romulea tetragona this one a kind gift from Michael.

Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: PeterT on February 27, 2012, 06:44:07 PM
Very nice David, save it's seed and sow back into the pot to get a decent clump.
Romulea linearisii from the Wallaces in 2005 has been flowering here.
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ronm on February 27, 2012, 07:12:07 PM
Very nice Peter.  :) :)
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: Michael J Campbell on February 27, 2012, 08:49:55 PM
Romulea bulbocodium.
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ronm on February 27, 2012, 08:53:28 PM
Very nice Michael. ;D ;D. How long from seed to flowering please?
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: Michael J Campbell on February 27, 2012, 08:58:17 PM
They will usually flower from seed in three years, sometimes two. They are weeds here and I have to continually weed them out of other pots.
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ronm on February 27, 2012, 09:00:57 PM
Really !!  :o :o
Beautiful weeds?? They don't seem to be very commonly grown? Are they unruly in their growth habit?
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: Michael J Campbell on February 27, 2012, 09:05:07 PM
Not really,just that the leaves are rather long and can hide the flowers. Romulea and Freesia laxa, especially Joan Evans, are growing in the sand underneath the bench in the greenhouse. I don't usually weed them out unless the get in my way.
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ronm on February 27, 2012, 09:10:28 PM
I think I've found what I will be trying from the seed bank this year. ;D ;D
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: PeterT on February 27, 2012, 09:26:42 PM
The main problem with romuleas is that if there is not enough sun the flowers wont open  >:(
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ronm on February 27, 2012, 09:31:31 PM
Do all species flower around this time of year?
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ThomasB on February 27, 2012, 09:33:29 PM
I had Romulea tetragona flowering within 2 years after sowing.
The plants grow in winter and flower at the end of their annual growing cycle. Beautiful but as Peter mentioned they need sun to open the flowers - though the outside of R. tetragona's flowers is good-looking as well.  ;)
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: PeterT on February 27, 2012, 09:45:11 PM
Do all species flower around this time of year?
not sure but they grow both in the mediteranean and South Africa, all the ones I have grown are winter growers
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: David Nicholson on February 29, 2012, 10:23:44 PM
Do all species flower around this time of year?

There are three Romulea species I know about (and there may be more) that are Eastern Cape growers and would flower here in the perhaps late spring. I haven't succeeded with these I have tried from seed.

Romulea macowanii
R. namaquensis
R. camerooniana (syn. campanuloides)
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ronm on March 03, 2012, 03:53:42 PM
Thanks David, for the information. What happened to your attempts from seed ?
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: David Nicholson on March 03, 2012, 05:36:29 PM
I've sown and lost macowanii twice but, not to be deterred I sowed another batch in May 2011. I haven't watered the summer growers yet but time will tell!

I have two batches of camerooniana after loosing two previous sowings. One sown October 2010, the other August 2011 on none of my sowing occasions did I realise they were summer growers so Heaven only knows what's happened to them, I'll have to find them.

I have one batch of namaquensis sown May 2011, again they are with my summer growers in the garage not watered yet.
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ronm on March 03, 2012, 05:48:38 PM
I see. Thank you David.
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: David Nicholson on March 09, 2012, 09:38:08 PM
A slightly immature flower and more to come but as I'm likely to be away from home for most of next week I didn't want to waste a photo opportunity.

From Michael-Romulea bulbocodium

Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: Ezeiza on March 09, 2012, 09:49:05 PM
True R. namaquensis is a summer dormant species.
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: Rogan on March 10, 2012, 10:27:44 AM
I enjoy repotting my Romulea species (fondly known as my Romuleans!); they have such interesting 'bulbs'. I also discovered that I have two nearly mature R. hantamensis bulbs after many years of careful cultivation from seed; hopefully they will flower soon as it is such a striking species - has anyone flowered this one before?
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: David Nicholson on March 10, 2012, 06:39:23 PM
Flowered it Rogan? I hadn't even heard of it. I looked it up in Goldblatt, Manning and Snijman and it's very pretty. The flower shape in the picture I saw made it look a bit like the trochopteranthum of the Romulea world.
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: ronm on March 10, 2012, 06:41:27 PM
I'm running off back to my Fritss!!! :'( :'(
Title: Re: Romulea 2012
Post by: PeterT on March 10, 2012, 09:05:18 PM
I'm running off back to my Fritss!!! :'( :'(
The Rhinopetalums Ron??  ;)  ;D
SimplePortal 2.3.5 © 2008-2012, SimplePortal