Scottish Rock Garden Club Forum
Bulbs => Bulbs General => Topic started by: YT on January 04, 2013, 07:45:55 AM
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Happy New Year :)
A Massonia pygmaea is blooming now. The polythene pot is 7.5cm across.
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very cute plant ! :)
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Very cute indeed :)
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What can I say more :)
Roland
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Lachenalia bulbifera which is now know as Lachenalia bifolia as per Graham Duncan's new review.
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Lachenalia bulbifera which is now know as Lachenalia bifolia as per Graham Duncan's new review.
Something very appealing about that colour combination Arnold.
By the way, "the Bulb Garden" the PBS journal, complete with article from Angelo Porcelli , arrived in Aberdeen yesterday - thanks!
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Something very appealing about that colour combination Arnold.
Have to agree!
Quite a common colour combo in the American succulents, but is it so common in SA? I'm a bit green about the ears when it comes to SA plants, so forgive me if it's a dumb question!
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My Lachenalia bulbifera does not look that colorful when it blooms. I think Arnold has an especially nice plant.
Jim
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A Massonia pygmaea is blooming now. The polythene pot is 7.5cm across.
Tatsuo,
did you grow this from seed? If so, how long did it take to flower? It looks exceedingly lovely :)
cheers
fermi
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I tried to seed it a few times
disappointing
every time an other species >:(
Roland
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A Massonia pygmaea is blooming now. The polythene pot is 7.5cm across.
Now that is something 8) WOW
Angie :)
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Thank you for all comments :) It's full blooming today ;D
Tatsuo,
did you grow this from seed? If so, how long did it take to flower? It looks exceedingly lovely :)
cheers
fermi
Hello fermi,
No, I grow this one from a small flowering size plant since 2010. I got few seeds from this plants in 2010 season and gave them all. And it didn't set any seeds in last season so I'm not sure it sets fertile seeds by self pollination so far.
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Gladiolus maculatus.
Usually opens its first flowers at the end of December so it is a little late this year. This clone is the most strikingly marked in the (seed-raised) pot and is always the first to open too. It has a very strong scent.
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Amazing one Darren
Can I line up for some seeds :)
Roland
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That is stunning Darren, lovely markings and good scent is a real bonus.
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A cracker Darren.
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Amazing one Darren
Can I line up for some seeds :)
Roland
I always hand pollinate it, and the capsules always swell. Unfortunately I have only had seed with a viable embryo once in 5 years. I think it is perhaps too cold here at flowering/pollination time? (But then the only time I was successful was in January 2010 when it was extremely cold indeed). However - I will certainly try again this year Roland.
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Same problem here for the winter-flowering South Africans
many hardly set seed
maybe the pollen are to humid
and get moldy
Roland
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Same problem here for the winter-flowering South Africans
many hardly set seed
maybe the pollen are to humid
and get moldy
Roland
Quite possible. January 2010 was dry because of the cold.
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Many bulbs are self-sterile. Do you have multiple clones? Does anyone in South Africa sell the seeds of this species?
Jim
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This one is Androcymbium burchellii var. pulchellum, raised from seed, so all plants of bloom size are distinct clones. It's in bloom right now. This will not set seed in my greenhouse. Also note that the bracts surrounding the flowers never manage to develop much of a red color, either.
[attach=1]
We don't have many hours of sunshine in Indiana in December and January, which probably would account for the lack of red color.
Jim
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Gladiolus griseus. Tough image with overcast skies.
Almost always found within sight of ocean on calcareous sands and gravel.
Pollinated by honey bees
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Beauty Arnold
I am waiting if the seeds germinate :)
Roland
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Many bulbs are self-sterile. Do you have multiple clones? Does anyone in South Africa sell the seeds of this species?
Jim
Yes Jim - at least 5 clones and I always pollinate between clones. The seed came from Silverhill about 10 years ago. Not sure if anyone currently offers it.
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Telos has had it in the past.
http://www.telosrarebulbs.com/Gladiolus.html (http://www.telosrarebulbs.com/Gladiolus.html)
Not available there this season.
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Hi,
How long does it take from seed to flowering size corm with Gladiolus?
JP
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Hi JP
Here it takes 3 to 4 years
Roland
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I find it often takes 5 years but this is probably due to my cultivation. I think Roland's 3-4 years is a good average. As you might expect - some species are faster and some slower.
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It also depends on feeding , size of the pot and amounts of seedlings in the pot
Roland
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Gladiolus maculatus.
Lovely plant. :D
I have a pot of lachenalias, bought some years ago in a garden center. I think, there are two different varieties, perhaps 'Romelia' and 'Romina':
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It also depends on feeding , size of the pot and amounts of seedlings in the pot
Roland
Indeed. One thing I have discovered is I get faster results using very inorganic substrate which dries out quickly. This sounds counter-intuitive but with normal organic or loam substrates they don't need watering often and therefore opportunities to feed are fewer. It also helps to give higher nitrogen feeds in the early years (bigger leaves = bigger bulbs in dormancy) and etiolation does not matter so much. I also keep seedlings quite cool and shaded beneath the bench which gives an extra few weeks growth before they go dormant.
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Couple of SA bulbs.
Gladiolus maculatus along with a close up of the tepal (or is it petal) detail.
and Lachenalia bulbifera close up.
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Nice Gladiolus maculatus Arnold
Here is it winter
lots of snow
so nothing to see >:(
Roland
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Flowering in the garden actually Tulbaghia simmleri. :D
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Hans you are showing some lovely unusual plants on different threads. Now I will go away as I am starting to feel like a stalker ::) ::)
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;D - I am glad you like them! ;)
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I received some Massonia spp. from the seedex. I am wondering if it is too early or too late to sow them? Paul C. says to sow them in the summer for germination in September. And should these be planted deeply?
johnw
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Sow them in the middle of August as you would with alpines on the top of the compost and cover with grit. You should get almost 100% germination.Store them cool and dry until then, not in the fridge.
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Lachenalia reflexa
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Lachenalia reflexa
This is a later flowering species with me Arnold (usually March) - is yours always this early?
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Darren:
this is a first flowering for me. It's related to the L. viridiflorus which is usually the first here to flower.
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It looks a very robust and well flowered plant Arnold. Mine have fewer flowers on the inflorescence.
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This got some extra light from a HID metal halide bulb I use for seedlings.
Four hours per day after sunset.
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This is the first flower of Romulea tortuosa seedling, sown on 23. Sep. 2010, from Silverhill Seeds #2204.
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This is the first flower of Romulea tortuosa seedling, sown on 23. Sep. 2010, from Silverhill Seeds #2204.
Tatsuo, this flower is just a dream :-*
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Tatsuo, this flower is just a dream :-*
I'm lucky that winter here is brighter than yours, Dirk ;)
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At last, Lachenalia viridiflora has just started to bloom today. It's a month later than the usual.
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You must have plenty of light YT
keeping your Lachenalia's so perfect
fantastic picture
plant I mean ;D
Roland
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That's a lovely compact plant - are you using supplementary lighting?
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Thank you Roland and Peter. The latitude here is N34°58′, so such half hardy south african bulbs don't requier any special treatment at here, except rain cover at flowering season.
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YT - Your Lachenalias are beautifully grown. Mine are quite floppy at this time of year at latitude 44+.
Can you tell me, mine flower for the first time and I expected they'd have developed mottled leaves by now but they are solid green?
Mine were seed grown and the leaves are narrow. Do I have a green-leafed form that will never do the spotting? Or am I just too impatient?
johnw
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The latitude here is N34°58′
That explains it - we're at 55ºN here. I guess I'll have to reconcile myself to floppy Lachenalias. :-\
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That explains it - we're at 55ºN here. I guess I'll have to reconcile myself to floppy Lachenalias. :-\
I'm at 40ºN here, and my Lachenalia are mostly too floppy as well. We have very little sunshine here in December and January, which is the heart of the problem.
Jim
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I'd never have thought of Lachenalia's having floppy leaves. :-\
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Thank you, John :) As far as I know, plane green leaved seedlings won't change to spotted leaf, but perhaps it will get wider next season ;)
Peter and Jim, the solar altitude and weather condition affect to plants more than I thought :o
Pat, your place is S35º and almost same as South Africa ;D
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This is the first flower of Romulea tortuosa seedling, sown on 23. Sep. 2010, from Silverhill Seeds #2204.
Beautifull Tatsuo, and there is a flower after two and a half years!
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Here's Lachenalia comptonii with trichomes on the upper surface of the leaf.
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Love the hairiness.
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YT - Your Lachenalias are beautifully grown. Mine are quite floppy at this time of year at latitude 44+.
Can you tell me, mine flower for the first time and I expected they'd have developed mottled leaves by now but they are solid green?
Mine were seed grown and the leaves are narrow. Do I have a green-leafed form that will never do the spotting? Or am I just too impatient?
johnw
John, according to Graham Duncan's (wonderful) monograph this species is predominantly plain leaved in the wild, with a smaller proportion of spotted ones. The two forms grow alongside each other (as shown in two habitat photos in the book). I don't think yours are likely to develop spots as they get older I'm afraid.
However - if you cross pollinate between your plants I guess there is a chance a spotted form could appear in the seedlings if the genetic potential exists in the population.
Elsewhere in the book it is postulated that spotted leaves in Lachenalia are an adaptation to visually disguise the leaves from grazing herbivores. If this were the case in this species then (assuming the presence of herbivores) I would expect a strong selection pressure for spotted forms to become more prevalent over time. Perhaps the few remaining populations of the species are protected from grazing so the spotted ones have no selective advantage?
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I keep coming back to marvel at that smart pot of Lachenalia viridiflora - a question - are the leaves "only" spotted" in colour, or is there also a dimensional factor? Are the spots raised, also?
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I'm intrigued too - they look raised to me as well. I don't grow this species (I'd like to) but the other spotted species I grow don't have raised spots.
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Darren - Thanks for that. Disappointing though. Perhaps I should leave a menu next to the pot and see what happens.
johnw - +12c
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A Gladiolus cardinalis,a nice swap amongst other things for some galanthus with Daveyp.
Not really suited to my conditions and has become long and leggy.Also the colour is not very accurate.
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I keep coming back to marvel at that smart pot of Lachenalia viridiflora - a question - are the leaves "only" spotted" in colour, or is there also a dimensional factor? Are the spots raised, also?
The spots on my plants are raised and glossy.
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Thank you Tatsuo, the surface can been seen more clearly in your new photo.
A very striking plant.
Must get Ian to see this photo- he thought perhaps the texture was just a trick of the light. (I knew he was wrong! ;) )
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A Gladiolus cardinalis,a nice swap amongst other things for some galanthus with Daveyp.
Not really suited to my conditions and has become long and leggy.Also the colour is not very accurate.
Still a nice thing, Tony !
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A Gladiolus cardinalis,a nice swap amongst other things for some galanthus with Daveyp.
Not really suited to my conditions and has become long and leggy.Also the colour is not very accurate.
I've been lusting after this Gladiolus since first seeing it in a garden near Rhynie in Aberdeenshire.(First picture)
It was in a woodland area, seemed to be growing among other plants and did not look as if it would be lifted for winter but I'm not sure how long it had been growing there. Rhynie is quite far inland and would be cold.
The second two are growing in a sheltered Aberdeen garden in a sunny spot. They may have only been planted last spring . They do seem rather floppy but quite glorious.
Interesting that yours is winter growing, Tony.
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Roma, I think Tom has had those Glads. there for quite a few years. It's quite a warm spot, comparatively near the house and facing south.....
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Thanks for that info Maggi. Tom went off and left us to wander on our own after a while so I did not get the chance to ask him about them. The one at Daluaine was in the shade at the top of a bank near the river. You can see the stem coming down from the top of the picture lying on other vegetation.
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A few years back a friend in South Africa hunted around for some interesting Lachenalia for me. This in one pot that resulted. Supposed to be the same hybrid, and maybe even the same clone -- but who knows? Not quite in bloom yet.
Jim
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Must get Ian to see this photo- he thought perhaps the texture was just a trick of the light. (I knew he was wrong! ;) )
Maggi, you have a sharp, observant eye for plants :D
A few years back a friend in South Africa hunted around for some interesting Lachenalia for me. This in one pot that resulted. Supposed to be the same hybrid, and maybe even the same clone -- but who knows? Not quite in bloom yet.
I've never seen such variegated leaf lachenalias before, Jim :o :o :o The combination of stripes and spots is marvelous 8)
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a couple
Ferraria-foliosa
Gladiolus-huttonii
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Dramatic photos, Rafa - from flower to stage star!
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Roma, it IS winter growing. The Gladiolus in the pictures is not cardinalis.
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Fantastic ferraris Rafa, what does it smell like?
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Thank you Maggy! the merit goes to the flowers themselves, they are good models! This particular Ferraria doesn't smell :-\
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I hope that the President of the Pacific Bulb Society, Nhu Nguyen, will forgive me for giving his comments on some plants he has blooming now in California- with links to his photos. The first Sinningia is the cutest furriest little thing - probably needs a saucer of milk on a regular basis!
Nhu wrote....
"Sinningia leucotricha that is at peak blooming. I can't get over how fuzzy
it is. I grow this on a sunny windowsill:
http://flickr.com/photos/xerantheum/ (http://flickr.com/photos/xerantheum/)…
Also another tuberous Sinningia bullata. I grow this one outside and it
doesn't seem to want to stop blooming.
http://flickr.com/photos/xerantheum/ (http://flickr.com/photos/xerantheum/)…
Also Eucrosia mirabilis. Last year's blooming was sparse but this year it's
much better since it got a lot more light this summer:
http://flickr.com/photos/xerantheum/ (http://flickr.com/photos/xerantheum/)… "
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An unknown Lachenalia.
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Lachenalia reflexa from an another source.
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Lachenalia mutabilis
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Romulea tetragona, the first bloom from seed, from Silverhill :)
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Lachenalia mediana ssp. mediana.
As per G. Duncan. Diagnostic factor is exserted filaments.
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A Lachenalia hybrid with variegated leaves and spots, finally coming into bloom. It came in a batch from several nurseries in the western Cape Province several years ago.
[attach=1]
I have no idea of the parentage of any of the various hybrids. There appear to be several clones in this pot, and I wonder if I should try to sort them out?
Jim
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Nice Lachenalia Jim, even without the variegation.
johnw
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Hi Jim,
it would be interesting to see if the variegation is "stable" and if it breeds true from seed.
cheers
fermi
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it would be interesting to see if the variegation is "stable" and if it breeds true from seed.
To answer the stability question would definitely mean separating the bulbs into individual pots. I guess that is not an unreasonable thing to do. Maybe I'll do that once they go dormant! Meantime I could think about doing some pollinating, putting other pollen on these variegated plants. Both of Fermides' questions are interesting. Now I have to think about greenhouse space. Hmmmm....
Jim
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Hi,
These pictures were taken at Lyon's BG ( FRANCE )
Plants labelled as Veltheimia Capensis.
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Lachenalia reflexa, a spotted leaf type :)
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Interesting that the L. reflexa flower elongates after pollination and setting seed.
Here an unknown that a friend identified for me.
Lachenalia isopetala
And a later image of Lachenalia mutabilis
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Lachenalia carnosa came from the old IBS BX thanks to Mark Mazer. This is in bloom right now in the cool greenhouse.
[attach=1]
This is another Lachenalia hybrid, parentage unknown, from a nursery in South Africa. Hybrid #6 (my number 2310):
[attach=2]
Both are blooming in spite of having foliage that was somewhat "burned" by frost when on of the heaters went out overnight a couple weeks ago.
Jim
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Jim, Lachenalias are abnormally susceptible to viruses. This is why the many outstanding hybrids produced over the years have disappeared without even being known.
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The Amaryllis belladonna have started in our garden, as have the Crossyne flava - I wonder if they're compatible??
cheers
fermi
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I wonder if they're compatible??
One way to find out Fermi....
We await your results with interest.
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Last year, in late October, I chanced upon some Lachenalia aff. comptonii flowering in the 'wild' - on a track near my property in the southern Cape province. I was thrilled as I haven't seen this species in nature before, mine never look as good confined to a pot...
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Rogan, it may be just my memory, but I think this is the first time we've seen this lovely plant in the wild. I've got a fondness for flowers with sch exerted stamens- they somehow look so festive - as if they are saying to pollinators "come, party"!
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It's a lovely species indeed Maggi, and nicely scented too. Here's another pic, a close up with early morning dew spangling the flowers.
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I didn't know about it being scented..... 8)
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Rogan:
I have to say there is a sharp difference between your image and the photos in Graham's book. It is described as "heavily spice scented and proteranthous".
His description looks like yours but not his images.
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Would love to see seed offered of this Lachenalia sometime.
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I'll be living in that area semi-permanently from early 2014 so should be able to harvest some seed for distribution - until then... 8)
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just a few picts of my small Lachenalia collection.
The plants would deserve to be more cultured
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and a few more
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Lachenalia are plants that I find very interesting.
I am tempted by the new book by Graham Duncan, The Genus Lachenalia, published by Kew. The price puts me off rather though- £120 for a book on a genus I don't grow seems a bit steep. :-\
ISBN Number for the book : ISBN 9781842463826
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Lachenalia are plants that I find very interesting.
Yes of course: They are easy in cultivation, not as expensive as other rarities. First flowering after two or three seasons for usual is an advantage against other genera.
Sadly the tubers are rarely offered !
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Beautiful plants & beautifully photographed Gerhard 8)
Do you know whether your L. pustulata is typical of the species? The form I grow has much bluer flowers.
Yes Maggi prices of the Kew monographs make me gulp too.
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I`m not sure, a lot of picts show paler flowers. The buds of my single clone are blue too, so species is probably correct
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Does that mean that the Juno book which Tony Hall is co writing going to be out of my league. Uhm I better start saving!
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Lachenalia are plants that I find very interesting.
I am tempted by the new book by Graham Duncan, The Genus Lachenalia, published by Kew. The price puts me off rather though- £120 for a book on a genus I don't grow seems a bit steep. :-\
ISBN Number for the book : ISBN 9781842463826
You can find it rather cheaper than that if you shop around Maggi - I think I paid £85 for mine. I think it is well worth it if you grow the genus but a luxury if you don't.
Incidentally - I note it is reviewed in the new AGS bulletin. The review is illustrated with a photo (not from the book) that is a) misidentified and b) uses a name which is, in any case, superseded - as is made quite clear in the book being reviewed.
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I have a couple of copies left if any USA forum members are interested. I can let it go for an 85 Pound equivalent.
PM me.
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Gerhard:
Great images.
Any idea on this one.
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Lachenalia aloides quadricolor.
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"I am tempted by the new book by Graham Duncan, The Genus Lachenalia, published by Kew."
The price is totally ridiculous and way beyond my means - pity, as it would be a handy book to have. :P ::) >:(
I will have to stick with his original book - now somewhat well-thumbed and yellow with age (like me!)... :-\
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In reply #93 I stated that "Last year, in late October, I chanced upon some Lachenalia aff. comptonii flowering in the 'wild'"; luckily I expressed some doubt in my identification by including the term "aff." as it turns out I was dead wrong! This plant is probably Lachenalia latifolia and ArnoldT was quite correct in remarking "I have to say there is a sharp difference between your image and the photos in Graham's book". The description, photograph and location in The Lachenalia Handbook all point to L. latifolia as being the correct identification.
It really doesn't matter what we choose call it as it is still a magnificent Lachenalia well worth cultivating - and its powerful fragrance is heavenly... :D
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Rogan:
Thanks for the update. You're right a rose by any other name....
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In reply #93 I stated that "Last year, in late October, I chanced upon some Lachenalia aff. comptonii flowering in the 'wild'"; luckily I expressed some doubt in my identification by including the term "aff." as it turns out I was dead wrong! This plant is probably Lachenalia latifolia and ArnoldT was quite correct in remarking "I have to say there is a sharp difference between your image and the photos in Graham's book". The description, photograph and location in The Lachenalia Handbook all point to L. latifolia as being the correct identification.
It really doesn't matter what we choose call it as it is still a magnificent Lachenalia well worth cultivating - and its powerful fragrance is heavenly... :D
I think it is worth repeating Rogan's photos of this plant :
click to enlarge them, of course
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Lachenalia juncifolia
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Daubenya aurea flowering for the first time with me.
Poul
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It is often said that orchids have the most strange and unusual flowers- I think the people who say that have never seen this Daubenya! The shape and form is extraordinary- and that's before we consider the brightness of the colour!
(and I really like your square terracotta pots as well! )
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Yes, it has a strange but very beautiful flower. Unfortunately the leaves are not so pretty this spring. The air humidity was too high in the autumn resulting in some fungal attach.
Maggi, I love the square terracotta pots too, they are from Weston Mill Pottery in Newark. They call them herb pots and are intended for the kitchen. If they were cheaper, I would have many more of them.
Poul
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I have found the Weston website, Poul, thank you
http://www.wmpot.co.uk/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=283 (http://www.wmpot.co.uk/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=283)
I see what you mean about the price- but they would make packing plants for a Show very simple with the square shape!
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Romulea season starts two month later this year in South Germany. The reason is: Only a few sunny days this winter.
Pic. 3 an 4 Romulea spec. sown as Romulea tabularis.
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More pictures
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Worth the wait for those flowers, K-D.
I see you grow a lot of cacti, too...... 8)
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Three more South African Bulbs in flower.
Gladiolus tristis sown 2011 from SRGC Seed Exchange.
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A very good show - well done! 8)
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<sigh> I wish all my seedling bulbs would flower. Maybe I can pretend that Clivia are bulbs -
they flower well for me.
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What a fine selection, K D, but I would recommend using larger pots or at least, distribute your plants in several small pots.
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Ledebouria leptophylla don't know if name is right
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Lachaenalia bachmanii
and Lachenalia orchioides subsp. glaucina which was L. glaucina
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Veltheimia capensis starts blooming now.
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Veltheimia capensis starts blooming now.
Fine healthy plants!
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Superbly grown plants but look more like bracteata.
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Superbly grown plants but look more like bracteata.
I bougt the bulb as V. capensis maybe it is V. bracteata. Grown direct under the roof in full light.
This is a picture without -0,3 exposure compensation. If it is V. bracteata I wil change the label.
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A fully open Lachenalia mathewsii.
Named after Joseph William Mathews ( 1871-1949) a curator at Kirstenbosch
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Lachenalia thomasiae
Named after Margaret Lilian Thomas (1917-2006) cultivator and collector of South African bulbous plants
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Today, Gladiolus carinatus
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I received this as seed of a Syringodea , but I'm thinking more of a Moraea.
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Veltheimia bracteata is fine pot plant becoming very popular for its foliage and flowers. V. capensis is a lot more difficult to grow being an arid land plant. Its foliage is greyish and more wavy than bracteata. Plenty of images in the web for comparison.
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The night & day Gladiolus liliaceus :)
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The Syringodea is most likely Moraea setifolia.
Here's Lachenalia arbuthnotii, named after Miss Isobel A. Arbuthnot ( 1870-1963) botanical assistant at Bolus Herbarium until 1939.
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Gladiolus virescens, sown 2010. Nice plant, but I was a bit disappointed because this species is usually scented, occasionally unscented... but I've got the occasionally one :(
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Lovely flower even if unscented. All these species gladioli are fascinating, I love the colour-change one and beautiful markings on Rafa's carinatus.
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Going through some neglected pots I knocked this out today. It is labelled Gladioplus splendens, 7 bulbs apparently acquired at the AGS AGM in October 2010. Not sure if it has produced anything but fine leaves since then. It has been at a minimum of ~-5C under glass.
Advice please.
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Angelo,
I'm impressed by the gladdies you grow!
I've posted pics of a couple of nerines on this thread http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=10311.0 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=10311.0) including Nerine rosea which is stunning in the bleakness of our garden at present!
cheers
fermi
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The warmer weather has brought on my Lachenalia mathewsii and L. namaquensis.
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Steve looks like well grown plants do you provide supplementary light?
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Hi Arnold, no I don't use any supplementary lighting so plants can get a bit drawn in our poor, winter light-levels.
Cheers, Steve
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Some autumn flowerers,
Oxalis palmifrons
Oxalis massoniana
Moraea polystacyha
Nerine hybrid 'Ariel'
cheers
fermi
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Nearing the end of the Lachenalia season here.
Lachenalia nervosa
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Lachenalia orthopetal
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Lachenalia zeyheri
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I grow this as Lachenalia orchioides var glaucina, but I think it is now just L. glaucina? And L. elegans in bud.
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Arnold, those Lachenalia images against a colored cardboard piece are very interesting.
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Alberto:
They're file folders with a bit of texture. I've tried different colors to compliment the colors of the flowers.
I like the green most.
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Very neat contrast, very useful for ID. Super idea. Even better that the images in The Lachenalia Handbook.
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Thanks,
;D
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Lachenalia latimeriae name after Dr. Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer (1907-2004), former director of the East London Museum who made the collection.
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That is a lovely lachenalia Arnold.
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Arnold, I think you must be Lachenalia's best ambassador - how many species /varieties do you grow? 8)
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Marjorie Courtenay-Latimer - a lady famous for bringing the coelacanth (Latimeria chalumnae) to the world's attention in 1938.
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Maggi:
Most came from BX distributions from the PBS.
More than I realized. Some have yet to flower from seeds.
Also some names are no longer valid with the new Duncan book.
LACHENALIA aloides aura
LACHENALIA aloides quadricolor
LACHENALIA arbuthnotii
LACHENALIA bachmanii
LACHENALIA bakerae
LACHENALIA bulbifera
LACHENALIA carnosa
LACHENALIA comptonii
LACHENALIA contaminata
LACHENALIA juncifolia var. campanulata
LACHENALIA juncifolia
LACHENALIA kilprandensis
LACHENALIA latifolia
LACHENALIA latifolia
LACHENALIA latimeriae
LACHENALIA liliflora
LACHENALIA mathewsii
LACHENALIA mediana
LACHENALIA mutabilis
LACHENALIA mutabilis
LACHENALIA namaquensis
LACHENALIA nervosa
LACHENALIA orchioides subsp. glaucina
LACHENALIA orthopetala
LACHENALIA pallida
LACHENALIA pusilla
LACHENALIA reflexa
LACHENALIA rubida rubra
LACHENALIA thomasiae
LACHENALIA unicolor spotted leaf
LACHENALIA unifolia
LACHENALIA violacea var var. glauca
LACHENALIA viridiflorus
LACHENALIA xerophylla
LACHENALIA zebrina
LACHENALIA zeyheri
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In short, how many you DO NOT grow?
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In short, how many you DO NOT grow?
;D ;D ;D That may be the simpler question!
Arnold, that is an impressive list 8)
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Moraea atropunctata
Moraea aristata. x 2
Gladiolus cunonius
Gladiolus carinatus.
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Gladiolus carinatus is my favourite
Roland
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Michael, your Moraea arisata is always a sight to behold :o
I like the gladiolus too.
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Ashley, the quality of these plants Michael and Darren grow is superb. AND, with such low light levels! They are really great growers.
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A couple of gladiolus
Gladiolus tristis from DaveyP
Gladiolus uysiae from IBSA
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Good pics Tony
No gladiolus here in flower
one year to wait :(
Roland
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Tony is that really a Gladiolus? love the strangeness of it.
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Michael you do grow some interesting bulbs - that strange Gladi and the arisata.
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Plants from Kirstenbosch seed labelled Lachenalia elegans. Am I right in thinking it is L. elegans var. elegans? Grateful for an ID, thanks.
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Hi Steve:
Great looking plant, it doesn't resemble the L. elegans in Graham's new book. His image has the flower stem purple.
Can't see the leaves which are described as "1-2, lanceolate, 60-115 x 9-25 mm, suberect, light green with depressed longitududinal grooves, canaliculate upper surface plain leaf margin thickened, purplish-maroon, leaf bases clasping, 5-35 mm long, white in lower portion, light green to dark green or maroon above."
He has the scape as maroon.
He also has no L. elegans var. elegans.
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Gladiolus carinatus is my favourite Roland
Michael, your Moraea arisata is always a sight to behold
I like the gladiolus too.
Ashley, the quality of these plants Michael and Darren grow is superb. AND, with such low light levels! They are really great growers.
Michael you do grow some interesting bulbs - that strange Gladi and the arisata.
Thanks folks, I do my best but sometimes it is not good enough. :)
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Moraea tulbagensis ( neopavonia.)
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Hi Arnold, thanks for the really useful information. I must treat myself to a copy of the new Duncan book!
it doesn't resemble the L. elegans in Graham's new book. His image has the flower stem purple.
He also has no L. elegans var. elegans
I suppose there must have been quite a few reclassifications going on? I'm still using his Lachenalia Handbook. This lists four varieties of L. elegans including var. elegans, which is described as the typical variety. Annoyingly, it is also the only one for which a photograph isn't included :(. As my plant doesn't look anything like the other three varieties that are illustrated, I'd assumed I had var. elegans. The flower description also seemed to fit: ...oblong-urceolate, sub-erect flowers; the outer perianth segments are bright blue at the base, shading to rose and have brown gibbosities, while the protruding inner segments are white with a pale pink spot near the tips. Thereagain, I've also just read that L. elegans has sessile flowers whereas the flowers on my plant do have short pedicels (subspicate)...on the other hand, inflorescence type is not always constant. So, basically, I dunno!
It's not really important, I can enjoy the flowers for what they are without knowing which species it is (it is always nice to know though, isn't it ;)). It does become more important though if I donate to the SRGC seedex. Getting the species name wrong is embarrassing for the donor and irritating for the recipient! So, I'd be happy to receive any further thoughts from forum members on the correct ID. Thanks.
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Steve:
I can tell you that many of the names in his original book have been changed.
Here's a list that was provided by a member of he PBS.
Lachenalia name changes
Old name = new name
L aloides var aloides = L aloides
L aloides var aurea = L flava
L aloides var luteola = L luteola
L aloides var quadricolor = L quadricolor
L aloides var vanzyliae = L vanzyliae
L aloides from Summerfield as 'Piketberg' = L callista
L aloides from ?? = L thunbergii
L bulbifera = bifolia
L elegans var elegans = L elegans
L elegans var flava = L karoopoortensis
L elegans var membranacea = L membranacea
L elegans var suaveolens = L suaveolens
L esterhuysenae = L juncifolia
L gilletii = L pallida
L juncifolia var campanulata = L magentea
L mediana var mediana = L mediana subsp mediana
L mediana var rogersii = L mediana subsp rogersii
L muirii = sessiliflora
L pustulata = L pallida
L rubida = punctata
L unifolia var schlechteri = L schlechteri
L unifolia var wrightii = L wrightii
Polyxena calcicola = L calcicola
P corymbosa = L corymbosa
P ensifolia = L ensifolia subsp ensifolia
P maughanii = L ensifolia subsp maughanii
P longituba = L longituba
P paucifolia = L paucifolia
P pygmaea = L pygmaea
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The hardest thing to swallow is Polyxena merged into Lachenalia
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Alberto:
I know. I had them flower and they look nothing like each other.
What's the basis for this?
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Michael what a lovely sunny flower.
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;D ;D ;D
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Thanks for the list of reclassified Lachenalia, Arnold.
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Freesia elimensis, flowering poorly for me this year.
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Funny mine failed to flower but the pot was full of bulbs or is it corms?
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Freesia corms.
Lachenalia and Polyxena are supposed to share enough DNA chains to be kin. But, there is something else that separates them: Lachenalias are extremely susceptible to viruses and most of the stock in the trade is infected. It is very easy to see it in distorted foliage. This is the reason why so many Lachenalia hybrids produced over the years are all gone without the slightest trace of their existence. On the other hand there is nothing like this susceptibility in Polyxenas and you can grow them for many years in good health.
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Funny mine failed to flower but the pot was full of bulbs or is it corms?
For me it was Freesia caryophyllacea.
On Polyxena...I have a pot of Polyxena odorata seedlings (SRGC seedex) but on reading up about the species have seen it described as a synonym for both ensifolia and longituba. What's the latest view? And when I write 'polyxena' I do, of course, mean 'lachenalia' :)
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I have a little whitish flowered Polyxena from Bill Dijk flowering at the moment.
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I have a little whitish flowered Polyxena from Bill Dijk flowering at the moment.
Hi Anthony,
Possibly P(L) longituba which was flowering at home before we left.
cheers
fermi
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I think it may be ensifolia?
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I think it may be ensifolia?
Yes, the foliage is a bit wide for the other
cheers
fermi
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Lachenalia liliflora, own seed, flowering for the first time. Good to have them back - the parent plants were wiped out during those couple of severe winters we had in the UK...
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"The hardest thing to swallow is Polyxena merged into Lachenalia"
"I know. I had them flower and they look nothing like each other. What's the basis for this?"
"Publish or Perish"? :P ;)
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it doesn't resemble the L. elegans in Graham's new book
Hi Arnold, thought I'd bring you up to date concerning the plant photos I posted in reply #171. I've had it confirmed that the plant is in fact L. pustulata or L. unicolor. Actually, that should read 'was L. pustulata/unicolor' because, as you noted in your list, both these species are now classified as Lachenalia pallida. It's an unfortunate name given the vivid and rather nice flower colour on my plant! But I think the reasoning behind the name change is clearly explained in Graham Duncan's new book. Now, where's my marker pen...
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Steve:
Thanks for the follow up note.
No matter the name it is an attractive little plant.
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Live in luxury with your lousy papers or get a real job, Rogan.
>:( >:( >:(
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"Live in luxury with your lousy papers or get a real job, Rogan.
« Last Edit: May 12, 2013, 03:38:30 AM by Ezeiza" »
I'm extremely sorry if my comments offended readers on this forum, it was certainly not my intention.
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Rogan, I don't think you have offended anybody - usually when I question Ezeiza about such comments he tells me I have missed the point of his joke.......... :-\
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No, not offended although as a newbie I don't know if there's some subtext I've missed...
I thought the two smileys Rogan added made it clear that the comment was lighthearted? And I don't think anyone who's been around higher education doesn't acknowledge the pressure on researchers to publish - research funding depends on it, at least in the UK through the Research Assessment Exercise. Or perhaps I've missed the point of the comment?
Anyway, on a more positive note (!) the recent reclassifications within Lachenalia/Polyxena does offer an opportunity for a discussion about the practical implications for forum members. For example, how should seed donors label donations this year? I grow three species under the old classification that are now all lumped together as Lachenalia pallida ::). So it's probably most sensible to give the new name with a note adding details such as the old name, flower colour etc.
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A gladiolus I got from the SA bulb exchange
Gladiolus huttonii
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Merwilla plumbea (Scilla natelensis)
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I seem to have missed these latest postings on the subject of SA bulbs. What our friend Rogan has put in hilarious and polite terms, I did in harsher ones. So, it was not a joke nor a comment aimed at him in any way. The fact is that a lot of botanical papers we see these days are of poor quality and mostly on splitting hairs. It is the system that presses hard on people living off science to publish rather frequently in order to maintain their academic status and in many cases succulent wages. Of course there are botanists doing a lot of excellent work but on the minority. The DNA gimmick has turned into a gold mine for this where anybody looking for a subject of research can find plenty of themes. Sadly, it has mostly remained only a way for cataloguing things. We can't help but keeping up to date with all these novelties, changes and recataloguing. Of course everybody has the right to live and thrive but my personal objection to this way of things is the absolute indifference of many botanists to the ecological disaster that is taking place everywhere around the world. They are in the foremost position to make people know and yet, they choose to look some other way or worse, their interventions are to convince us that very destructive practices like plundering wild plants for sale is good for science "for otherwise they would not be known". A contemplative attitude towards Nature is a thing of the past, perfectly understandable then. Nowadays, it is a personal election. Before the first diplomatic comment is made, let me remind you all that Kew for instance has chosen otherwise and is working hard against the clock to try and save everything they can. Then, there exists an alternative. Who says indifference is "scientific"?
Of course my comment was not against our friend Rogn, who has given us much pleasure showing his wonderful plants. Sorry for the bad time, Rogan, it was entirely my fault to write telegram like postings.
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Moraea lurida
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Moraea lurida
Ooh! Love it! :)
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A couple of gladiolus
Gladiolus tristis from DaveyP
Gladiolus uysiae from IBSA
Sorry,late on this topic but G. tristis now well established outside in beds here and flowering well at the moment after two of our colder winters [-7° min]. Seed originally from Chiltern in 2002. Actually could be considered a bit of a weed as it has sown itself into a lot of pots in the days I was nursing it in the greenhouse.
Erle
Anglesey, cold again but after some welcome rain - don't scream anyone but we have been dry so far this spring.
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Moraea lurida
Ooh! Love it! :)
Me too!
There is a form illustrated in the monograph where the maroon colour covers the entire flower. Does anyone out there grow this form?
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Hi,
I'm ashamed this is not a rarity.
Gladiolus CARNEUS
JP
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No idea why you should feel ashamed Jean-Patrick AGIER
many ordinary flowers are beautiful and undervalued :)
Roland
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If here are any specialists for South African Ornithogalums so please look here :
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=10570.msg278338#msg278338 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=10570.msg278338#msg278338)
Any ideas are welcome !
Hans
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Tulbaghia acutiloba and Drimia flagellaris
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What an interesting colour combination in Tulbaghia acutiloba.
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I have many plants from Silverhill seeds, all properly labelled. I await their flowering
with great anticipation.
I also have an area where I put bulbs that have lost their labels and seedpots that
haven't produced any bulbs.
Guess where most flowering takes place - yes. The unknowns. Here is the latest:
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The shape and orientation of the florets seem to resemble a form of Watsonia laccata; to my eyes anyway - any other suggestions?
It is very variable in flower shape and colour and readily hybridizes with W. aletroides in nature; here it is pictured in a small roadside population in the Western Cape:
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Thank you! I hadn't thought about it being a Watsonia, as I haven't bought seed of many, just
Watsonia laccata in 2002 and W. amatolae in 2007. Both are unaccounted for.
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I also have an unidentified bulb-mystery to solve; can anyone put a name to this little thing, seen flowering in throngs beside a road in the Western Cape. I can only hazzard a guess at Moraea (ex. Homeria) species?
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Pretty sure that is a Moraea (probably Homeria group as you say) Rogan, but beyond this I am mystified as it does not seem to match anything I know.
The bulbs here are mostly dormant now but my favourite geophytic Pelargoniums are starting to flower. First up is P.oblongatum (the picture was actually taken a year or two back but It shows the plant in all it's splendour). Then the first flowering for me of P.auritum. I am surprised at how small and dainty this is as you can see by the picture of my thumb for scale and then the inflorescence dwarfed by a single flower of oblongatum.
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I enjoy your Pelargoniums, Darren, something I do not grow myself. I nevertheless enjoy them tremendously when I encounter them in their multitudes in the wild.
The aff Moraea species has puzzled me a great deal as I can find no reference to it at all in any of the books at my disposal; perhaps it is an alba version of a more common species that has established a foothold in that area? I will be spending a lot more time there next year (building a cottage) and should be able to look at this plant in greater detail :)
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Darren what lovely Pelargoniums - I must seek out seed when the next seed list arrives.
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something a bit more common but I could do with some help with. I have a number of rhodohypoxis and the labelling seems to have got mixed up. Problem is I can't quite recall which ones I had in the first place.
Can someone have a look please?
The first one is Fred Broome which I think is right. The next one I have as Perle, is it? The third is definately wrong as it has "shell pink" as the label - maybe it is Pictus?
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Mark, some pictures here that might help from the Tale Valley Nursery catalogue. Excellent nursery by the way
http://www.talevalleynursery.co.uk/rhodohypoxiscatalogue.shtml (http://www.talevalleynursery.co.uk/rhodohypoxiscatalogue.shtml)
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thanks David, I do think the white one might be Pictus which I think I had bought at one time. But lots seem very similar.
Looks a good nursery for plants both in variety and reliability of naming.
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Here's a total surprise. Foliage died back about a month ago and this morning at 6:15 AM I noticed a pure white flower. Poor light at that hour.
Gethyllis linearis
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Lovely surprise
Roland
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Gladiolus flanaganii
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Picked this up a couple of weeks ago at Blenheim Flower show, x Rhodoxis Summer Stars "Pinky"
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Last year I was given three young Albuca, sown March 2010, and they are just coming into flower for the first time. Could anyone offer an I.D, or perhaps recognise the collection number? Albuca sp. HSH 018. Plants are 40-60 cm tall. Thanks.
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Another Albuca coming into flower - a slightly scrawny-looking Albuca nelsonii.
I know there's more than 100 species :) but anyone prepared to have a shot at identifying the plant in my previous post? A. setosa? longipes?
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First flowers (6-07-2013) on Hesperantha humilis from AGS Seedex 2007 - sown 11-06-2007, 1st seedling 6-06-2008!
cheers
fermi
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Albuca species ex JCA 15058 from seed sown August 2008 and now a regular flowerer at this time of year.
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Is this the proper time to sow Massonia seeds from the seedex?
johnw
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I actually sowed mine today! I was following advice from Darren (Sleep) who gave a talk at our group last year on South African bulbs - his results speak for themselves.
I had been keeping my seeds in the refrigerator over the summer and by the time of his talk last September he thought I was too late, so should keep them in the refrigerator over the winter/spring and so them about.......now.
I hope I got that correct Darren ;) , I should have taken written notes
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A Eucomis with a long lost label. Flowers in summer.
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I actually sowed mine today! I was following advice from Darren (Sleep) who gave a talk at our group last year on South African bulbs - his results speak for themselves.
I had been keeping my seeds in the refrigerator over the summer and by the time of his talk last September he thought I was too late, so should keep them in the refrigerator over the winter/spring and so them about.......now.
I hope I got that correct Darren ;) , I should have taken written notes
Should work fine Peter.
September would be OK actually, but not if the seed had spent summer in the fridge as most cape bulb seed needs a warm summer prior to first watering and cooler temps triggering germination in autumn.
Personally I store all my (winter growing) bulb seed at room temperature and only sow from late july until late september. Any bulb seed arriving outside this period stays at room temp until the following late summer/autumn. I've currently got a lot of seed purchased from Summerfield and Silverhill last winter which will be sown next month.
Exceptions to this timing are the Amaryllids with fleshy seeds which are sown immediately even if imported from the southern hemisphere in our early summer. The seed often germinates in the post and seedings need to be kept cool and will then stay in growth until the following April when they can be dried off and treated as normal for winter growers.
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Wonderful, thanks. I must have followed Darren's advice as I had the seeds at room temperature with a note to sow in August.
johnw
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Gladiolus undulatus from Silverhill seeds in 2009. Sown in May, germinated in July.
Grows outside and flowered for the first time at the beginning of July this year.
So nice to grow something that hasn't lost its label and matches the pictures in the books.
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Well grown Diane, a lovely thing 8)
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In flower now: it has to be one of the most beautiful flowers around. I have been growing it for decades and still rank it amongst my most favorite - Babiana pygmaea.
This Lapeirousia spp. duo - L. silenoides and L. oreogena announce the approach of spring - loudly!
I also have a weird and wonderful little Romulea sp. in bloom: R. hantamensis; no picture yet as the ephemeral blooms close up before I can get the camera ready! ;)
Spring? - we haven't had winter yet! - one of the warmest and driest on record, or so I think?
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Great colours in the Lapeirousia, Rogan - and I quite understand why that Babiana is your favourite - Ian and I both have a real passion for flowers that have that combination of white or cream with a blackcurrant throat - a perfect mix.
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Really envious of those Lapeirousia Rogan!
They are absolute swines to grow here. The seed germinates OK but then the seedling bulbs tend towards semi-permanent dormancy. I suspect this is due to our low summer temperatures even under glass. I know some people in the south of England do grow them reasonably well but they have warmer summers and higher light intensity than we get here in the cloudy north-west!
But we have had a hot summer this year so maybe my dormant bulbs might wake up??
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lovely Lapeirousia, I may give them a go. I think I did try one from seed but they dwindled to nothing. Maybe time for another go!
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Gladiolus oppositiflorus salmoneus -- this one is sort of hardy here. Plant a lot of seedlings bulbs (bloom size) and a few will survive the first winter. Over the first several years, the survivors will b loom. Over the long haul they gradually disappear. This one was lifted and potted before the final disappearance. I'm rather attached to it now.
[attach=1]
Add another point in August's favor!
Jim
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A Eucomis with a long lost label. Flowers in summer.
Hello Arnold,
Your Eucomis looks a lot like one I am growing. Unfortunately I also don't have a label with it. I assume it is one of the E. Comosa hybrids. I purchased my bulbs something like 20 years ago, when mail order companies sent out printed catalogues with recoloured pictures and no botanical name at all. Originally I was supposed to have one white & one blue Eucomis. The white one is really white, the blue one is about as blue as yours. There is also a difference in the foliage colour, in particular at the start of the growing season, my 'blue' ones have bronze coloured leaves. As we get later in the growing season they loose this colouration & right now the leaves are about the same green as my other Eucomis. I also have one Eucomis with somewhat 'wavy' leaves. The White Eucomis blooms a few weeks later than my 'blue one'
Do you grow your Eucomis in the open ? In fall 2011 I had an impressive seed crop and several seeds fell on the soil. They survived a winter at -18°C, germinated in 2012, the seedlings survived another winter at -8°C and are happily growing further now. And all this in a really heavy wet clay soil. E. Comosa looks to be completely hardy where I live.
My Eucomis are starting to bloom, as soon as we have a sunny day I Will post some pictures here.
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Francosi:
The one pictured grows during the summer in a pot and spends winters in a unheated attic.
I grow the E. bicolor in the ground for around ten years.
I've had them for around 15 years and this one finally bloomed. I have others like E. pole-evansii which grow well but haven't flowered.
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Lapeirousia silenoides is actually quite a difficult plant to grow (in my opinion); the seed is difficult to germinate (seems to require a hot summer to mature properly) and when it finally flowers, that's the end of it - I have yet to see one return after flowering. L. oreogena is much more pot-worthy; it flowers regularly and survives!
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A few weeks ago I had the first flowering of Dierama dracomontana. A nice surprise! I have sown these in March 2011.
I have tried several Dierama's outside but it's is to cold for most of them. This one seems to perform best. It is situated very close to the eastside of the house, so it is protected.
Furthermore I had several flowering Gladiolus flanaganii. Maybe the most hardy Gladiolus in my experience. I have sown these in March 2010. It found them very easy and they even do well in the open garden. They are till 40 cm high and have a very beatifull dark red colour.
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Francosi:
The one pictured grows during the summer in a pot and spends winters in a unheated attic.
I grow the E. bicolor in the ground for around ten years.
I've had them for around 15 years and this one finally bloomed. I have others like E. pole-evansii which grow well but haven't flowered.
Hello Arnold,
Looks like we have about the same Eucomis, I grow E. Bicolor, E. Pole-Evansii & a few different E. Comosa. Until now I have been growing them all in pots that I put in my cellar for the winter. 4 years ago I have sown seeds of E Pole-Evansii, and a few of these are flowering this year for the first time. I purchased 100 seeds at that time and I think I have about 100 E. Pole-Evansii (never counted the number of plants actually) growing in something like a dozen of pots. It are big plants that need a lot of water and benefit of generous application of fertilizer. All my Eucomis like to grow in full sun, the pots are at the foot of a wall facing East and get direct sunlight untill 3 PM. It's only recently that I found out that I could grow some of my Eucomis in the ground - however didn't have time this spring to plant them out, so that'w a job for next spring then.
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The sun shone yesterday and Romulea hantamensis obliged: quite a small-flowered species but made up for by the bright iridescent colours. It has a long floral tube and in some ways resembles the long-tubed flowers of Lapeirousia oreogena and L. silenoides discussed previously - do they share a common, long-tongued polinator?
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Lovely picture Rogan.
There is a terrific bit of footage on Youtube somewhere of pollination in action with L. oreogena. I'll see if I can find it - I think someone posted a link on here once. No Idea if R. hantamensis has the same pollinator. I bet Peter Goldblatt would know as this is his area of expertise.
I just got some seed of R.hantamensis and I'm told it is quite tricky to germinate and some authors suggest it 'probably needs cold stratification' - do you have any advice regarding this?
Your observation regarding germination of L. silenoides is interesting. When I saw it in the wild it was growing in sands and in shallow rock crevices which must get extremely hot during the summer. This is also the worst species I've tried for remaining dormant after the first season even if it germinates! I have never managed to get one to flowering size - they always dwindle away long before that.
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A quick literature search revealed two papers by Goldblatt, one on pollination of Romulea and one on pollination of Lapeirousia.
As you suspected, Rogan, the L. silenoides group is pollinated by long-proboscis flies of the genus Prosoeca. This is also true of R. hantamensis, which is the only member of the genus in this pollination group (and, not coincidentally, produces the most nectar of any Romulea).
I have both papers as pdf, if interested I can e-mail them.
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Can anyone recommend a soil mix ffor Massonia seeds? Am I to avoid phosphorus in the mix? I'm a bit slow getting to this job!
Meanwhile this delightful little Glad is in flower, a gift from a kind forumist.
johnw
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Wonderful colour of Gladiolus x primulinus Miss Prim series 'Victoria', John.
Paul Cumbleton suggests the same mix for Massonia seeds as for the bulbs - see this Wisley Log from 2008 - http://www.srgc.org.uk/wisley/2007/221107/log.html (http://www.srgc.org.uk/wisley/2007/221107/log.html) :)
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Wonderful colour of Gladiolus x primulinus Miss Prim series 'Victoria', John.
Paul Cumbleton suggests the same mix for Massonia seeds as for the bulbs - see this Wisley Log from 2008 - http://www.srgc.org.uk/wisley/2007/221107/log.html (http://www.srgc.org.uk/wisley/2007/221107/log.html) :)
Thanks Maggi, the seeds are planted and the waiting begins. The Glad is a real charmer; pity there is so little information on this series on the net.
johnw
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Massonias are seen in herbarium vouchers as quite shallow growers but in a gritty mix the bulbs bury themselves at a surprising depth. They are droughtland bubs in the wild.
Lapeirousias are better treated almost like succulents. Corms are very deep in the sandy/gritty ground not only to obtain some extra moisture but also as a protection of the heat Darren mentions.
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and John, years ago we made an experiment to know how true it was that phosphorous was poisonous to South African bulbs. We added a minute dose of superphosphate at the bottom of 80 pots with different species of them. By the end of the season (late spring) all were dead.
On the other hand, fertilzers containing phosphorus like Phostrogen, Chempak 4 or Tomorite used as a foliar feeding in minute doses are evidently beneficial. Paul Tyerman mentioned years ago that the same was true with Australian plants: the effect was a lot more harmful to roots but he also mentioned that such roots could become gradually accostumed to phosphorus presence with less harm to plants. If I remember well.
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Summer is when Eucomis is flowering. So at last, summer has arrived ;)
I have been growing Eucomis for more than 20 years. For the first time my Eucomis pallidiflora ssp. pole-evansii seedlings are flowering. Eucomis bicolor is a very reliable plant flowering each year without exception, not very prolific by making offsets, but each year I have a few seeds. Seedlings need 4 to 5 years to reach flowering size, but this may be because I have neglected my seedlings in the past. Eucomis comosa - or what i believe to be Eucomis comosa offsets nicely but prefers not to be too crowded in the pots otherwise they don't flower. But with some extra fertilizing I get them do an extra effort to flower. I have different hybrids of Eucomis comosa, one with rather bronze leaves and another with green leaves. The flowers are also somewhat different, the one with bronze leaves has white flowers. My third variety of Eucomis Comosa is not yet flowering.
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this post with the two different flower colours of my Eucomis comosa.
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Very fine plants, Francosi.
Have you tried propagation by leaf-cuttings? I believe this is very successful for some forumists, though I have yet to try it myself.
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and John, years ago we made an experiment to know how true it was that phosphorous was poisonous to South African bulbs. We added a minute dose of superphosphate at the bottom of 80 pots with different species of them. By the end of the season (late spring) all were dead.
On the other hand, fertilzers containing phosphorus like Phostrogen, Chempak 4 or Tomorite used as a foliar feeding in minute doses are evidently beneficial. Paul Tyerman mentioned years ago that the same was true with Australian plants: the effect was a lot more harmful to roots but he also mentioned that such roots could become gradually accostumed to phosphorus presence with less harm to plants. If I remember well.
Likely only for winter growing SA bulbs. I use a standard NPK + sulphur & Magnesium fertilizer for my Eucomis & Galtonia bulbs and they really respond well to it.
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Have you tried propagation by leaf-cuttings? I believe this is very successful for some forumists, though I have yet to try it myself.
Hello Maggi,
Only recently I learned they can be propagated by leaf cuttings - so never tried it. On the other hand, I have big crops of seeds - in particular of my Eucomis comosa (E. bicolor is a shy seedsetter for me), that this source of new plants is amply enough for me. I have a few dozen seedlings of E. bicolor this year and an uncountable number of of E. comosa that germinated this spring. If we have an indian summer this fall I should again have loads of viable seeds from my Eucomis this year. And as far as I can see, now that my first seedlings of E. bicolor are flowering, I have no crosses of E. Bicolor X E. comosa amongst my seedlings - even if the two have always been growing just a few meters apart. Here is the result of sowing E. comosa just a bit too densely ... those were 2011 seeds and I assumed germination rate would be lower.
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;D ;D ;D Yes, that is a very good rate of germination!!
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here some pics from a shy flowering plant ( first flowers for me ever)
Agapanthus "Tinkerbell"
Enjoy
Hans 8)
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How nice to see it in flower Hans!
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Hans, congratulations to you success with Agapanthus Tinkerbell.
Plan to show your photos to my plants, that they see what they have
to do!. The Bavarian nurseryman from Neusäß told me, that this
Agapanthus is only a foliage plant which will never set flowers.
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;D ;D ;D
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The Bavarian nurseryman from Neusäß told me, that this
Agapanthus is only a foliage plant which will never set flowers.
He is a fascinating, knowledgeable man but not all he says is true ::) ::)!
I have never seen flowers on this plant, but it might have to do with specific temps at the time flower buds are set in the plant.
This will hardly ever happen in our cool climate :-\
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So..... dieser Pflanze von Hans besser als 'Eugen's allerbester' ist, eh?!! 8)
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Maggi :
"Wer ko ,der ko" ;)
Hans 8)
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Babiana odorata with an interloper - most likely a seedling with Babaiana pygmaea as the father!
cheers
fermi
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Now I do like that Fermi 8)
Angie :)
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Congratulations Hans,
it is the second time I see it flowering in about 10 years!
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Fermi the Babiana odorata bulbs that you sent me are flowering too here. Very strong perfume but love the dark blue/purple stamens.
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Maggi :
"Wer ko ,der ko" ;)
Hans 8)
Immer!
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Congratulations Hans,
it is the second time I see it flowering in about 10 years!
Good to see you Renate - hope the new nursery site is doing well and now looks less like a carrot field!
For those who do not know Renate - this is her website : http://www.pflanze-und-co.de (http://www.pflanze-und-co.de) 8)
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Immer!
Ah ..Maggi :D
You know this story ....oh this Bavarians ...
Do you know also this ?
Lacha müßad I wenn I lacha müßad !
Hans
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Ah ..Maggi :D
You know this story ....oh this Bavarians ...
Do you know also this ?
Lacha müßad I wenn I lacha müßad !
Hans
Oh no, that is too difficult for me. :-\ I'm thinking......
"I'll laugh when I find it funny " - which makes e think of our saying " when you've got to go , you've got to go" ;)
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Maggi
I have tried to find a Translation ..but it is diificould - maybe :
"I would laugh if I should laugh " ;D
...similar like "It's not over till it's over"
Hans 8)
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Hi all ,
here are some words from me to this theory that the South African bulb plants like not Phosphorus :
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=10086.msg282643#msg282643 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=10086.msg282643#msg282643)
please look here for some pics of my plants ( Haemanthus ) -they are all fertilized with Phostrogen !
With this fertilizer I have also excellent results with my Massonia ,Agapanthus and many others ....
I have simply no chance to buy here in Germany any soil or fertilizer without any Phosphorus...
Hans
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Well only took 20 years to flower but now I wonder is it really Amaryllis belladonna 'Johnannesburg'? Perhaps the colour will improve. The bulbs are about the size of tennis balls & I kept them slightly moist through the summer. I wonder how their hardiness compares with Nerine bowdenii?
Maybe this will be the year Lycoris radiata - a youngish 38 year old - will flower.
johnw
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I am almost out of Phostrogen and have not seen it for sale in Canada for years now, ever since Wilson's gave up distributing it. Any Canadians seen it about?
johnw
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The Phostrogen analysis seems idea for almost all bulbs, but I can't usually find a fertilizer with that composition. I have ended up using Jack's Professional 20-10-20 for many years with no obvious ill affects on Haemanthus, narrow-leaved Nerine, Crinum, and various other genera of South African bulbs. I do however use a potting mix that would not retain phosphate anyway: Promix + sand + granite grit.
For broad-leaved Nerine, I use a zero-nitrogen blended soluble fertilizer. I have had to make that one up myself in recent years. I may have to go to plain potassium sulfate.
Jim
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Hi everybody,
I have plans to adopt 1 Lachenalia. But which one should I take out of all the species ? Can anybody give me some advise ?
My wishes for this Lachenalia : not too small (otherwise my cats will sit on the pot, which is not good for any plant), vigorous grower & long lasting flowers. The time of flowering is not relevant to me.
The location where it will grow : Windowsill oriented towards the West. Rather constant day temperature of +/- 16°C, a few degrees less at night, from time to time day temperature interrupted by an increase towards 20°C when we are using the room. I do have a hotter environment to store it during the summer dormancy.
Or is this too warm for a Lachenalia to thrive well as I read some people barely keep them frost free during winter ?
thanks for any advise on this !
François
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François
My Quadricolors did much better when they were growing at 4-8c in the cool greenhouse. When I moved them to a wam winter greenhouse 15-25c the flowers do not last and the growth is weak. That has also thrown their timing off - bone-dry they leafed out 2 weeks ago here when they should be completely dormant. So now what to do? Water in this summery weather may cause bulb rot. I am in a predicament. I would assume trickier species like viridiflora etc. would not tolerate this kind of abuse especially when young.
Bottom line - a long cold, frost-free growing period and evenly moist was best for Quadricolor.
johnw
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Hi François
I agree with John, I think your main problem will be keeping the bulbs cool enough during the growing season: 16c at night is too warm - they'll do better at 10C and under. The other issue is winter light levels in the northern hemisphere. I find Lachenalias can get a bit drawn/etiolated grown in a northern England greenhouse and your house windowsill would have, I assume, even less light? Still, nothing ventured...perhaps try one of the more common (ie cheaper!) types such as aloides? Alternatively, would you consider any of the Lachenalia hybrids grown specifically for the houseplant market? The South African Agricultural Research Council has done most of the work on this, I think, and I've found this article which may be of interest: http://www.arc.agric.za/home.asp?PID=824&ToolID=63&ItemID=2579 (http://www.arc.agric.za/home.asp?PID=824&ToolID=63&ItemID=2579).
As you'll see, ARC has European agents, eg in Holland it's this company: http://www.vdvossen.nl/producten/producten_en.html. (http://www.vdvossen.nl/producten/producten_en.html.)
I think I've read on the forum, though, that the hybrids are prone to virus? Whether you go for species or hybrid you'll need good winter light and cool conditions.
Best wishes
Steve
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Steve - Here is Quadricolor on its best before date - 5th February. After that the sun here at latitude 44 elevates temperatures above 10c in the greenhouse and the flower stalks flop.
john
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And the Amaryllis belladonna 'Johannesburg' is a bit pinker by the day.
johnw
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Good looking plants, John. And your post made me check the latitude of my location (53/54 parallel N) and marvel at the size of Canada, from 43rd up to the Arctic!
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54deg north!!! I live at 30deg south and sometimes find even that 'too far south'! Does your sun even get above the horizon in winter? ;) ;D
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Hi Rogan,
living closer to the Arctic circle has it's advantages. In June we get more than 16 hours of daylight here in Belgium (my lattitude is 50° 43' 38'' N), in December only 8 unfortunately, and since it's usually clouded in December we often don't get to see the sun shining for more than a full week.
I think I may forget my plan to grow Lachenalia indoors, too warm and too dark here. Thanks all for your advise ! I think it's going to be a Clivia then.
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Does your sun even get above the horizon in winter? ;) ;D
Thanks for reminding me what I've got to look forward to this winter, Rogan! :). At the winter solstice the sun creeps above the horizon for about 7.5 hrs. But, as François says, we have lovely, long summer days (well, at least this year): over 17 hrs of daylight at midsummer.
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Hesperantha baurii, from a March 2008 sowing (not flowering for the first time)
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These are two amongst quite a few bulbs looking good in my collection at the moment. Higher-than-usual spring temps have shut most of the 'European' stuff down early, even before they have managed flower this year! :(
A Leucocoryne species from Chile; the flower is unscented but the roots smell STRONGLY of onion!
and a species of Romulea from SA, R. monadelpha I think.
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I meant to add: "Lovely Hesperantha, David" - the pastel colouring is very appealing.
I saw the species below flowering in Lesotho not so long ago; the ground was covered in flowers like confetti - so beautiful! I've no idea which species it was though...
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I meant to add: "Lovely Hesperantha, David" - the pastel colouring is very appealing.
I saw the species below flowering in Lesotho not so long ago; the ground was covered in flowers like confetti - so beautiful! I've no idea which species it was though...
Crikey, I'd have thought that was a colchicum ::) :-X
What a super flower.
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Thank you Rogan.
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More Cyrtanthus montanus blooming.
[attach=1]
Photographed on a cloudy day.
Jim
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Here is another Southern African bulb that bloomed today -- a volunteers seedling of Gladiolus saundersii that came up in a large pot of Zanterdeschia albomaculata several years ago and that finally reached bloom size. Until today, I was not at all sure which species it might be.
[attach=1]
This one, by the way, is doing far better than is conspecifics growing all by themselves but in much smaller pots.
Jim
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Here is another Southern African bulb that bloomed today -- a volunteers seedling of Gladiolus saundersii that came up in a large pot of Zantedeschia albomaculata several years ago and that finally reached bloom size. Until today, I was not at all sure which species it might be.
This one, by the way, is doing far better than is conspecifics growing all by themselves but in much smaller pots.
Jim
Isn't this just the sort of thing that makes us wonder why we bother with trying to give the plants the "best" of everything!!
The markings on the bloom are delightful.
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Maggi,
indeed, there is nothing left of the carrot field we bought - with the help of our Maggie - it must be in the name ;)
I will post some actual pictures when we are back from holidays, first time after three years of work.
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These are two amongst quite a few bulbs looking good in my collection at the moment.... a species of Romulea from SA, R. monadelpha I think.
Hi Rogan,
here's what I have as Romulea sabulosa; I'm not sure how it differs from R. monadelpha as I've not flowered that yet.
cheers
fermi
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Not sure if this counts as a "bulb" at all, but i think it has tuberous roots, Bulbinella eburnifolia (came labelled as B. cauda-felis) now in full flower
cheers
fermi
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Hesperantha latifolia - grown from NZAGS seedex
I brought it in to the office so I could get a pic when they opened ;D
cheers
fermi
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Spring is raging! (...although very hot and dry for this time of the year ::))
An unlikely pair: Lachenalia trichophylla and Narcissus obesus;
A breathtaking Moraea: Moraea barnardiella (ex. Galaxia);
An old girl outdoing herself once more: Cyrtanthus falcatus :)
Now all we need is some rain and cooler temperatures to keep them going longer!
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Wow, Rogan,
some lovely stuff there!
Here's yet another hesperantha! This is Hesperantha pauciflora (magenta) also from NZAGS Seedex,
cheers
fermi
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Two lovely Hesperanthas there Fermi.
Very nice indeed Rogan.
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Great display of your Cyrtanthus Falcatus Rogan. Wished mine was already blooming size ...
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Even if flowering is almost over for the Eucomis Pole-evansii the seedpods of one of the seedlings continue to brighten things up with purplish seed capsules.
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Not a great pic, but a lovely little moraea, M. tripetala
x2
Lachenalia cordiana
cheers
fermi
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Lachenalia bolusii
Oxalis purpurea(?) white form x 2
cheers
fermi
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Such a beautiful white flower. I just love white flowers.
Angie :)
ps Fermi I have lots of leaves coming from my seeds that you gave me.
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Is this the proper time to sow Massonia seeds from the seedex?johnw
The Massonia seeds, stored at room temperature and planted 10 August and watered once, are up.
johnw
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Mine also! :D
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Following the hesperantha, the geissorhiza are now out in force!
Geissorhiza splendidissima
Geissorhiza mix - including G ornithogaloides (small yellow) and G. tulbaghensis, Hesperantha vaginata ssp stanfordiae
(large yellow)
G. tulbaghensis close-up
cheers
fermi
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Pelargonium triste is once again in flower!
the scent in the evening is wonderful.
cheers
fermi
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Did anyone have luck germinating the SRGC2013 Massonia obovata seed? Not a single one here to date and only 2 JJAs.
Meanwhile no problem with pustulata.
johnw
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First flowering at ten years old for Brunsvigia marginata. It looks amazing in the sunshine today. I was astonished by how quickly the inflorescence appeared and expanded. The first picture was taken earlier this week. Flowering is supposed to be tricky in cultivation so (as I reckoned the bulb was now big enough) I took Graham Duncan's advice by burning a layer of old dry leaves on top of the pot before the first watering at the start of september. Also, when I sowed some Cape Erica seed a week later I disposed of the left over 'Kirstenbosch smoke water' by tipping it into the Brusvigia pot. These, coupled I suspect with a very hot summer under glass, seem to have done the trick.
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What a lovely little thing, well done Darren
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Really lovely Darren 8)
Angie :)
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Darren,
that's a real beauty! I hope it sets seeds for you ;D
I've had one for more than 10 years that is yet to flower - maybe this year! ;D
Here's a tiny flowered ixia flowering from the first time - from SRGC Seedex 2009, Ixia scillaris,
cheers
fermi
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Fermi, another mislabelled packet. Ixia scillaris is very distinct among the rest. It happens to me many times.
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Alberto,
this pic is probably not the best as the flower opens up a bit more in the sun and looks more like the pics on the PBS site - though the colour seems very pale in comparison - perhaps another hybrid?
Here is Babiana cedarbengensis,
cheers
fermi
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Another babiana and probably the strangest because of the "sun-bird perch" above the flowers to aid in their pollination!
Babiana ringens in the garden this morning,
cheers
fermi
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Fermi, Babiana cedarbergensis is very rare in cultivation. As is of course, the difficult B. ringens.
Your Ixia is most probably a species. It happens all the time that one species seeds are collected for another, so rich is the variety of the South African flora.
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Congrats on that Babiana ringens Fermi. I've given up trying it after failing to ever get it to flower. This is not a unique experience as I know other forumists have struggled with it!
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Congrats on that Babiana ringens Fermi. I've given up trying it after failing to ever get it to flower. This is not a unique experience as I know other forumists have struggled with it!
Yes, well done, Fermi, it's a wonderful species I've also been trying to grow for years. I germinated a potful of seedlings, then a couple of years ago, a flower spike started (Yippee!) but it was a yellow flowered species, so presumably a mix up had occurred. The seed came from a reputable South African source ;) so proves that errors can occur anywhere with seed ::)
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Yes, well done, Fermi, it's a wonderful species I've also been trying to grow for years. I germinated a potful of seedlings, then a couple of years ago, a flower spike started (Yippee!) but it was a yellow flowered species, so presumably a mix up had occurred. The seed came from a reputable South African source ;) so proves that errors can occur anywhere with seed ::)
I'm not sure if it'll set seed as it's just the one clone, but I'll put you at the head of the list if it does, Diane!
cheers
fermi
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I'm not sure if it'll set seed as it's just the one clone, but I'll put you at the head of the list if it does, Diane!
cheers Fermi
Oh thanks, Fermi, didn't mean you to take it as a hint!
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I can promise the seeds, Diane, but it's up to the plant to produce them! (then I have to remember to collect them!)
Some more South African bulbs in our garden:
Lachenalia pustulata
Geissorhiza monanthos - showing a bit of variability!
2 types in close up
Geissorhiza radians
cheers
fermi
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I've often wondered about self-incompatibility in Babiana species, as a few years ago one of my single-clone Babiana pygmaea's produced a good grop of seed, so to say "out of the blue". This year one of the resultant seedlings also set a few seeds with no other clone or species in flower at the same time - so there is definitely some self-fertility, in this species at least.
My "Cape" bulbs have long given up the fight against our hot spring weather and all have gone dormant by now, many without flowering at all this year. My "European" collection didn't even try! Some Central / South American's did rather well and enjoyed the hot conditions, especially Leucocoryne which produced multiple flower stems in some cases.
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Last year I posted pics of Geissorhiza tulbaghensis with white and greenish forms - this year one even has purplish colouration!
cheers
fermi
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You're having a very good season all round Fermi
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Any suggestions for flowering Nerine sarniensis?
I have more than ten flowering size bulbs of two different types but only one flower stem ???
I keep them frost free over winter, water them regularily and feed them only a little - they are dry but not baked from June to September.
What should I change?
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Herbert, to get good flowering the bulbs must be planted with their neck above ground and some baking will help too.
Poul
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I haven't had a chance to check out which gladdie this is but discovered it in flower yesterday! It appears to be a seedling as there was no label where it has emerged in the sand bed,
cheers
fermi
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A hybrid of Gladiolus tristis and a Homoglossum?
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A hybrid of Gladiolus tristis and a Homoglossum?
A strong possibility, Alberto, as we've had both in the garden,
cheers
fermi
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wow what a flower!
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Our Gladiolus Miss Primm series has produced a fair amount of seed. Any suggestions on planting, stratification etc?
johnw
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Moraea polystachya in the front garden today.
Some more info on my Moraeas here. https://www.nargs.org/rock-garden-quarterly (https://www.nargs.org/rock-garden-quarterly)
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Our Gladiolus Miss Primm series has produced a fair amount of seed. Any suggestions on planting, stratification etc?
johnw
If you dig it up you will probably find a vast number of cormlets John, we always have masses!
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You're having a very good season all round Fermi
And it continues, David!
First flowering of Geissorhiza darlingensis, from NZAGS Seedex 2008, sown 9-05-2009; only 2 seedlings out of 30 seeds sown, but I understand that this is another "difficult" species!
cheers
fermi
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Well done Fermi! I've sown this 3 or 4 times and I've had about the same level of germination. However, unlike you, I've never managed to raise them to flowering.
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Well done Fermi! I've sown this 3 or 4 times and I've had about the same level of germination. However, unlike you, I've never managed to raise them to flowering.
Someone who belonged to NZAGS in 2008 obviously did well enough with it to be able to donate such a large amount of seed! I've tried self pollinating it so we'll see if it deigns to set some seed!
Anther South Africans in flower: Babiana spacthacea - I've sent seed of this to the AGS Seedex and I think there's enough to send to SRGC as well,
cheers
fermi
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Excellent marginata Darren,
I have 2 seedlings doing very well leafing out, probably 7 or 8 years old now, as well as a larger specimen, but none have yet flowered. My large brunsvigia littoralis has never flowered, neither has my bosmaniae...
maybe I should try your trick...what is the "kirstenboch smike water" recipie?
I tried burning some dry leaves over an amaryllis beladonna once before watering after a long dry summer, but it did not doo much ....
Pontus
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Babiana spathacea in flower here as well (South America) thanks to a great forum friend.
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Pontus, smoke works "bringing forward" flower buds that are already inside the bulb. It has no effect in fattening an immature bulb. For this you need time, temperature and a proper feeding regime with very low nitrogen.
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Pontus:
I believe the "kirstenboch smike (smoke water) water" is a solution made from paper that has been impregnated with fumes from a fire. The paper is place in water and the constituents from the smoke paper are transferred to the water. Bulbs are watered with the it and it simulates the effects of fire in initiating flower product in bulbs.
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Pontus:
I believe the "kirstenboch smike (smoke water) water" is a solution made from paper that has been impregnated with fumes from a fire. The paper is place in water and the constituents from the smoke paper are transferred to the water. Bulbs are watered with the it and it simulates the effects of fire in initiating flower product in bulbs.
Quite correct. You can buy the impregnated papers from Silverhill seeds at a reasonable price.
Alberto is also right - the bulbs need to be mature before you start to think about smoke treatment.
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I need to pay more attention -
I thought that the smoke method was only to help germination of seeds..... :-\
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It serves both purposes (and possibly others we are not aware of). Basically, the smoke indicates the plants and dormant seeds that the ground has been cleared and fertilized for further action. In years with no fires the ground is so choked with vegetation that it would be a great waste to flower and produce seed that would have no chance to germinate.
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The ecology of these triggering mechanisms is quite fascinating. It is also likely that, besides direct stimulation from chemicals in smoke there are other triggers resulting from fires such as:
Sudden release of a nutrient pulse from rain washing combustion products down into the soil - especially mobile nutrients such as N and K.
Changes in pH
Changes in temperature (either absolute or relationship between day/night temps) due to more sunlight hitting the ground during the day and/or colder nights due to less shelter allowing greater radiation of heat during the night.
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We once tried the smoke treatment on several Mexican Zephyranthes and they responded by flowering sucesively for an abnormally long time. But, there were no flowers for the three following years from them after that.
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Darren:
I'm with you. I think these triggering mechanisms are also fascinating.
I have a copy of The Physiology of Flower Bulbs, by Hertough and Le Nard.
The are a number of references in the book.
1. Freesias corms were released from dormancy using smoldering rice hulls. Trigger was believed to be either ethylene or CO2.
Treating Freesia corms with 1ppm of ethylene for 6 hours was significant to break dormancy. The discovery of smoke on initiating flower bulb growth is listed at 1916 by Molish.
2.N. tazetta's were flowered using "burning over" with smoke of ethylene treatments. Wolfe and Horton 1958.
3. Dipping in solutions ethylene chlorhydrin was also used.
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If ethylene is beneficial in this way, who has tried keeping bulbs and/or seed in close proximity with ripening bananas ??
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How about leaving a banana skin on top of newly potted bulbs?
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If ethylene is beneficial in this way, who has tried keeping bulbs and/or seed in close proximity with ripening bananas ??
This trick has been used for quite a while by growers of native terrestrial orchids in Australia. Some Caladenia and related genera are especially stimulated by ethylene from bushfires. The growers place the dormant tubers in a bag with a banana skin for a period of up to 3 weeks (changing the banana skin every few days before it gets really disgusting!).
I've never tried this as I don't grow any affected species, though I do grow Microtis unifolia which apparently does not need fire stimulation to flower but certainly is boosted by it. My plants rarely flower so I may give it a go next summer. Will need to volunteer Susan as banana-eater as I don't actually like them ;)
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A few years ago, someone reported isolating a compound from smoke that had activity with plants. This was an organic molecule larger than ethylene. This might be what is in the smoke paper. Ethylene is a very volatile gas and would not be retained at all by paper, not even by very absorbent paper. I do not usually think of ethylene as a growth stimulant. It is more likely to cause wilting of flowers or transition of a growing plant into a dormant state rather than to stimulate a dormant plant. It ought to be pretty easy to test ethylene's action on dormant bulbs in a greenhouse. I would be very interested in hearing what the results are.
Jim
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I'd agree about ethylene being too volatile Jim.
According to Wikipedia a class of furanone/pyranone derivatives called karrikins (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karrikin) are responsible (cyanohydrins too (http://www.google.ie/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CDYQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fmplant.oxfordjournals.org%2Fcontent%2Fearly%2F2012%2F11%2F21%2Fmp.sss132.full.pdf&ei=HLReUozrDMuQhQfF4IDYDQ&usg=AFQjCNFiw2bbIgC7OgSmpmjEnsunHimHJg&bvm=bv.54176721,d.ZG4&cad=rja)), but I haven't delved into the literature.
This article (http://web.extension.illinois.edu/illinoissteward/openarticle.cfm?ArticleID=453) is quite interesting as a lead-in.
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Grateful if someone could confirm whether this is Polyxena (Lachenalia) ensifolia...
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Steve:
Graham Duncan has it in his book, The Genus Lachenalia as Lachenalia ensifolia.
I couldn't begin to explain why.
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Steve:
Graham Duncan has it in his book, The Genus Lachenalia as Lachenalia ensifolia.
Thanks, Arnold. I'm not too familiar with Polyxena so thought I'd check. The PBS website images usually helps with ID but on the Polyxena page I just got confused with the differences between ensifolia and pygmaea! A kind forumist let me have a bulb of the latter :) and that is in bud so I'll be able to compare the two in a few days.
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Ethylen triggers the flowering in bromeliads. The classic method is to put the potted plant in a plastic bag with a rotting apple for a day or so and this seems to be enough.
Jim is right about it stimulating dormancy in bulbs. Ethylen from drying leaves stimulate the bulb to go dormant.
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Grateful if someone could confirm whether this is Polyxena (Lachenalia) ensifolia...
That is pygmaea Steve.
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That is pygmaea Steve.
Thanks, Darren. I was given the pot last year, in leaf but after flowering, and it was labelled as P. ensifolia. I hadn't grown Polyxena before so thought I'd check the ID with those who have. How are your Lachenalias coming along this year, the the way? Mine seem later than usual coming back into growth - probably because of this mild weather. I then start to worry about watering: too much? too little?....
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Steve,
My potful of Lachanalia aloides has just started to emerge above the topdressing - just one watering so far at the end of September.
The others aren't showing yet, apart from Polyxena/Lachanalia pygmaea. I'm sticking with Polyxena for now, until the new taxonomy has definitely stabilised....... ::)
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Peter, even if it takes centuries, any Polyxena wull never look lik any Lachenalia.
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Peter, even if it takes centuries, any Polyxena wull never look lik any Lachenalia.
So true!
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Thanks, Darren. I was given the pot last year, in leaf but after flowering, and it was labelled as P. ensifolia. I hadn't grown Polyxena before so thought I'd check the ID with those who have. How are your Lachenalias coming along this year, the the way? Mine seem later than usual coming back into growth - probably because of this mild weather. I then start to worry about watering: too much? too little?....
I watered first weekend in September as usual and they are all up. But the autumn flowerers are flowering a little late (a week or two). Polyxena are approaching their peak, Lachenalia pusilla is just starting, L. punctata is in advanced bud.
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That is pygmaea Steve.
Note I didn't use either Polyxena or Lachenalia in my response... ;)
I'm going to keep them labelled as Polyxena anyway for now, though I've re-labelled my lecture slides to read 'Lachenalia (Polyxena) ensifolia' etc to indicate Duncan's changes.
I do support the (re) separation of ensifolia and pygmaea as they seem distinct to me. Just flowering now is a new raising of pygmaea from Summerfield seed, which has more flowers per inflorescence and they are a paler pink than either my other form or Steve's. I might be able to post a pic at the weekend.
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I watered first weekend in September as usual
A counsel of perfection - I was still furiously repotting at that time. :-\
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Not really perfection Peter - due to the time it takes I'm only repotting every two years now and this year was the off year!
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Every two years! You are doing well.
Some of the crocuses I potted up had the remains of four old corms stacked on top of one another. :-X
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Nerine 'Mother of Pearl' today and 2 x Nerine Smither's hp seedlings. These Nerines are hell to photograph.
johnw
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These Nerines are hell to photograph.
But well worth the effort, such delicate colouring.
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Lachenalia pusilla, a lovely little plant, with a curious scent.
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Lachenalia pusilla, a lovely little plant, with a curious scent.
Pete, now you've got everyone curious! Curious, as in unpleasant? I wonder what the pollinator is?
I like the detail on these L. haarlemensis leaves. (And I was so busy looking, I didn't spot the cobwebs...)
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No, definitely not unpleasant Steve, just difficult to describe and I havn't smelt anything like it before.
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Veltheimia capensis flowering early I think.
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Nerine 'Solent Swan' today.
johnw
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John your Nerine is very pretty, it looks so delicate.
Angie :)
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We've had a nice clump of the "Teal Blue" hybrid of Ixia viridiflora in part of the Rock garden for many years and now some of the self sown seedlings are showing the variation in colour which shows that they're continuing to hybridize with other ixias in the garden!
cheers
fermi
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John your Nerine is very pretty, it looks so delicate.Angie :)
Yes most swans born with a touch of pink are. ;)
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Massonia bifolia, echinata and pustulata in bud.
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Massonia bifolia, echinata and pustulata in bud.
Very nice indeed.
Angie :)
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Again I'm impressed - lovely Ixias, Fermi! 8)
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Again I'm impressed - lovely Ixias, Fermi! 8)
Would you like some seeds, Rogan?
It'd be like sending coals to Newcastle but I'd be happy to do it ;D
cheers
fermi
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Thank you Fermi, what a kind offer indeed. Coals we may have aplenty, but it is the lumps of anthracite among the coals that we particularly look out for! ;D
Ixia species are very common in certain parts of South Africa, but your 'Teal' hybrid is very attractive (and vigorous) to say the least. On my recently-acquired property in the Western Cape, I. orientalis grows in countless numbers.
I'll send you my postal address via a PM.
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Despite success with Massonia I really struggle with Daubenya and this D. stylosa is actually the first ever Daubenya to flower for me..
Nothing prepared me for its almost overpowering spicy scent. Visitors to my talk at East Lancs tomorrow night can see and sniff it in person!
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I mentioned on an earlier page that I might post pics of a paler form of Lachenalia (Polyxena) pygmaea grown from Summerfield seed.
Here it is with my darker form for comparison.
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Finally - all dressed up and nowhere to go......
I potted a load of spare Massonia of 4 distinct taxa to possibly sell at autumn shows and we never got there. Still - I can enjoy the flowers this season and select out some good forms to keep.
The bigger plants near the bottom of the picture are actually drone-fly set hybrids between the 'Addo' plant Burdach/Berdach 11182 and jasminiflora. They are vigorous but not especially interesting but I will hang on to them because the variation between them is remarkable at least.
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Despite success with Massonia I really struggle with Daubenya and this D. stylosa is actually the first ever Daubenya to flower for me..
Nothing prepared me for its almost overpowering spicy scent. Visitors to my talk at East Lancs tomorrow night can see and sniff it in person!
That's mighty impressive! Must give them a try.
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Despite success with Massonia I really struggle with Daubenya and this D. stylosa is actually the first ever Daubenya to flower for me..
Nothing prepared me for its almost overpowering spicy scent. Visitors to my talk at East Lancs tomorrow night can see and sniff it in person!
Worth the wait though, Darren. What a pretty little plant. I've been looking through the Summerfield list and trying to limit myself (not easy). So if you had to choose between D. aurea and D. marginata...? (with D. zeyeri as a definite!)
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Polyxena ex silverhill 11157 blooming this week.
i think this one is Polyxena (Lachenalia) ensifolia or could it be P. pygmaea?
a bit over 2" tall
Thank you
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I started this pot of Massonia echinata seeds last March 2013 from a very generous NARGS ration and these have grown quite well in the past 8 months. when should i thin these out and when should i expect to see the first blooms?
how much light do i need to give them to make them flatten out? These were outside until this week as the winter is started.
Thank you
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Rimmer,
I found, when I used to grow several Massonia, that they need to be potted individually with a lot of space to flatten out all the way. I currently only have some M. depressa and it took them 3 years to mature and flower. I now grow 4 bulbs in a 12 inch pot, but even this leads to some crowding and leaves held partially erect. Some of the other species are much smaller and require less room.
Aaron
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Worth the wait though, Darren. What a pretty little plant. I've been looking through the Summerfield list and trying to limit myself (not easy). So if you had to choose between D. aurea and D. marginata...? (with D. zeyeri as a definite!)
Probably aurea for looks but marginata seems a bit easier!
I get really good germination of all species but (with the exception of comata) the seedling bulbs seem to stay dormant in subsequent seasons and dwindle away. Paul Cumbleton tells me this is not an unusual experience. I suspect our summers (esp in northern parts) are usually not warm enough during the bulbs rest period. next year I might try putting a few in a propagator at 25C for a few weeks in late summer.
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Polyxena ex silverhill 11157 blooming this week.
i think this one is Polyxena (Lachenalia) ensifolia or could it be P. pygmaea?
a bit over 2" tall
Thank you
The strongly reflexed petals and long tubes suggest pygmaea to me.
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Rimmer,
I found, when I used to grow several Massonia, that they need to be potted individually with a lot of space to flatten out all the way. I currently only have some M. depressa and it took them 3 years to mature and flower. I now grow 4 bulbs in a 12 inch pot, but even this leads to some crowding and leaves held partially erect. Some of the other species are much smaller and require less room.
Aaron
I agree - they really want potting singly if you can afford the space. I've a few crowded pots of seedlings in a shady place under the bench but they look awful and don't flower properly.
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Worth the wait though, Darren. What a pretty little plant. I've been looking through the Summerfield list and trying to limit myself (not easy). So if you had to choose between D. aurea and D. marginata...? (with D. zeyeri as a definite!)
What is the Summerfield list?
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What is the Summerfield list?
From the PBS sources page :
Summerfields Indigenous Bulbs and Seed
South Africa (No website)
Email: summerfields@telkomsa.net
Gordon Summerfield sells a large variety of South African bulb seeds, many identified by locality (so you can buy particular colors or forms). He also carries a smaller selection of bulbs. E-mail him for his catalog.
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Thanks Maggi!
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My pleasure, Ralph - the list sounds most interesting.
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South African Oxalis luteola 'Splash' MV7689. Probably same as O. luteola 'Maculata'
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I have Gordon Summerfield's current List as a Word doc. if anyone wants a copy. Email to the address on my Profile and I'll send it.
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Rimmer,
I found, when I used to grow several Massonia, that they need to be potted individually with a lot of space to flatten out all the way. I currently only have some M. depressa and it took them 3 years to mature and flower. I now grow 4 bulbs in a 12 inch pot, but even this leads to some crowding and leaves held partially erect. Some of the other species are much smaller and require less room.
Aaron
Thank you Aaron
is there a best time to thin out the seedlings into the individual pots?- while in growth? or?
Thank you Rimmer
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South African Oxalis luteola 'Splash' MV7689. Probably same as O. luteola 'Maculata'
This is wonderful!
do you grow this in full sun?
Rimmer
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Rimmer,
For the ones that go dormant (deciduous) I moved them during that time. For sempervirens and another that always wanted to be in growth I moved them whenever I thought they were inactive, but I always had big losses on those. It may have been the heat, or some other factor though.
Aaron
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Polyxena longituba looking a bit damp and miserable in a damp and miserable greenhouse in an even more damp and miserable garden. These grown from seed, sown in December 2008 from SRGC 07/2424 and now beginning to clump up a bit.
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This is wonderful!
do you grow this in full sun?
Thank you Rimmer :) Yes, I grow it sunny outside through winter.
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Probably aurea for looks but marginata seems a bit easier!
I get really good germination of all species but (with the exception of comata) the seedling bulbs seem to stay dormant in subsequent seasons and dwindle away. Paul Cumbleton tells me this is not an unusual experience. I suspect our summers (esp in northern parts) are usually not warm enough during the bulbs rest period. next year I might try putting a few in a propagator at 25C for a few weeks in late summer.
Thanks, Darren.
On dormancy, this autumn I've had this problem with a few pots of Lachenalia seedling bulbs. No movement at all but when I had a root around, the small bulbs are still firm, if a little on the small size. They normally come back pretty regularly for me so this year I must have messed up their summer care (but other pots are ok... ???). I was also suprised by how far down in the pot the small bulbs had pulled themselves. I usually plant Lachenalia fairly shallowly but maybe I should experiment. I think planting depth for Lachenalia would also, as it does for other genera, affect flowering?
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Thank you Rimmer :) Yes, I grow it sunny outside through winter.
nice, how cold can these go and prosper?
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Thanks, Darren.
On dormancy, this autumn I've had this problem with a few pots of Lachenalia seedling bulbs. No movement at all but when I had a root around, the small bulbs are still firm, if a little on the small size. They normally come back pretty regularly for me so this year I must have messed up their summer care (but other pots are ok... ???). I was also suprised by how far down in the pot the small bulbs had pulled themselves. I usually plant Lachenalia fairly shallowly but maybe I should experiment. I think planting depth for Lachenalia would also, as it does for other genera, affect flowering?
I wouldn't worry too much Steve. L. alba and L. carnosa took a year off with me last year but came back again this time around. This year my seedlings of L. barkeriana are apparently going to stay dormant. Sometimes it just happens no matter what. Some Irids are even worse! Moraea ciliata makes an appearance only every other year for me.
The dormancy in the Daubenya seems more difficult to overcome. Others do OK with them so I'm mystified!
I don't think planting depth is too critical for Lachenalia - though the dwarf ones such as pusilla may want to be shallow with the top of the bulb at the surface.
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I wouldn't worry too much Steve. L. alba and L. carnosa took a year off with me last year but came back again this time around. This year my seedlings of L. barkeriana are apparently going to stay dormant. Sometimes it just happens no matter what. Some Irids are even worse! Moraea ciliata makes an appearance only every other year for me.
The dormancy in the Daubenya seems more difficult to overcome. Others do OK with them so I'm mystified!
Yes, there seems to be no clear pattern. With me, L. alba seedling bulbs have reappeared but L. carnosa is still dormant. Some species always seem to be late coming back into growth, L. mathewsii, for example. Ah, the challenges of growing SAF bulbs in northern England!
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Interestingly, that L carnosa has been solitary (as it is in the wild) for 10 years. But this year two shoots have popped up and both look likely to flower :)
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Here's what is now called Lachenalia pygmaea. Was at one time know as Polyxena pygmaea.
Moved into Lachenalia by Manning in 2004.
Purported to be heavily scented like almonds, although I can't smell it.
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Nerine Blanchefleur
A very reliable blooming Nerine.
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Funny, Nerine bowdenii in the greenhouse just opened the morning - one day ahead of outdoors. I wonder why ours are so late to flower even though the leaves emerge in April.
johnw
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Here's what is now called Lachenalia pygmaea. Was at one time know as Polyxena pygmaea.
Moved into Lachenalia by Manning in 2004.
Purported to be heavily scented like almonds, although I can't smell it.
Lovely Arnold. I doubt if Mr Manning will be too hurt by my refusal to change my Polyxena labels, indeed I shall now write them in red-so there Mr Manning!
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here is flowering very nice my Stumaria salteri
Hans 8)
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Rimmer,
I found, when I used to grow several Massonia, that they need to be potted individually with a lot of space to flatten out all the way. I currently only have some M. depressa and it took them 3 years to mature and flower. I now grow 4 bulbs in a 12 inch pot, but even this leads to some crowding and leaves held partially erect. Some of the other species are much smaller and require less room.
Aaron
I have the same experience, they need a lot of space to flatten out as the pics show.
The following Massonia pustulata are all seedlings from 2009.
They need all a pot of their own, but as I am short of space they need a new home as well if someone is interested?
But I can find space to my Daubenya aurea which is flowering for the second year. I got it in autumn 2009, but it was dormant until 2011, when the first leaves showed up. Flowered first time last year.
Poul
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Massonia echinata, I think.
This came from the seed exchange as Daubenya, looks like Massonia echinata.
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here is flowering very nice my Stumaria salteri
Hans 8)
Wonderful to see, Hans!
cheers
fermi
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here is flowering very nice my Stumaria salteri
Hans 8)
Hans thats really pretty, I see how you are pleased 8)
Angie :)
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Thank you Angie and Fermi :D
Hans
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seemed to have missed these, lovely plants all!
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A pot of Polyxena ensifolia (Lachenalia ensifolia) starts to flower here :)
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Excellent photo,Tatsuo-San!
And a well grown plant
cheers
fermi
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Here's Lachenalia
pauciflora paucifolia .
Lachenalia paucifolia (W.F.Barker) J.C.Manning & Goldblatt from 2004
with an earliest ref. to Hyacinthus paucifolius W.F.Barker as a synonym of Lachenalia paucifolia (W.F.Barker) J.C.Manning & Goldblatt
The record derives from WCSP which reports it as a synonym (record 278671) with original publication details: J. S. African Bot. 7: 198 1941.
Plant list also has on http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/kew-292132 (http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/kew-292132) this:
Polyxena paucifolia (W.F.Barker) A.M.van der Merwe & J.C.Manning Synonym
Polyxena calcicola U.Müll.-Doblies & D.Müll.-Doblies Synonym
Periboea paucifolia (W.F.Barker) U.Müll.-Doblies & D.Müll.-Doblies Synonym
Periboea oliveri U.Müll.-Doblies & D.Müll.-Doblies Synonym
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Two more South Africans.
Crossyne flava with long white or straw colored bristly fringe (love that description)
Lachenalia punctata
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A pot of Polyxena ensifolia (Lachenalia ensifolia) starts to flower here :)
That's a nice one!
Massonia pustulata has opened a little
Poul
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I sowed 3 pots of Massonia seed back in September. The pustulalatas are fine but of the other two pot the 3 seedlings in one pot died off and nothing came of the other. Should I toss those two pots or water ocassionally and keep very cool or dry off and keep them cool?
johnw - bitter - here, -5c last night and mercury stuck there, +15c on Wednesday and 50mm.
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I've been digging up some seedling Babiana corms from the rock garden - at the rate these are descending in another year they'd have been more than a trowel's length down! The remains of the contractile root is still evident,
New version of pic uploaded - it should expand when clicked!
cheers
fermi
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-.....and they're already "down under" from my point of view and still they're trying to get deeper!
fermi - your recent photos are tiny - only 112 x112 pixels - no enlargement on click.... or 229 x 229- only slight enlargement.... is this deliberate? :-\
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fermi - your recent photos are tiny - only 112 x112 pixels - no enlargement on click.... or 229 x 229- only slight enlargement.... is this deliberate? :-\
Sorry, Maggi,
I'm trying to use the home computer to do the re-sizing and it's not as easy as the system at work (which is off-line due to re-locating our office last week);
I'll need to download a resizing thingummy I think!
cheers
fermi
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Babianas, Androcymbium, Cyanella, Lapeirousia, must all be planted deep. Otherwise the plants will struggle during several years to reach the required depth. About babianas, there should not be a "stem"visible below the first pair of leaves (from the corm up, that is). In all the many species I have seen, grown or seen from the wild, the first pair of leaves bases are slightly inside the ground. That a "stem is visible below these leaves indicate the corm must be planted deeper. Of course, in pot cultivation this is a problem. With the largest species like dregei, ringens, etc. that have big, big corms, that depth is considerable.
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Back in 2010 I crossed Massonia jasminiflora with pustulata, hoping to get the pustulata leaf with the jasminiflora flower. The cross seems to have achieved this aim, with the first bulbs flowering now. The 2nd plant has tan coloured pollen though.
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Nice job :D
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Really nice Pete 8)
Angie :)
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Good work with the paint-brush, Pete ;D
I got this gladdie as G. permeabilis from NARGS Seedex a few years ago, but I think it's Gladiolus wilsonii.
Another misnamed one came from NZAGS Seedex a couple of years ago as Ixia polystachya but it appears to be a white form of Freesia laxa! Which is okay for me as I only had the type form so far!
cheers
fermi
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I sowed 3 pots of Massonia seed back in September. The pustulalatas are fine but of the other two pot the 3 seedlings in one pot died off and nothing came of the other. Should I toss those two pots or water ocassionally and keep very cool or dry off and keep them cool?
John - not sure what others would do but I'd dry the pots off now and water again next September.
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Fermi, that is not the white form. Instead an uncommon pretty one. Let's see what Freesia laxa guru Michael has to say about it.
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The laxa looks like the form Joan Evans.
I got it originally as a stow away in a pot - it's pretty but has been a bit of a nuisance in the greenhouse. It doesn't sem to do so well in a pot on it's own but loves growing in the sand beds in the greenhouse and in the pots of other plants. I'm trying it again outside but I think it may be too cold and wet here.
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=freesia+laxa+joan+evans&client=firefox-a&hs=6jR&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=11ecUprvNuy07QaehYGICA&ved=0CD8QsAQ&biw=1280&bih=855 (https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=freesia+laxa+joan+evans&client=firefox-a&hs=6jR&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=11ecUprvNuy07QaehYGICA&ved=0CD8QsAQ&biw=1280&bih=855)
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Some pix - and discussion of F. 'Joan Evans' on this page ....
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134209#msg134209 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134209#msg134209) great pic from Michael and also from David N.
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134145#msg134145 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134145#msg134145)
Hristo : http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134125#msg134125 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134125#msg134125)
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Some pix - and discussion of F. 'Joan Evans' on this page ....
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134209#msg134209 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134209#msg134209) great pic from Michael and also from David N.
http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134145#msg134145 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134145#msg134145)
Hristo : http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134125#msg134125 (http://www.srgc.net/forum/index.php?topic=4787.msg134125#msg134125)
Thanks, Maggi,
I've just re-read some of those discussions so I guess this one is a seedling of 'Joan Evans' and not the named one as such,
cheers
fermi
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John - not sure what others would do but I'd dry the pots off now and water again next September.
Steve - Sounds like a reasonable solution. I'll tuck them under the bench dry and let them follow the seasons, then a good August rainstorm and stand clear.
thanks
john
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The laxa looks like the form Joan Evans.
I got it originally as a stow away in a pot - it's pretty but has been a bit of a nuisance in the greenhouse. It doesn't sem to do so well in a pot on it's own but loves growing in the sand beds in the greenhouse and in the pots of other plants. I'm trying it again outside but I think it may be too cold and wet here.
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=freesia+laxa+joan+evans&client=firefox-a&hs=6jR&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=11ecUprvNuy07QaehYGICA&ved=0CD8QsAQ&biw=1280&bih=855 (https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=freesia+laxa+joan+evans&client=firefox-a&hs=6jR&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=11ecUprvNuy07QaehYGICA&ved=0CD8QsAQ&biw=1280&bih=855)
This was from AGS seeds sown 13th April, labelled as Freesa laxa Red Spotted. Is is the same plant? (I'll try to take a better photo).
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That's a Joan Evans seedling, they don't usually come true and you need to rogue them and only keep the good coloured ones. You can't call them Joan Evans though.
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Interesting, as said my plant came as a stowaway and it's seeded everywhere and as far as I can tell they are all identical. I thought I had a pic but it seems not.
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If you have no others in the vicinity then cross fertilization will not occur and then they will probably come fairly true.
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Romulea hallii flowering for the first time from Silverhill seeds sown in 2003.
There are three buds, not quite open, but perhaps they won't get a chance
because we are threatened with night temperatures of -7 in a few days.
I could go out and throw a quilt over the plant, but then I won't know if it could
have managed on its own.
So what is it to be? Information about hardiness, or a look at the inside of the
flowers?
Diane
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Diane:
All measures to have a peak at the flowers.
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Hi Diane,
Better let them flower well and protected and try to get seed from them. Once you have seed, you will always have a backup and can test the parent plants on hardiness.
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Massonia echinata starting to flower, one with a pink tinge. Actually, I assume they are echinata...?
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So what is it to be? Information about hardiness, or a look at the inside of the
flowers?
Diane
Depends on whether you grew it out of intellectual curiosity or because you liked the look of it. Personally I'm with the previous two answers.
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Massonia echinata starting to flower, one with a pink tinge. Actually, I assume they are echinata...?
Really lovely 8)
Angie :)
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Really lovely
+1
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Angie and Ashley - thanks. Massonia pustulata is flowering really well at the moment. And here's another shot of the pink flowered Massonia.
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Now I am really Jealous.
Angie :)
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Now that's just showing off! :o :o ;)
Lovely plants though......
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Now that's just showing off! :o :o ;)
Lovely plants though......
Peter I agree but thats just because I am jealous. ;) ;D
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I'd just like to have a flower on mine. Just one is all I ask..... :'(
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I'd just like to have a flower on mine. Just one is all I ask..... :'(
Peter - with mine flowering well this year I wonder whether it's because I have a new propane heater and it's keeping the greenhouse warmer than usual. Judging by the speed with which I've just gone through a gas bottle it could turn into quite an expensive way to show off! Still fiddling with the thermostat to try and minimise use but it's quite a blunt instrument...
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My Massonias are at the same stage as yours Steve and I've not yet used a heater at all this winter (though I am in a much milder area) and there has been slight frost inside the greenhouse twice so I'm not convinced that extra warmth during growth helps the flowering. What does affect flowering, I think, is keeping them too cool or shady the previous summer. I keep sale plants (flowering size) under the bench and they often fail to flower, whereas those kept on top in the light and where they get a warm summer perform reliably. None of my M. depressa even produced shoots last season as the summer of 2012 was so cold - they stayed completely dormant right through the growing season. They are back to normal this year.
Mathew says in one of his books that Massonia should not be kept too warm and dry in summer as they can shrivel. One has to bear in mind that his experience is in the banana belt of south east England. Up here in the more civilised parts of the country a hot summer is a rarity and mine came to no harm (in plunged pots) even though we had several days this summer where the temperature under glass exceeded 40C.
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Same here Darren, I have a heater set at 3c but I don't think it has come on at anytime this year yet, the pots are plunged in sand and stay in the same position Summer and Winter and always flower reliably every year, can't say the same about Daubenya though.any tips about how to flower those every year.?
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What is the situation in nature for these plants ? Do they flower each year in the wild or only now and then?
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No Michael- and I've asked Paul Cumbleton the same question. He has confirmed my findings that most Daubenya don't even seem willing to sprout every year. Seeds germinate well but then often the seedlings then stay dormant in future seasons or sprout sporadically at best. D. comata seems to be the exception for me - my 3 years olds have shooted every year and look like being flowering size soon.
Alberto has said Daubenya are easy in Argentina and D. aurea is propagated for sale in supermarkets in SA, so it must be something climatic that they miss here. D.aurea is by far the most recalcitrant with me (I can't grow it at all basically).
I do think it might simply be that I am being too kind to the little seedlings and keeping them too cool beneath the bench (see my post above again) in summer to avoid such small bulbs shrivelling. Might be well worth experimenting with a few dormant bulbs in a propagator set to a minimum of, say, 25C for the whole of August, then watering as usual in September after taking them out.
My few purchased mature bulbs (stylosa and marginata) did grow well this season, and stylosa flowered. Unlike the seedlings they were partially exposed at the soil surface during the hot summer under glass. I don't think this is coincidence.
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What is the situation in nature for these plants ? Do they flower each year in the wild or only now and then?
Excellent question Maggi!
Of course the wild situation also depends on their getting some rain in autumn, whereas this variable is eliminated in cultivation. My guess would be that wild plants staying dormant could be related to dry conditions at the start of the growing season as much as getting enough warmth in summer. Then again - bulbs from Fynbos habitats do tend to stay dormant or fail to flower for years once they become shaded out by surrounding vegetation, only to grow and flower again after a bush fire. Reaching optimum temperatures during dormancy is likely one key to this but many Daubenya actually grow in unshaded habitats with little competition so this is not likely to be a factor with these in the wild. Like Michael - I wish I knew!
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What does affect flowering, I think, is keeping them too cool or shady the previous summer. I keep sale plants (flowering size) under the bench and they often fail to flower, whereas those kept on top in the light and where they get a warm summer perform reliably.
Mathew says in one of his books that Massonia should not be kept too warm and dry in summer as they can shrivel. One has to bear in mind that his experience is in the banana belt of south east England. Up here in the more civilised parts of the country a hot summer is a rarity and mine came to no harm (in plunged pots) even though we had several days this summer where the temperature under glass exceeded 40C.
That makes sense, Darren. I don't plunge and my pots certainly get a warm, dry summer.
No Michael- and I've asked Paul Cumbleton the same question. He has confirmed my findings that most Daubenya don't even seem willing to sprout every year. Seeds germinate well but then often the seedlings then stay dormant in future seasons or sprout sporadically at best. D. comata seems to be the exception for me - my 3 years olds have shooted every year and look like being flowering size soon.
I do think it might simply be that I am being too kind to the little seedlings and keeping them too cool beneath the bench (see my post above again) in summer to avoid such small bulbs shrivelling. Might be well worth experimenting with a few dormant bulbs in a propagator set to a minimum of, say, 25C for the whole of August, then watering as usual in September after taking them out.
Quite a few pots of my Lachenalia seedlings haven't resprouted this autumn after their first dormancy (bulbs are still there) and I wonder if my summer regime this year has affected regrowth. They were moved out of the greenhouse and into a cooler shed...In the wild seedlings will grow in the same area as mature bulbs and, unless they are shaded by summer vegetation (?), will experience the same climatic conditions and yet they don't shrivel up, so perhaps, as you say, we are being too kind to young bulbs.
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From my perspective:
I summer all my SA bulbs in a cool basement dry and at approx. 60-65 F.
No water.
My greenhouse gets much to hot at 110 F at times. I leave the miniature Narcissus there plunged in a sand and gravel bed.
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My Massonias are at the same stage as yours Steve and I've not yet used a heater at all this winter (though I am in a much milder area) and there has been slight frost inside the greenhouse twice so I'm not convinced that extra warmth during growth helps the flowering. What does affect flowering, I think, is keeping them too cool or shady the previous summer. I keep sale plants (flowering size) under the bench and they often fail to flower, whereas those kept on top in the light and where they get a warm summer perform reliably. None of my M. depressa even produced shoots last season as the summer of 2012 was so cold - they stayed completely dormant right through the growing season. They are back to normal this year.
Darren thats really interesting to hear. My Massonia didn't do well either last year. I lost a couple as well, they just seemed to dry up.
I have mine plunged at the moment. Do you think I should have kept them in the plunge that they get some moisture. Just not sure what I am doing wrong.
Angie :)
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Invariably with SA bulbs and corms staying dormant for a season is due to lack of proper baking (or roasting!) in summer.
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Alberto:
I think you have to look at baking in the ground and baking in a isolated pot. Ground has some moisture and temperature stability.
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I'm new to south africans too, and confused as to which should come inside when we have -C
Since last winter I grow these (kept them inside all their first winter till spring)
ammocharis coranica
boophone haemanthoides
crinum acaule
haemanthus deformis
haemanthus humilis (giant)
polyxena ensifolia maughanii
... since they are not very big bulbs I lean towards putting everything inside now except maybe ammocharis, based on random internet info..Am I overprotective??
Oh, and I'm so bummed because I didn't notice c. acaule blooming hidden behind some tropicals in the fall, when I emptied the balcony of all tropicals last week I found only a dried flower.. Some days I think I have too many plants on my hands ::)
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Arnold:
In either case, if they have not "slept" warm enough, they will now "wake up". In my hot summer climate we never had a single case of plants remaining dormant. Same thing in S. California, S. Europe and the like.
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Fenius,
I know that Ammocharis is fully hardy for me. My plants were grown from seed I got from Silverhill in 2000. I have grown some of them outside since 2007 here in Tennessee (USA) and they have endured temperatures to 7F (-13C) with no problems. My first plant (after 12 years!!!) flowered this past summer and it was quite a let down. The flowers smell like mothballs and only lasted about 3 days.
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From my perspective:
I summer all my SA bulbs in a cool basement dry and at approx. 60-65 F.
No water.
My greenhouse gets much to hot at 110 F at times. I leave the miniature Narcissus there plunged in a sand and gravel bed.
I'm sure summer at a constant 60-65 F is great. In a greenhouse in our part of the UK the temperature rarely even reaches 65f at midday in July. Your situation is more akin to that which Mathew describes, in which you need to take precautions against overheating in a greenhouse. Never been an issue for me. I lost a few succulents to scorch in summer this year (unusually warm) but the bulbs have all been fine.
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Darren thats really interesting to hear. My Massonia didn't do well either last year. I lost a couple as well, they just seemed to dry up.
I have mine plunged at the moment. Do you think I should have kept them in the plunge that they get some moisture. Just not sure what I am doing wrong.
Angie :)
Hi Angie, last season was a poor one for my M depressa and pustulata especially. The latter produced leaves and flowers but they looked a bit small and feeble.
My mature plants stay in the plunge all summer but are kept completely dry. Pustulata often still keeps its roots despite being dry. I'd be surprised if your summer in Aberdeen ever got too hot to worry them even if not plunged! Perhaps protecting them from fluctuations in temperature might be a help for you - by keeping them in the plunge but dry. In my opinion the worst thing you could do is to take them out of the plunge and put them under the bench or in a cool shed in our climate.
Arnold puts his in the basement but his summers are much warmer and I suspect that 60-65F is comparable to soil temperatures the plants would get in the wild - plus there would be no notable drop at night time in Arnold's basement so the average cumulative temperature over the summer may be higher than our average temperature for the summer even in a greenhouse.
Incidentally - I've often left particularly prone-to-staying-dormant Irids such as ferraria in a black pot in full sun (no plunge) against the south facing glass of our greenhouse over the summer and the pot can get too hot to touch on some days. They actually seem to like it and flower well but I'd be very nervous about doing this with most bulbs!
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Thanks Darren. You are right about our Aberdeen summers. I had forgotten what summers were all about till this summer. I will leave them in the plunge and see if they do better. Only got one in flower at the moment. I have lots of baby ones growing from seed that I got from Lesley and Hans J. Hopefully some day I will have a nice display. ::)
Angie :)
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Precisely, Ferrarias are all hot summer dormancy plants and one of the most frequently mentioned as skipping a season in cool climates.
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Afloden:
The mothball story is very disappointing, as I almost exclusively choose plants for scent!.. Oh well, I guess I'll wait for it to bloom another couple of years and then get rid of it..
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Even if it smelled of rotting dog xxxx, the plant is so outstanding and difficult to get to flower that it would be worth the wait and effort.
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Here's a purple leaf Massonia pustulata
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Nice Arnold. Was that expected or a chance seedling?
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Really nice 8) Love when they have knobbly bits on the leaves.
Angie :)
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It came to me from a PBS distribution as a "purple leaf" Massonia pustalata.
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The label for this one is present but blank!
I think it might be Galtonia (Ornithogalum now?) regalis; any othe rsuggestions?
cheers
fermi
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I loved the massonia pustulata, I'm definitely trying it next year!!
..So as soon as I brought them in, polyxena (lach. now!) ensifolia maughanii (??) bloomed inside its leaves again like some months ago..then it was even worse actually (see second photo taken in may)..Is this normal, is it still young?who knows!
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With some better light here's a close up of the anther and stigma.
Massonia pustulata purple leaf.
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Freesia fulcata
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Arnold - a beauty there - does it smell as good as it looks?
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Freesia fucata
Arnold, your skills as a photographer are beyongd praise.
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Alberto, Thanks, took much practice and good light to get it right. I have discovered that direct sunlight is not ideal We have four inches of snow over night and the diffuse light through the greenhouse is perfect.
Maggie: No smell. Very disappointed. I like the freesia smell very much.
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I've just been discussing whether we might get a white Christmas - not if you keep getting the snow at that rate, Arnold!
What a disappointment that the freesia has no scent. I find that florists' freesia tend to have less scent these days too - and I'm pretty certain my sense of smell is still working quite well - though I do know there are documented cases of people who have otherwise good sense of smell who just cannot smell freesia at all. Fascinating.
Anosmia of fresias.....
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v242/n5395/abs/242271a0.html (http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v242/n5395/abs/242271a0.html)
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Maggi, most florist's flowers no longer have scent unfortunately. Because humans primarily focus on sight & size, flowers are selected to have big beautiful flowers to see, additionally they must last for a very long time in our overheated homes, resist the air travel from where they are grown to here, and if possible these plants should also yield big crops of flowers for the growers. During this selection process apparently there is no priority on including fragrance in their criteria. A bit off topic, but most of us will remember a heavenly scented rose from the garden of our grandparents, while the modern cultivars we find now in the nursery trade barely scent :-\. But these modern cultivars flower for a much longer period and rain will not harm the flowers.
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The label for this one is present but blank!
I think it might be Galtonia (Ornithogalum now?) regalis; any othe rsuggestions?
cheers
fermi
I would say Galtonia regalis, Fermi, as leaves are bright green and flowers are greenish
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Alberto:
I just saw the spelling correction, thanks.
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Fifty years ago I used to choose yellow freesias because they were
scented and other colours were generally not.
The same yellow colour delivers scent in primroses and dionysias,
as I discovered when visiting an AGS meeting in England.
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There si an evidnet relation between scent and the color that the pollinators can see when the flower is active. These are the more common colors, the others are recessive and if they appear are not linked to scent.
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I have always found scent of a flower to be an important thing for me. I also think it is a very individual thing as well.
Some people can't smell Muscari marcocarpum
Here the Massonia pustulata in full anthesis.
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SJW said:
Re: South African Bulbs 2013
« Reply #437 on: December 02, 2013, 12:31:12 AM »
Quote
Quote from: johnw on November 25, 2013, 03:18:07 PM
I sowed 3 pots of Massonia seed back in September. The pustulalatas are fine but of the other two pot the 3 seedlings in one pot died off and nothing came of the other. Should I toss those two pots or water ocassionally and keep very cool or dry off and keep them cool?
John - not sure what others would do but I'd dry the pots off now and water again next September.
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Of course I forgot to retrieve and dry off the unsprouted pots from the cool ghouse. Today I noticed the obovata pot had 3 new seedlings, the pot might very well be close to bone dry. Now I wonder how much water to give these new pusulatas and obovatas.
johnw
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Of course I forgot to retrieve and dry off the unsprouted pots from the cool ghouse. Today I noticed the obovata pot had 3 new seedlings, the pot might very well be close to bone dry. Now I wonder how much water to give these new pusulatas and obovatas.
johnw
John - I've just had the same thing happen with a pot of Lachenalia contaminata. I gave some water from below and will err on the dry-ish side of damp (if that makes sense!) over the rest of the winter until it warms up a bit.
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Steve - But once it warms up will the Massonias not be ready to go dormant? I do want them to make the best of their first year. Maybe I'll water and fertilize (???) them gingerly.
My Lachenalis Quadricolors are totally screwed up from too much heat in a greenhouse last winter. One pot has been in flower for a month - typical for Quadricolor, one pot is completely dormant, one large trough is sulking but sending up about 200 shoots and the last one somewhere in between. I am pretty sure the warm winter in that particular ghouse is to blame.
johnw - 0c and sunny. Torrential rain for the weekend and they now say a green Xmas though not so green now.
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Steve - But once it warms up will the Massonias not be ready to go dormant? I do want them to make the best of their first year. Maybe I'll water and fertilize (???) them gingerly.
Hi John - all I really meant was that I try and minimise watering in the depths of winter but that the pots can be watered more as the days start to get longer. If the pots get too dry and hot in the Spring the seedlings go dormant sooner. I try to keep seedlings growing on for as long as possible and then stop when the leaves start to yellow.
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Steve - I'll do the same. Although the sun here at latitude 44 is a lot stronger than yours we have to be especially careful watering in the greenhouse in winter as the ventilation has to be minimised due to the cold outdoors. While the inside temp can soar on a sunny day one frigid breeze through a ventilator can knock things flat.
Thanks
john
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Another potful of Massonia pustulata
and
Gethyllis linearis
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oops.
Gethyllis linearis
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Seven new Massonia obovata seedlings are up in the past week, almost exactly four months after sowing.
johnw
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here is my fabulous ammocharis coranica legonyane area form, which gave 2 umbels of flowers this summer in sucession, in july/august, it must be one of the most beautifull bulbs in my south african collection!
It took 2 years to establish before flowering, but i think that the intense heat this summer and alot of feeding with organic liquid fertiliser may also have helped..
Pontus
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Very nice Pontus, is that Boophone in the background. Here's an early Lachenalia viridiflora
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Lachenalia sp. (JAA 639, seed collected west of Calvinia). Not sure about the ID but I asked a couple of knowledgeable growers who thought it could be Lachenalia canaliculata.
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Steve:
The photos in Duncan's book are not very clear. He does state that L. canaliculata is found west of Calvina though.
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The photos in Duncan's book are not very clear. He does state that L. canaliculata is found west of Calvina though.
Hi Arnold. Graham Duncan's book was my Christmas treat to myself :). I agree, the photos aren't very clear but the location, foliage and early flowering match. The book mentions the lower inner tepal being strongly canaliculate - that doesn't seem to be a clear feature on my plant but I haven't got a close-up photo of a L. canaliculata flower to compare it to. The colour seems to fit though, and the inner tepals are fading to light magenta. Anyway, I'll keep the label as it is but with a mental note to myself that it might be L. canaliculata!
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Steve:
The other diagnostic factor with many of the Lachenalia is the stamens and whether they are exserted or included. It's hard to tell from your photo and the photo in Duncan's book their position. A close up of an individual flower would be helpful.
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This is my final post of 2013 ;) Lachenalia 'November Fantasia', probably a hybrid between L. viridiflora and L. bulbifera.
Best wishes for the coming year :) :) :)
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That's a wonderfully coloured and compact plant. I had been avoiding growing the hybrids so far as there are so many species, but I think that I could be tempted with a plant like that... ;)
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This is my final post of 2013 ;) Lachenalia 'November Fantasia', probably a hybrid between L. viridiflora and L. bulbifera.
Best wishes for the coming year :) :) :)
And our best wishes to you for 2014, too, Tatsuo.
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Steve:
The other diagnostic factor with many of the Lachenalia is the stamens and whether they are exserted or included. It's hard to tell from your photo and the photo in Duncan's book their position. A close up of an individual flower would be helpful.
Arnold - my little point and shoot camera doesn't take great close-ups, but here's the best I can do. I'd say the 'stamens are included to shortly exserted' also declinate, with white filaments. That also points to L. canaliculata...After the Duncan books, my first port of call for photos to help with ID is the PBS website. An excellent resource, as you well know! Nothing there for L. canaliculata so I guess it's not common in cultivation?
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This is my final post of 2013 ;) Lachenalia 'November Fantasia', probably a hybrid between L. viridiflora and L. bulbifera.
Best wishes for the coming year :) :) :)
As Peter says, that's a lovely looking hybrid, Tatsuo (and I've never really been tempted by the hybrids :-\). Best wishes for the new year.
A couple of Massonias have come later into flower than the others I grow although the Massonia (Whiteheadia) bifolia still has some way to go.
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yes Arnold, to the right is my biggest boophane (boophone) disticha, and also a dormant boophane haemanthoides. In the background are crinum leaves :)
Pontus
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Steve:
Close up helps. I'm by far not an authority on these but some of the factors do match what Graham has in his book.
If you send me a couple of larger images I'll try to have them posted on the PBS site under your name.
I have Graham's earlier book and it's not in there.
Is there any scent?
arnold140@verizon.net
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Steve:
Close up helps. I'm by far not an authority on these but some of the factors do match what Graham has in his book.
If you send me a couple of larger images I'll try to have them posted on the PBS site under your name.
I have Graham's earlier book and it's not in there.
Is there any scent?
Thanks Arnold, I'll email you.
Yes, I have detected a faint scent although the pot is near to my M. echinata which tend to overpower everything else around them!
My plant came from the International Asclepiad Society seedex (field number IAS 2146) and seed was sown by a friend in 2006. Professor Google tells me that the seed was collected west of Calvinia on 01/09/04 by Jean André Audissou (JAA 639). http://jean-andre.audissou.pagesperso-orange.fr/ (http://jean-andre.audissou.pagesperso-orange.fr/)