################### From: Chris Marsden Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1999 17:52:01 -0500 Subject: More U. gibba Hi folks, thanks for the replies on the Lowrie front, and: I have yet more U. gibba to give away to people in the EU/EC/E-whatever. I can't remember if I could fill all of the requests I got last time, but in case I didn't, more people have joined the list, or the stuff I sent out has died, please feel free to ask for some. Postage would be appreciated (begging bowl mode ON) but is by no means essential (excess christmas cheer mode OFF). It grew from a microscopic strand in my aquarium (I didn't even know it was there) into a mass covering almost the whole aquarium. Anyone who has ever grown this plant will know all about this!! For those that don't know, it is an aquatic bladderwort that does extremely well floating on the surface in fish tanks (tropical or coldwater), with or without fish. In fact, you might say it's a little hard to kill. I would say it is very hard to kill, but then I'm biased... I've grown it. Kindest Regards and best wishes for a very good growing 1999, Toby -- Toby Marsden -- UK ################### From: "David E. Heule" Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1999 19:06:31 -0500 Subject: P.lutea Happy New Year to All, Has anyone noticed the rotation of the P.lutea flower during it's growth period. This is the second year I've had the Ping. flower and notice the rapid rotation of the flower again this season. Almost 360 degrees / hour. Thanks. Dave Heule [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1999 19:27:16 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: P.lutea This is strange. I have observed P. lutea for many years and never noticed this behavior. This year, I am going to sit down with the flowering plants for at least 30 minutes for an extended observation period. 360 degrees an hour translates into 6 degrees per minute. Amazing! - Carl On Fri, 1 Jan 1999, David E. Heule wrote: > Happy New Year to All, Has anyone noticed the rotation of the > P.lutea flower during it's growth period. This is the second year > I've had the Ping. flower and notice the rapid rotation of the > flower again this season. Almost 360 degrees / hour. Thanks. > Dave Heule > > [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] > > ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Fri, 01 Jan 1999 19:32:51 -0500 Subject: Re:Sarracenia Winter Dormancy Hey Everybody, Happy New Year! Those of us living in South Florida are experiencing one of the mildest winters ever. At my place, about a mile from the Atlantic Ocean, I've had two nights drop all the way down to 52 degrees F in the wee hours of the morning, and I've had one day actually never get above 75 degrees F. Needless to say, I have not even put plastic up over my Nepenthes lathe house yet. By the way, both the lowland and highland species seem to enjoy the cool nights (typically upper 60's F) and warm days (low 80's F). It makes one wonder if the majority of Neps couldn't be grown together under one set of temps (excluding a handful of super-high altitude species). Now to my question. Because of my wonderful natural Nepenthes conditions, I'm having a really difficult time getting my Sarracenias to go to sleep! I lost a bunch of them a couple of years ago to overly warm conditions- they literally grew themselves to death. They were replaced with a small collection of nice, select seedlings two years ago, and they have grown. To "winterize" them, I place distilled water ice cubes in their pots every other night, and sometimes even twice a day (Yes, it is labor intensive). I'm getting some phyllodia, but some real pretty "winter pitchers" also. They like the ice cubes! I've talked to a couple of Digest regulars about removing my Sarrs. from their pots, rinsing them clean, putting the tubers, sans leaves, into zip lock bags, and then depositing them for two months in the lower regions of the refrigerator. I don't want to lose these babies. Any comments or advice on this procedure? Thanks in advance. Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Fl. ################### From: TANWK Date: Sat, 02 Jan 1999 10:12:00 +0800 Subject: RE: CP Stamps Greetings from Singapore. I saw the mention of N.madagascarensis below. Does any one happen to have spares of the N.madagascarensis stamps (Year 1973 Scott Number 496, and Year 1973 Scott Number 497) to exchange or sell? I have spares of the following CP stamps in exchange: Laos 1995 Scotts # 1237, 1239, 1240, 1241, 1242 Brunei $5 note (N. lowii) Malaysia $20 note (N.rafflesiana) Malaysia stamps of N.lowii, N.rajah, N.sanguinea and N.macfarlanei. >From: Angie Nichols >Subject: Lowes CPs >Message-ID: <368BCC27.2839@sccoast.net> >Eric, the Nepenthes that the chain stores sell is >usually N.madacascarensis. Angie Regards and have a great Year 1999. Tan Wee Kiat ################### From: "Charles Redding" Date: Sat, 02 Jan 1999 09:02:53 PST Subject: More weird things with my Drosera Capensis Happy New Year Some of my D. capensis are still producing the split leaves so now my plants are producing regular and split leaves someone suggested that it may be a staghorn sundew but it wouldnt have produced the capensis leaves too would it? Someone else's D adelae did basically the same mine is doing and there was a pic on the digest mine looks similar except mine are split about one inch give or take. I cannot think of my this could be happening so if anyone can give me some insight or even just share a strange happening with your plants that would be great! Thanks Charles Redding Fl. ################### From: "Jon T. Lindstrom" Date: Sat, 02 Jan 1999 15:03:07 -0600 Subject: Sarracenia dormancy Trent Meeks writes: >I've talked to a couple of Digest regulars about >removing my Sarrs. from their pots, rinsing them clean, putting the tubers, >sans leaves, into zip lock bags, and then depositing them for two months in >the lower regions of the refrigerator. I don't want to lose these babies. >Any comments or advice on this procedure? > I grow my Sarracenias in New Zealand Sphagnum moss. In the late fall, I put pot and all in a plastic bag and place them in the butter comparment of my refrigerator (S. oreophila and flava seedlings). I check them every three weeks or so and remove them from cold storage in late January. They survive fine. I do not remove the leaves or remove the substrate from the roots. Jon T. Lindstrom Fayetteville, AR ################### From: Andrew Broome Date: Sun, 03 Jan 1999 22:11:23 +1300 Subject: Re: More weird things with my Drosera Capensis Charles wrote... >Some of my D. capensis are still producing the split leaves so now my >plants are producing regular and split leaves someone suggested that it >may be a staghorn sundew but it wouldnt have produced the capensis >leaves too would it? Someone else's D adelae did basically the same mine >is doing and there was a pic on the digest mine looks similar except >mine are split about one inch give or take. I cannot think of my this >could be happening so if anyone can give me some insight or even just >share a strange happening with your plants that would be great! The only time I've seen something similar in my D. capensis (in this case, the 'alba' form) was just after treating the plant with 'Malathion' (maldison) to shift some persistant aphids. A leaf or two later they came right. My guess is that it was some sort of response to extreme stress from the (nasty) chemical on the leaves that were forming at the time the spray was applied. Just my thoughts... Andrew@home. *NZKA 137, NAKA 5, SKG, AKA 07212, BKA 073.05, PNAS, MFEC *NZHS, NZCPS... * Thought of you as my mountaintop, thought of you as my peak, * Thought of you as everything, I've had but could not keep. * - (Pale Blue Eyes) - The Velvet Underground *Killies: Ducatis: Reptiles & Amphibians: Carnivorous Plants: ################### From: "It's me again!!!" Date: Wed, 30 Dec 1998 16:29:41 +0100 Subject: Utricularia. Hi I am new here. I am looking for seedlings or small plants of Utricularia. I wish it was the easiest to grow specie. I am writing from Poland. If you have this plant for sale or know someon who can sell it please let me know Thank you in advance Looking forward to hearing from you kowal PS. I would love to have any CP growers on my ICQ list my number is 2452546 please add me. [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Charles Redding" Date: Sun, 03 Jan 1999 10:27:12 PST Subject: More weird capensis I just noticed that off some of the stalks is 2 leaves it forks right at the bottom and there is a regular capensis leaf and a split leaf like I talked about before Things just getting weirder and weirder Charles in Fl ################### From: VFTMaxwell@aol.com Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 20:40:46 EST Subject: Questions of plants Does anybody know when I should take out my VFT and Cobra Lilie out of the fridge and freezer? Does anybody know how to tell when to take out my seeds of my D. capensis? Does anybody know how to take out my seeds of D. capensis? Regards, Cire Lewxam ################### From: drury6@juno.com Date: Sat, 2 Jan 1999 21:29:09 -0600 Subject: growing Sarracenia in Oklahoma I live in Eastern Oklahoma, and I would like to know if my climate would be suitable to grow Sarracenias, and maybe Dioneas outside, unfortunatly, some times the temperatures can be around 45 degrees celcius (112 F) for a week on end, I would probably water daily. I most likely wouldnt be able to water at noon though, just mornings and evenings. The humidity is exceptionaly variable, but stays 60-70% RH most of the time during the summer. I will be able to keep them from freezing during winter. Thank You, Don Drury ################### From: storkus@storkus.com Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 23:21:53 -0800 (PST) Subject: Climate and species questions I've just bought my 7th (in my life) Venus Flytrap and I intend on making sure it lives for a long time. However, I need some questions answered that aren't clearly answered in the CP FAQ, mainly about temperature. I am in Reno, Nevada, an area on the border of high desert (to the east) and high mountains (the Sierra Nevadas to the west). In the summer, temps range from upper 80's to lower 90's during the hottest months (35 C or so), though occasional hot snaps occur that can push the temperature to 100; humidity in the summer extremely low during the day, sometimes falling to as low as 10% during the hottest parts of the day (it goes back up at night to as high as 40-50% during pre-dawn, though). In the winter, though, things are totally different. Temps (both lows and highs) can vary wildly depending on weather patterns, though the norms are supposed to be in the 40's (5-10 degrees C) during the day and lower 20's to mid-upper teens at night (-5 to -10 C or so). However, as I said, this can vary wildly, sometimes from day to day: one day you may have a high in the 60's and the next may not even get above freezing (this happened the week before Christmas, for instance--remember the big Canadian arctic air mass that decended and enveloped the whole continental U.S.?) So I guess my question is, what are the extremes that can be tolerated by the VFT? (Especially low temps.) My second question is, there's apparently this man-eating (*grin*) sundew that can span as much as a meter/yard across. My encyclopedia says it's D. gigantia or something similar, but I can find no reference to it anywhere on the 'net. What species is this giant sundew, can I get it, how hard is it to cultivate, etc? Thanks for any and all help! Mike -- ****************************************************************************** * Mike P. Storke, Owner, Linux consultant Web Hosting * * Storke's Technologies Hosting Services www.storkus.com E-Mail Lists * * 264 Thoma Street #2 Reno, NV 89502-0966 Shell Accounts * * (877) 589-5753 in USA, +1 (775) 332-3715 outside USA AND MORE! * * Small on prices and size, but big on service and value! * ****************************************************************************** ################### From: "nigel hurneyman" Date: Mon, 04 Jan 1999 02:52:20 PST Subject: Re: Spanish and more on my VFTs Thanks Karen. I think I missed out a Portuguese connection somewhere. For example, a lot of Brazilian footballers have names ending in nha eg Mirandinha, usually pronounced by commentators as Mirandinya. Would any Brazilians like to comment - should the fish be pronounced piranya? (I saw the old Bond movie 'You only live twice' over the holiday, and I'm sure Ernst Stavro Blofeld pronounced it pirana). Regarding the discussions of D capensis with split leaves, my Boston fern (Nephrolepis cv) split several of its fronds immediately after Chernobyl - but never before or since. Charles, do you live near a dodgy nuclear installation? (Our hi-tec office automation system has fallen victim from the year 1999 bug, hence the use of my reserve mailbox). Good Growing, NigelH ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 09:18:20 +0000 Subject: growing sarracenia in Oklahoma > I live in Eastern Oklahoma, and I would like to know if my climate > would be suitable to grow Sarracenias, and maybe Dioneas outside, > unfortunatly, some times the temperatures can be around 45 degrees > celcius (112 F) for a week on end, I would probably water daily. I most > likely wouldnt be able to water at noon though, just mornings and > evenings. The humidity is exceptionaly variable, but stays 60-70% RH > most of the time during the summer. I will be able to keep them from > freezing during winter. > So long as it's humid, I think you might be okay. Dry heat like that could be deadly, though. I would recommend a little bit of shade during the hottest part of the day, and definately grow them all in plenty big enough containers with lots of water. A sunken artificial bog type container would be best, to help keep the soil temperatures cool, and definitely don't grow them in pots sitting on dark asphalt or something tortuous like that. Sphagnum moss growing on top of the soil surface will also help to moderate the temperatures, but it will need sprinkling every morning and evening to keep alive when it's nasty. Good luck! Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 09:22:12 +0000 Subject: St. Louis ICPS Meeting To all in the St. Louis area... Weather permitting, we will be holding our second meeting of the St Louis chapter of ICPS this Thursday, January 7, at 7pm at the Missouri Botanical Garden. We'll be showing slides of cp's in their native habitats, and will discuss some basic care and how to replicate their native habitats when growing them. All are welcome, beginners or experienced growers alike. For more information, contact me: Susan Farrington sfarrington@ridgway.mobot.org Missouri Botanical Garden ################### From: caroline Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 07:34:48 -0800 (PST) Subject: Need live sphagnum. Hi there. I am looking for live sphagnum, and cant find any reputable suppliers. Where can I buy some? Any suggestions? Where do ya'all get yours? Thanks Caroline, in central Oregon ################### From: "SARVER, CINDY" Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 08:40:13 -0800 Subject: Greenhouse Hi Folks, Well, 1999 is going to be the year of the greenhouse for me. I live in Southern California, so my biggest problem will be cooling in the summer. If anyone has any suggestions, ideas, favorite types of greenhouses, companies, etc., please email me! (Private replies are fine.) I'm thinking of creating a greenhouse for my highland plants, since my house itself is kind of a lowland environment. Any advice at all would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! -cindy ################### From: "Haakan Murevaern" Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 18:54:47 +0100 Subject: Gibberellic Acid ! PLEASE HELP !!!! Hello Robert and all, You should try Peter Cole Cambrian Carnivores. He sells it. Link from my home page. I got GA3 from him when I got my first B.gigantea to germinate. >From a lucky owner of B.gigantea Haakan Murevaern See my Carnivorous Plants at http://www.algonet.se/~murevarn [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: L235@aol.com Date: Mon, 4 Jan 1999 14:09:10 EST Subject: re: B. gigantea humidity Johnathan Mitchell asked about B. gigantea humidity a while back and I haven't seen a public posting yet ... so I'll take a stab: While I can't speak for seedlings, I grow an adult B. gigantea (thanks to Brian Cochrane) outside similarly to Sarracenia species. Average (for Northern Virginia) humidity. The only difference is that the Byblis is grown with less water in the tray than Sarracenia. Our humidity can reach 70 percent during the peak of summer, but 35-40 percent is not uncommon where I live. The plant is definitely not a "greenhouse" plant as far as I'm concerned. Jay Lechtman (L235@aol.com) Ashburn, Virginia, USA > I have a large batch of B. gigantea (of several forms) germinating right > now and was wondering what their humidity needs are. > I currently have them in a very high humidity environment with my Neps > and Droseras, but it would be great if I could move them out of the > terrariums into a lower humidity area (terrarium space being so > precious). > So, does this species require high humidity, or will the 40%-60% > humidity outside of my tanks be sufficient? > > Thanks- > > -Jonathan Mitchell > ################### From: Dave Date: Mon, 04 Jan 99 23:47 EST Subject: Re: scale/mealybug attack on Nepenthes Dear Steve, > I've got a white scale, or white mealybug attack, in the early stages on > one of my Nepenthes plants...I believe N. Rafflesiana. I applied safer > insecticidal soap to the affected leaves. Will this alleviate the > problem, or is there something else I should do? The Insecticidal Soap > contains potassium salts of fatty acids. This is a good plan for dealing with this type of scale. However, mealybugs can also infest the roots of your plants, as many a Sarracenia can attest. Keep an eye out for any bugs you didn't get the first time. Safer's isn't a poison and has to be sprayed directly on bugs you want to kill, and it is easy to miss some. If they are also in the soil/ roots, some real poisons (I have decided I don't like poison much and no longer advise on this subject as other's have much better advice than I) may be needed too. Dave Evans ################### From: "Tomasz Kowalski (ICQ#2452546)" Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 15:17:22 -0100 Subject: I wish to contact you on the ICQ Network Greetings, I have tried to contact you on the ICQ network but was unable to find you. Therefore I would like to invite you to join the ICQ Network. You can download ICQ from this html link. Once you do it, we will be able to communicate on-line. Click here to download ICQ: http://www.icq.com/ How to find me on the ICQ Network: I have 4 addresses on the ICQ Network: - My ICQ number is 2452546 - My Personal Communication Center on the Web, from which you can send me a message without having the ICQ program is http://wwp.mirabilis.com/2452546 - You can send me an Email Express which will appear directly on my computer screen to 2452546@pager.mirabilis.com. - My personal ICQ homepage is members.icq.com/2452546. If I am online you will be able to have a 2 way dialog with me from this page, which includes the World Wide Paging of ICQ. Seek you @ ICQ Tomasz Kowalski ICQ #: 2452546 ################### From: "Semanchuk, Phil J" Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 10:00:50 -0500 Subject: RE: Climate and species questions > I am in Reno, Nevada, an area on the border of > the whole continental U.S.?) So I guess my > question is, what are the extremes that can be > tolerated by the VFT? (Especially low temps.) Mike, the temparature ranges you cited (20 - 100F) are no problem for a VFT. I live in Durham, NC and my CPs spend all their time outside in pots. In winter I keep them packed side by side with dirt, wood chips and leaves around the pots to provide insulation. When I woke up this morning it was 16F outside -- well below average for us, but not unusual. Summertime temps often top out in the high 90s. What would concern me in your situation is humidity. CPs like high humidity and I believe they need it to tolerate heat well. The humidity here in summer usually hits 100% at night and drops down to 60% (?) during the day -- very different from your environment. Perhaps another grower with dry climate experience can help you out with this. Hope this helps Philip URL du Jour: http://www.netlink.co.nz/~monpa/ ################### From: JDPDX@aol.com Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 12:03:53 EST Subject: Re: Byblis gigantea culture In a message dated 1/4/99 10:29:49 PM Pacific Standard Time, cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: << I grow an adult B. gigantea (thanks to Brian Cochrane) outside similarly to Sarracenia species. >> Jay, How much cold is the plant capable of taking? Would it survive in the Pacific Northwest? Jeff Portland, OR ################### From: JDPDX@aol.com Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 12:08:27 EST Subject: Moss on pots A question for everyone. Overtime, all pots of CP grown in a greenhouse, or under lights begin to get a thick moss growing on the media. My observations have been that many plants, particularly D. capensis and VFT's start decreasing in growth when this moss gets too thick. Has this been others experience also? Has anyone experimented with keeping the moss plucked off, or using an inhibiting agent of some kind? I'd love to hear others experiences. Jeff Portland, OR ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 09:48:22 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Moss on pots Hi Jeff, > A question for everyone. Overtime, all pots of CP grown in a > greenhouse, or under lights begin to get a thick moss growing on the > media. My observations have been that many plants, particularly D. > capensis and VFT's start decreasing in growth when this moss gets too > thick. Has this been others experience also? Yes, this has been my experience as well, especially with young plants, specifically Drosera spp. > > Has anyone experimented with keeping the moss plucked off, or using an > inhibiting agent of some kind? I'd love to hear others experiences. I just pluck the moss out occasionally to make sure that it doesn't overwhelm the plants. Otherwise, if the plant is above moss level, I tend to leave it alone, as it does look nice! I wouldn't recommend an inhibiting agent, as applied at high enough concentrations, this could kill your plant as well as the moss. Some say that moss growth is an indication of fertilization of the soil, however, I do not fertilize any of my plants (other than insects) and I know my soil ingredients are free of any nutrients which may give the moss a boost. It may help to steam sterilize the peat moss before use to kill off any moss spores, however, it seems to only prevent it for a little while, and the smell of cooking peat is not the most pleasant! > > Jeff > Portland, OR > Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: "Andy Falshaw" Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 09:39:55 GMT+1200 Subject: Calibrating thermometers/measuring light levels I have recently bought a couple of cheap max-min thermometers from a local store. I put them next to my old thermometer for a weekend. All 3 were close (+/-1degree C) on the min temperature, but differed by 10 degrees C on the max. Now I don't know which if any of them to believe. I suppose I can check the lower end of the temperature range by putting them in the fridge or ice/water, but does anyone know of an easy way of checking them in the range 20-30 degrees C? I've recently moved a tank into my office, in the belief that it would get plenty of light. Well it seems I was wrong, and although I was getting sun a few weeks ago now that its mid summer here I'm getting little direct light. Is there any way to measure how much total light a tank gets over a day, and compare that with an "ideal" amount of light? Or should I just assume the more light the better and put a fluorescent of some sort on the tank? Thanks for any ideas/comments Andy in NZ - no snow, lots of sun, and a 5.2 on the Richter scale last week ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 13:26:58 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Calibrating thermometers/measuring light levels Hi Andy, > I have recently bought a couple of cheap max-min thermometers from a > local store. I put them next to my old thermometer for a weekend. > All 3 were close (+/-1degree C) on the min temperature, but differed > by 10 degrees C on the max. Now I don't know which if any of them to > believe. > I suppose I can check the lower end of the temperature > range by putting them in the fridge or ice/water, but does anyone > know of an easy way of checking them in the range 20-30 degrees C? What's the local temp up to in your region? Is it possible to stick them all outside and then compare to readings at your local meteorological station? > > I've recently moved a tank into my office, in the belief that it > would get plenty of light. Well it seems I was wrong, and although I > was getting sun a few weeks ago now that its mid summer here > I'm getting little direct light. Is there any way to measure how > much total light a tank gets over a day, and compare > that with an "ideal" amount of light? Or should I just assume the more > light the better and put a fluorescent of some sort on the tank? There are ways of measuring cumulative incoming radiation, but most involve costly equipment. One way is to use the f-stop reading on a normal 35mm camera which can be related to incoming foot candles (ie: visible light radiation). I don't have the details handy, but I do remember posting something about this about a year ago. Anyways, take readings every hour or so and average them to get your average incoming light. For simplicity's sake, I'd personally put a fluorescent strip over if it looks like the plants are suffering. > > Thanks for any ideas/comments > Andy in NZ - no snow, lots of sun, and a 5.2 on the Richter scale > last week > Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: garko@juno.com (Gary Kong) Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 20:55:46 -0800 Subject: Sarracenia and ants-- Hi Everyone-- My Sarracenia (leucophylla/flava hybrid) has yet to die back, so since all other food sources for ants have grown scarce, my plants have attracted swarms of ants. I've consistently observed the hoods and lips covered with ants during the cooler morning hours and later in the day when the sun has passed, but when the sun warms the pitchers, the ants almost seem to disappear. At first, I thought the ants were avoiding the sun and retreating to their nests, but then I began to notice that once the leaf surface warmed, the ants were less surefooted as they crossed over areas that had previously provided a foothold. Sure enough, the pitchers have gradually filled. My guess: the waxy cuticle warms, becomes slippery, dislodges wax more readily which clogs their foot parts--they can't hold on and fall in. In addition, earlier in the year when ants were avoiding the pitchers, I'd noticed small fruit flies and fungus gnats falling into the traps, but flying out unharmed. Now that the traps are full of swarming angry ants, anything that falls in becomes covered with ants and is unable to escape. Gruesome. Fascinating. Just thought I'd share, Gary ################### From: FOODBAG@aol.com Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 00:31:13 EST Subject: CP outside in the Midwest Hi everyone, Joe from Lincoln, Nebraska here. My two cents worth on putting CP outside in the warm months. I think it depends on the individual plant you have as to how well it succeeds. I have had VFTs outside and one will do great and another will not. I tried S. flava and S. purpurea venosa a few years ago and they thrived, but last year I tried a S. flava(different plant) and a S. leucophylla and the flava died and the leucophylla put out non-pitchered leaves only. I guess you can only figure out by trying. Here in Nebraska, you have to deal with wind as well as heat, so it can be hard to keep the plants humid, even sitting in trays and misting. The purpurea, being stout and lower to the ground, probably did well because of that compared to the taller pitcher plants. You may have to harden them slowly and start in shade before gradually giving them sun( I think Susan said that). I don't recommmend buying plants to grow outside if you don't have the facilities to put them elsewhere to grow if things go bad. Unless you don't mind taking a risk, of course. In any case, good luck. Regards, Joe ################### From: L235@aol.com Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 10:25:48 EST Subject: Re: B. gigantea cultivation (cold) Jeff Dallas wanted to know about B. gigantea cold tolerance, specifically, whether or not it would survive in the Pacific Northwest. I've never let my Byblis freeze, although it's certainly gotten close (low of 35 degrees F has been fairly constant over the last few weeks in the cold frame ... and it may even have dipped below 32 F once or twice before I put it under glass.) At 35 degrees, it is green and healthy and (apparently) happy. I hope you can extrapolate from this for your own growing conditions. Jay Lechtman (Jay@carnivorousplants.org) Ashburn, Virginia, USA "There's a fine line between a hobby and a mental illness" ... Dave Barry ################### From: "John Green" Date: Wed, 06 Jan 1999 08:43:00 -0700 Subject: Re:Climate questions Mike in Reno, Nevada asked about the climate conditions that CP and VFTs in particular can tolerate. I'm in Salt Lake City (not too far and very similar conditions) and I find that mine do best when I put them outside for the summer. I'm growing VFTs, Sarrs, and Drosera, mostly all in one big, long, deep, window box-type pot. I keep them in a sunny location, with maybe a bit of shade in the afternoon when it gets really hot and dry. I also try to find a location in the yard where they'll be protected from drying winds, such as a corner by a wooden fence or a hedge. The humidity seems to be high enough in the yard, and to make sure I usually water the grass and garden areas near the plants in the evening (spraying the hedges and fence, too), which I assume helps to keep the humidity a bit higher. They only seem to suffer when the temps get close to 100f and the humidity drops under 20%. I fill up the water tray every morning and usually after work on hot, breezy days. I put them on a wooden bench and a ll sorts of bugs find their way into the traps, including snails that I've found dead in the S. purpurea venosa. The plants have to come inside for the winter (it's way too cold outside now), and I have them in the coldest, draftiest window I could find in the house, and they're still dormant. Hope that helps. John Green ################### From: "David E. Heule" Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 10:53:51 -0500 Subject: Brocchinia reducta Question Hello to All, On the one plant that I am growing, I noticed at the very tip of two leaves, what appears to be small platelets starting to grow. Has anyone observed this kind of growth? And can the leaf be cut to propagate in this manner? Thanks. Dave Heule [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Brian Cochran" Date: Wed, 06 Jan 1999 08:15:32 PST Subject: Byblis conversations I've seen some questions here about Byblis giganteas and thought I'd offer some input. As young plants, good humidity and moderate temperatures are best. I keep mine under clear plastic cups with small holes punched in them under fluorescent lights with temps in the 50 to 70F range. I also keep them moister than I once wrote about and have had less losses with the seedlings. I start them around mid-November. Once they begin to outgrow the small cups I transplant them in larger pots and by March or April move them outside. When I say outside -- this is for those living in areas with moderately high relative humidity (i.e. the East, Northwest) Here, they have also experienced late frosts with no damage. I wouldn't let them freeze, but I've even had some plants that were a few seasons old freeze and come back. They're really tough plants once you get them established. By Summer, they'll take as much heat as the Sarracenias (as Jay mentioned.) Also, at this time the soil should look dry on top but be moist below. I accomplish this by top watering when young and by Summer switch to bottom watering (tray) but never let them sit in water. I had a devastating move to Colorado this past year and lost most of my Byblis plants in the move. I've now started more and oddly they seem to grow well in my highland chamber. I don't have any experience growing them outdoors here, but I don't think they'd like the low humidity here. Brian ################### From: Kirk Martin Date: Wed, 06 Jan 1999 11:35:58 -0500 Subject: Reno Nevada temperatures At 10:53 PM 1/5/99 -0800, you wrote: >Topic No. 2 > >Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 10:00:50 -0500 >From: "Semanchuk, Phil J" < >To: "'cp@opus.hpl.hp.com'" < >Subject: RE: Climate and species questions >Message-ID: <<854F7121CC2BD211856000805FE6EBD2010B9FEF@US4N49> > >> I am in Reno, Nevada, an area on the border of >< >> the whole continental U.S.?) So I guess my >> question is, what are the extremes that can be >> tolerated by the VFT? (Especially low temps.) > >Mike, the temparature ranges you cited (20 - 100F) are no problem for a VFT. >I live in Durham, NC and my CPs spend all their time outside in pots. In >winter I keep them packed side by side with dirt, wood chips and leaves >around the pots to provide insulation. When I woke up this morning it was >16F outside -- well below average for us, but not unusual. Summertime temps >often top out in the high 90s. What would concern me in your situation is >humidity. CPs like high humidity and I believe they need it to tolerate heat >well. The humidity here in summer usually hits 100% at night and drops down >to 60% (?) during the day -- very different from your environment. Perhaps >another grower with dry climate experience can help you out with this. > >I lived in Klamath Falls Oregon (260 miles north of Reno) recently and >the elevation (4100-5500 feet above sea level) greatly affected growing >plants outdoors since weather could be 60-70F quite late in the season >and then rapidly turn to snow overnight. I had a great deal of >difficulty keeping Sarracenia outside as they would break dormancy only >to be frozen to death by the sudden shock. Our growing season was in >essence June 15-August 15 to be reasonably certain of no frost. Legend >has it that it snowed on the fourth of July before in Klamath Falls. I think you would have better luck using the refrigerator method to induce dormancy. Good Luck, > Kirk W. Martin R.S. Associate Biosafety/Sanitation Officer Harvard University Environmental Health and Safety 46 Oxford Street Cambridge, MA. 02138 TEL: (617)495-2102 FAX: (617)495-0593 ffff,0000,0000Check out our Web Site 0000,0000,ffff- 0000,0000,fefehttp://www.uos.harvard.edu/ehs/ ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 09:21:01 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: B. gigantea cultivation (cold) Hi all, Peter D'Amato wrote an article in the CPN recently (Cultivating cp's: highs and lows; if I recall correctly), in which he talked about torturing B.gigantea by subjecting them to his winter. From what he indicated, they were able to survive quite low temperatures briefly, but didn't appreciate being waterlogged over the entire season. So, if you keep them in a well drained container, I'd say try it and see. Of course, make sure you have back-up plants indoors! Happy growing, Chris On Wed, 6 Jan 1999 L235@aol.com wrote: > Jeff Dallas wanted to know about B. gigantea cold tolerance, > specifically, whether or not it would survive in the Pacific > Northwest. > > I've never let my Byblis freeze, although it's certainly gotten close > (low of 35 degrees F has been fairly constant over the last few weeks > in the cold frame ... and it may even have dipped below 32 F once or > twice before I put it under glass.) > > At 35 degrees, it is green and healthy and (apparently) happy. > > I hope you can extrapolate from this for your own growing conditions. > > Jay Lechtman (Jay@carnivorousplants.org) Ashburn, Virginia, USA > "There's a fine line between a hobby and a mental illness" ... Dave > Barry > ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Ide Laurent Date: Tue, 05 Jan 1999 22:58:53 +0100 Subject: Erratum Hi To all people who received somme gemmae from me recently : it appears the roseanna was mislabelled and are common D. nitidula omissa X occidentalis occidentalis. I've recently discovered this by showing my plants to another CPer. Sorry. Laurent Ide Mike, D. gigantea is a tuberous. Other info is available in the digest where your question appeared, indeed. What are the biggest droseras ? D. regia, D. gigantea... It seems D. indica is not so bad too ? What about D. macrophylla (dimensions please) ? Other data on this subject ? Take care ################### From: "It's me again!!!" Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 21:26:10 +0100 Subject: Hormones Hello I am looking for hormones for the plants just to cultivate pieces of them on the gel. I would like to buy hormones separatly I mean gibberelins, auxins, etilens and cytekisens (sorry for spelling I know only Polish names for them). If someone knows where I can find them please let me know. Thank you in advance looking forward to hearing from you kowal [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Wed, 6 Jan 1999 15:07:43 -0700 Subject: Carnivorous Plant Stamps Greetings stamp collectors, I am trying to gather all the Stanley Gibbons, Michel and Yvert & Tellier numbers for carnivorous plant stamps. If there are any stamp collectors out there who know these numbers for the 1995 Plantes Insectivores series from Laos or the 1985 Ivory Coast stamp of Triphyophyllum peltatum, I would be most grateful. Sincerely, Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: VFTMaxwell@aol.com Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1999 00:30:14 EST Subject: stamps In a message dated 1/2/99 1:25:57 AM Eastern Standard Time, cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: > Laos 1995 Scotts # 1237, 1239, 1240, 1241, 1242 > Brunei $5 note (N. lowii) > Malaysia $20 note (N.rafflesiana) > Malaysia stamps of N.lowii, N.rajah, N.sanguinea and > N.macfarlanei. Where'd you get them? ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Wed, 06 Jan 1999 21:35:49 PST Subject: Red Piranah... Coming Soon I know many of you are still waiting for me to return your emails and I guarantee I will email you back regarding trades but recently Ive had an overwhelming response to the red piranah cultivar and i need a bit of time. Trades will be established through email shortly and plants traded on the first warm week of spring. I'll keep you posted. ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Wed, 06 Jan 1999 23:02:42 PST Subject: Re: B. gigantea cultivation (cold) >Jeff Dallas wanted to know about B. gigantea cold tolerance, specifically, >whether or not it would survive in the Pacific Northwest. > >I've never let my Byblis freeze, although it's certainly gotten close (low of >35 degrees F has been fairly constant over the last few weeks in the cold >frame ... and it may even have dipped below 32 F once or twice before I put it >under glass.) > >At 35 degrees, it is green and healthy and (apparently) happy. > >I hope you can extrapolate from this for your own growing conditions. I live in the pacific southwest, specifically redondo beach, ca. I have my byblis up on my deck getting full sun all day with the exception of the marine layer overcast that comes every couple days. Its been getting incredibly and unusually cold but my byblis can take it. I went outside one morning and my windshield was a plate of ice, (unheard of down here) and my byblis took it with damp soil nicely so im guessin its pretty hardy course I was scared to death the frost had killed it. Its actually getting healthier now, nice and gooey. ################### From: GkramIII@aol.com Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1999 02:57:31 EST Subject: Feeding VFTs I have kept VFTs for several years now inside my house under growlights. Since these plants get little in the way of bugs they catch, I feed them on a regular (once a week or two) basis. Usually only one trap per plant. I use to buy only enough crickets to feed to the plants that day. The plants grew well but never bloomed. But, now I feed only crickets that have been gut loaded with "cricket food" and orange slices. These crickets are "DUSTED" with a vitamin supplement just before feeding. Any unused crickets end up as dinner for my tree frogs (or vice versa). I figured that if it is good for the frogs, its good for the plants. The plants really love it!! I get three to four blossom cycles a year. It almost seems that they are either blooming or are sending up a floral stalk. I stopped pinching off the stalks because they just kept sending up replacements. Does anyone else feed your plants this way? Do you get the same results? Will this ( frequent blooming) hurt the plants in long run? Your comments would be apperciated. ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Thu, 07 Jan 1999 07:55:19 -0500 Subject: Re: Feeding VFTs At 12:02 AM 1/7/99 -0800, you wrote: >I have kept VFTs for several years now inside my house under >growlights. Since these plants get little in the way of bugs they >catch, I feed them on a regular (once a week or two) basis. Usually >only one trap per plant. I use to buy only enough crickets to feed to >the plants that day. The plants grew well but never bloomed. But, now >I feed only crickets that have been gut loaded with "cricket food" and >orange slices. These crickets are "DUSTED" with a vitamin supplement >just before feeding. Any unused crickets end up as dinner for my tree >frogs (or vice versa). I figured that if it is good for the frogs, its >good for the plants. The plants really love it!! I get three to four >blossom cycles a year. It almost seems that they are either blooming >or are sending up a floral stalk. I stopped pinching off the stalks >because they just kept sending up replacements. Does anyone else feed >your plants this way? Do you get the same results? Will this ( >frequent blooming) hurt the plants in long run? Your comments would be >apperciated. You are correct in "gut loading" your pet store bugs. For those of you who do not know what I am talking about, "gut loading" is allowing pet store insects to eat about 24 hours before feeding them to your plants. This is accomplished by throwing a piece of fruit into the insects box or bag and allowing them to feed. Most pet stores feed there live insects nothing more than dried potato pieces (and some not at all). By the time they are purchased, the bugs have very little nutritional value and according to a reptile grower I know, the insects are flirting with death since they are so deprived of food. I also "gut load" insects I purchase.......unfortunately it is a major pain in the ***. Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: Fabien ZUNINO Date: Thu, 07 Jan 1999 18:11:43 Subject: Nature et Paysages : New Webpage Hi all, Of course you know France with food (Foie gras, ...), Wine (Bordeaux, Champagne ...), la Tour Eiffel, etc... But do you know the wonderful carnivorous plants nursery NATURE ET PAYSAGES? If no, visit the following new Webpage : NATURE et PAYSAGES 32360 Peyrusse-Massas - France Tel 33 (5) 62 65 52 48 - Fax 33 (5) 62 65 50 44 E.mail nature-et-paysages@mipnet.fr http://www.gascogne.com/natureetpaysages/ So, this Webpage is in French and English language. Regards, Fabien ZUNINO Laboratoire de Chimie XII UMR 6514 - Synthese et Reactivite des Substances Naturelles Faculte des Sciences - 40 av. du Recteur Pineau - 86022 Poitiers Cedex - FRANCE Tel : 05 49 45 37 02 - Fax : 05 49 45 35 01 e-mail : zunino@campus.univ-poitiers.fr ################### From: S.Ippenberger@t-online.de (S.Ippenberger) Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1999 18:15:42 +0100 Subject: Re: Gibberellic Acid > in Topic No. 6, Thu, 31 Dec 1998 "CP-MAN" wrote: > Subject: Gibberellic Acid ! PLEASE HELP !!!! > Message-ID: <001401be3520$0543af20$8b8d2399@default> > > I need gibberellic acid very soon. I checked all my nursery stores and no > one carries the stuff. Does anyone know of a good place on the web where I > can buy it? > > Thanks in advance, > Robert > In the U.S.A. one distributor of Gibberellic Acid A3 is Sigma Chemical Company, P.O. Box 14508, St. Louis, MO 63178 They sell it (in their European Catalogue) in batches of 500mg, 1g, 5g and 10g. Price for 500mg in Europe is about US$ 25 including postage. Hope this helps Stefan ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1999 09:41:57 -0800 (PST) Subject: CPN seeks a font Hi all, In an approaching issue of CPN we will need to print the greek male/female symbols. I am looking for a font that has this. I know that the font that came with word perfect 6.1, WP IconicSymbolsA, included these symbols. Does anyone on this list have this font, or a font that has the male/female symbols? I'd like to hear from you if you do. Time is of the essence! Please email me directly! Sincerely Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1999 15:51:17 EST Subject: Re: We're freezing our gemmae off! Howdy folks, Peter here at California Carnivores in cold California. Well, at least the north state is cold while southern Cal simmers in 80 degree temperatures. It seems "these days" we have no more normal weather; every year it's extremes! I got a call from a producer at the Home and Garden Network, which is a cable network here in the States (don't know if its overseas). She reports that the program called "Extreme Gardens" will premier on the network January 17, Sunday, at 5 pm Pacific Time, and it has the segment they filmed here at the nursery last summer. It will run about a dozen times over the next few months. We haven't seen the segment ourselves, and we don't get the network on our cable service, but the producer promises to send us a copy. As to the Byblis gigantea discussion, as someone already mentioned, my experiment with the plants outdoors showed they survived brief freeze, but both plants died after being waterlogged for eight months in last year's El Nino and 90 inches of rain we got. I'll not try them again outdoors in winter here. We have only a few of Tom Carow's 1999 Calendars left, so if anyone's still interested, he who hesitates.... Th-th-th-th-th-th-that's all folks! Peter ################### From: "William M. Gorum, Jr." Date: Thu, 07 Jan 1999 16:42:14 -0600 Subject: introduction and a question Hello Everyone.... I've just recently joined the CP List, and I would like to take some time to introduce myself. My name is Will Gorum. I'm 21 years old and I live in Shreveport, Louisiana, USA. I am self-employed as an American Sign Language Interpreter (Interpreter for the Deaf), and I am currently growing VFT's, Cape Sundews (Drosera capensis), an unidentified (to me, anyway) Sundew and some sort of Nepenthes, who also is an uknown. My question is this. My unknown Sundew and Nepenthes were given to me by a friend who picked them up at a local nursery. According to the enclosed literature, they were both propagated by tissue culture. They are potted in 3 inch (7.5 cm) pots and they have those little plastic cup "dome" tops over them. Going by past experience, plants that I've left in the domes always fungus. I popped the dome off and checked the plants a few hours later. The mucous droplets had "evaporated" from the Sundew and the Nepenthes had started to wilt. I quickly placed the dome on them and placed them in a window receiving southern exposure sunlight. The sundew has wilted some, but the droplets are reforming, but the Nepenthes is starting to look "burnt" on the edge of the leaves, i.e., it looks like it is dying. Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Will Gorum wgorum@softdisk.com ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Thu, 07 Jan 1999 22:46:06 +0000 Subject: Re: David's Brocchinia plantlets David Take photos!!! Chau Paul ################### From: "Tom Smith" Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1999 20:32:22 -0800 Subject: Wholesale Venus Flytraps Hello! I am interested to find a distributor or wholesaler of VFT. I would like them potted up and ready for shipment. VFT bulbs would also interest me. I am not interested in purchasing field collected specimens. Thanks to anyone that can help! Tom [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: CMcdon0923@aol.com Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1999 23:01:31 EST Subject: Texas Cp Enthusiasts My apologies to the majority of the list for posting this, but: A few weeks ago, Melissa Martin posted an intro and asked about other CP growers in the DFW Metroplex. I believe that including Melissa, there are at least four or five of "us" around here. Would there be any interest in getting together at a location convenient to everyone to meet? I offer myself as the 'point of contact' for coordinating this get- together. PLEASE REPLY TO ME DIRECTLY, AND NOT TO THE GENERAL LIST. (Melissa, if you have already gotten responses back from other DFW area growers, please include me, and let me know what's happening.) Thank you, and again, my apologies to the other listees. Craig McDonald Frisco, Texas ################### From: "Don Elkins/Sean Madison" Date: Thu, 7 Jan 1999 21:44:59 +1300 Subject: Re: carnivorous plant stamps The Scott# for the Laos series is 1237-1241 and for Triphyophyllum is 769c hope this helps Don Elkins [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: Emre_Gurcan@philips.com.tr Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 10:11:30 +0200 Subject: CP sources in LA One quick question: I will be in the LA area next week. Can anyone recommend a good source for CP in the Southern California area? You can email me privately. Thanks in advance for your help. Emre ################### From: John M Ford Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 11:25:24 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: CPN seeks a font Barry, I'm using Windows95 and found them in the true type r_symbol font. Enter Win95 help | click the index tab | enter symbols in the search field | select inserting into documents | click the icon to bring up the character map and follow the instructions in the help window. With Word97, step 6 is not necessary. Hope this is what you were looking for, John jford@runet.edu > In an approaching issue of CPN we will need to print the greek male/female > symbols. I am looking for a font that has this. I know that the font that > came with word perfect 6.1, WP IconicSymbolsA, included these symbols. > > Does anyone on this list have this font, or a font that has the > male/female symbols? I'd like to hear from you if you do. Time is of the > essence! Please email me directly! > ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 16:15:17 -0700 Subject: moss in my cp soil I often use a 1/2sand 1/2peat mixture for my cp. Always, I try to sterilize my soil using a microwave or oven. However, eventually moss begins to grow with my cp. Lucky for me, the moss that sneaks into my carnivorous plants is not a kind that will overwhelm a small cp. The moss that grows here is very compact, and tolerant of extreme temps. It survives 90F and low humidity in the summer and -10F cold in the winter. With my carnivorous plants, the tallest I've seen it grow is aprox. 1cm. I wonder, how many moss spores are floating in the air I'm breathing? How many moss spores are in a Liter of my sand? Maybe, the only way to grow carnivorous plants, without moss, is growing them in tissue culture media. However, there are carnivorous plants that grow better with moss. That's my impression from what I've read in CPN and this mailing list. Chad. ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 10:30:10 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: moss in my cp soil Hi Chad, > I often use a 1/2sand 1/2peat mixture for my cp. > Always, I try to sterilize my soil using a microwave or oven. > However, eventually moss begins to grow with my cp. That technique probably doesn't kill off all the spores as they can be heat resistant. If the moss is wetted and then heated, that will probably get rid of most of the spores. Pressure cooking (ie: autoclaving) will sterilize the soil for sure. > > Lucky for me, the moss that sneaks into my carnivorous plants > is not a kind that will overwhelm a small cp. > > The moss that grows here is very compact, and tolerant of > extreme temps. It survives 90F and low humidity in the summer > and -10F cold in the winter. With my carnivorous plants, the > tallest I've seen it grow is aprox. 1cm. This is the same stuff that grows in my pots, and rosetted sundews, especially when young, are easily overwhelmed. While it does grow taller than most of the terrestrial Utrics, it doesn't seem to affect them. > > I wonder, how many moss spores are floating in the air I'm > breathing? How many moss spores are in a Liter of my sand? If you're worried about moss spores germinating within your body, don't :)! If you're handling the soil with your hands, there's probably spores on your body, in your clothes, etc. Even going outside for a walk can result in picking up a few spores. It's just a matter of time! No, I'm not paranoid :)! > > Maybe, the only way to grow carnivorous plants, without moss, > is growing them in tissue culture media. However, there are > carnivorous plants that grow better with moss. That's my > impression from what I've read in CPN and this mailing list. Yes, I agree. If you don't want moss growing, you have to grow your plants in tc. The type of moss that grows on the soil is, however, unsuitable for cp cultivation as it's too fine and compact and is actually quite dry to the touch. However, mosses that you find growing in the bog are extremely ideal for many cp, IME, but do need occasional trimming. > > Chad. > > Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 10:22:07 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: introduction and a question Hi Will, > My question is this. My unknown Sundew and Nepenthes were given to me > by a friend who picked them up at a local nursery. According to the > enclosed literature, they were both propagated by tissue culture. They > are potted in 3 inch (7.5 cm) pots and they have those little plastic > cup "dome" tops over them. Sound's like Gubler's to me. > Going by past experience, plants that I've > left in the domes always fungus. Good plan so far. See below though. > I popped the dome off and checked the > plants a few hours later. The mucous droplets had "evaporated" from the > Sundew and the Nepenthes had started to wilt. I quickly placed the dome > on them and placed them in a window receiving southern exposure > sunlight. The sundew has wilted some, but the droplets are reforming, > but the Nepenthes is starting to look "burnt" on the edge of the leaves, > i.e., it looks like it is dying. Any suggestions will be greatly > appreciated. Well, these plants have been grown in very 'soft' conditions, ie: extremely high humidity. The leaves don't have a chance to toughen up and will, as you've experienced, wilt when exposed to regular air humidity. You are right though in that the domes aren't beneficial as they will lead to fungus. So, what to do? First, take them away from the south window. If they're not already dead, they soon will be baked in the heat. Place them in a well lit area which is out of direct sunlight. Secondly, leave the dome on and slowly remove it over a period of a couple of weeks so that it slowly becomes accustomed to your climate and indoor conditions. Once acclimated to your humidity, then you can gradually move it closer to the window and direct sunlight. The moral of the above? Plants respond poorly to rapid changes in their environment, so care must be taken to account for this. Hope this helps! > > Thanks, > Will Gorum > wgorum@softdisk.com > > > Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 15:56:41 EST Subject: Re: Extreme Gardens Hello, all, Marilee here with an update from Peter here at California Carnivores...For those of you who'd like to see the show, it has been moved up to Sunday January 10th..It will run twice that day, at 9 and 12 EST...6 and 9 PST.... Its the Better Homes and Garden Television Network. I understand it will also still run on January 17th as originally posted..I'd love to see it, just to remember what the greenhouse looks like when its warm and the sun is out..LOL... ################### From: "Paul V. McCullough" Date: Fri, 08 Jan 1999 16:35:21 -0500 Subject: Winter in my terrarium! Well, this second big snow storm brought an inch or two of snow to the inside of my Klimagro! I decided since the dormancy requiring plants are sleeping now, that it wouldn't hurt to pile some snow on top of them- a few flytraps were still active and snapped up the snow much to my surprise! I didn't sprinkle any snow on top of my tropical sundews, but they'll still get the run off from the melting snow. It's a win-win arrangement. Looks really cool to see the minature snow land this has created! Time to fill up some empty distilled water bottles with snow-water! Cheers, Paul -- Paul V. McCullough Webpage: http://www.voicenet.com/~pvmcull ################### From: "Kelley, Ian" Date: Fri, 8 Jan 1999 14:23:08 -0800 Subject: Dormancy and Repotting - a question A question of general interest: I live in the temperate San Francisco Bay area, days in the 60's and nights in the 40's. I move my dormancy-loving plants from the windowsill to the outside fire escape for winter, generally November to February. I am getting ready to repot, both to divide some Sarraceneae (sp?) and to give some growing room to the others. I am interested on any insight into timing that folks care to offer - is it best to repot as I'm bringing them in for spring growing? Should I repot now, giving them another month of outdoor dormancy to adjust? Any repotting tips or tricks that folks have to share? It seems like a timely thread. Thanks in advance for any takers, - Ian ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Sun, 3 Jan 1999 23:49:04 -0700 Subject: Predaceous Fungi Among the most highly specialized of the fungi are the predaceous fungi, which have developed a number of mechanisms for capturing small animals they use as food. Although microscopic fungi with such habits have been know for many years, recently it has been learned that a number of species of gilled fungi also attack and consume the small roundworms known as nematodes. The oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus, for example, grows on decaying wood (a, b). Its hyphae secrete a substance that anesthetizes nematodes, after which the hyphae envelop and pene- trate these tiny worms. The fungus appar- ently uses them primarily as a source of nitrogen, thus supplementing the low lev- els of nitrogen that are present in wood. Some of the microscopic deutero- mycetes secrete on the surface of their hy- phae a sticky substance in which passing protozoa, rotifers, small insects, or other animals become stuck (c). More than 50 species of this group trap or snare nema- todes. In the presence of these round- worms, the fungal hyphae produce loops that swell rapidly, closing the opening like a noose when a nematode rubs against its inner surface. Presumably the stimulation of the cell wall increases the amount of os- motically active material in the cell, caus- ing water to enter the cells and increase their turgor pressure. The outer wall then splits, and a previously folded inner wall expands as the trap closes. (a)The oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus. (b)Hyphae of the oyster mushroom, which produce a substance that anesthetizes, converg- ing on the mouth of an immobilized nematode. (c)The predaceous deuteromycete Arthrobotrys anchonia has trapped a nematode. The trap consists of rings, each comprising three cells, which when triggered swell rapidly to about three times their original size in 0.1 second and strangle the nematode. Once the worm has been trapped, fungal hyphae grow into its body and digest it. ------------------------------------------------------ Biology of Plants sixth edition by Peter H. Raven, Ray F. Evert, Susan E. Eichhorn W.H. Freeman & Company Worth Publishers page 333 The letters (a), (b), and (c) refer to three captions. (a, b) G. L. Barron, University of Guelph (c) N. Allin and G. L. Barron, University of Guelph ################### From: aquilla2@juno.com Date: Sat, 9 Jan 1999 08:51:33 -0800 Subject: Re:CP on Home and Garden Television SUNDAY Jan 10 Saw a trailer for a feature to be shown, on the Home and Garden cable television channel, Sunday January 10 at 9pm EST. The feature was growing unusual plants and the video was VFT and Pitcher plants. Check your local cable TV or satelite TV guide for avaliability in your area. Can't elaborate any more detail as I just caught a glimpse of the end of the promotion. Michael A Sankovich ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 09:23:06 Subject: Re: Predaceous Fungi Dear Christensen, > recently it has been learned that a number > of species of gilled fungi also attack and > consume the small roundworms known > as nematodes. The oyster mushroom, > Pleurotus ostreatus, for example, grows > on decaying wood (a, b). The paper in which this stuff was published originally (Science 224:76-78, 1984) is *fifteen* (!) years old. Do you still consider this as "recent"? Whisky and Cognac of comparable age are usually (and quite legitimately) sold as very old. What is the news? Kind regards Jan ################### From: dmjoel@mail.netvision.net.il (Daniel M. Joel) Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 13:14:16 +0200 (IST) Subject: Visit to Western Australia Hello, I will be in Perth, Western Australia next month. I would love to supplement my visit with a CP-related side trip for the weekend of 19-21 February. I am very keen on meeting good friends like Cephalotus and Drosera spp in their native habitats, as well as local CPers. Could somebody suggest sites to be visited ? Please e-mail me privately . Thanks in advance! Danny Joel ________________________________________________________ Dr. Daniel M. Joel Agricultural Research Organization Newe-Ya'ar Research Center P.O. Box 1021 RAMAT-YISHAY 30095, Israel. ________________________________________________________ Email: dmjoel@netvision.net.il fax. +972 4 983 6936 tel. +972 4 953 9529 ________________________________________________________ ################### From: prion@abdn.ac.uk (Prion Gwyn) Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 16:20:05 -0800 Subject: Adrian Slack's Carnivorous Plants book for sale Dear CPers, I've got a spare hardback copy of the book Carnivorous Plants by Adrian Slack for sale if anyone's interested. I picked it up from a second hand bookshop in the knowledge that some of you might want it! It's in great condition and a recommended read for both beginners and experienced Cpers. I'll sell it to the highest bidder who mails me privately. Sensible offers please... Good growing Prion Gwyn Aberdeen Scotland ################### From: "jav" Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 13:09:01 -0500 Subject: CP.=Mushrooms I heard about carnivorous mushrooms on a site somewhere and I haven't been able to locate any information on them. If anyone has info on any sites with them or any nurseries that have them, please let me know. Thank You! Joanna Fiut jav@blazenet.net ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 15:49:27 EST Subject: Darlingtonia Mixes 1-3 inc. Dear all, I was lucky enough to obtain Mixes 1,2 & 3 of the Darlingtonia seed , offered through the ICPS (although I received mine from the UK CPS) earlier in 98. All of the seed germinated(after getting a good soaking in GA) and the seedlings continue to grow. I was under the impression that mix 1 was of the pale /yellow flowered form of Darlingtonia and, obviously, as they are still only seedlings I cannot test this yet :) However what I have noticed from all three mixes is the actual colour of the new growth of the seedlings. Mix 1 seems to be all pale green or yellow Mix 2 seems to have a mix of the above with some plants having red growth Mix 3 has all red growth. Do I take it that the pale form of Darlingtonia also refers to the colour of the traps as well as the flowers? Apologies if this has already been discussed on the list, but if not has anyone else noticed this? John 'still looking for the white flowered P.grandiflora' Wilden Southport Lancs UK ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Tue, 5 Jan 1999 06:35:20 -0700 Subject: Re: Predaceous Fungi :) I didn't know about the paper published in Science 224:76-78. While browsing through Biology of Plants, I found an article about predaceous fungi. I typed ONLY the contents of the article. It had the most information I had seen (in one place) about predaceous fungi. I thought it was interesting so I typed and sent it to the mailing list. Omitting my personal opinion, I was curious about peoples responses (if any). Fifteen years! I guess the authors of the text book typed ONLY the contents of the article, too! Jan, thank you for clarifying where that paper was originally published. Chad. >Dear Christensen, >> recently it has been learned that a number >> of species of gilled fungi also attack and >> consume the small roundworms known >> as nematodes. The oyster mushroom, >> Pleurotus ostreatus, for example, grows >> on decaying wood (a, b). >The paper in which this stuff was published originally (Science >224:76-78, 1984) is *fifteen* (!) years old. Do you still consider >this as "recent"? Whisky and Cognac of comparable age are usually >(and quite legitimately) sold as very old. >What is the news? >Kind regards >Jan ################### From: "TomsRareplants" Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 21:11:25 -0000 Subject: Anyone have seed for sale ? Hi, Im Looking for seed if you has seed please let me know what you have, I have 5000 seeds of venus fly trap. Thanks, laura frittsmb@msn.com ################### From: CMcdon0923@aol.com Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 21:39:30 EST Subject: HGTV Extreme Gardens I just finished watching the segment on California Carnivores, and all I can say is: "It was too short!" I easilly could have watched a whole hour just on CC. Excellent job Peter! Craig McDonald ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 02:22:01 -0500 Subject: Extreme Gardens I share the same sentiments with Craig McDonald describing the segment aired on California Carnivores- WAY TOO SHORT! HGTV should do at least an hour on Peter's place and another exploring some native CP habitats around the US. I almost missed the 3 second shot of Peter's S. purpurea, a clone grown from his original childhood NJ plant. Glad I taped it! Buried in 16" of lake effect snow, Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: "Stefan Ploszak" Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 00:34:23 PST Subject: Re: Extreme Gardens >I just finished watching the segment on California Carnivores, and all I can >say is: "It was too short!" I easilly could have watched a whole hour just >on CC. Excellent job Peter! > >Craig McDonald I enjoyed the segment as well. Having visited CA Carnivores, I kept hoping they would show some of the plants I enjoyed seeing when I was there. I want to commend Peter for mentioning the plight of the Venus flytrap. I think the general population needs to recognize that our carelessness with wetlands has a price. It's a tragedy that we still don't repect this. Stefan Gastonia, NC ################### From: "John Gicking (BIO)" Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 13:26:14 -0500 (EST) XSubject: Re: Extreme Gardens Howw do I unsubscribe? ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 08:45:42 -0700 Subject: www/catalog Pleurotus ostreatus http://www.fungi.com/plugs/plugsa.html Pleurotus ostreatus. You can buy it, there. I have not done business with them, so I can't say if they're 'good' or 'bad' with customers. GURNEY'S SEED & NURSERY CO. 1999 SPRING CATALOG In my catalog, on page 14 at the bottom, there is a PEARL OYSTER MUSHROOM KIT. I'm not sure it is Pleurotus ostreatus, the advertisement doesn't state the scientific name. Is Pleurotus ostreatus the only fungi called the Pearl Oyster Mushroom? ################### From: "CP-MAN" Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 18:54:50 -0500 Subject: HGTV cp with Peter D' Amato Hi, I saw that segment last night on Peter's cp nursery. Peter I think you were cheated. It seems that they gave the least time out of any of the people. :( Very nice nusery btw. That was the first time I had seen it. Robert ################### From: "tierney wayne" Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 16:23:55 PST Subject: Hi everyone! I'm new... Hello all, I just joined this listserv and wanted to introduce myself. My name is Tierney, and I live in San Jose, California. I'm a student at San Jose State. I've been growing some CP for about 6 years now but my collection is still pretty small. I'm hoping to expand it this spring. Sadly, because I live in a small apartment while I go to school, I'm housing my collection at my mom's house in nearby Santa Cruz, so I'm trying to compensate by subscribing to this and doing lots of reading about CP. I'm really interested in the evolution and phylogeny of CP; if anyone can point me in the right direction to do some reading on this subject, I'd be very appreciative. Thanks! -Tierney (Hybrid-T) ################### From: Mike Vogl Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 18:00:38 +0000 Subject: Roridula questions Hello all- I just acquired some Roridula dentata seeds, and was seeking some advice on germination, culture, etc... any info would be greatly appreciated. First, how do I get them to germinate? I have heard that they are tough little suckers. Would scratching the seed coat, boiling, fire, gibb acid, or other similar treatment help? Or is this kind of abuse unnecesarry for Roridula? Second: when and if they do germinate, how do I care for them? Soil, light, humidity, etc... basically I can put them where it is cool, bright and wet with my Helis; warmer, dimmer and equally moist with my Neps, Byblis, Droseras, etc...; or under "hard" conditions with Brocchinia. What would be best? PS- Although I realize that this is a long shot, I thought it would be really cool to have a colony of assassin bugs on them. I know this has been done by researchers, but I don't think the local PetSmart has much in the way of a Capsid Bug aisle... so does anyone know of a source? Thanks a lot- -Jonathan Mitchell ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 20:56:44 EST Subject: Re: Roridula questions Jonathan and list, > First, how do I get them to germinate? I have heard that they are tough > little suckers. Would scratching the seed coat, boiling, fire, gibb > acid, or other similar treatment help? Or is this kind of abuse > unnecesarry for Roridula? I can't say if all that is necessary..... I planted 6 seeds and got 2 to germinate without anything fancy at all. And the seed sat here for two years before I planted it..... I just put them in a tray of 50/50 peat sand, put a humidity dome on it and sat it in a west window. A friend's child thoughtfully pulled out the seed tags in the interim and I forgot about them for about 6-7 months.... Then I saw something coming up. In fact, and I am ashamed to admit it, I pulled one out thinking it was a weed before I realized what it was! (Oops.... to CP hell I go) > Second: when and if they do germinate, how do I care for them? Soil, > light, humidity, etc... basically I can put them where it is cool, > bright and wet with my Helis; warmer, dimmer and equally moist with my > Neps, Byblis, Droseras, etc...; or under "hard" conditions with > Brocchinia. What would be best? The remaining plant has been growing very well, again without any special care. It is sitting under fluorescent lights and enclosed in a humidity dome. That's it. I would say the conditions would be best described as moist, bright and warm. > PS- Although I realize that this is a long shot, I thought it would be > really cool to have a colony of assassin bugs on them. I know this has > been done by researchers, but I don't think the local PetSmart has much > in the way of a Capsid Bug aisle... so does anyone know of a source? If you find any, please advise so I can get some for mine :) Take care & keep on growing, Thomas K. Hayes DANGEROUS PLANTS www.tcscs.com/~thayes ################### From: Rick Walker Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1999 20:18:05 -0800 Subject: Reminder to send in your ICPS/CPN renewal It's nearly mid January and I've only received 250 CPN renewals. That means that about 750 ICPS members have not yet renewed. PLEASE, please renew your membership before the March issue. Early renewals are simple and easy. I only need to set a bit in the database and deposit your check. After the March issue, renewals require a backorder request which is a lot more work for Tom Johnson and I, and delays your issue by up to an extra month. Please, please send in your ICPS membership renewals before February 1st for unbroken CPN delivery. Avoid the backorder crush! Don't wait until April to notice that your March issue never arrived. By that time, you'll be lucky to get it in June! Thanks, -- Rick Walker ICPS membership coordinator Membership in the ICPS is $20 North America / $25 Overseas, and comes with 4 color issues of the Carnivorous Plant Newsletter and access to our seedbank. See http://www.carnivorousplants.org for subscription and renewal details ################### From: "PHILL MANN" Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 12:02:42 -0800 Subject: I'M BACK Greetings to all and a belated Happy New Year. I'm finally home and ready to start the year on a fresh note. If there is anyone whom I owe plants or are chasing any species in particular. I have nearly completed the update of the price list, so all those requests for the list should be ready by next week. I wish to thank very much all those who offered support during my recent medical crisis. It was truely appreciated and helped me through the hard times. Regards Phill Mann P.O. Box 193 Harvey 6220 Western Australia philmann@altu.net.au http://webnews.altu.net.au/~philmann SPECIALISING IN NEPENTHES ################### From: drury6@juno.com Date: Sun, 10 Jan 1999 15:37:38 -0600 Subject: D. Adalea How can I get my D. Adalae to bloom? It is tropical and doesn't require any dormancy,and it has been on the photoperiod that I have here at 33 degrees north lattitude since fall. Might it bloom in spring, without any help? I apologize, but this free email service, juno doesn't support file attachments, or HTML. ################### From: "Richard Jenkins" Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 01:03:26 PST Subject: Re: ICPS renewal Dear Rick and All, Although the ICPS is International it is quite difficult to renew membership from a non-US country. In the UK the only way I'm aware of is to go to the bank to get some dollars and to send cash which is not ideal. If I want to order back issues (which I do) this would involve sending a large amount of cash whcih is then a gamble. Additionally most UK banks won't dispense $5 notes which makes the $25 fee difficult. Did anything come of Barry Meyers-Rice investigation of credit card payment? Alternatively, would non-dollar personal cheques be suitable? Some US bookstores accept cheques in pounds sterling without hesitation. Richard ################### From: "Rogan Roth" Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 13:54:27 +0200 Subject: Roridula germination Hello Jonathan Mitchell et al. My experience and the experience of others who are doing research on the germination of "fynbos" species (Roridula spp. are plants from the fynbos regions of the southern and western Cape) is that they respond to treatment with "smoke water" - a smoke solution in water produced by the burning of various organic residues (fynbos species and grasses such as Themeda triandra, etc.). The Kirstenbosch botanic gardens produce a product called "Instant Smoke Plus Seed Primer" which is filter-paper circles saturated with a smoke solution and then dried. One circle soaked in 50ml water and the seeds soaked in the resultant solution for 24h does the trick. This treatment works for many plants including proteas, ericas, Anigozanthus, Leschenaultia, grasses, etc. I would certainly consider this as a treatment for many carnivorous plants and Roridula spp. as well. Instant Smoke Plus can be obtained from: D.Orriel - Seed Exporters, 45 Frape Avenue, Mt.Yokine, Perth, Western Australia 6060. TEL: (09) 344 2290 FAX: (09) 344 8982 Best regards Rogan Roth. (roth@botany.unp.ac.za) ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 07:13:50 -0500 Subject: RE: ICPS renewal >Although the ICPS is International it is quite difficult to renew >membership from a non-US country. In the UK the only way I'm aware of is >to go to the bank to get some dollars and to send cash which is not > ideal. > I've never used it, but couldn't international money orders be used. In the US, international money orders are available at the US post office. I assume they are also available through banks. David ################### From: "Semanchuk, Phil J" Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 09:52:14 -0500 Subject: RE: www/catalog Pleurotus ostreatus > http://www.fungi.com/plugs/plugsa.html > Pleurotus ostreatus. You can buy it, there. > I have not done business with them, so I can't > say if they're 'good' or 'bad' with customers. I have made one purchase from them and I was satisfied. Philip URL du Jour: http://www.netlink.co.nz/~monpa/ ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 10:00:38 -0700 Subject: Re: carnivorous plant stamps Don, On Thu, 7 Jan 1999 "Don Elkins/Sean Madison" writes: >The Scott# for the Laos series is 1237-1241 and for Triphyophyllum >is 769c Thanks for the information. You don't by chance know what the numbers are for some of the European numbering systems like Stanley Gibbons, Michel or Yvert & Tellier do you? Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: Johannes.Marabini@t-online.de (Johannes Marabini) Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 19:19:27 +0100 Subject: Pollen again! Hi all Nepenthesgrower, I have still (just now) pollen of Nepenthes lowii and Nepenthes spatulata available. Who is interessted? Johannes -- @email: johannes.marabini@t-online.de Homepage http://home.t-online.de/home/johannes.marabini/index.htm ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 17:42:34 EST Subject: Re: Howdy from California Carnivores Greeting folks, Peter here at California Carnivores. Thanks for the nice comments about the tv show on H & G network. We haven't seen it ourselves as our cable doesn't carry it and the producer promised to send us a copy. We've received many phone calls and email messages about it. There will be another show on us on Rebecca's Garden this winter, but we don't yet know when. We had a lot of fun doing that one and it should be longer. (I don't know how long the H & G show was). I certainly can't help but suggest, to those of you who thought the show was brief, to let the cable network know you'd like a longer episode-- we here at California Carnivores certainly won't complain!!! Th-th-th-th-th-that's all folks! Peter ################### From: "Fabio D'Alessi" Date: Wed, 13 Jan 99 12:09:02 MET Subject: Re: ICPS renewal > Dear Rick and All, > > Although the ICPS is International it is quite difficult to renew > membership from a non-US country. In the UK the only way I'm aware of is > to go to the bank to get some dollars and to send cash which is not > ideal. If I want to order back issues (which I do) this would involve > sending a large amount of cash whcih is then a gamble. Additionally most > UK banks won't dispense $5 notes which makes the $25 fee difficult. > Did anything come of Barry Meyers-Rice investigation of credit card > payment? Alternatively, would non-dollar personal cheques be suitable? > Some US bookstores accept cheques in pounds sterling without hesitation. > > Richard I agree. Being italian, and quite busy with work and all, it has always been a problem for me. That's why I have always paid with months of delay... and often helped by a US friend who sends money for me in. A suggestion: couldn't the association find a person in Europe able to gather payments from EEC people? Now with the Euro it should be simpler. People from the EEC could pay in Euro to someone and then this person would make just one exchange operation and send just a US non-transferrable check to the US. Fabio ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Wed, 13 Jan 1999 07:41:35 -0400 Subject: Re: ICPS renewal >Dear Rick and All, > >Although the ICPS is International it is quite difficult to renew >membership from a non-US country. In the UK the only way I'm aware of is >to go to the bank to get some dollars and to send cash which is not >ideal. If I want to order back issues (which I do) this would involve >sending a large amount of cash whcih is then a gamble. Additionally most >UK banks won't dispense $5 notes which makes the $25 fee difficult. >Did anything come of Barry Meyers-Rice investigation of credit card >payment? Alternatively, would non-dollar personal cheques be suitable? >Some US bookstores accept cheques in pounds sterling without hesitation. > >Richard Hi Richard: I simply mark my cheques going out side Canada to be cashed in the funds of the receiving country. This is especially easy for the US. Cheques marked "In US Funds" get cashed at the going exchange rate an the date they go through. Alternately, an International Money Order can be bought for the exact amount in the currency of the receiving country. I have never had any problems with these methods in the US. I understand that some European and Asian banks make rediculous charges in cashing some types of currency vouchers, so best to check ahead with the receipient before sending. You could always try converting the fee to the Euro ... ;-) Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson New Brunswick Maritime Canada Zone 5-ish (debatable) ################### From: Bob Lewis Date: Wed, 13 Jan 1999 15:20:33 +0000 (GMT) Subject: Change of address for Bob Lewis Hi, Due to a change in job, my old address of: b.lewis@bangor.ac.uk wil not work for much longer. Please use bob@nythfa.freeserve.co.uk from now on. Thanks. Bob ---------------------- Bob Lewis b.lewis@bangor.ac.uk bob@nythfa.freeserve.co.uk ################### From: "Richard Jenkins" Date: Wed, 13 Jan 1999 09:25:59 PST Subject: Re: ICPS renewal Dear David etc, >> In the UK the only way I'm aware of is to go to the bank to get >> some dollars and to send cash which is not ideal. > I've never used it, but couldn't international money orders be used. > In the > US, international money orders are available at the US post office. I > assume they are also available through banks. Unfortunately the banks over here charge about $15 for an international money order which is basically extortion. Richard ################### From: Rick Walker Date: Wed, 13 Jan 1999 12:31:05 -0800 Subject: Re:ICPS renewal > From: "Richard Jenkins" writes: > Although the ICPS is International it is quite difficult to renew > membership from a non-US country. In the UK the only way I'm aware of is > to go to the bank to get some dollars and to send cash which is not > ideal. If I want to order back issues (which I do) this would involve > sending a large amount of cash which is then a gamble. Simply get an international money order from a bank, or a postal money order. The ICPS now accepts multi-year subscription, so please consider renewing for 2 or 3 years at once. That will reduce your hassle by a factor of 2 or 3x and will also help reduce the number of envelopes and checks that I have to handle each year. I would encourage all members to consider doing this. Another advantage is that if subscription rates need to be raised, multi-year memberships will be honored and grandfathered in at the original rate. If you live next to a CP friend, or are a member of a club, then make arrangements to send a single money order for the entire club. Simply send a money order along with the bundle of membership forms. Alternatively, you can do some seed/plant trades with a U.S. friend and have them pay your membership for you. Barry is looking into credit cards and WEB payment, but such service is not yet available. We'll announce it widely as soon as it is in place. kind regards, -- Rick Walker > > > > ------------------------------ > > Topic No. 2 > > Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 13:54:27 +0200 > From: "Rogan Roth" > To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com > Subject: Roridula germination > Message-ID: > > Hello Jonathan Mitchell et al. > > My experience and the experience of others who are doing research on > the germination of "fynbos" species (Roridula spp. are plants from the > fynbos regions of the southern and western Cape) is that they respond > to treatment with "smoke water" - a smoke solution in water produced > by the burning of various organic residues (fynbos species and grasses > such as Themeda triandra, etc.). > > The Kirstenbosch botanic gardens produce a product called "Instant > Smoke Plus Seed Primer" which is filter-paper circles saturated with a > smoke solution and then dried. One circle soaked in 50ml water and > the seeds soaked in the resultant solution for 24h does the trick. > This treatment works for many plants including proteas, ericas, > Anigozanthus, Leschenaultia, grasses, etc. > > I would certainly consider this as a treatment for many carnivorous > plants and Roridula spp. as well. > > Instant Smoke Plus can be obtained from: > > D.Orriel - Seed Exporters, 45 Frape Avenue, Mt.Yokine, Perth, Western > Australia 6060. > > TEL: (09) 344 2290 FAX: (09) 344 8982 > > Best regards > Rogan Roth. > > (roth@botany.unp.ac.za) > > > ------------------------------ > > Topic No. 3 > > Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 07:13:50 -0500 > From: "Mellard, David" > To: "'cp@opus.hpl.hp.com'" > Subject: RE: ICPS renewal > Message-ID: > > > >Although the ICPS is International it is quite difficult to renew > >membership from a non-US country. In the UK the only way I'm aware of is > >to go to the bank to get some dollars and to send cash which is not > > ideal. > > > I've never used it, but couldn't international money orders be used. In the > US, international money orders are available at the US post office. I > assume they are also available through banks. > > David > > ------------------------------ > > Topic No. 4 > > Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 09:52:14 -0500 > From: "Semanchuk, Phil J" > To: "'cp@opus.hpl.hp.com'" > Subject: RE: www/catalog Pleurotus ostreatus > Message-ID: <854F7121CC2BD211856000805FE6EBD2010BA057@US4N49> > > > http://www.fungi.com/plugs/plugsa.html > > Pleurotus ostreatus. You can buy it, there. > > I have not done business with them, so I can't > > say if they're 'good' or 'bad' with customers. > > I have made one purchase from them and I was satisfied. > > Philip > URL du Jour: http://www.netlink.co.nz/~monpa/ > > > > ------------------------------ > > Topic No. 5 > > Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 10:00:38 -0700 > From: ricell@juno.com > To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com > Subject: Re: carnivorous plant stamps > Message-ID: <19990112.105939.-194413.1.Ricell@juno.com> > > Don, > > On Thu, 7 Jan 1999 "Don Elkins/Sean Madison" > writes: > >The Scott# for the Laos series is 1237-1241 and for Triphyophyllum > >is 769c > > Thanks for the information. You don't by chance know what the numbers > are for some of the European numbering systems like Stanley Gibbons, > Michel or Yvert & Tellier do you? > > Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" > http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ > > > ------------------------------ > > Topic No. 6 > > Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 19:19:27 +0100 > From: Johannes.Marabini@t-online.de (Johannes Marabini) > To: Multiple recipients of list > Subject: Pollen again! > Message-ID: <369B922F.8D793C52@t-online.de> > > Hi all Nepenthesgrower, > > I have still (just now) pollen of Nepenthes lowii and Nepenthes > spatulata available. Who is interessted? > > Johannes > -- > @email: johannes.marabini@t-online.de > Homepage http://home.t-online.de/home/johannes.marabini/index.htm > > > > ------------------------------ > > Topic No. 7 > > Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 17:42:34 EST > From: CALIFCARN@aol.com > To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com > Subject: Re: Howdy from California Carnivores > Message-ID: <908fb457.369bcfda@aol.com> > > Greeting folks, Peter here at California Carnivores. > Thanks for the nice comments about the tv show on H & G network. We > haven't seen it ourselves as our cable doesn't carry it and the producer > promised to send us a copy. We've received many phone calls and email messages > about it. > There will be another show on us on Rebecca's Garden this winter, but > we don't yet know when. We had a lot of fun doing that one and it should be > longer. (I don't know how long the H & G show was). I certainly can't help but > suggest, to those of you who thought the show was brief, to let the cable > network know you'd like a longer episode-- we here at California Carnivores > certainly won't complain!!! > Th-th-th-th-th-that's all folks! Peter > > ------------------------------ > > End of CP Digest 1690 > ********************* ################### From: Oliver.Gluch@t-online.de (Oliver Gluch) Date: Wed, 13 Jan 1999 21:29:21 +0100 Subject: Re: ICPS renewal >>Although the ICPS is International it is quite difficult to renew >>membership from a non-US country. In the UK the only way I'm aware of is >>to go to the bank to get some dollars and to send cash which is not >> ideal. >> >I've never used it, but couldn't international money orders be used. In the >US, international money orders are available at the US post office. I >assume they are also available through banks. > >David Hi David, generally your idea is suitable, but the costs for an international money order for example here at a local German post office is much higher than the membership fee itself. I agree with Richard that the acceptance of payment by credit card will be very helpful and less expensive for non-US members. And there are a lot of non-US members I think. Oliver ---------------------------------------------------- Oliver Gluch Lindenallee 44 26122 Oldenburg Germany eMail: Oliver.Gluch@t-online.de Internet: http://home.t-online.de/home/oliver.gluch ----------------------------------------------------- ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Wed, 13 Jan 1999 20:14:22 EST Subject: Payment for subs Dear All, >I've never used it, but couldn't international money orders be used. In the US, international money orders are available at the US post office. I assume they are also available through banks. I've tried to use it once in the UK (thru the Royal Bank of Scotland BTW, what wonderful service we have in our banks over here , I can't wait for the Euro to be standardised as common currency in Europe! )and was told that it "wasn't worth the time and trouble for such a small amount" . I've always tried to use cash in these circumstances. However would the society be able to take American Express Travellers cheques(Dollars) made out to the society? These can be obtained from any travel agents etc (in the UK). I believe that these (or their equivalent in $) can be obtained worldwide rather than the 'ubiquitous' Int. Mon. order. Please advise. John 'awaiting the white flowered Ping grandiflora' Wilden Southport Lancs. UK ################### From: "Lee Stradley" Date: Thu, 14 Jan 1999 05:37:26 -0500 Subject: New to the list Hi, I just started growing a few CP's in my greenhouse, and have become fascinated with them. I have an orchid business in NY State. I have been reading The Savage Garden and am glad I ordered it. I have a question. I recently bought 2 VF traps in those domes. One is a single plant 3+ACI-across, the other is a group of small plants that take up much of the 3+ACI- pot. The plants look very healthy, but I am wonder if I should put them in a cool spot in the greenhouse 40+-,and let them go dormant, or let them grow? And Why? Thanks, Lee Stradley [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Stefan P. Wolf" Date: Thu, 14 Jan 1999 12:42:56 +0100 Subject: GERMANY: collective ICPS membership fee transfer Hi CP'ers, =============================================================== in English -- following the list rules -- German translation is found at the end! === Text in Englisch gemaess Listenregeln -- deutsche Uebersetzung folgt am Ende! =============================================================== I will do a collective money transfer for German ICPS members this year as the trouble and cost for a single transfer scared me away from last year's membership. So I want to make a helpful step this year. I hope to reduce the per-person-charge below DM 5.00 but to have actual figures I need a binding word for participation by Friday next week (January 22) LATEST! I will then calculate the actual charge (which will be a maximum of DM 5.00 as I will eat the rest if only one person shows up :-) and tell you the very same day. You then have 10 days to pay to my account (February 01) and I will do a safe (but expensive) money transfer to the ICPS for the participating persons who transferred to me IN TIME. Fill out and quote back TO ME, NOT THE LIST!! ============================================= Yes, I want to participate in your collective ICPS membership fee transfer for _____ years. Take my word that I will transfer the amount stated by you (max. ICPS fee + DM 5) IN TIME (until February 1st). ============================================= ==== German translation of the above text follows === Ich mache dieses Jahr eine Sammelueberweisung fuer die ICPS-Bei- traege deutscher Mitglieder, nachdem mich selbst die Kosten fuer eine Einzelueberweisung im letztem Jahr von der Mitgliedschaft abgehalten haben und ich etwas beitragen moechte. Ich hoffe die Ueberweisungskosten fuer jeden einzelnen unter 5,- DM druecken zu koennen, aber um es genau berechnen zu koennen brauche ich bis zum Freitag naechster Woche (22. Januar) SPAETESTENS! Danach berechne ich die genauen Kosten fuer jeden (die maximal DM 5,- be- tragen werden, weil ich selbst dann den Rest uebernehme, wenn nur ein einziger mitmacht :-) und teile sie Euch noch am gleichen Tag mit. Dann muesst Ihr binnen 10 Tagen (01. Februar) auf mein Konto ueberweisen und ich mache eine sichere (aber teure) Ueberweisung an die ICPS fuer diejenigen, die RECHTZEITIG ueberwiesen haben. Ausfuellen und AN MICH, NICHT DIE LISTE schicken! ========================================= Ja, ich moechte an der Sammelueberweisung fuer den ICPS-Beitrag fuer __ Jahre teil- nehmen. Ich verspreche, den von Dir noch zu nennenden Betrag (max. Beitrag + DM 5) RECHTZEITIG (bis 01. Februar) zu ueberwei- sen. ========================================= Stefan Wolf. -- Dipl.-Inform. Stefan P. Wolf ................................................ mail : Zehlendorfer Str. 69, 24111 Kiel, GERMANY phone: (+49 431) 5973173 * fax: (+49 431) 697568 CP books >> http://www.angelfire.com/de/cpbooks/ ................................................ ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Thu, 14 Jan 1999 08:14:01 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: New to the list On Thu, 14 Jan 1999, Lee Stradley wrote: > Hi, I just started growing a few CP's > I recently bought 2 VF traps in those domes. One > is a single plant 3inches across, the other is a group of small plants > that take up much of the 3inch pot. The plants look very healthy, > but I am wonder if I should put them in a cool spot in the > greenhouse 40+-,and let them go dormant, or let them grow? And Why? A temperature of 40 +/- deg. F is probably not low enough for effective dormancy in VFTs. If you do not have lower temperatures available, then let them grow, but get them out of the 3 inch pots. Re-pot into a 6 inch or one gallon pot with a 50:50 mix of sand:peat and let them stand in a shallow tray of water (1 inch deep). They should do well there for 5 years +/-. Dormancy seems to help the plants grow better in the next year, but I also live where temperatures do not fall low enough for effective dormancy, and I have success with VFTs here in central Florida. They will do OK, although i do not get the huge traps that some more northern growers report. My VFTs routinely get traps about 1.25 inches across, while I read that some people report traps about twice that size in northern areas. - Carl ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Thu, 14 Jan 1999 09:21:37 -0500 Subject: VFT >A temperature of 40 +/- deg. F is probably not low enough for effective >dormancy in VFTs. If you do not have lower temperatures available, then let >them grow, but get them out of the 3 inch pots. Re-pot into a 6 inch or one Reducing light levels also helps with inducing dormancy. David Atlanta ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Thu, 14 Jan 1999 09:08:31 -0800 (PST) Subject: VISA card payments for the ICPS Hi all, Yes, in the future the ICPS will be able to accept VISA payments. I'm negotiating with a few different companies on payment methods. But in any event, this procedure will not be ready for this year's renewals. So please don't postpone renewing your membership ASAP! Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: Tom Massey Date: Thu, 14 Jan 1999 14:39:53 -0500 Subject: frog eating Sarrs. Well, the topic heading is part in jest (or is it part ingest!- HA), but I happened to be looking at my Sarrs. the other day and found two pitchers whose contents included a dead frog. In one case the pitcher (a large lueco.) had died and toppled over right where the frog was wedged. When the pitcher split the legs ended up dangling out of the broken half of the pitcher. After seeing this I started looking around and found a second plant, a rubra x purp. hybrid, that had a dead frog floating in the soup at the bottom of the pitcher. So far this hasn't damaged the pitcher, but I don't know how long the frog has been there, so who knows? As I and other people on the list have reported before, frogs often sit in Nep and Sarr. pitchers during the day, retreating out of reach down the pitcher tube when they are disturbed. Then at night, they emerge and feed on the moths that are attracted to the pitchers. For these two, the only thing I can guess is that they may be more the victims of cold weather than victims of overachieving plants. We have had one of our few cold spells over the last month, and while we never got below freezing, we did have one night down to the mid thirties. In both cases the frogs were nose up, and I suspect that they remained in the pitchers as temperatures dropped hoping to gain protection from the cold, only to be trapped when temps fell to far. I have no idea how sensitive frogs are to cold weather, but I think my victims may be cuban tree frogs rather than our native tree frogs, so perhaps that helps account. Anyway, call Moulder and Scully, I wanna be on TV! Tom in Fl. ################### From: "It's me again!!!" Date: Thu, 14 Jan 1999 22:05:28 +0100 Subject: Sarracenia Hello I have just recived Sarracenia the 14 January I got alata, leucephylla, flava and purpurea. Am I to put it in dark cold place or under a lamp. Do they have enough dormancy. Please tell me what to do. One more thing has anyone ever heard of fluorescent bulbs for plants that help grow faster and better? thank you kowal PS. Sarracenia leucephylla which I got was covered with fungus. I cut the pitchers and treated it with spray against fungus. Than put it into soil it has some fresh buds. Will it grow? [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: johnson Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 10:31:11 +1300 Subject: Delete from mail list.... January 15th, 1999 Dear Secretary, Many thanks for the copies of the Digest that you have been sending me. Unfortunately I really don't seem to have the time to read the "high volume" of information you send out. Please delete me from your mail list & I will just log onto your Web page for the odd update. Many thanks, Barbara Johnson ################### From: Angie Nichols Date: Thu, 14 Jan 1999 22:48:53 -0800 Subject: CC on HGTV For those of you who missed last weeks segment on California Carnivores on the Home and Garden channel, it will be repeated this Sunday at 5 EST. Angie Nichols, SC. ################### From: Tobias Isenberg Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 09:20:58 +0100 Subject: Re: VISA card payments for the ICPS Barry, > Yes, in the future the ICPS will be able to accept VISA payments. I'm > negotiating with a few different companies on payment methods. But in any > event, this procedure will not be ready for this year's renewals. So > please don't postpone renewing your membership ASAP! If you can manage to set up a way to pay with VISA, please also try to set up a way for Mastercard as well. It is at least as widespread as VISA an not everybody has both. But if you can accept both cards everybody outside of the US and Canada schould have a way to pay with credit card. Thanks! Tobias Isenberg (Tobias.Isenberg@gmx.de) ################### From: Johannes.Marabini@t-online.de (Johannes Marabini) Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 18:00:35 +0100 Subject: adress of John de Kanel Hi all, has anybody the e-mail adress of John de Kanel? Johannes -- @email: johannes.marabini@t-online.de Homepage http://home.t-online.de/home/johannes.marabini/index.htm ################### From: L235@aol.com Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 12:01:37 EST Subject: Re: VFT dormancy Beg to differ with those who have said that 40 degree (F) isn't low enough to induce dormancy in VFTs. In my experience it's fine, although, as David Mellard said, lower light levels do help a great deal. My plants are in the northeast-facing window of an unheated garage, with temps certainly no lower than 40 degrees. All are definitely dormant (summer petiole growth gone, tight winter rosettes, extremely slow or non-apparent growth). Even in full sun, I think that 40 degrees should be fine. Any other experiences out there? Jay Lechtman Ashburn, Virginia, USA "fine line between a hobby and a mental illness" ... Dave Barry ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 22:20:32 +0000 Subject: American Express Travellers Cheques Well spotted John. I paid for tons of backissues and membership using American Express Travellers Cheques. They are THE international currency accepted anywhere except Cuba (I tried!). They are automatically insured )for free) if signed on receipt (at issueing bank or AMEX branch) and useable like cash in the US, accepted in all banks. Don't see why ICPS will have changed their practice of accepting them. Much cheaper than all other ways available in Europe, short of getting help from very friendly Germans willing to administrate on behalf of others (how impressive)! Chau Paul ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 14:51:52 -0800 (PST) Subject: Warm weather temperate cp's Hello all, This latest thread about maintaining temperate cp's in areas such as Florida has me interested. I'm curious as to how growers in this region manage to keep Darlingtonia and some of the more northern Sarracenia alive? Do you find it is more a matter of day length rather than temps (as was suggested by others), or are you going to a lot of trouble (ie: not refrigerating your food to make room for the plants)? Just curious! Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 15:24:38 -0800 (PST) Subject: Drosophyllum germination Hi all, I received some Drosophyllum seed today and was wondering what techniques people use for germinating seed and for planting afterwards (if different from Peter D'Amato's or Adrian Slack's methods). If it matters (and it does seem to when it comes to this plant), I'm in the Pacific Northwest, ie: cool, wet winters generally above freezing, and warmish humid summers (although this past summer was like living back on the prairies). Actually, on that last point, if anyone from the Vancouver/Seattle and area grows Drosophyllum successfully, let me in on your secret :)! Thanks in advance. Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 18:39:28 EST Subject: ICPS Dear All As posted in a previous digest, can American Express Dollar travellers cheques be used to pay for membership fees? (I post this to the list, rather than the ICPS so that others can benefit from the reply) John Wilden Southport Lancs. UK ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Fri, 15 Jan 1999 19:07:12 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Warm weather temperate cp's I haven't come across anyone in central Florida who has been able to keep Darlingtonia alive outside of a refrigerated box! Some growers tell about starting the seeds in cool conditions, and then allowing an ice block to melt and drip onto/into the soil around the plant, but eventually they miss a scheduled ice renewal and the plants are gone. I have never tried it myself. - Carl On Fri, 15 Jan 1999, Chris Teichreb wrote: > Hello all, > > This latest thread about maintaining temperate cp's in areas such > as Florida has me interested. I'm curious as to how growers in this > region manage to keep Darlingtonia and some of the more northern > Sarracenia alive? ################### From: relliott@senet.com.au (Russell Elliott) Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1999 16:20:46 +1030 Subject: change of email + last 3 weeks email LOST! Hi all, Sorry to post this here, but my email address had to be quickly changed. My old address was elliott@nexus.edu.au, and my new one is now relliott@senet.com.au I haven't been able to access my Nexus address for the last few weeks, so could anyone who has sent orders etc to my old Nexus address please resend the my new one. Also Tom Hayes and Laura Estes...Could you please drop me a line again about the trades we were organising? Good Growing, -Russell Elliott ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1999 03:12:19 -0500 Subject: VFT Dormancy Jay wrote in CP digest 1693: . My plants are in the northeast-facing window of an unheated garage, with temps certainly no lower than 40 degrees. All are definitely dormant (summer petiole growth gone, tight winter rosettes, extremely slow or non-apparent growth). Even in full sun, I think that 40 degrees should be fine. Any other experiences out there? My personal experience with Dionaea is similar but even warmer! For the past few years my plants have overwintered in the following conditions, being housed in eigther a cool house, cool basement, or cold garage: Temperatures- Days 45-55f Nights 40-50f Light- VERY diffused daylight, often quite dim due to extended overcast conditions. Moisture- top of the pot's medium BARELY damp, moreso an inch down. Vegetative activity- pretty much nil for the period from December thru early March, most fall produced petioles remain evergreen but no trap development. Older leaves go black and are trimmed off. The only other thing I do as a precaution is lightly misting the foliage and medium with a full strength Benomyl 50% WP spray once a month. I check the pots on a routine basis for any further necrotic old leaves and soil moisture. One other thing. I have been keeping an eye on the temperature profiles of the Wilmington NC area during winter. Many days, even in the dead of winter, are above 40f, nights averaging 35-45f. Even the NJ Pine Barrens seems to have semi-moderate winter conditions although it is located much further north. Both areas seem to benefit greatly from the Gulf Stream, which plays a part in modifying the weather near the East Coast. VERY RARELY do you see Wilmington, NC getting down to sub freezing conditions, at least for any extended period. Wish I could say the same here in Cleveland, Ohio where its been in the teens for the past three weeks. High temps predicted early next week of 40f have many people jumping for joy around here. We can use it to melt the 24 inches of snow and ice now on the ground! Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: "TomsRareplants" Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1999 06:26:15 -0000 Subject: Drosera falconeri Hi I will have seed of this plant soon any one looking for this plant E mail me .. Thanks Laura Fritts frittsmb@msn.com ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1999 07:41:51 EST Subject: warm weather temperate cp's Dear All, >I haven't come across anyone in central Florida who has been able to keep Darlingtonia alive outside of a refrigerated box! Some growers tell about starting the seeds in cool conditions, and then allowing an ice block to melt and drip onto/into the soil around the plant, but eventually they miss a scheduled ice renewal and the plants are gone. I have never tried it myself. - Carl I know only too well what temps central Florida gets up to but have you tried growing these plants in unglazed clay pots? The only other way that I could think of trying would be to bury some large gauge aquarium tubing in your pots / boxes, connect the tubing to a small, submersible, aquarium pump and have the pump in a large, cooled sump (there are various ways to cool the sump), with the return end of the pipe returning to the sump. The pumps themselves are fairly inexpensive and are inexpensive to run. The only trouble with this idea would that it would only be 'cost effective' with a largish collection of Darlingtonias .. This may seem like a sledgehammer to crack a walnut, but it seems like the only way (as long as your electricity supplies are dependable!!) of keeping these plants long term ( the plants would still have to be watered fairly continuously BTW,this idea only provides the method of cooling them) . Please note that this is only an IDEA ,I've NOT tried it out, but then again there's no need for such fancy mechanics at our end of the world, the weather manages just fine all by itself ( and so do the Darlingtonia) !!!!!! John Wilden Southport Lancs. UK ################### From: "TED HADLEY" Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1999 16:14:44 -0800 Subject: Introduction I am new to CPs and totally fascinated by them. I, probably like most here, was given a VFT at about age 13, and promptly killed it. (I was in Arizona, and I kept it in a south-facing window. That probably would have been OK if I watered it regularly). A fellow mineralogist piqued my interest again about 8 years ago when at a talk he gave on the mineralogy of the Low Divide mining district, he showed slides of "pitcher plants". Now this was in NW California, and we all know there are no CPs there! :-) I almost made a trip up there, near Crescent City, CA, just to see the plants, and to hell with the minerals! :-) This past Christmas, my wife found a book she thought I would like, The Savage Garden. Well now I am hooked. And I went back to that mineralogist, borrowed his slide, and guess what? -- Darlingtonia californicus. Now I plan to send some money to Peter D'Amato for his Patio Collection. I am going to give this a serious try. Time will tell how I do. But first, I have some questions, which I will submit in a future email. I have read the CP archives from Rick Walker's website, but they stop at 1996. Are the 1997 and 1998 CP archives available anywhere? -------- Ted A. Hadley, Senior Mineralogist hadleyt@usa.net Mineralogical Investigation Services Sunnyvale, CA 94087 USA ################### From: "Charles Redding" Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1999 16:55:47 PST Subject: Wanted N Khasiana Hi I would like to know if anyone out there has an N Khasiana with 4-5 inch pitchers for sale or trade. Please e-mail me Thanks Charles Preferably someone in the USA TO PETER D'amato: What species of Nepenthes on the shirt? thanks!! ################### From: Dionaea@aol.com Date: Sat, 16 Jan 1999 20:46:28 EST Subject: Ants and N. bicalcarata (In National Geographic) Hi all: Just wanted to make everyone aware of an article in February '99 issue of National Geographic Magazine about "Ants and Plants." The article describes relationships between ants and certain plants and N. bicalcarata is prominently featured (including a photo of an upper pitcher as well as photos of ants inhabiting tendrils. Just an FYI. Christoph ################### From: Chris Frazier Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 05:47:53 -0700 Subject: CP Listserve is huge! Dear CP'ers, FYI. I just noticed that the CP listserve has over a thousand members for the first time (1019 as of Jan 17,1999). That's roughly a 20% increase in 1998 alone. Chris ----------------------------------------------------------- Chris Frazier Dept. of Biology, UNM Albuquerque, NM, USA 87131 (505) 277-0683 Fax: (505) 277-3781 Homepage: http://redtail.unm.edu/ ################### From: CCElliott@aol.com Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 11:03:09 EST Subject: new address please note new e-mail address elliott@capecod.net ################### From: cp@astilla.demon.co.uk (Andrew Bate) Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 18:10:14 GMT Subject: Windows CP application - Update Hi, I posted here a few months ago saying that I was planning on creating a Windows application handle a collection of plants (CP or otherwise). The project is now starting to take shape after several false starts and lack of spare time and in about 4-6 weeks time I should have something available for people to preview. This will NOT be the finished application but should give people an insight into what I am trying to achieve here. With Jan's permission I have managed to import basic taxonomy details from the online CP Database into my application so there is a good starting point for CP growers - if you don't want the application for CP usage then just delete all the data and type your own in... :-) So far, I have done the screens to handle the collection, genus/species details, stock prices, stock list, contact list (names addresses etc) and also prototyped creaton of HTML 'for sale' tables from within the application. Next on the list is the ordering module and integrating the printed/web based for sale list. The reason for this post is that I will be looking for people to have a look at what I have done so far in order to get feedback on what people like/dislike about it. More information can be found at the following URL:- http://www.astilla.demon.co.uk/epms If anyone is interested in acting as a tester for the application and following its development progress then please let me know. At the time I posted the original message I also found out that Paul Temple has also done something similar. I have no idea how this compares to what he has done as I haven't seen his application (didn't want to in case I subconsciously copied ideas). I don't know if what I am doing is of interest but all I can say is have a look and let me know any feedback! Regards, Andrew -- Andrew Bate | Email: andrew@astilla.demon.co.uk Worcester, UK | Web: http://www.astilla.demon.co.uk | ICQ: 11894304 ################### From: "Stefan Ploszak" Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 14:30:15 PST Subject: Re: VFT Dormancy >One other thing. I have been keeping an eye on the temperature >profiles of the Wilmington NC area during winter. Many days, even in >the dead of winter, are above 40f, nights averaging 35-45f. VERY >RARELY do you see Wilmington, NC getting down to sub freezing >conditions, at least for any extended period. It's a good idea to see how mother nature treats these plants. There is another factor that should be considered though. In nature the VFTs are usually burried in wire grass. In fact the only way to see these plants in the wild is to locate the flower scapes and pull the grass away as you reach the soil. It's my guess that the grass greatly protects the plants from the freezing temps and winds. In cultivation I've had potted VFTs easily survive brief periods in the mid 20s. As well, they don't have any problem with continuous temps in the 30s, even with the upper layer of soil frozen. I can't explain why, but the VFTs love a cool dormancy; in the spring they return stronger than ever. Stefan ################### From: "Stefan Ploszak" Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 14:40:28 PST Subject: Re: warm weather temperate CPs >The only other way that I could think of trying would be to bury >some large gauge aquarium tubing in your pots / boxes, connect the >tubing to a small, submersible, aquarium pump and have the pump in a >large, cooled sump (there are various ways to cool the sump), with >the return end of the pipe returning to the sump. For me I have a hard time finding an effective method to cool the water into the 50s when the outside temps are in the 80s. Especially a cost effective method. In nature the plants are found bathing in very cool(50s) spring water. Under those conditions the plants thrive and grow prolifically. >Please note that this is only an IDEA ,I've NOT tried it out I feel it could work well, but again, how could you cool the water so much? Stefan ################### From: "Adao Pereira" Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 23:39:32 -0000 Subject: Nepenthes humidity question Hello, all! I've got a problem concerning one of my Nepenthes: when it was young, I planted it in my terrarium. What I didn't know at that time is that they grow very much (I was a newbie to CPs), and now it doesn't fit in there anymore (in width and height). To solve this problem, I thought about one solution: I'd open a hole in the terrarium's lid and let the plant continue growing outside it. But there's a big difference in humidity in and out... How would the plant react? The base of the plant (the first 50 cm) are still in a very humid environment, but the rest would grow in room atmosphere (it is still humid, though). Are there any ideas about this? Or I'll have to cut the plant? BTW, I germinated some Darlingtonia seeds in 30 C and the seedlings (kept at the same temperature) are doing apparently well (and they're growing much faster than others kept at 18 C). I heard that these plants hate heat. Should I decrease the temperature? Thanks for your advices, Miguel ################### From: Peter Cole Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 23:55:59 +0800 Subject: Re: Introduction Hi Ted, welcome to the mailing list. Yes, you'll find they're very addictive things indeed! :) > I am new to CPs and totally fascinated by them. I, probably like most here, > was given a VFT at about age 13, and promptly killed it. (I was in Arizona, > and I kept it in a south-facing window. That probably would have been OK if > I watered it regularly). I guess we all started similarly - I have to confess I killed my first 5 or 6 VFTs quite quickly, mainly by underwatering and incessant poking and prodding (but I was only 7!) > have some questions, which I will submit in a future email. I have read the > CP archives from Rick Walker's website, but they stop at 1996. Are the 1997 > and 1998 CP archives available anywhere? I haven't got a full collection from the end of '96 (I did have, but had a few bad computer crashes,) but there's the last 6 months worth or so on my webpage - hit the "links" button and choose "local links". http://www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/ also a few other CP resources there you might like and links to other ` sites. Hope this helps, Peter mailto:carnivor@flytrap.demon.co.uk : http:www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/cchome.htm Cambrian Carnivores,17,Wimmerfield Cr.,SWANSEA,SA2 7BU, UK : tel 01792 205214 Carnivorous Plants,Seeds & Tissue Culture Kits - mailorder,export & wholesale ################### From: Danny Hammons Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 22:04:05 -0600 Subject: New CP Shipments at Lowe's Hello all, Over the weekend, I happened to be in Lowe's here in Arlington, Tx, and noticed that there was a shelf full of newly arrived CPs. I thought that it was a bit strange (being the middle of January.) I picked up a couple of Pings. Also, I'd like to inform everyone that I'll have my web page back up soon (it's been down since about last July.) El Nino + the horribly hot, dry summer here in N. Texas caused last year to be a fairly bad growing year. During the heat/drought, I lost a few sarracenias.....oddly enough, they were mostly the Tx native S. alatas. I hope to document the growing cycle this year on the web. I've gotten my own domain and much more server space than in the past so I'll be able to leave more up at one time. I'll post a message with the address when I get it completed. BTW, Tom, I've got lots of pictures of the plants you sent to Charlie. I'll post them on the page when it's ready. Danny Hammons (danny@hammosoft.com) Arlington, Tx ################### From: panther@bluep.com Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 22:05:44 +1100 Subject: Unsubscribe _,'| _.-''``-...___..--'; /, \'. _..-' , ,--...--''' < \ .`--''' ` /| Regards `-,;' ; ; ; panther@bluep.com __...--'' __...--_..' .;.' (,__....----''' (,..--'' Dr Antony Van Eeten ################### From: Laurent Legendre Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 12:19:23 +0100 Subject: Life in pitcher fluids Hi to all, I'm just back from a three weeks trip to New Caledonia. I made plenty of nice observations and took plenty of pictures on CP's. As I'm preparing to format all of my notes for CPN, I was wondering on whether someone could help me with something. There was a white bug living in the pitcher fluid of N. vieillardii. Could anyone help me identify the name of such species from photographs? Thanks, laurent Legendre ################### From: "NEIL ARMSTRONG" Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 16:24:40 -0000 Subject: Introduction Hi all! I've been growing CP's for about 9 years, and have two greenhouses. I started much like everyone else, buying, then killing numerous VFT on a windowsill. Then I progressed to killing Nepenthes :( ! I'm much better at it now though :) Growing, not killing ;) I grow most stuff, VFT Sarras, Drosera and an ok Heliamphora Nutans in a tank, N. facing window. BTW I stopped feeding mine years ago and it's fine, don't believe everything you read. Cheers, Neil ################### From: L235@aol.com Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 11:49:56 EST Subject: Re: VFT Dormancy (VFTs in Wire Grass) I must be in a contrary mood or something these days .... Repeatedly disagreeing with people on the list . Stefan Ploszak writes: > In nature the VFTs are usually burried in wire grass. In fact the only way to see > these plants in the wild is to locate the flower scapes and pull the grass > away as you reach the soil. It's my guess that the grass greatly > protects the plants from the freezing temps and winds. I've seen VFTs on several occasions in the wild (Pender and Brunswick counties, NC) In neither locale were VFTs growing in wire grass. In fact, in the former site, they were growing, quite exposed, on relatively barren sandy ridges along the edges of often water-filled depressions. These plants were quite easy to see (and photograph) even without the aid of their flower scapes (although in many cases they were flowering). I'm sure they are probably quite common in Wire Grass, I've just never seen them as such, and would therefore disagree with the statement that the "only" way to see them is when they're in flower. Jay Lechtman (jay@carnivorousplants.org) Ashburn, VA, USA ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 10:27:13 -0800 (PST) Subject: ICPS payments > If you can manage to set up a way to pay with VISA, please also try to > set up a way for Mastercard as well. It is at least as widespread as > VISA an not everybody has both. But if you can accept both cards > everybody outside of the US and Canada schould have a way to pay with > credit card. Dear Tobias, Yes, Mastercard will be supported along with VISA. They are pretty much interchangeable as far as this is concerned. American Express cards will not be supported. I don't know about Traveller's Checks. Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: Ide Laurent Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 20:37:45 +0100 Subject: Biggest drosera's Hi all A few days ago I've asked which are the most impressive drosera's in size. I'm thinking about D. gigantea, D. regia, D. indica, D. macrophylla... Who knows other giants ? Jan, maybe... ? Thanks for answering this time... Laurent ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 16:14:07 EST Subject: warm weather temperate Cps > For me I have a hard time finding an effective method to cool the water into the 50s when the outside temps are in the 80s. Especially a cost effective method. In nature the plants are found bathing in very cool(50s) spring water. Under those conditions the plants thrive and grow prolifically. >Please note that this is only an IDEA ,I've NOT tried it out I feel it could work well, but again, how could you cool the water so much? Stefan Stefan, Again only an idea, but if you could find an old fridge, bore holes in the sides (for the pipes...dont forget to insulate the pipes) and locate the sump in the fridge then this might work.The only trouble being , of course, that the apparatus designed to keep your Darlingtonias alive is actually dwarfing them!! (you could always use the fridge as a plinth to display them on ) Another alternative is to pay a visit to a good aquarium shop and have a talk with the owner. I'm sure that there are purpose built coolers for aquaria, the only trouble being that these will cost you an arm and a leg. Find a local engineering nut, who would be happy to take a fridge to bits and build you your own custom cooler. Would turning a fan on the plants in unglazed clay pots work? (bit like a 'swamp cooler'?) Only ideas but let me know if any work. John Wilden Southport Lancs. UK ################### From: "Kelley, Ian" Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 16:48:55 -0800 Subject: Repotting CP's Getting ready to repot plants - I want to put something in the bottom of the pot to improve drainage and prevent the medium from slowly dribbling out the holes in the bottom of the pot. I have lots of pots in which long-fibered sphagnum has been used, but it can smell a bit mulchy as it breaks down in the bottom of the pot. In the Home Depot today I saw a sack of horticultural charcoal sold for just this purpose. Has anyone used this? I like the idea that the filtering action of the charcoal will help to keep the medium "fresh", but am worried about effects on ph or unforseen considerations..... Thoughts? Thanks in advance, Ian San Francisco, CA ################### From: drury6@juno.com Date: Sun, 17 Jan 1999 10:49:33 -0600 Subject: moss and D. Aliciae Hello, Today I noticed some type of algae or moss growing at the base of my D. Aliciae on the soil, it is getting taller and will be on the plant soon. Will this be detrimental to the plant? If so, what can I do about it? ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 06:12:46 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: moss and D. Aliciae Moss growing around the base of a wetland plant can be a plus if it helps to maintain a high humidity around the plant and keeps the soil from drying out. It becomes a detriment when it grows so tall as to cover the plant and keep sunlight from getting to the leaves. So, it is a mixed bag. Keep an eye on it, and if it starts to adversely affect the D. aliciae, then you can start to control it. - Carl On Mon, 18 Jan 1999 drury6@juno.com wrote: > Hello, > Today I noticed some type of algae or moss growing at the base of my D. > Aliciae on the soil, it is getting taller and will be on the plant soon. > Will this be detrimental to the plant? If so, what can I do about it? > > ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 07:59:34 -0500 Subject: Re: Repotting CP's At 05:03 PM 1/18/99 -0800, you wrote: >Getting ready to repot plants - I want to put something in the bottom of >the pot to improve drainage and prevent the medium from slowly dribbling >out the holes in the bottom of the pot. > >I have lots of pots in which long-fibered sphagnum has been used, but it >can smell a bit mulchy as it breaks down in the bottom of the pot. > >In the Home Depot today I saw a sack of horticultural charcoal sold for >just this purpose. Has anyone used this? I like the idea that the >filtering action of the charcoal will help to keep the medium "fresh", >but am worried about effects on ph or unforseen considerations..... > >Thoughts? > >Thanks in advance, > >Ian >San Francisco, CA Dear Ian, I will give this one a go. I have been very successful using "rockwook" at the bottoms of my pots to avoid the gradual loss of soil. Rockwool in any format can be used. (Rockwool is "rock" that has been heated to about a million degrees :-) and is then spun into fibers almost like cotton candy. It has the feel and consistency of house insulation. It can usually only be acquired from shops that specialize in hydroponics since it is used heavily with that kind of growing. The advantages are: it is completely sterile, it allows water to flow through easily and it CANNOT break down since it is inorganic (it is rock). Also it is soft, fluffy, pliable and allows an enormous amount of oxygen to penetrate even when it is wet. The disadvantages are: This stuff is EXPENSIVE!!! If you give it a shot I think you will be pleased. Rockwool has many uses (rooting Nepenthes--this is by far the bast way!) but the fact that it can never break down and is sterile is by far its best attributes in your situation. Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 08:02:58 -0500 Subject: RE: Repotting CP's >Getting ready to repot plants - I want to put something in the bottom of >the pot to improve drainage and prevent the medium from slowly dribbling >out the holes in the bottom of the pot. Hi Ian, For a few terrestrial orchids that like to grow their tubers deep into the pot, I use screen from a local home store, cutting a circle (or square) to fit the bottom and cover the holes. The only care you have to take for cp's is to make sure that the screen doesn't lift the media above the water level in the tray. David Atlanta ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 08:58:21 -0500 Subject: RE: Nepenthes humidity question > To solve this problem, I thought about one >solution: I'd open a hole in the terrarium's lid and let the plant continue >growing outside it. But there's a big difference in humidity in and out... >How would the plant react? I can't believe I'm answering a Nepenthes question (hint, hint!) The leaves that grow outside your terrarium are very likely not to produce traps. I wanted to wait a few more months before reporting the following observations about two Nepenthes in my house that are now growing outside their terrarium, but this question fits right in my observations so far. One Nepenthes has a leaf and tendril completely outside the terrarium and no trap has formed. The other Nepenthes has about 25% of one leaf still in the terrarium with the remaining leave outside but the tendril has dipped back into the terrarium. The tip of the tendril is starting to enlarge and is on its way to forming a trap. Another leaf is completely outside the terrarium but its tip has dipped back into the terrarium. It hasn't done anything yet. David Atlanta ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 09:13:50 -0500 Subject: RE: Drosophyllum germination >I received some Drosophyllum seed today and was wondering what >techniques people use for germinating seed and for planting afterwards Hi Chris, I use a mix of 10 - 20 percent peat with the remaining ingredients equal parts (roughly) sand and perlite. Seeds are placed on top of the mix and the pot is placed in a tray of water. As each seed germinates and form a seedling (maybe 0.5 to 1 inch), I repot the seedling into the same mix and start watering from above when the mix gets almost completely dry. The seeds and plants grow under fluorescent lights all year long. I now have 2-year-old Drosophyllums and numerous seedlings. It's best to have only one plant per pot as any extra plants seem to slowly die off. As you know, Drosophyllums don't like overwatering and are actually very forgiving when it comes to underwatering. I've found wilted plants occasionally having misjudged when the mix's dampness. They come back upon watering. I plan to put a few outside this spring in an area that gets some direct sun but no rain and may try one outside that gets rain. David Atlanta ################### From: takaicp@sh0.po.iijnet.or.jp Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 23:46:44 +0900 (JST) Subject: epiphytic Utricularia Konnichiwa! First, To my friends: I am very very sorry for long long silence(more than 12months). I have been still very busy for tomato production. I will contact you. To epiphytic Utricularia enthusiasts who specialize in vitro propagation for them: I need any chips about your experiences in propagateing them in vitro. I am trying to introduce a few species( j&q ) into sterile condition from the seed or the green seed. I will greatly appreciate your suggestions. I wonder whether U.camp. is the self-compatibility. Does it need the artificial pollination? Please contact me directly. Kind regards Isao ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 17:19:13 Subject: Re: Biggest drosera's Dear Laurent, > A few days ago I've asked which are the most impressive drosera's in > size. I'm thinking about D. gigantea, D. regia, D. indica, D. > macrophylla... Who knows other giants ? Jan, maybe... ? It of course depends on growing conditions. Certainly the plants can be cultivated in such a manner that the interest of visitors focuses on _D. spatulata_ rather than on _D. regia_. But if grown at its best, the latter will certainly make a significant crowd overlook (or at least forget for a short time) the rest of the genus. _D. gigantea_ has (for me, at least) never been nearly as impressive as its name. There are species with larger leaves than _D. macrophylla_ (e.g. _D. regia_) and with larger flowers than _D. macrantha_. In the latter respect some forms of _D. cistiflora_ and _D. pauciflora_ can be quite a show. _D. indica_ is a nice unusual plant but some spectators may find it somewhat untidy-looking. If you spend some time with _Drosera_, you will learn to appreciate the thrills of even the tiny and common species. I am at a loss to tell which is the most spectacular or even only my favourite species. I like them all, and I would not want to miss (in terms of extinction; I do not cultivate _Drosera_) any of them. Kind regards Jan ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 17:50:23 Subject: Re: epiphytic Utricularia Dear Isao-San, Konnichiwa! > I need any chips about your experiences in propagateing them in vitro. > I am trying to introduce a few species( j&q ) into sterile condition > from the seed or the green seed. > I will greatly appreciate your suggestions. I have only limited experience with the truly epiphytic species. _U. alpina_ germinated half a year after I had sown it. I managed to grow the seedlings into small plants with leaves approximately 3 cm long and 1 cm wide. Propagation is easy by dividing the clumps that inevitably form from the irregular network of stolons. I do not know if any of the plants from my cultures survived somewhere but I have eventually lost them to fungus infection. _U. humboldtii_ germinated immediately (you could actually see the plant emerge from the seed coat a few hours after sowing). As probably most of the readers on this list know (I write this for those who did not know yet), _U. humboldtii_ has a green embryo in the transparent testa, so it is in fact "germinated" already before it is sown. Old seeds with brown embryos are generally dead. Some plants of this species should still be in cultivation (in vitro) at several places. Sterilization was performed in the usual way with hypochlorite bleach until the (ripe) seeds became appreciably paler or even purely white (depending on the species). > I wonder whether U.camp. is the self- compatibility. Does it need > the artificial pollination? Fertility of seeds of Lentibulariaceae is a mysterious thing. Perfect- looking seeds may be entirely disappointing, while lousy old grains may germinate after a few weeks or even within days (I once sowed five years old seeds from a herbarium specimen of _P. vulgaris_; a significant proportion of which germinated after two weeks). Some species take months or even years to germinate. There are several species I have never been successful with, while others grew them without problems. One year seeds may be sterile even after artificial pollination, the following year seeds from untreated flowers may be perfect (cf. the anecdote under _U. alpina_ in P. Taylor's monograph). The only rule I know is that there is no rule (but mind the exceptions!). > Please contact me directly. The small talk above may be of interest for a few others on this list, so I posted it here. The rest of the listeners are (like always) free to make full use of their delete keys. Kind regards Jan ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 09:44:55 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: moss and D. Aliciae Hello, > Hello, > Today I noticed some type of algae or moss growing at the base of my D. > Aliciae on the soil, it is getting taller and will be on the plant soon. > Will this be detrimental to the plant? If so, what can I do about it? As someone else mentioned, it's fine unless it starts shading out the plant. If that happens, just trim it back. Moss always grows in most cp pots and I take it as a sign that everything is all right! Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 18:53:38 +0000 Subject: Re: Biggest drosera's In message , Ide Laurent writes >Hi all > >A few days ago I've asked which are the most impressive drosera's in size. I'm >thinking about D. gigantea, D. regia, D. indica, D. macrophylla... Who knows >other giants ? Jan, maybe... ? > Depends how you measure them. For sheer volume of trapping area you have to go some to beat the large D. dichotoma and D. binata forms. In terms of height the prize probably goes to some of the upright climbing tuberous Drosera. I have had species such as D. macrantha or D. pallida get to at least 1.5 Meters height, perhaps more. Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 19:21:17 -0700 Subject: Re: Repotting CP's On Mon, 18 Jan 1999 "Kelley, Ian" writes: >In the Home Depot today I saw a sack of horticultural charcoal sold >for just this purpose. Has anyone used this? I like the idea that the >filtering action of the charcoal will help to keep the medium "fresh", >but am worried about effects on ph or unforseen considerations..... For what it is worth, I routinely use horticultural charcoal in my Nepenthes potting mix. It does not readily break down and I beleive it is neutral in pH though I have never tested it. I think it could work well for this application. Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 16:06:04 EST Subject: Re: T shirts and Hillary Greeting folks, Peter here at California Carnivores: Someone, I think Charles, asked what the nepenthes was on our t-shirt. It isn't any species or hybrid; it is a generic plant done by the artist Ken Holley after he visited our nursery. While the basic plant design on each shirt is the same, since they are hand painted the coloration can vary from shirt to shirt. Species or not, they are rather beautiful. There's a photo of it on our website: californiacarnivores.com. I'm surprised no one on the listserver mention First Lady Hillary Clinton's admiration of the Nepenthes at the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park. This was reported by a San Francisco newspaper some time before Christmas. The Conservatory was severely damaged in the 1994 windstorm, which caused millions of dollars in damage to the national landmark, which has been closed to the public since then, due to lack of funds to repair it. Hillary visited to drum up support. The newspaper mentioned that the first plants she approached were the fabulous Nepenthes that George (the curator) grows there. She was awed by them, and seemed to want to discuss nothing else. The paper didn't mention if she inquired as to whether they would eat any Republicans.... Th-th-th-th-th-that's all, folks! Peter ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 12:01:06 -0500 Subject: drosera morphology I'm growing several Drosera montana v tomentosa (gawd, I hope I spelled it right) via Fernando (thanks) and noticed that the flower stalk has dew on the flower bracts and for a short distance just below the flowers. No dew is present on the lower portion of the stalk. The fascinating part of this is that the dew on the flower bracts has managed to catch some gnats. Hopefully the same would not happen to the insect pollinator of choice in its native Brazil. Would anyone like to offer an evolutionary explanation for why this would evolve. A nearby Drosera brevifolia, which produces dew on the entire flower stalk, has not caught any insects on the flower stalk. Another observations for Drosera gramunifolia "spiralis" (again thanks to Fernando) is that the tip of blade-like leaf curls over when it catches an insect. I tried to trigger this activity with a broom straw the other day and after several minutes grew tired of waiting for the leaf to curl. When I was checking the leaves the following day, though, it was curled -- around nothing. As Jan pointed out, Drosera are quite fascinating; and, I'm having a great deal of fun just wondering around their pots with my eyes, watching, waiting, seeing, and learning. I'm finding out they have many intriguing, little quirks, just like people David Atlanta ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 14:50:23 -0800 (PST) Subject: Darlingtonia dormancy Hi all, Noticed the other day that a local nursery had a pot of Darlingtonia for sale (tc'd plants from Gubler's Orchids). It looks really healthy but, of course, it's not supposed to be growing at this time of the year. Since it's a tc'd plant and since it just recently appeared in the nursery, I assume it was deflasked only a couple of months ago. Anyways, my question is would it survive if it was placed in a cool windowsill with low light levels (ie: north) and allowed to go dormant until spring, or is it too late for this plant? Obviously my spring fever is acting up early this year :)! Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: "Kelley, Ian" Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 15:33:35 -0800 Subject: Accursed plant predators! I put my windowsill plants outdoors for the winter, on my fire escape in my urban neighborhood. Recently, something has been coming and tearing up the pitchers pretty good. The Dioneaea and Droseraea (sp?) are all ok, but the Sarrs. are pretty torn up. I'm not real concerned, as most of the leaves are brown and at any rate they will be safely inside during the growing season. Mostly, my curiosity is piqued. It does not seem like the "attacker" was intent on getting at the contents of the pitchers, as much as the pitchers themselves. The tall, splindly ones seemed hardest hit. Given the locale, I figure the short list of suspects to be : a cat a bird a mouse a racoon in descending order of neighborhood sightings. Any cat, bird owners with relevant insight? Not a real critical growth issue (thanks, BTW, for the replies on the horticultural charcoal thread) but a curiosity nonetheless. Thoughts? Thanks in advance, Ian San Francisco, CA ################### From: VFTMaxwell@aol.com Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 21:03:54 EST Subject: What is this? In a message dated 1/19/99 2:37:17 AM Eastern Standard Time, cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: > '| _.-''``-...___..--'; > /, \'. _..-' , ,--...--''' > < \ .`--''' ` /| > Regards `-,;' ; ; ; > panther@bluep.com __...--'' __...--_..' .;.' > (,__....----''' (,..--'' ??? ################### From: aquilla2@juno.com Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 19:17:58 -0800 Subject: Re: Potting Re-potting CPs Kelly, I use a porous type landscape weed block fabric to line my pots. I just cut a circle larger than the pot and push my sand peat medium into the pot. Then transplant. Trim, with scissors, any fabric that sticks over the top The material will not break down, and makes removing everything easy, when you transplant the next time, as you can lift everything out of the pot. You will not lose any mediunm out of the bottom of your pot. I have also used activated charcoal (granular) on occasion mixed with the medium and havn't noticed any pros or cons. Remember, that the carbon is only as good as it's capacity to absorb impurities or what ever. then it is just another inert ingrediant in your medium. Hope that this helps. Michael A Sankovich >Topic No. 8 > >Date: Mon, 18 Jan 1999 16:48:55 -0800 >From: "Kelley, Ian" >To: "'cp@opus.hpl.hp.com'" >Subject: Repotting CP's >Message-ID: > >Getting ready to repot plants - I want to put something in the bottom >of >the pot to improve drainage and prevent the medium from slowly >dribbling >out the holes in the bottom of the pot. > >I have lots of pots in which long-fibered sphagnum has been used, but >it >can smell a bit mulchy as it breaks down in the bottom of the pot. > >In the Home Depot today I saw a sack of horticultural charcoal sold >for >just this purpose. Has anyone used this? I like the idea that the >filtering action of the charcoal will help to keep the medium >"fresh", >but am worried about effects on ph or unforseen considerations..... > >Thoughts? > >Thanks in advance, > >Ian >San Francisco, CA > >------------------------------ ___________________________________________________________________ You don't need to buy Internet access to use free Internet e-mail. Get completely free e-mail from Juno at http://www.juno.com/getjuno.html or call Juno at (800) 654-JUNO [654-5866] ################### From: Laurent Legendre Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 12:58:24 +0100 Subject: trip to Madagascar Hi all, I have a friend who's preparing a trip to Madagascar. He'll be working over there but will have a lot of free time to travel...and hunt for CP's. Would anyone have any site information for him? Thanks Laurent Legendre ################### From: Laurent Legendre Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 13:24:37 +0100 Subject: Use of CP's in medicine Dear list, If I recall well, someone was asking early in december about the use of CP's as medications. Here are some information I can share. Doctors in France do prescribe Drosera pills to get rid of a cough after a bad cold. These pills are used in homeopathy, some kind of soft, herbal medicine. I've also heard that the french king Louis XIV (the sun king) used to dring teas made out of Drosera rotundifolia (the sun plant!) to treat his throat and have a more powerful voice. To my surprise, I learned over christmas that doctors in Noumea (New Caledonia) suggest their patients to eat Nepenthes pills to fight stress. These small white pills are also produced as homeopathy treatment by a laboratory called Boiron in France. When I told people over there that Nepenthes plants are actually carnivorous, they did not seem to look like less stressed to me. take care, laurent Legendre ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 08:52:32 -0400 Subject: Re: Freezing Apartment CPs Hi List: Turning into the end of January and noting there are apartment growers with CP dormancy concerns on the List, I thought I would just send a few notes of my own experiences with a few plants. I grow my CPs in a low humidity apartment (in winter, outdoors in summer) in Maritime Canada and, except for soil mixes, do not take too many extra pains in my CP culture. No lights or terrariums, sometimes I will wrap up a Nepenthes in plastic to raise the humidity for a spell. Most of my CPs (except my Neps) are appearing nicely dormant, now, where they are in a cold window that has a louvre to control the air flow to the outside. My zone falls within the - 28 C temps in winter, but we have had much lower. Several pots, including Darlingtonia, have been frozen solid overnight several times with no ill effects. The south-west window facing pitchers of my S. purp. were all frozen solid last week with the ice rising out of the fat pitchers (I keep the pitchers filled through its dormancy) and the container full of water it sits in, a block of ice. It took a whole day for the thing to thaw out, but the pitchers (and their ice water) thawed in an hour or so. The thing seems to actually enjoy that, but then it is a Canadian pitcher plant, after all and probably grows little grey wool socks on its roots in the fall. The redoubtable D. capensis, through my laxness, received a good bit of freezing itself. The pot didn't freeze solid but the moss on top was rock hard to over a centimeter down as well as one side of the pot. The plant looked like hell, but actually came back a bit before throwing its leaves and croaking to the soil line. Then it immediately put out a stem shoot from just below the sphagnum, which has now six leaves, three mature and is growing fast. I have about five cm of dead stem to cut off and then you would never know where the original plant had been. I actually thought I had killed it this time, but then, this would be about the fifth time I have thought that. A pot of VFTs is generally losing a few leaves, looking ratty and normal for this time of year. This summer the rhizomes managed to migrate to one half of the pot leaving the other side bare, so they will have to be repotted and redistributed when they start up in the spring. This will probably mean extra VFTs for my summer beer cooler bog garden on the deck as I have never been quite able to repot VFT rhizomes without having a few "scales" or pieces volunteer to come away during the process. Then again, some of these things just get too big for community pot and need to be divided anyway. The Nep. alatas, which seem to take a rest here during the dark days, have been reacting to the (not much) longer daylight with more pitchers. I was hoping to keep them resting, because the pitchers are still lower ones and there is not enough light for that wonderful colouration that they get, except for the mottling on the neck and lids. All in all I have three N. alata growing in the same big pot. One is from the top of the old stem of the original plant after it had been cut-back and two others are cuttings I took at the same time I cut the plant back. All three are producing pitchers of various sizes, the old plant with the biggest at about 14 cm. I have another earlier cutting that has sulked for almost a year growing in an unprotected pot in terrible conditions that has started producing pitchers, also. These are about 5-6 cm and the tops (lids and necks) dessicate in the low humidity after about six weeks, but this is an experiment to see just what N. alata can take as far as nasty goes. I also have two Cephalotus in the big Nep pot to overwinter. I found that this is an easier method than fighting the mold (mildew) they often get when potted by themselves under my conditions. I don't know why they don't get the mold in with the neps, but if it works ... In the spring, I'll lift them and set them in various shady spots outdoors to try and get some size on them. For some reason, they never get mold in the spring and summer. I got the two plants by division. I took a sterilized pair of sissors and cut the rhizome of the mother plant about two cms back from the growing point without unpotting it. The second plant appeared about six weeks later at the cut. This plant appears to like a pot much bigger than the plant itself. Having seen the long rhizome during a repotting, I think I can see one reason why. No sign of bloom buds forming on any of the plants, but it is early days yet and I don't want to disturb the plants at this time by rooting around their crowns which are mostly covered by live dormant sphagnum moss. The moss freezes quite well, also and I believe this helps to keep it healthy and moist and of benefit to the plants' crowns and roots in helping to prevent rot and dessication. Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson New Brunswick The Great White ( January thaw Zone 5-ish, maybe) ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 08:04:32 -0500 Subject: Re: Repotting CP's At 11:59 AM 1/19/99 -0800, you wrote: > > >On Mon, 18 Jan 1999 "Kelley, Ian" writes: >>In the Home Depot today I saw a sack of horticultural charcoal sold >>for just this purpose. Has anyone used this? I like the idea that the >>filtering action of the charcoal will help to keep the medium "fresh", >>but am worried about effects on ph or unforseen considerations..... > >For what it is worth, I routinely use horticultural charcoal in my >Nepenthes potting mix. It does not readily break down and I beleive it >is neutral in pH though I have never tested it. I think it could work >well for this application. > >Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" Horticultural charcoal is certainly not neutral. Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 07:33:52 +0000 Subject: VFT dormancy > Beg to differ with those who have said that 40 degree (F) isn't low > enough to induce dormancy in VFTs. In my experience it's fine, > although, as David Mellard said, lower light levels do help a great > deal. My plants are in the northeast-facing window of an unheated > garage, with temps certainly no lower than 40 degrees. All are > definitely dormant (summer petiole growth gone, tight winter rosettes, > extremely slow or non-apparent growth). Even in full sun, I think > that 40 degrees should be fine. My observations agree with Jay's... I have had VFT's in three locations for three years now: (1) in my cool greenhouse at home that is kept about 40 to 45 F (not less than 40). They receive a fair bit of sun, and on sunny days the daytime temp can go up into the high 70's. (2) in the conservatory here at the Missouri Botanical Garden. Night temperature is 42. Light level IS pretty low in winter: they receive a little direct sun, though, and sunny days can warm into the high 60's. (3) in our back-up greenhouse area. Unheated alcove, can go down to 28 or 30 degrees. Low light levels (virtually no direct sun). Plants in all three locations have all gone dormant, and all come out of dormancy and flower and grow about equally well in spring and summer. Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 07:35:37 +0000 Subject: St. Louis Carnivorous Plant Society Our January 7 meeting got cancelled due to questionable weather (snow and ice falling that day), so... we've rescheduled for February 11. We'll be showing slides of cp's in their native habitats, and will discuss basic care of cp's. All are welcome, beginners or experienced growers alike. For more info, please contact me. Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden ################### From: Angie Nichols Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 10:08:25 -0800 Subject: D. schizandra Has anyone used any kind of insecticide on D. schizandra without frying the plant? My one plant looks like it may have spider mites. The leaves are alamost transparent and the older leaves have holes in them. I have been spraying them with a forceful jet of water to remove any bugs but this of course just relocates them. I wonder if the flea collar method would work? Angie Nichols, SC ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 09:19:31 -0500 Subject: the tale of the floating S. psittacina Hi Rand, your post of freezing cp's prompted me to talk about the floating psittacina. Many of you will remember that last year, I overwintered a couple of S. psittacina outside submerged in water. They did fine sitting at the bottom of a plastic bucket where the water at the top froze many times over the winter. This year, they became floating S. psittacina and spent the later part of summer, fall, and winter floating in water. They love it. What's amazing to me is that now when it freezes, they are trapped in a layer of ice and the other week when it went down into the teens (F), they were completely surrounded by frozen ice. Anything that freezes in Atlanta usually thaws the next day (or 2 at the most) and the floating psittacinas are doing great. I plan to leave them there permanently to see how they fare and how large they will get. David Atlanta ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 15:54:59 Subject: Re: trip to Madagascar Dear Laurent, > I have a friend who's preparing a trip to Madagascar. He'll be working over > there but will have a lot of free time to travel...and hunt for CP's. Would > anyone have any site information for him? Thanks The information I posted several months ago here is still valid. In essence, it is actually quite simple. There is only one spot on the whole island that is really worth a cp expedition. Everything else is merely tourism. Your friend should go (non-stop, directly from the airport, without looking back or asking around) to the Marojejy Massif E summit, W Upper Manantenina, and look for the endemic, poorly known, not-yet-cultivated (AFAIK), apparently very local, possibly endangered, _Drosera humbertii_, take tons of photos, and send them my way. ;-) If he has some spare time left, he could also visit _Nepenthes masoalensis_, but this species is known much better than the former. If he is interested in _N. madagascariensis_ or _D. madagascariensis_, he should buy one from his supermarket around the corner rather than to disturb the plants in Madagascar. On his trips, your friend should also look for _Utricularia_ and take good close-ups. If he can obtain a permit (_Nepenthes_ is CITES App. II listed!) and if the plants will not be disturbed significantly, he should collect herbarium material (preserved in alcohol if possible) for further study and seeds for cultivation purposes. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Stefan P. Wolf" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 16:20:37 +0100 Subject: Th. Carow CP calendar - new US source!!! (ad) [ Summary: This is an advertising for the CP calendar by Thomas Carow. I was asked to post a contact address of a volunteer for a US collective order of this calendar. If you're not interested please excuse this posting - it will be the last one of this kind!] Dear CPers! In my posting ( http://www.angelfire.com/de/cpbooks/calpost1.html ) from 11/19/1998 I was looking for volunteers for collective orders of the fantastic 1999 CP calendar by Thomas Carow and promised to get back to you with an US address to order. The volunteer for collective orders in the USA is: Thomas K. Hayes ( mailto:hayes7@aol.com ) DANGEROUS PLANTS http://www.tcscs.com/~thayes/ 7420 Tillman Drive Falls Church, VA 22043 U.S.A. His price within the USA was set to $34 plus $4.00 shipping - a great bargain compared to the German list price of about $40 plus internat. shipping! Those of you who already saw it know that it's not too late although it's a 1999 calendar. But it's also a HUUUUUGE picture book which makes a great gift and of course a collector's item for any serious CP fan. See Thomas' website ( http://www.tcscs.com/~thayes/ ) for great photographs of the calendar (many thanks to Andreas Wistuba for permission to use these!!!). IMPORTANT!!! Please contact Thomas Hayes for any questions. Please understand that this is a collective order which needs your timely participation as this might be done only once - there's no guarantee for a second order and the actual time of order (the deadline for your orders) depends on your response. Don't wait too long! Best regards, Stefan Wolf. -- Dipl.-Inform. Stefan P. Wolf ................................................ mail : Zehlendorfer Str. 69, 24111 Kiel, GERMANY phone: (+49 431) 5973173 * fax: (+49 431) 697568 CP books >> http://www.angelfire.com/de/cpbooks/ ................................................ ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 11:11:20 EST Subject: The Carow CP calendar - new US source!!! Dear list, > The volunteer for collective orders in the USA is: -snip- > See Thomas' website ( http://www.tcscs.com/~thayes/ ) for I realize that the calendar page is very slow to load, but the size and quality of the pictures makes up for the wait. (Thanks Andreas!) >His price within the USA was set to $34 plus $4.00 shipping - a great >bargain compared to the German list price of about $40 plus internat. >shipping! $38 is still a lot of $$ to spend on a calendar. I wasn't even going to get one, prior to having seen it. All I can say, is that it's money WELL spent. In fact, that is why I decided to collect orders as a volunteer. I'm sure there are lots of people that just don't realize how beautiful it is. Anybody who is remotely serious about CP should have this calendar on the living room wall. The quality is really incredible and many thanks to Thomas Carow for this fine work. Thomas K. Hayes DANGEROUS PLANTS ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 12:52:10 -0400 Subject: Re: the tale of the floating S. psittacina Hey Dave: >Hi Rand, your post of freezing cp's prompted me to talk about the floating >psittacina. > >Many of you will remember that last year, I overwintered a couple of S. >psittacina outside submerged in water. They did fine sitting at the bottom >of a plastic bucket where the water at the top froze many times over the >winter. > >This year, they became floating S. psittacina and spent the later part of >summer, fall, and winter floating in water. They love it. What's amazing >to me is that now when it freezes, they are trapped in a layer of ice and >the other week when it went down into the teens (F), they were completely >surrounded by frozen ice. Anything that freezes in Atlanta usually thaws >the next day (or 2 at the most) and the floating psittacinas are doing >great. > >I plan to leave them there permanently to see how they fare and how large >they will get. > >David >Atlanta I remember all too well your story of the Bucket Psitts. That story, in fact, was what prompted me to to put my double-crowned psittacina in a tub larger than the pot, fill it with water, and jam it up against the cold window this winter. The pot actually floats a bit, but freezes over nicely, with the leaves sticking out of the ice. It looks quite insane, at times. However, the psittacina is happier than it has ever been indoors in the winter. Seems to enjoy the afternoon sun, frozen or not. Next summer I am going to plop its pot in a large clear plastic container full of water (after division) and see what it does outdoors. This may prove a hardship to the ants that were all over it last summer, so I'll keep one division in my beer cooler bog. Be interesting to compare. Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson New Brunswick The Great White ( January thaw Zone 5-ish, maybe) ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 09:30:03 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Accursed plant predators! Hi Ian, > I put my windowsill plants outdoors for the winter, on my fire escape in > my urban neighborhood. > > Recently, something has been coming and tearing up the pitchers pretty > good. The Dioneaea and Droseraea (sp?) are all ok, but the Sarrs. are > pretty torn up. In my experience, the mice, cats, and racoons all tear apart the pitchers looking for the contents. However, since you say that they're attacking only the spindly, non insect filled pitchers, that seems to rule out these three culprits. > Given the locale, I figure the short list of suspects to be : > > a cat > a bird > a mouse > a racoon > > in descending order of neighborhood sightings. Any cat, bird owners > with relevant insight? Not a real critical growth issue (thanks, BTW, > for the replies on the horticultural charcoal thread) but a curiosity > nonetheless. I've never witnessed any birds destroying pitchers on my plants. They hop around in the pots looking for seeds (there's always wild grass seeds sprouting in my pots outside) or stealing sphagnum for nesting material. Cats will also usually dig up the plant, rather than destroy the top (anyone who grows any bulbs of any sort will agree!). So, my best advice is to sit inside for the entire day watching your plants until whatever it is comes to destroy it. Then, decisions must be made as to what to do to deter it as it will likely return in spring when it is a problem. This is coming from personal experience of plagues of squirrels and racoons (plus babies!). Sorry I couldn't be of more help! > > Thoughts? > > Thanks in advance, > > Ian > San Francisco, CA > > Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: "Andy Falshaw" Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 08:58:46 GMT+1200 Subject: Nepenthes growing out of tanks I have a n. khasiana and n.venticrosa growing in a tank in my living room. Both are now well out of the tank, and pitchering happily on the 6 inches - 1 foot or so that's out of the tank. These are two of the hardiest and most vigourous of neps though, aren't they? Which two are your neps David? Andy > > To solve this problem, I thought about one > >solution: I'd open a hole in the terrarium's lid and let the plant continue > >growing outside it. But there's a big difference in humidity in and out... > >How would the plant react? > > I can't believe I'm answering a Nepenthes question (hint, hint!) > > The leaves that grow outside your terrarium are very likely not to produce > traps. I wanted to wait a few more months before reporting the following > observations about two Nepenthes in my house that are now growing outside > their terrarium, but this question fits right in my observations so far. > One Nepenthes has a leaf and tendril completely outside the terrarium and no > trap has formed. The other Nepenthes has about 25% of one leaf still in the > terrarium with the remaining leave outside but the tendril has dipped back > into the terrarium. The tip of the tendril is starting to enlarge and is on > its way to forming a trap. Another leaf is completely outside the terrarium > but its tip has dipped back into the terrarium. It hasn't done anything > yet. ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 15:07:16 -0500 Subject: RE: Nepenthes growing out of tanks Hi Andy, >I have a n. khasiana and n.venticrosa growing in a tank in my living >room. Both are now well out of the tank, and pitchering happily on >the 6 inches - 1 foot or so that's out of the tank. These are two of >the hardiest and most vigourous of neps though, aren't they? This just goes to show that not all Nepenthes are created equal. > Which two are your neps David? One is N. x wrigleana. I'll have to check the tag on the other one. ################### From: "R. Beer" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 08:24:41 -0800 (PST) Subject: Subject: Accursed plant predators! My condolences... You don't exactly have plant predators; you have insect predators - this is raccoon damage. They tear up the pitchers in order to get at the trapped insects inside. About the only thing you can do is build a cage around them; once raccoons learn of a food source, they never forget. I was about to give up on tall Sarracenias because of this - during the growing season, they even wait till the pitchers are well-developed and have a good cache of prey before you go out one morning and find everything shredded. Good luck! bob > Date: Tue, 19 Jan 1999 15:33:35 -0800 > From: "Kelley, Ian" > To: "'cp@opus.hpl.hp.com'" > Subject: Accursed plant predators! > Message-ID: > > I put my windowsill plants outdoors for the winter, on my fire escape in > my urban neighborhood. > > Recently, something has been coming and tearing up the pitchers pretty > good. The Dioneaea and Droseraea (sp?) are all ok, but the Sarrs. are > pretty torn up. > > I'm not real concerned, as most of the leaves are brown and at any rate > they will be safely inside during the growing season. Mostly, my > curiosity is piqued. It does not seem like the "attacker" was intent on > getting at the contents of the pitchers, as much as the pitchers > themselves. The tall, splindly ones seemed hardest hit. > > Given the locale, I figure the short list of suspects to be : > > a cat > a bird > a mouse > a racoon > > in descending order of neighborhood sightings. Any cat, bird owners > with relevant insight? Not a real critical growth issue (thanks, BTW, > for the replies on the horticultural charcoal thread) but a curiosity > nonetheless. > > Thoughts? > > Thanks in advance, > > Ian > San Francisco, CA ################### From: Destillo@aol.com Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 18:08:16 EST Subject: B. Gigantea Hello List!! I was curious of using the fire method for germinating B.Gigantea. If you read "The Savage Garden", it says that the smoke is what makes B. Gigantea germinate. Well I have a question about it: Can you use inscense sticks to germinate B.Gigantea???? Thanks For Advices, Jorel Estillore ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 18:08:16 -0500 Subject: More Drosophyllum info I'd like to add my 2 pence advice to the following: >I received some Drosophyllum seed today and was wondering what >techniques people use for germinating seed and for planting afterwards Hi Chris, I use a mix of 10 - 20 percent peat with the remaining ingredients equal parts (roughly) sand and perlite. Seeds are placed on top of the mix and the pot is placed in a tray of water. As each seed germinates and form a seedling (maybe 0.5 to 1 inch), I repot the seedling into the same mix and start watering from above when the mix gets almost completely dry. The seeds and plants grow under fluorescent lights all year long. I now have 2-year-old Drosophyllums and numerous seedlings. It's best to have only one plant per pot as any extra plants seem to slowly die off. As you know, Drosophyllums don't like overwatering and are actually very forgiving when it comes to underwatering. I've found wilted plants occasionally having misjudged when the mix's dampness. They come back upon watering. I plan to put a few outside this spring in an area that gets some direct sun but no rain and may try one outside that gets rain. David Atlanta Browsing through the back issues of CPN I picked up a good way to water Drosophyllum. Sorry, but I can't recall which volume or issue it was. This technique, though in its early phases with me, is a modification of the late great Adrian Slack's design in his book Insect Eating Plants and How to Grow Them. Sow at least 3 seeds an inch or so apart in a 6" CLAY pot, the bottom hole being covered up and sealed with a bit of aquarium repair silicone before adding media, such as described in David's letter above. Once they germinate and are about an inch high remove the weaker one( s), leaving the most vigorous for your plant. Take an 8" PLASTIC pot and fill the bottom inch with living or dead sphagnum moss. Add your clay pot, positioning it in the center of the larger one. Pack the space around with more sphagnum, filling in to just below the top of the inner pot. Place this nested pot into a shallow 1 inch saucer. >From then on watering is only done to the sphagnum moss surrounding the inner pot with the saucer to catch and store the drainage. The inner pots soil will dry out at the surface, remaining barely moist further down. The wicking action of the porous clay sides and bottom will serve to regulate the slight moisture that Drosophyllums require without rotting the roots. Just be careful not to let water get on the surface of the inner pot! Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio ( 40f and sunny for once!) markp@en.com ################### From: "T. Williams" Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 09:00:43 +0900 Subject: Cooling Darlingtonias Re: cooling darlingtonias I have not yet tried this but perhaps it would be feasible to cool Darlingtonias using Peltier effect solid-state heat pumps. These are thin plates of materials which become cold on one side and hot on the other when a current is passed through the device (a low DC voltage is required). They are very efficient and compact although a bit expensive. The reliability and size factors might make them worth the effort for one or two plants. A simple thermostat would also be needed but the electronics requirements are easy and commonplace. The installation could then consist of the peltier effect plates, insulated container for the plants and possibly a small computer-type fan underneath to remove the pumped heat from the vicinity. Tim Williams. ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 16:15:47 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: B. Gigantea Hi all, > Hello List!! > I was curious of using the fire method for germinating B.Gigantea. If you > read "The Savage Garden", it says that the smoke is what makes B. Gigantea > germinate. Well I have a question about it: > Can you use inscense sticks to germinate B.Gigantea???? > > Thanks For Advices, > Jorel Estillore > This made me laugh at the thought, nothing personal Jorel, as I'm sure it may actually work, it just presented a funny image in my mind. 60's flashback, which is bad, since I wasn't around then ;)! It may very well work, although it seems a bit troublesome to do this as compared to just burning some twigs, or even a bit of newspaper, although incense sticks do smoke a lot. If you try it, make sure to let us know how it works! Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 20:25:09 EST Subject: Re: D. schizandra Angie and list, > Has anyone used any kind of insecticide on D. schizandra without frying > the plant? My one plant looks like it may have spider mites. The Perhaps orthene.... I have been using this on a wide variety of CP with no ill effects, Just about everything else seems to kill schizandra :( Even if it doesn't work, the mites will kill it anyway..... > leaves are alamost transparent and the older leaves have holes in them. Are they getting too much light? And how big are the holes in the leaves? Break off a leaf and get out a hand lense. You will know really quick if you have mites and if you don't, then you just have a leaf cutting on your hands:) > I have been spraying them with a forceful jet of water to remove any I would think this would do more harm than good? My personal suggestion would be to ditch the whole thing if orthene doesn't work. It is much easier to get another plant, (want to trade?) than to get rid of a spider mite infestation! -Tom- ################### From: CMcdon0923@aol.com Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 21:23:27 EST Subject: Drosera Surprize Just a little note for what it's worth..... Last Spring I bought a group of Darlingtonia from my local Home Depot and Lowe's outlets. All have been kept in their own terrarium, completely separate from all my other plants. I transplanted several into a rather shallow container in order to form a "Darlingtonia garden" type environment. Bad idea. Most of the "garden" plants died, but I managed to save one of two stolons and have replanted them. But, back to the main point...... Last week when I cleaned out the dead plants, I found a nice little Drosera growing out of the thick sphagnum mat that had begun to overgrow the container. By all accounts, it appears to be D. prolifera. Since transplanting it, at least two new traps have opened, with several other on the way. The Darlingtonia were from Gubler's. Since I kept the plants totally isolated from everything else, and I did not previously have any D. prolifera, I assume it had to originate from Gubler's. But, I've never seen any D. prolifera offered from them before. Oh well, no complaints from here! ################### From: "T. Williams" Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 12:01:50 +0900 Subject: Re: Rockwool Rockwool might be fine for plugging up the bottom of pots, but one would be treading on thin ice to suggest that it does not break down. Time, tide and especially the effects of water will break down anything eventually, including rocks. Not knowing the origins of a particular brand of rockwool I would be inclined to treat it with distinct suspicion until tested (and preferably not on one's own collection). The extremely high surface area of rockwool fibres would greatly facilitate leaching out of any alkali metal ions when in contact with water, acid or otherwise. I'd like to bet that like many other silicate minerals, "rockwool" is choco with leachable ions covering half the periodic table. For anyone out there working in a University with a half-decent chem department testing this would be a trivial matter. Take care, Tim Williams. ################### From: Michael Peterson Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 20:37:38 -0800 Subject: Darlingtonia dormancy Chris Teichreb asked >Noticed the other day that a local nursery had a pot of >Darlingtonia for sale... would it survive if it was placed in a cool >windowsill with low light levels (ie: north) and allowed to go dormant >until spring, or is it too late for this plant? Chris, I purchased a similar (Gubler's) plant in late fall, and just stuck it outside in a small stream with my big Darlingtonia and my S. psittacina. I'm located on Vancouver Island, so same climate as you. It still looks fine, and gets lots of rain washing through it. I'd take a chance if I were you - they're pretty well suited to this part of the world Regards, Jill Peterson ################### From: stock-2000@stock-2000.com Date: Wednesday, January 20, 1999 6:54:56 o'clock PM EST Subject: ADV: Stock-2000 Finds Stock for the Next Millennium!!! To our dedicated subscribers, we thank you for believing in us and hope you were profitable with our last profile. To our new subscribers, we hope you enjoy and prosper in the future. Visit for http://www.stock-2000.com for full details and the full Wall Street Journal Story. We are reiterating our previous profile of D-Lanz Development Group, Inc (DLNZ). Recent developments have caused us to revisit this dynamic and exciting situation. The reasons we are so excited is because of the encouraging press releases that have come out concerning the company. DLNZ is about to increase their territory and with this increase the BreastCare device will become available to millions of additional potential buyers. We believe this should have a major impact to the bottom line. For full details please read the following profile, an article from the Wall Street Journal (01-05-99) and additional comments by the CEO of D-Lanz Development Group, Mr. Roger Fidler. Here is what impresses us. D-Lanz Development Group (herein after referred to as "DLNZ" or "the Company") has a non-invasive product already approved by the FDA that every woman in the world can obtain to detect breast abnormalities (e.g. cancer)! Rather than undergoing a mammography, a primary care physician, gynecologist or other medical specialist can insert this device, (sold internationally under the trademark BreastCare and in the United States as BreastAlert), inside a woman's brassiere where it is left for a period of 15 minutes If the device indicated unilateral breast thermal activity, the physician is alerted to the possibility of a physiological condition including thermally active cancer. Breast cancer, one of the most common cancers among women, is currently the leading cause of death among women between the ages of 25 and 54, in the United States. This suggests that a tremendous market awaits this product as it becomes available, not only in American but other countries as well. We project that overseas markets will compound demand for the product accordingly. In 1997, DLNZ acquired an exclusive license to market its BreastCare indicator in Chile and Singapore. It has recently been given authority to market in South Korea. Using this as a stepping stone, the company eventually intends to market this device in other eastern countries. We believe that in the coming months, women all around the globe will be attracted to this non-invasive method to detect breast cancer and other abnormalities. In the United States, breast cancer screening is generally recommended as a routine part of preventive health care for more than 90 million women. In addition, industry sources estimate that approximately 11.3 million mammograms and 800,000 surgical biopsies were performed in the U.S. in 1994 (the last year for which such data is available from the Center for Disease Control) so as DLNZ begins to distribute products, we believe demand will rapidly increase, consequently boosting revenue and earnings to impressive levels. In conclusion, we are impressed with the results of the research done at Sloan-Kettering Hospital, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Anderson Hospital and Tumor Institute, Brottman Memorial Hospital (UCLA), and Guttman Cancer Diagnostic Institute. Investor Relations Contact: Roger Fidler Chief Executive Officer Phone (201) 457-1221 THE COMPANY D-LANZ Development Group Inc. (DLNZ), a development stage company, commenced business activities as a partnership in 1947 and was incorporated in 1952 under the name Osrow Products Company, Inc. In 1990,the company amended its certificate of incorporation to change its name to D-Lanz Development Group Inc. In September of 1997 D-Lanz Development Group acquired the assets of Health Technologies International, Inc. (HTI). It was through this acquisition that the company acquired exclusivity in Chile and Singapore to market the breast thermal activity indicator ("BTAI") device that is now called BreastCare. BreastCare is a primary breast cancer screening device, sold in the United States under the trade name BreastAlert by HumaScan, Inc. D-Lanz Development Group licenses marketing rights for BreastCare from Scantek Medial, Inc of Denville, New Jersey for the countries of Chile, Singapore and (anticipated shortly) South Korea. THE PRODUCT BreastCare is non-invasive, easy to use low-cost indicator that has proven to be an excellent adjunctive test used by primary care physicians, gynecologists and other medical specialists. As part of a breast disease monitoring program, BreastCare should be used in some combination with breast self-examination, palpation and (depending on a patient's age, family history and other factors) mammography and other established clinical procedures, including ultrasound and/or biopsy. An important feature of the BreastCare is that the results are immediately available (often within 15 minutes) to the physician while the patient is "on site" at the point of care in the physicians office, clinic, hospital and/or mammography center. In Chile and Singapore, the woman can obtain the results at home since the product can be sold over the counter through drug stores. If BreastCare indicated unilateral breast thermal activity (i.e. in one breast only), the physician is alerted to the possibility of an "unknown" physiological condition that could include thermally active cancer. PRODUCT ORIGIN The original device was patented in 1980 by Dr. Zsigmond L. Sagi who assigned the patents to a private company called BCSI Laboratories, Inc. which shortly thereafter was acquired by Faberge. In 1984, following the original devices 510(k), (FDA authorization to market), Faberge constructed a plant to commence commercial production. In 1985, McGregor Industries acquired Faberge and discontinued many Faberge products including the original breastdevice. In 1986, DR Sagi formed Scantek Medical Corp. and purchased the devices patent rights (including the regulatory clearances) from McGregor Industries. In 1995 Scantek granted an exclusive license to HumaScan to manufacture and market the device in the U.S. and Canada under the trademark name of BreastAlert. In 1997 D-Lanz became the licensed marketer of the device in Chile and Singapore under the trademark name BreastCare. COMPETITION Primary competition for BreastCare is mammography. The company has not applied for any governmental approval of its product in the territories of its exclusive license however, strong indications are that since the product was approved for use in the United States, its registration in those territories will proceed rapidly. Currently, Scantek Medical manufactures BreastCare for the company on a cost plus basis. Sandell S.A., which distributes BreastCare for Scantek throughout South America through a system of sub-distributors, has agreed to distribute in Chile on behalf of D-Lanz. The Company Anticipates that Grupo Grifols, S.A., an international distributor of a variety of medical products will distribute in Chile for Sandell through its sales and distribution company G.G. Chile. Formed in 1940 and owned 50/50 by Spanish shareholders and Green Cross Corporation, Grupo Grifols has over 1,000 employees and annual revenues of over 20 billion pesetas. INDUSTRY BACKGROUND For over thirty years, breast cancer detection has been dominated in technically advanced countries by mammography. In less economically developed areas of the world, self-examination and professional palpation are extensively used. The basic problem with mammography is one of capital cost with equipment running from hundreds of thousands of dollars in the millions. This fact, along with the costs associated with expert reading of mammograms, results in costs in the United States of between $100 and $200 per reading. In less advantaged countries, the price is lower, but still high in comparison with local per capita income. For example, according to various sources, a mammogram in South Korea costs between $30 and $40 (US). Whole BreastCare is not expected to exceed the $20 range. In addition to cost, mammography requires expert reading, usually done by a physician or trained specialist. The reading process itself is subject to a high degree of variability and introduces a significant source of error. These errors are compounded by problems associated with breast tissue density. This is the cause of frequently reported controversy as to the age at which mammography is recommended. Clearly, women over 50 are almost always advised to have an annual or biennial mammogram. However, for women between the ages of 40 and 50, there is widespread disagreement as to the effectiveness of mammograms. Below the age of 40, mammograms are not recommended due to the difficulty in distinguishing between tumor tissue and young healthy dense breast tissue. TECHNOLOGY As breast cancer cells multiply, excessive heat is often generated. This heat is conveyed to the surface of the breast, resulting in the temperature of the skin of a particular area of one breast being elevated between 2 degrees and 6degrees Fahrenheit in comparison to the temperature of the same area of the other breast. Simply explained, BreastCare permits the measurement and comparison of temperature variances between mirror images of each breast. BreastCare consists of two soft disposable pads, each of which has three wafer-thin segments containing columns of "heat-sensitive chemical" sensor dots that change color from blue to pink, reflecting an 8.5 degree temperature range between 90 degrees to 98.5 degrees Fahrenheit. This device is placed over a woman's breast inside her bra for a period of 15 minutes. An elevated temperature differential of two degrees Fahrenheit (or more) between each breast, in the same location, may indicate either thermal (metabolic) active breast cancer cells certain types of heat-generating breast disease. Because of its digitized readability, which is not dependent on tissue density, BreastCare is very effective with younger women. It provides a relatively easy method of reading and interpreting the results, rendering it more useful in an "over-the-counter" application in those foreign countries where such distribution is allowed. RECENT DEVELOPMENTS On August 20, 1998, the company announced that it had entered into a distribution agreement with Sandell corp. S.A. to distribute BreastCare in Chile. Mr. Roger Fidler, the Company's president stated "This agreement should result in the first revenues into our company before the end of this year. It is the first step toward achievement of our primary corporate goal of establishing distribution throughout our countries before year end." MANAGEMENT Mr. Fidler has been the sole Director, President, Chief Executive and Financial Officer of the company since September 1989. He will serve until the next annual meeting scheduled for May 1999, or until his successor is elected and qualified. Since 1983, Mr. Fidler has been engaged in the private practice of law. From 1994 to the present, he also has been president of PPA Technologies, Inc, a private specialty chemicals company. From 1994 to 1997, Mr. Fidler was also President of Health Technologies International, Inc. a private medical device company that in 1997 was subsequently merged into DLNZ. Mr. Fidler has a MA from University of South Carolina. He also has a Masters degree in Physics from University of Illinois. Mr. Hait has served as Secretary of the corporation since November 1997 and will continue to serve until his successor is elected and qualified. Mr. Hait has worked as an attorney in Mr. Filder's law practice since May of 1997. Prior to that, from 1994 to 1996, Mr. Hait was employed as a computer programmer at Isis Corporation of Oakland, NJ. During 1993, Mr.Hait worked as a help desk LAN Technician at MDY Advanced Technologies of Fair Lawn, NJ. Prior to 1993, for approximately one year, he occupied the same capacity for Viacom in New York City. RECENT PRESS RELEASES ================================ Dow Jones News Service via DowVision D-LANZ PLANS TO SUPPLY BREASTCARE PRODUCT IN MALAYSIA, INDONESIA GLEN ROCK, NJ (Dow Jones) - D-Lanz Development group, Inc, (DLNZ) was given permission by Scantek Medical Inc. (SKML) to negotiate with Indonesian and Malaysian distributors to supply Scantek's Breastcare device in those countries. scantek holds the worldwide rights to the device, which detects abnormalities in the breast, including breast cancer. A D-Lanz spokesman said the company will receive unspecified monetary fees from the distributors. "There is no obligation to pay a fee to Scantek," The spokesman added, D-Lanz plans to distribute the device in Indonesia and Malaysia in the second calendar quarter of this year. In a press release Friday, the company said Breastcare gross margins are expected to be more than 50% of sales. D-Lanz sales figures weren't immediately available. (END) DOW JONES NEWS 01-08-99 ================================ 11:39AM Copyright 1999 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. DDG MORE THAN TRIPLES POTENTIAL CUSTOMER BASE FOR SECOND TIME IN TWO MONTHS Glen Rock, New Jersey December November 6, 198-1:30pm EST D-Lanz Development Group, Inc. (DLNZ-OTC Bulletin Board) announced today that it had been given permission by Scantek medical, inc. to negotiate with Indonesian and Malaysian distributors to distribute its Breastcare device in Indonesia and Malaysia. Roger Fidler, President of D-Lanz stated, "the net effect of the expansion of our distribution rights into Indonesia and Malaysia is to once again more than triple the number of women to whom DDG may distribute Breastcare. Indonesia alone has a population of over two hundred million persons." with rights in Chile, Singapore, South Korea, Indonesia and Malaysia, DDG will be serving a relevant female population of about one hundred million. Breastcare gross margins are expected to exceed fifty percent (50%) of sales according to Mr. Fidler. Breastcare is the trade name for Scantek Medical's revolutionary new method of breast abnormality, including breast cancer detection which DDG licenses. For further information Contact Roger Fidler, CEO (201) 457-1221 ****** DISCLAIMER ****** This material is being provided by Stock-2000, an electronic newsletter paid by the issuer for publishing the information contained in this report. D-Lanz Development Group, Inc. has paid a consideration of 15,000 shares of common stock of D-Lanz Development Group, Inc. to Stock-2000 as payment for the publication of the information contained in this report. Stock-2000 and its affiliates have agreed not to sell the common stock received as payment for its services until December 7, 1998, which date is 15 days from the initial dissemination of this report. After such date, Stock-2000 may sell such shares. Because Stock-2000 is paid for its services, there is an inherent conflict of interest in Stock-2000's statements and opinions and such statements and opinions cannot be considered independent. The information contained in this publication is for informational purposes only, and not to be construed as an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy any security. Stock-2000 makes no representation or wa rrant relating to the validity of the facts presented nor does Stock-2000 represent or warrant that all material facts necessary to make an investment decision are presented above. All statements of opinions are those of Stock-2000. Stock-2000 relies exclusively on information gathered from public filings on featured companies, as well as, in certain circumstances, interviews conducted by Stock-2000 of management of featured companies. Investors should not rely solely on the information contained in this publication. Rather, investors should use the information contained in this publication as a starting point for conducting additional research on the featured companies in order to allow the investor to form his or her own opinion regarding the featured companies. Factual statements contained in this publication are made as of the date stated and they are subject to change without notice. Stock-2000 is not a registered investment adviser, broker or a dealer. Investment in the companies reviewed is speculativ e and extremely high-risk and may result in the loss of some or all of any investment made in D-Lanz Development Group, Inc. This publication contains forward-looking statements that are subject to risk and uncertainties that could cause results to differ materially from those set forth in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements represent the judgment of D-Lanz Development Group, Inc. as of the date of this publication. The Company disclaims any intent or obligation to update these forward-looking statements. ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 08:27:58 -0500 Subject: RE: More Drosophyllum info >Take an 8" PLASTIC pot and fill the bottom inch with living or dead sphagnum >moss. Add your clay pot, positioning it in the center of the larger one. >Pack the space around with more sphagnum, filling in to just below the top >of the inner pot. Place this nested pot into a shallow 1 inch saucer. Hi Mark, This sounds like a neat idea. I'll start one this weekend. David Atlanta ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 07:24:40 PST Subject: Drosera sessilifolia Hi list. I recently planted seed I received labelled D.sessilifolia. At the same time, I planted D.burmanii (green) and the hybrid between the 2. I think Fernando (where are you? email me if you're back!) mentioned sessilifolia is very similar to burmanii but my plants look exactly the same so far except "sessilifolia" has pink-red tentacles whereas burmanii's are white. I've heard of red burmaniis floating around (heck, isnt that 1 on the cover of Kondo's old book?). Im wondering if what I have is really the true sessilifolia. It originally came from the ICPS seed bank. (Thanks, Joe!!) They're only a couple months old and probably wont flower for a while. Opinions, anyone? It's a little late but I wanted to thank the fellow listmembers who sent me gemmae (you know who you are!). I got great results and now have quite a few pygmies growing well. Planted them a couple of months ago as well and pygmaea and occidentalis are already flowering! Anybody growing D.barbigera?? Happy growing! Matt New York USA ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 16:40:46 Subject: Re: _Drosera sessilifolia_ Dear Matt, > I > think Fernando (where are you? email me if you're back!) mentioned > sessilifolia is very similar to burmanii but my plants look exactly the > same so far (...) Why do you write "but"? I do not see any contradiction. > They're only a couple months old and probably wont flower for a while. > Opinions, anyone? Without a flower, I guess no human being will be able to tell these two species apart (if they are not labeled, of course). And even with a flower, they are sufficiently similar to be regarded as a single species. The only substantial reason (of doubtful validity) why this is generally not done is the huge geographic disjunction of the two species. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 11:05:58 +0000 Subject: Cooling darlingtonia I've had good luck keeping Darlingtonia seedlings alive for two hot Missouri summers (often in the 90's or higher and very humid) just using a styrofoam box that had been used to ship insects. I cut a hole in the top of the box's lid to fit the 6" plastic pot into... the pot sits in the hole, its sides and bottoms inside the box, but it's top is outside the box, even with the top of the lid. The plants are growing outside, but their roots are kept cooler by the inside of the box. There is about 3 to 4" of space between the bottom of the box and the bottom of the pot. I put cool ice packs in there, and I water the plant overhead, so cool water gathers below (but generally the plant doesn't sit in the water). I've found that I don't even need to change the cool pack that often... every few days can be enough. The water at least stays moderately cool, and that keeps the inside of the box cooer than the outside airl. So far, the potted plant in the box has done much better than pots not in the box. All are kept on a shady north-facing front porch, receiving lots of light, but very little direct sun (maybe a tiny bit of morning sun). In winter, they go in my cool greenhouse. Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden sfarrington@ridgway.mobot.org (314)577-9402 ################### From: "TED HADLEY" Date: Wed, 20 Jan 1999 20:45:56 -0800 Subject: some photomicrographs and a neat kit Hi All, Here are a couple of photomicrographs that I found that you might be interested in: Drosera leaf hair cross section: http://www.fortunecity.com/meltingpot/research/48/drosera.jpg This photo is by Randy Moore/Visuals Unlimited, in "Biology," by Raven, P. H., and Johnson, G. B., 1986. This is a good intro biology text of about freshman college level. Caption: "A complex multicellular hair from the leaves of the Sundew, Drosera. Such hairs secrete the enzymes that the plant uses to digest the bodies of its insect prey." ====== Arthrobotrys conoides, the neamotode-trapping fungus, with a trapped Rhabditis: http://www.fortunecity.com/meltingpot/research/48/arthrobotrys.jpg This photo is from the Carolina Biological Supply catalog, 1999. Caption: "Arthrobotrys conoides, the nematode trapping fungus. From AA-15-5802 Carnivorous Fungus Kit" Text from higher up on the same page: * Carnivorous Fungus Kit For a class of 30. Students subculture and then observe the growth of the soil fungus Arthrobotrys conoides on cornmeal agar plates. When Rhabditis, a nematode, is inoculated into these plates, the fungus traps, digests, and absorbs the nematode's internal contents. We know of no more graphic way to teach absorbtive nutrition of fungi. The exercise requires 10 days from setup to completion. The exercise requires the use of a stereomicroscope. With teacher instructions. Arthrobotrys conoides Plate Culture Rhabditis tube culture (on potato plug medium) 2 bottles cornmeal agar 10 sterile petri dishes metal innoculating loop Autoclave disposal bag AA-15-5802 Per Kit $31.75 +1-800-334-5551, have your VISA card ready. :-) -------- Ted A. Hadley, Senior Mineralogist hadleyt@usa.net Mineralogical Investigation Services Sunnyvale, CA 94087 USA ################### From: "Adao Pereira" Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 21:27:50 -0000 Subject: Nepenthes humidity and Drosophyllum germination Hi, all! Thanks for your advices... Indeed, I have grown one Nepenthes hybrid outside the terrarium and it never produced pitchers. BTW, concerning the Drosophyllum, I just want to say that I germinated some seeds by placing them in distilled water for 48 hours and sow them about 5 mm below the soil's surface. They all germed in about 2 weeks. Good growing! Miguel ################### From: Peter Cole Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1999 23:42:38 +0800 Subject: Re: Use of CP's in medicine Drosera have a long history of perceived medicinal virtue. I have a few recipes from the 16th and 17th centuries which are quite amusing, so I'll share them with you. "Rosa Solis" (dew of the sun) refers to Drosera rotundifolia. "Rosa-solis strengtheneth and nourisheth the body, especially if it be distilled with wine and that liquor made thereof which the common people do call Rosa Solis. If any be desirous to haue the saide drinke effectuall for the purposes aforesaid, let them lay the leaues of Rosa Solis in the spirit of wine, adding thereto Cinnamom, Cloues, Maces, Ginger, Nutmegs, Sugar, and a fewe grains of Muske, suffering it to stand in a glasse close stopt from the aire, and let in the sunne by the space of ten daies more: then straine the same and keepe it for your vse." from _The Herball or Generall Historie of Plants_ by John Gerard, 1597 (I think we can safely assume that's out of copyright :-) and "Take of the hearbe Rosa-solis, gathered in Iulie, one gallon, pick out the black moates from the leaues; Dates, half a pound; Cinamon, Ginger, Cloues, of each one ounce; grains, half an ounce; fine sugar, a pound and a half; red Rose-leaues, green or dryed, foure handfuls; steep all these in a gallon of good Aqua Composita, in a glass close stopped with wax, during twentie daies: shake it well together once every two daies. Your Sugar must be powdred, your spices bruised onely, or grossely beaten; your Dates cut in long slices, the stones taken away. If you add two or three grains of Ambergreece, and as much Musk, in your glasse, among the rest of the Ingredients, it will haue a pleasant smell. Some adde the Gum Amber, with corall and pearle finely powdred, and fine leaf-gold. Some vse to boil Ferdinando buck in Rose-water, till they haue purchased a faire, deep crimson colour: and when the same is cold, they colour their Rosa-solis and Aqua Rubea therewith." from _Delightes for Ladies_ by Sir Hugh Plat, 1609 The amber, coral, pearls and gold were believed to have medicinal value and the reference to "black moates" is of course instruction to remove all the dead flies before making your drink (yuk!) also "...in those Cordial Waters where the Ros Solis, or Rosa Solis is used, which is an Herb not always to be found, and will not keep above a day or two after 'tis gather'd, this I say may be distilled by itself, and kept to use with other Waters at pleasure; putting of this such a proportion as would have been produced from the quantity directed, of the Plant, in the Receipt, if it had been distill'd with the other Herbs: and so of any other Herb that is hard to come by." from _The Country Housewife and Lady's Director_ by Richard Bradley ,1727 I'm trying to build up enough in vitro material to make a pint or two of this - I'll let you all know how it turns out if/when I try it (I just hope it's better than the Ta"tmio"lk I tried a couple of years ago :) Happy growing, Peter mailto:carnivor@flytrap.demon.co.uk : http:www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/cchome.htm Cambrian Carnivores,17,Wimmerfield Cr.,SWANSEA,SA2 7BU, UK : tel 01792 205214 Carnivorous Plants,Seeds & Tissue Culture Kits - mailorder,export & wholesale ################### From: Peter Cole Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 0:46:20 +0800 Subject: 16th century CP cultivation So how old do you think the hobby of carnivorous plant growing is? We didn't have an international or UK society until the 1970s. Most people, I would guess would know the Victorians grew many species, especially Nepenthes, and perhaps some would recall Tradescant's introduction of Sarracenia to Britain in the late 17th century. But I think I've found the oldest reference to the practice yet in one of the books I quoted from recently re: use of CP's in medicine. "This Herb...[Rosa Solis = D.rotundifolia]... grows in Bogs, and when we find it we may preserve it artificially, by either planting it immediately in other boggy places or else in artificial Bogs, made of Earth and Water in Tubs, or Earthen Pots, made without holes in the bottom" from _The Herball or Generall Historie of Plants_ by John Gerard, 1597 This conjures up a lovely picture to me of mediaeval housewives up and down the country making Drosera bog gardens, and presumably enjoying their sparkliness as much as we do. It was presumably a well-established practice by the time of writing, and the 2 other recipes spreading over the next ~130 years show it continued for at least that long. We are clearly following in the footsteps of a tradition that goes back over 400 years - rather further than I think most of us would have expected! Anyone know of any earlier references? Quite possibly Pinguicula vulgaris was similarly cultivated at the time, as this had a number of folk medicinal uses, notably for relieving the inflammation of chapped udders in milking cattle. Happy growing, Peter mailto:carnivor@flytrap.demon.co.uk : http:www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/cchome.htm Cambrian Carnivores,17,Wimmerfield Cr.,SWANSEA,SA2 7BU, UK : tel 01792 205214 Carnivorous Plants,Seeds & Tissue Culture Kits - mailorder,export & wholesale ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 04:56:29 -0500 Subject: RE: 16th century CPs steep all these in a gallon of good Aqua Composita, in a glass close stopped with wax, during twentie daies: shake it well together once every two daies. Your Sugar must be powdred, your spices bruised onely, or grossely beaten; your Dates cut in long slices, the stones taken away Peter, Thanks for sending in these last two postings. Great stuff! Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: Loyd Wix Date: 22 Jan 1999 13:28:02 Z Subject: Utricularia pollination and in-vitro propagation Dear All, I have been able to generate seed by self pollinating some of the large S.American Utricularia species such as U.reniformis. This is quite simple to do with a small brush as the reproductive structures of the flowers are quite large by comparison with more diminutive species. Such seed is viable but short lived Jan, >_U. humboldtii_ germinated immediately (you could actually >see the plant emerge from the seed coat a few hours after >sowing). As probably most of the readers on this list know >(I write this for those who did not know yet), _U. >humboldtii_ has a green embryo in the transparent testa, so >it is in fact "germinated" already before it is sown. Old >seeds with brown embryos are generally dead. Some plants of >this species should still be in cultivation (in vitro) at >several places. Was this the seed I sent you some years ago? If you would like to get some more in cultivation I may be able to help in several weeks time. I have never managed to generate seed on my U.alpina plant which flowers regularly - this 'clone' does not appear to form pollen. I understand that this plant was originally from in-vitro and that other plants of U.alpina will quite happily set seed. Is there any possibility of the hormones etc in the growth media interfering with the plants biochemistry effectively making it sterile? There are other reports of in-vitro plants 'going wrong' in the UK - Pinguicula which constantly divide but never flower, others which do not know what time of year it is and form winter rosettes in mid summer. There was also a Heliamphora circulating 9 or 10 years ago which just like Peter Pan never grew up and kept forming juvenile pitchers until most people got fed up with it and replaced it with clones which do produce adult pitchers. I would be interested to know whether these observations are purely anecdotal or whether in-vitro cultivation can lead to subsequent problems when the plants are unflasked. Regards Loyd PS A phone call from my wife informs me that Lowries Vol.3. has just arrived through my letter box - I can't wait to get home this evening! ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 09:07:10 -0500 Subject: Pinguicula luscitanica and P. moranensis I thought I would talk about my experiences with P. luscitanica to find out if I'm growing this species properly. Somewhere between 1 and 2 years ago, I planted seed on a mix of 1 part sand and 1 part milled sphagnum peat moss. They have since germinated, and flowered last summer having spent their entire life under fluorescent lights. I've kept them in the basement so they've never experienced our long, hot summers. Right now days are usually in the 70's to occasionally 80's (F) and nights are in the 50's to occasionally 60's now that they are in an enclosed grow room for the winter that has plastic on 2 walls separating the grow room from outdoor weather. One of the things that's bothering me is that the plants are maybe 1 cm in diameter. Is this the right size for luscitanica? They have never formed winter buds (Should they?), and the leaves have always seemed to be very curled. I also have a question about P. moranensis. I removed the pot from a tray of water maybe 1 to 2 months ago to try to induce winter dormancy. I have watered the pot occasionally, maybe once every 2 weeks for fear that the plants would dry out too much. They are still catching insects voraciously, and I'm concerned that I'm not giving them the winter dormancy they need. Any suggestions? Should I get tough! David Atlanta ################### From: schlauer@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 15:26:02 +0000 Subject: Re: Utricularia pollination and in-vitro propagation Dear Loyd, > Was this the seed I sent you some years ago? Maybe. I received seeds from various people. > If you would > like to get some more in cultivation I may be able to help > in several weeks time. TNX, but I do not need more. > I have never managed to generate seed on my U.alpina plant > which flowers regularly - this 'clone' does not appear to > form pollen. I understand that this plant was originally > from in-vitro and that other plants of U.alpina will quite > happily set seed. It could equally well be growing conditions, effects of a particular clone, etc. The factors affecting seed fertility in Lentibulariaceae are, as I mentioned in my previous mail, essentially unknown. > Is there any possibility of the hormones > etc in the growth media interfering with the plants > biochemistry effectively making it sterile? I am not able to exclude this possibility, but _U. alpina_ as well as a whole lot of other species can be grown successfully without the addition of any hormones. > There are other > reports of in-vitro plants 'going wrong' in the UK - > Pinguicula which constantly divide but never flower, others > which do not know what time of year it is and form winter > rosettes in mid summer. This is entirely normal in vitro. >. I would be interested to know > whether these observations are purely anecdotal or whether > in-vitro cultivation can lead to subsequent problems when > the plants are unflasked. Both legend and truth seem to be involved here. Kind regards Jan ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 11:21:23 EST Subject: Re: Pinguicula luscitanica and P. moranensis David and list, your growing method sounds perfect.... > One of the things that's bothering me is that the plants are maybe 1 cm in > diameter. Is this the right size for luscitanica? They have never formed > winter buds (Should they?), and the leaves have always seemed to be very > curled. the plants are generally small to begin with and while some of mine have gotten larger, don't ever expect to see a plant larger than 2 cm.... Or if there are people out there with a clone that does get that large, please contact me - I want seed! This species doesn't form a winter but and the leaves are supposed to be rolled at the edges. Again, nothing wrong here IMHO. > I also have a question about P. moranensis. I removed the pot from a tray > of water maybe 1 to 2 months ago to try to induce winter dormancy. I have > watered the pot occasionally, maybe once every 2 weeks for fear that the > plants would dry out too much. They are still catching insects voraciously, > and I'm concerned that I'm not giving them the winter dormancy they need. > Any suggestions? Should I get tough! Mine seem to go dormant more based on photoperiod. Certain species such as P. gypsicola and P. heterophylla definitely need a dry dormant period, but don't get too tough on moranensis :) Take care & keep on growing, Thomas Hayes DANGEROUS PLANTS callendar orders rolling in.... get your today! http://www.tcscs.com/~thayes/calendar/ ################### From: Diana at Meadowview Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 11:33:31 -0500 Subject: New CP site... check it out! See Phil Sheridan's new site on the net: www.pitcherplant.org Comment's, suggentions on web design can come to me. Comment's on content can go to him at: meadowview@pitcherplant.org ################### From: Phil Sheridan Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 12:08:09 -0800 Subject: subscribe subscribe ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 09:29:53 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Pinguicula luscitanica and P. moranensis Hi David, > One of the things that's bothering me is that the plants are maybe 1 cm in > diameter. Is this the right size for luscitanica? They have never formed > winter buds (Should they?), and the leaves have always seemed to be very > curled. I've got mine under growlights and they are only about 1-2 cm in diameter as well with very curled leaves. They've produced flowers and seed which germinated quickly once planted, so I assume everything I'm doing must be right. I don't think they ever form winter resting buds, most growers treat them as annuals, although they supposedly will survive brief freezing. Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 11:47:46 -0800 (PST) Subject: VFT flower stalks Hi all, I recall a couple of years ago a brief discussion about whether or not flower stalks of VFT's could be used similar to leaf cuttings. Can someone point out when this was discussed (I can't seem to find it), or if someone wants to re-discuss what their experience's are, I'd appreciate it. TIA. Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Ide Laurent Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 21:28:44 +0100 Subject: Biggest or small droseras Hi list and Jan especially Thank you for having answered to my curiosity this time. Relax, I like small drosera's too. I grow about 30 pygmies, although I particularly appreciate the big ones, like ericksonae, scorpioides, pulchella... The smallest are not easy to observe, the interest is often in the flower scape, for my opinion. What I LOVE is to propagate them... Take care dear all Laurent ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 15:31:36 -0500 Subject: P. Moranensis overwintering David wrote: I also have a question about P. moranensis. I removed the pot from a tray of water maybe 1 to 2 months ago to try to induce winter dormancy. I have watered the pot occasionally, maybe once every 2 weeks for fear that the plants would dry out too much. They are still catching insects voraciously, and I'm concerned that I'm not giving them the winter dormancy they need. Any suggestions? Should I get tough! My experiences with P. moranensis is pretty straightforward. During the winter months my plants are kept OUT of the water trays, the medium being kept slightly damp. I think a good 'barometer' for judging this species is the size of the leaves being produced. If your plants are still producing larger 'summer' foliage and are catching prey than just keep the soil wet as usual. When the rosettes begin to tighten up and produce much smaller succulent growth than start holding back on the watering until the compost reaches a state JUST BARELY DAMP to the touch. As with all things in nature things don't always behave like the text books say. Last year my Mexican pings produced the trademark large leaves until the end of January then started on their winter rosettes in early February! Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 23:32:43 -0800 Subject: VFT flower stalks >From: Chris Teichreb >Subject: VFT flower stalks > >Hi all, > >I recall a couple of years ago a brief discussion about whether or >not flower stalks of VFT's could be used similar to leaf cuttings. Can >someone point out when this was discussed (I can't seem to find it), or if >someone wants to re-discuss what their experience's are, I'd appreciate >it. TIA. I dont know about using them similar to leaf cuttings but my friend Ivan was telling me about the cold trick where you lean the flower stalk against something cold like a window and a pup buds off the stem. ################### From: Dave Date: Fri, 22 Jan 99 22:15 EST Subject: Re: Repotting CP's Dear Ian, > Getting ready to repot plants - I want to put something in the bottom of > the pot to improve drainage and prevent the medium from slowly dribbling > out the holes in the bottom of the pot. Sphagnum moss works great! > I have lots of pots in which long-fibered sphagnum has been used, but it > can smell a bit mulchy as it breaks down in the bottom of the pot. Don't use so much, just enough to cover the holes in the bottom of the pot. The peat mix or the moss can both start to get funky from sitting in water all day. Sometimes water should be flushed through to pot (don't do this to seedlings!!!) and the water in the tray has to be changed. This will help keep you soil "fresh." > In the Home Depot today I saw a sack of horticultural charcoal sold for > just this purpose. Has anyone used this? I like the idea that the > filtering action of the charcoal will help to keep the medium "fresh", > but am worried about effects on ph or unforseen considerations..... > Thoughts? Yes, I think you are the right track, here. Charcoal has not harmed my plants, and it also seems to help airate the soil, similar to how perlite does this... It's good for Nepenthes soil's, at least for most of the common mid-highland to low-land species. I don't know how (if) beneficial it is for Sarracenia though. Dave Evans ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1999 07:23:59 EST Subject: Ping Lusitanica Dear All, >One of the things that's bothering me is that the plants are maybe 1 cm in diameter. Is this the right size for luscitanica? They have never formed winter buds (Should they?), and the leaves have always seemed to be very curled. As stated by others, this seems to be about the right size. I can't comment on the growlights, as I've always grown mine in my cool greenhouse and 'let nature take its course'....however.... What I would advise is that you make sure that you obtain some seed from your plants. Slack observed that the plant was a 'short lived perrenial' and this does appear to be the case. I've never had any of my plants living longer than 2 years and as I , this year want to start growing it again, I've got to look for some seed for it myself. Does anybody know of any sellers of this seed ,apart from Allen Lowrie? All the best John Wilden Southport Lancs. UK ################### From: aquilla2@juno.com Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1999 07:55:55 -0800 Subject: Welcome Phil Welcome Phil, I was wondering when you would join this community. Will be looking forward to your remarks and input to this forum. Michael A Sankovich York, PA >Topic No. 7 > >Date: Fri, 22 Jan 1999 12:08:09 -0800 >From: Phil Sheridan >To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com >Subject: subscribe >Message-ID: <36A8DAA9.4E1D@pitcherplant.org> > >subscribe > >------------------------------ ################### From: takaicp@sh0.po.iijnet.or.jp Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 00:43:58 +0900 (JST) Subject: Re: Utricularia pollination and in-vitro propagation Dear Jan-san and Loyd-san, Jan-san, Thank you very much for the infomation. > > Please contact me directly. > The small talk above may be of interest for a few others on this list, > so I posted it here. The rest of the listeners are (like always) free > to make full use of their delete keys. No problem. As you know,I can not catch up with the progress speed of the conversation on this list. And also, I wanted to suppress to make this list dirty with my terrible English to the minimum. Loyd-san Jan-san, > > There are other > > reports of in-vitro plants 'going wrong' in the UK - > > Pinguicula which constantly divide but never flower, others > > which do not know what time of year it is and form winter > > rosettes in mid summer. > > This is entirely normal in vitro. > > >. I would be interested to know > > whether these observations are purely anecdotal or whether > > in-vitro cultivation can lead to subsequent problems when > > the plants are unflasked. > > Both legend and truth seem to be involved here. The such problem occurs to the other plant. For example, Cut Gerberas The experienced tissue culture company which produces Cut Gerberas always pays the such problem an attention. They become careful when extraordinarily well propagating clone emerges in vitro. It often becomes like Peter Pan Heliamphora which you described. Then, it constantly divides but never flower like Pinguicula which you described. The experienced company deletes such clone before sale. I don't know whether or not the phenomenon is gene mutation by in-vitro propagation. It may be that the phenomenon causes by operating the gene which is usually sleeping. To make the operation of the gene sleep, some stimulation may be necessary. Cut Gerbera farmers which bought such plants tries to solve the problem in following method. They choose one grown-up point in the plant which repeats division. They remove the other grown-up points. For a while, they repeat the operation. When the plant begins to produce flowers normally, they stop the operation. After that, they maintain several grown-up points like the normal other plants. I have seen Peter Pan Sarracenia seedlings (not from in-vitro). The method of Cut Gerbera farmers was effective. In any case, All of the seeds which collected from one pod aren't always sound. Very weak clone may survive by In-vitro culture. It might be dead when it was sown on soil. The bud mutation which is found out in the large breeding field occurs in the flasks in our kitchen labo. I love In-vitro propagation. But also, I think that the propagation by the seed is important, too. Then, I want huge numbers of clones(genetic variability) to continue to survive in thier native habitats. Kindest regards Isao ################### From: Dionaea@aol.com Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1999 10:54:11 EST Subject: Byblis (Should CP database be adjusted?) I recently asked if anyone knew more information about Byblis filifolia, aquatica and rorida. I came across the following recent Literature Review by Barry on an article about the taxonomic revision of the Genus Byblis (CPN 27:3, p. 76). The article states the following about the newly described species (and their former designations): B. filifolia = B. liniflora sp. occidentalis = B. aff. "Kunnunurra' B. aquatica = B. aff. "Darwin" B. rorida = ? So, here is my question to Rick. Should the CP database be adjusted to reflect this? The entry for B. liniflora ssp. occidentalis shows pictures of B. aff. "Kununurra" and B. aff "Darwin" which are really B. filifolia and B. aquatica, respectively. If the revision is accepted (and it appears it has) then the entry (and photos) for B. liniflora ssp. occidentalis is misleading. Christoph ################### From: Cwmonarch@aol.com Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1999 21:10:42 EST Subject: VFT & Dried Flies Today I went and purchased a small bottle of dried flies at the local pet store with the idea of feeding them to my VFT's. Of course the traps closed after teasing them with the bug however, they are reopening rather than forming a seal around the insect. Why is this? How can I inspire my plants that they have a real meal and trigger them to digest? Thanks ################### From: "tierney wayne" Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1999 19:18:17 PST Subject: _S. psittacina_ problem Hi everyone, I have a problem I'm hoping someone can help me with; I've never found a reference to it in any literature. I've had a S. psittacina plant for several years, and it was growing fine until last spring. Then, it didn't produce any normal traps, just these long thin upright leaves with little nodules at the end which never opened into a trap. They were very weak and would pull right off. By the end of the summer I had gotten frustrated with it and I cut off all the growth, but it grew back just the same. I'm hoping to figure out what caused this before I run into this problem this spring! Oh, I also have an S. purpurea which is doing the same sort of thing to a lesser degree, also producing normal traps. These plants are in different places but both receive good sun, so I don't think it's a problem with the light, and I've never observed any insect pests. I'm worried that it's a virus. If anyone has any ideas or has had the same experience, I would love to hear about it! Thanks, Tierney ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1999 22:13:36 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: VFT & Dried Flies The dried flies probably do not yield any liquid when the trap closes on them. The *fly juice* might be necessary for the enzyme chemistry to be activated on the surface of the trap face. Try soaking the dried flies in a little warm water for 30 minutes before dropping into the trap. I saw the same lack of interest when I tried to feed dried miniature shrimp (fish food) to my VFTs. It was much easier to just put the plants in an outdoor environment and let them catch their own food. - Carl On Sat, 23 Jan 1999 Cwmonarch@aol.com wrote: > Today I went and purchased a small bottle of dried flies at the local pet > store with the idea of feeding them to my VFT's. Of course the traps closed > after teasing them with the bug however, they are reopening rather than > forming a seal around the insect. Why is this? How can I inspire my plants > that they have a real meal and trigger them to digest? > > Thanks > ################### From: "Poh Jonathan" Date: Sat, 23 Jan 1999 22:26:08 PST Subject: Drosphyllum seeds! Hi, I'm Jonathan Poh and I will like to know whether there is anyone who is kind enough to trade or give some drosphyllum seeds to me! Thank you! I will also like to find a person that is range between age 14-16 to talk abt Cps. Hope to hear frm anyone! Lots of love Jonathan Poh ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 07:18:49 -0400 Subject: Re: VFT & Dried Flies >Today I went and purchased a small bottle of dried flies at the local pet >store with the idea of feeding them to my VFT's. Of course the traps closed >after teasing them with the bug however, they are reopening rather than >forming a seal around the insect. Why is this? How can I inspire my plants >that they have a real meal and trigger them to digest? > >Thanks VFTs are used to forming seals areound trapped live and _struggling_ insects. If you feel that you have to feed them, and it is not necessary to feed them over the winter if you put them out doors for the summer, you will have to wiggle the dried insect around for a while at the end of a pin to get the traps to close. The traps could also be overstimulated, if they are being fed a lot. Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson New Brunswick The Great White Frozen North ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 07:18:47 -0400 Subject: Re: _S. psittacina_ problem Hi Tierney: Are you giving these plants a proper _cold_ dormancy? >Hi everyone, >I have a problem I'm hoping someone can help me with; I've never found a >reference to it in any literature. I've had a S. psittacina plant for >several years, and it was growing fine until last spring. Then, it >didn't produce any normal traps, just these long thin upright leaves >with little nodules at the end which never opened into a trap. They were >very weak and would pull right off. By the end of the summer I had >gotten frustrated with it and I cut off all the growth, but it grew back >just the same. I'm hoping to figure out what caused this before I run >into this problem this spring! >Oh, I also have an S. purpurea which is doing the same sort of thing to >a lesser degree, also producing normal traps. These plants are in >different places but both receive good sun, so I don't think it's a >problem with the light, and I've never observed any insect pests. I'm >worried that it's a virus. >If anyone has any ideas or has had the same experience, I would love to >hear about it! >Thanks, >Tierney Rand Rand Nicholson New Brunswick The Great White Frozen North ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 07:19:06 EST Subject: VFT & Dried flies You wrote, >he dried flies probably do not yield any liquid when the trap closes on them. The *fly juice* might be necessary for the enzyme chemistry to be activated on the surface of the trap face. Try soaking the dried flies in a little warm water for 30 minutes before dropping into the trap. I saw the same lack of interest when I tried to feed dried miniature shrimp (fish food) to my VFTs. It was much easier to just put the plants in an outdoor environment and let them catch their own food. - Carl The traps don't respond because the 'captured' prey (dried shrimp /fly ) doesn't move once captured. This is actually a good housekeeping measure on the part of the VFT ,as in the wild,any debris which would trigger the trap to close would not keep the trap closed for a great length of time (so wasting the traps efficiency). Because your flies/ shrimps do not move, the VFT 'thinks' it's caught a leaf or a twig and so resets the traps to await the real thing. I have heard that GENTLY squeezing the traps after its closed around the dried prey will stimulate the trap to remain closed and to digest. However, I wonder exactly how much nutrition is actually in a dried fly (bit of a waste of time feeding them) and wether you should be feeding them when the plants should be in dormancy. All the best John Wilden Southport Lancs. UK ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 16:27:49 +0000 Subject: Re: P. Moranensis overwintering Regarding the query on inducing dormancy in P. moranensis (from David I think?): >I also have a question about P. moranensis. I removed the pot from a tray >of water maybe 1 to 2 months ago to try to induce winter dormancy. I have >watered the pot occasionally, maybe once every 2 weeks for fear that the >plants would dry out too much. They are still catching insects voraciously, >and I'm concerned that I'm not giving them the winter dormancy they need. >Any suggestions? Should I get tough! OK. P. moranensis is a large group of plants all belonging to a single species but showing a very wide range of variations. If you compared two types that were most unalike (at extreme opposite ends of the variations) then you could be forgiven for thinking them different species, even botanists do this. However, there are intermediates between all the types and no distinguishing features that do not show variation so separation into any subspecies, varieties, forms or otherwise are impossible. They are all one species (actually a "complex", but still a single species). Why have I bothered saying this? Because the variation is important. There are many many different plants that are still part of the P. moranensis complex. And they not only differ to different degrees in how they look but also occur in widely differing locations spread over a relatively large geographical area. So the plants differ and this includes differences in how they grow and in what conditions they need. (The first two P. moranensis plants that were widely cultivated were P. moranensis types invalidly called P. caudata and P. mexicana. They are entirely different in winter, one having a neat semi-dormant rosette much smaller than its summer form and the other being a tangled mass of leaves that differ from the summer form only because the plant divides in winter and so there are more leaves fighting for space.) So, some P. moranensis plants will not withstand extended exposure to temperatures below 10 degrees celcius while other P. moranensis plants are quite happy (if kept dry) at about 3 or 4 degrees celcius. It all depends where the plant came from (or where its parents plant originally came from). And this means that forcing or trying to force a P. moranensis plant into dormancy can be fatal. If your plant is a variation that comes from an area that is constantly warm rather than cold and/or generally damp rather than seasonally dry, it is not likely to be adapted for dormancy. Any attempt to encourage dormancy by lowering temperatures or reducing water may rob the plant of its requirements. Typically, pinguicul plants die by changing colour to a sickly green that's impossible to describe but just about every Ping grower knows when they see it. It just looks wrong. Unfortunately, in almost all cases once you see this colour the plant is stressed beyond any rescue attempts. It's dead and all you are watching are the final death twitches! What can you do? If you have a P. moranensis and don't know if it requires dormancy, do as follows. Keep the plant slightly drier than usual but not dry. Drop temperatures to about a 10 degree celcius level ideally all day and night but certainly at night. Reduce lighting to be no more than 8 hours a day, a little less if possible (7 or 7.5). Then watch your plant. If it is able to be dormant, the leaves will change and become more of a well ordered rosette, often of rather small succulent (fat) leaves. The plant may even form a rosette that withdraws underground but certainly most will hug the ground. The leaves will also be dry to the touch. Such plants can be kept much drier until the leaves suddenly start to grow, which you will see starting at the rosette centre as new leaves obviously grow outward and are clearly going to be larger than the rosette from the moment you first see them. If a plant retains sticky leaves and the leaves do not change in shape or size, the plant is unlikely to require dormancy and may be killed by attempts to induce it. So don't. Hope this helps. Regards Paul ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 10:57:37 +0000 Subject: Re: Pinguicula luscitanica and P. moranensis David, It sounds like you are growing P. lusitanica just fine! >I thought I would talk about my experiences with P. luscitanica to find out >if I'm growing this species properly. Somewhere between 1 and 2 years ago, >I planted seed on a mix of 1 part sand and 1 part milled sphagnum peat moss. >They have since germinated, and flowered last summer having spent their >entire life under fluorescent lights. I've kept them in the basement so >they've never experienced our long, hot summers. Right now days are usually >in the 70's to occasionally 80's (F) and nights are in the 50's to >occasionally 60's now that they are in an enclosed grow room for the winter >that has plastic on 2 walls separating the grow room from outdoor weather. > >One of the things that's bothering me is that the plants are maybe 1 cm in 1 cm diameter is about the right size. >diameter. Is this the right size for luscitanica? They have never formed No, they do not form winter buds. >winter buds (Should they?), and the leaves have always seemed to be very >curled. > This is normal. You do not mention if the plants have flowered. >I also have a question about P. moranensis. I removed the pot from a tray >of water maybe 1 to 2 months ago to try to induce winter dormancy. I have >watered the pot occasionally, maybe once every 2 weeks for fear that the >plants would dry out too much. They are still catching insects voraciously, >and I'm concerned that I'm not giving them the winter dormancy they need. >Any suggestions? Should I get tough! > Try allowing the pot to dry out. If you are growing under lights allow the photoperiod to drop to around nine hours per day. Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 09:58:07 -0700 Subject: Mechanical vs Chemical stimuli - was VFT & Dried flies In regards to the question about why a VFT would reject a dried fly, Rand (I think) replied that wetting the fly to get its "juices" up would help, whereas John suggested that VFTs require movement to get the VFT to commence digestion. This brings up the question of whether or not the feeding response of a VFT is triggered by a mechanical or chemical stimulus. Clearly the trigger for the trap to close is mechanical (under normal circumstances) but I have wondered if mechanical stimulus was relevant to trigger the digestive process. In my own experience, I have had VFTs reject dry items but not wet ones (in both cases without mechanical stimulation after the trap has closed) so my personal suspicion is that the feeding response is a chemical stimulus. I suspect that most attempts to mechanically stimulate the trap after closure serve to increase contact of the lobes of the trap to the prey item, thus producing the necessary chemical trigger. Under natural circumstances I suspect a struggling insect will likely defecate while it is being crushed to death and the movement of the insect will increase surface contact of the lobes of the trap to the necessary chemical stimulus. But this all just conjecture on my part. Does anyone know if this has been studied or have an relevant data? Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 17:15:41 -0400 Subject: Re: Mechanical vs Chemical stimuli - was VFT & Dried flies >In regards to the question about why a VFT would reject a dried fly, Rand >(I think) replied that wetting the fly to get its "juices" up would help, >whereas John suggested that VFTs require movement to get the VFT to >commence digestion. Nope! I suggested that the trap would not form a seal unless there was movement in the trap. I do not think that something has to be wet, or have juices, for the trap to close and "lock". >This brings up the question of whether or not the feeding response of a >VFT is triggered by a mechanical or chemical stimulus. Clearly the >trigger for the trap to close is mechanical (under normal circumstances) >but I have wondered if mechanical stimulus was relevant to trigger the >digestive process. Yes, it is. "Trigger hairs". The VFT operates biomechanically, according to my information. Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson New Brunswick The Great White Frozen North ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 19:24:03 EST Subject: Re: A request from Moscow Greetings folks, Peter here at California Carnivores! Whoops! I neglected to mention a radio interview I was to do this morning (Sunday) on KIRO in Seattle. Well, I did it and had a lot of fun; the interviewer kept me on longer cause of a lot of questions from the listeners. Ciscoe Morris, the host, has invited me up to Seattle to do another show (this one was done by phone), and I told him if I get to Seattle this summer (as I keep promising friends up there I will do), I would take him up on it. I promise to let ya'll know if I do. I had completely forgotten about the interview until 10 minutes before show time! I have received a request from Prof. Alexander B. Doweld at the National Institute of Carpology in Moscow. He is studying fruit and seed of Byblis for the 6th volume of Anatomia Semimum Comparativa, an encyclodeia. He is requesting a few seed and dried, empty seed pods of Byblis species other than B. liniflora. If you can help him, his email address is mts6@mts6.mmtel.msk.su. His address in Moscow will be given to you. His fax number is 7 (095) 925-86-07. His secretary is Anna Pavlova. Welcome to Phil Sheridan! Let's talk Sarracenia! Th-th-th-th-th-that's all, folks! Peter D'Amato ################### From: "TED HADLEY" Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 18:08:59 -0800 Subject: Re: Help! Foam turned to goo! Hi All, Thanks much for your advice about how to get the foam, glue, and goo cleaned up. Here is what I ended up doing: 1. mineral spirit paint thinner. No effect. 2. Acetone + lots of rubbing. Works, but only barely. Then I sent a request the The Gemmary's forum, where you all kindly offered some ideas. 1. Try xylene. I didn't have any, but I did have toluene, which is a comparable solvent. This had an odd effect. While it did not remove anything (in fact had no noticeable effect), it DID make the residual glue much less sticky. 2. Paint stripper. All I had was Jasco Paint Remover, which is primarly methylene chloride, a nasty solvent which almost dissolves wood. :-( So, I used some Home Depot lacquer thinner that was sitting around. According to the label, it is methyl ethyl ketone, methanol, and toluene. This stuff was, as one would expect, somewhat a cross between the acetone (which is actually dimethyl ketone) and the toluene. Little obvious removal, but continued to make the residue even less sticky. 3. Freezing combined with steel wool. Well, now that the toluene was removing all of the "sticky" from the glue, I just tried the steel wool directly, without freezing. This worked great. Almost all of the glue and goo is now gone. Thanks much for your suggestions. I will keep them all in mind should the problem arise again. Take care, tedh. -------- Ted A. Hadley, Senior Mineralogist hadleyt@usa.net Mineralogical Investigation Services Sunnyvale, CA 94087 USA ################### From: "Scott Mcphee" Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 18:41:25 -0800 Subject: THRIPS!!!! I just discovered that I have a small Thrips infestation on my two Nepenthes. I have some Schultz pyrethrin spray which is labeled for use on Thrips. Will this be ok to use on the Nepenthes? I use it with good results on my orchids. Please reply promptly to prevent further spread!! Scott Mcphee Northern Cal. ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1999 08:55:23 -0500 Subject: RE: P. Moranensis overwintering Hi Paul, > Typically, pinguicul plants die by changing colour to a sickly green that's impossible to describe but just >about every Ping grower knows when they see it. It just looks wrong. >Unfortunately, in almost all cases once you see this colour the plant is stressed >beyond any rescue attempts. It's dead and all you are watching are the final >death twitches! I noticed the sickly green color on one leaf over the weekend. There's probably 8 to 12 leaves, and it appears to be multiple plants growing very close together but I'll have to check that to be sure. Thanks for the tips about moranensis culture. I'll follow them and we'll see what happens. David Atlanta ################### From: Mike Vogl Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1999 09:08:33 +0000 Subject: slime on Roridula seeds A few weeks ago I recieved some Roridula dentata seeds. I soaked them in water and then sowed them in a simple peat:sand mix. After soaking them, I noticed that they appeared "fuzzy", as if they were covered by tiny hairs. Now, a few weeks later, the seeds are covered by a thick slime. It is not fungus or algae; the material is not on the soil and does not rub off on my fingers. Likewise, the seeds do not seem to be rotten or soft; they look like they are still viable. So my question: what is this stuff? My observation would be that it seems to be a product of the seeds themselves, as opposed to some sort of pathogen. Do Roridula produce herbicidal chemicals to reduce competition (like Drosophyllum)? Might they be carnivorous (like the seeds of Shepherd's purse)? Any other suggestions? ################### From: "John H. Phillips III" Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1999 09:37:14 +0800 Subject: Nepenthes and Hard Water I've heard that Nepenthes are not as choosy about the softness of their water, but has anyone on the list actually tried using hard water for an extended length of time, or know anyone who has? And how did the Nepenthes fair? Thanx in advance, John H. Phillips III e-mail:phillips@library.ucsf.edu Interlibrary Loan Rm 202 Health Sciences Library University of California 530 Parnassus Ave San Francisco, CA 94143-0840 PH: (415) 476-8383 FAX: (415) 476-7940 ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1999 13:06:45 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Nepenthes and Hard Water I routinely use city tap water on all my yard plants including Nepenthes. No ill effects so far (2-years). - Carl On Mon, 25 Jan 1999, John H. Phillips III wrote: > I've heard that Nepenthes are not as choosy about the softness of > their water, but has anyone on the list actually tried using hard > water for an extended length of time, or know anyone who has? And how > did the Nepenthes fair? Thanx in advance, > > John H. Phillips III e-mail:phillips@library.ucsf.edu Interlibrary > Loan Rm 202 Health Sciences Library University of California 530 > Parnassus Ave San Francisco, CA 94143-0840 PH: (415) 476-8383 FAX: > (415) 476-7940 > ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1999 10:36:14 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Nepenthes and Hard Water Hi John, I used very hard water (from the prairies) on N.alata for about a year with no ill effects. Of course, N.alata is pretty robust so I'd be careful about what plant you decide to use it on. Related to this, I've watered many cp with hard water, especially in summer when water demands are high, with no apparent ill effects after several years. In the fall, I just made sure to flush out the pots thoroughly with distilled water. Sarrs, Drosera, Pings, all were fine. Chris On Mon, 25 Jan 1999, John H. Phillips III wrote: > I've heard that Nepenthes are not as choosy about the softness of > their water, but has anyone on the list actually tried using hard > water for an extended length of time, or know anyone who has? And how > did the Nepenthes fair? Thanx in advance, > > John H. Phillips III e-mail:phillips@library.ucsf.edu Interlibrary > Loan Rm 202 Health Sciences Library University of California 530 > Parnassus Ave San Francisco, CA 94143-0840 PH: (415) 476-8383 FAX: > (415) 476-7940 > ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Sean Barry Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1999 12:00:21 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Nepenthes and Hard Water On Mon, 25 Jan 1999, Carl Strohmenger (HSC) wrote: > I routinely use city tap water on all my yard plants including Nepenthes. > No ill effects so far (2-years). Different cities have vastly different water. San Francisco's water, which is snow-melt from Hetch-Hetchy reservoir in the Tuolumne River canyon of the Sierra Nevada, is quite soft and probably entirely suited for all but the delicately picky (about water) plants. Travel a few miles to Fremont or any of the East Bay cities that obtain their water from wells, and the story is very different--that water is generally grossly hard (to 28ppm dissolved solids and even much higher in some locales) and is also often laced with elements that in moderate concentrations are quite phytotoxic. A good northern California example of that is boron. That water isn't really suitable for any plant. It's best to form absolutely no generalities about municipal water--some are as good as they get, others are worse than terrible. Test it, and use it if it's OK, don't if it's not, no matter what you've heard. Sean Barry ################### From: Dave Date: Mon, 25 Jan 99 23:58 EST Subject: Re: Re: VFT & Dried Flies Hi Rand, > VFTs are used to forming seals areound trapped live and _struggling_ > insects. Yes. But it has been my experience that both moisture and movement count for getting the VFT to digest pre-killed food. > If you feel that you have to feed them, and it is not necessary > to feed them over the winter if you put them out doors for the summer, you > will have to wiggle the dried insect around for a while at the end of a pin > to get the traps to close. The VFT I had outside (now inside) have already woke up and think it's spring. They are growing new leaves and traps. Even the remaining traps from last year have become able to trap and digest again. They are also growing flowers and I think feeding them now even though it's still winter is a good idea. > The traps could also be overstimulated, if they > are being fed a lot. I agree with Rand: You doen't really need to feed the plants much. I think four or five good 'meals' would be enough food for a year. And even indoor plants should be able to catch this much, unless they are inside sealed terrariums. Dave Evans ################### From: Steve Woodward Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1999 12:40:03 -0500 (EST) Subject: Introduction Hi: I registered with this network last week, and have already found many of the messages useful! I've been working with carnivorous plants for the last 12 years, since I was given two Heliamphora nutans plants from Oxford Botanic Gardens to get them into tissue culture. Things grew rather rapidly from there, and I have a large collection, which includes all recognised species of Sarracenia plus many hybrids, Heliamphora nutans, Darlingtonia, Cephalotus, several Nepenthes and Pinguicula, lots of different Drosera, Drosophyllum, Byblis, Catopsis. Of course, I also have the (ever-present) Venus fly trap too. A good range of species, in fact. And yes, most do survive our northerly latitudes rather well, either in a heated glasshouse (winter min. approx. 6 C), or in an unheated polytunnel. I continued my work with tissue culture of CPs when I moved up to Aberdeen, setting up a laboratory at home, but its getting a bit much for me to give the lab. the attention it deserves, hence the following message sent into the cp-tissue-culture digest last week. I hope this isn't considered an inappropriate use of the network, but heregoes: 'Is anyone in the UK or elsewhere in Europe interested in purchasing a full micropropagation facility for carnivorous plants, including lighting rig with 5 shelves (total = 7 square metres of space), 1.8m laminar flow cabinet, cultures of about 80 species/varieties of CPs, balances, lots of 450g jars with plastic and metal lids, baby food jars. Several orders are 'on the go'. I can sell off cultures individually, and could sell the equipment separately, but I would prefer to sell the whole unit as a going concern. With a baby, various other species of animal demanding my attention and a huge vegetable garden, I can't give the CPs the attention they deserve. I would just maintain my glasshouse and outdoor collection for my own pleasure. Steve Woodward PS The CPs are nothing to do with my University position (address below) - my tissue culture lab. is at home.' Any interest amongst users of this site? It is a small commercial concern, with equipment valued at about [Sterling] 1850 pounds, and thousands of plants in culture. There are also several orders awaiting completion. I'm convinced there is a reasonable living to be made by someone with more time to spare than me! Steve Woodward ---------------------- Dr. Steve Woodward University of Aberdeen Department of Forestry MacRobert Building 581 King Street Aberdeen AB24 5UA Scotland UK Tel: +44 (0)1224 272669 Fax: +44 (0)1224 272685 s.woodward@abdn.ac.uk http://www.abdn.ac.uk/forestry/staff/sw.htm ################### From: "NEIL ARMSTRONG" Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1999 16:11:39 -0000 Subject: RE VFT & Dried Flies The VFT's trap mechanism is very much afected by temperature and during the winter the closure rate is much reduced. However as the plant is just about inactive (and there's no flies anyway) it does'nt really matter. I agree that trying to feed during the winter is not a good Idea. There has been loads of research done (by Lloyd, Darwin, Hooker etc) into what causes the trap closure, but it's generally accepted to be a combination of temperature, continual struggle by the insect & chemicals in the insects body that trigger the release of the enzymes. Check out "Carnivorous Plants" by F.E. Lloyd, you may have trouble finding the original 1942 copy (it took me three years!) but it was republished in 1976 and should be in most librarys. Cheers! Neil. ################### From: Dionaea@aol.com Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1999 13:54:02 EST Subject: Lowrie's Vol. 3 is now available For those eagerly awaiting Lowire's 3rd volume, it is now available. I just received my copy today in the mail. If you ordered yours it should be on it's way. The photographs are great -- in the style of his first two books. Several species did not make it into this book because they were, according to the preface, described after the book was completed. Regardless, this book has many helpful descriptions of many other species. Hats off to Allen Lowrie. Christoph ################### From: drury6@juno.com Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1999 10:01:24 -0600 Subject: P. primulifolia pollination & feeding of cp's I would like to know the proper way to pollenate my Pings., my P. Primulifolia has bloomed two blooms and I use a smal, clean paintbrush to pollenate the flowers one bloom dropped of a few days later, has it been pollenated? Did I do something wrong? btw, I feed all my plants freeze dried bloodworms. they dissolve quickly and seem to be somewhat steril. ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1999 01:39:34 -0700 Subject: can ozone affect seed germination? I'm trying to germinate some Utric seeds in a terrarium. Humidity: varies between 60-80 percent. Temperature: varies between 35-18 Celcius. Photoperiod: 10 hours of light, two 33 watt bulbs, 5cm from source. I've waited about a month and haven't seen any germination. I wonder, can ozone affect seed germination? The fan inside my terrarium circulates the air very well. However, when I remove the terrarium lid I can smell ozone. I guess, the fan uses brushes. It uses 120VAC. Once, I though I saw damp-off fungus attacking my Utric seeds. Now, I'm not sure if it is there or gone. The same fungus ruined most of my Sarracenia seeds. The attack on my Sarra seeds happened so fast it appeared to come from some flower debris that was with the seeds. I bought a systemic fungicide to use if damp-off appears, again in my Utric seeds and my new Sarra seeds. I sterilized my soil in a microwave, with some water. Maybe, my Utric seeds need some warm and real sunlight. I am using the tray method to water them and I am spraying them with 'clean' water about 1 or 2 times per day. I must admit, some days I forget to do that. The water level is usually less than 4cm below soil level. ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1999 21:16:39 -0700 Subject: I prefer an upright Drosophyllum. Does an upright Drosophyllum exist? Maybe, there's a cultivar or a location where an upright plant grows. I read in THE SAVAGE GARDEN about Drosophyllum and its scrambling habit. I thought to myself 'I would like to have a Drosophyllum plant but scramblers can be difficult to handle'. An extreme example is the Pothos plant. It grows runners several feet long and can be a nuisance to move. A solution is staking the plant or wrap it around something that its roots will penetrate. I tried both of those solutions and the wooden stakes rotted. A simple solution is to 'prune' the plant before moving it. I don't like to do that. I know, it is 'only a plant' but I don't like doing that to a Pothos, anyway. I DO NOT hate scramblers. However, they have a tendency to borrow growing space from neighbor plants. Already, my plants don't have an abundance of growing room. I guess, scrambling habits help plants stay near the ground where humidity is slightly better. Chad. ################### From: Angie Nichols Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 05:02:58 -0800 Subject: (no subject) In the pet shop the other day I noticed the reptile/turtle food "musca larvae". Anyone know what particular varmit that is? I already feed my plants freeze dried insect larvae and was thinking of trying the musca larvae for variety. Angie Nichols, SC. ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 03:04:03 PST Subject: Ibicella lutea Hello, I'm 19 years old and I'm interested in Ibicella since I was 17. I've noticed that Ibicella isn't a carnivorous plant! Who can tell me why. I just want to know more about that wonderfull plant (and the way he isn't carnivorous... Thank you... Sam Vanderstraeten. ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 13:15:08 Subject: Re: Ibicella lutea Dear Sam, > I'm 19 years old and I'm interested in Ibicella since I was 17. > I've noticed that Ibicella isn't a carnivorous plant! Who can tell me > why. The question is rather why has this plant ever been suspected to be carnivorous. All speculations about the carnivory of _Ibicella_ or Martyniaceae can be traced back to a single experiment published very early this century by Mameli. The only substantial result of this experiment was that a piece of albumin (a protein contained in cheese etc.), which is initially a white or at least opaque substance, became transparent upon treatment with _Ibicella_. Unfortunately, it was appreciated only after these breathtaking experiments that this change in albumin "appeal" can be caused by various circumstances, of which digestion is only one. A piece of cheese will be "digested" in this way by several sticky plant surfaces (incl. _Roridula_). > I just want to know more about that wonderfull plant (and the way > he isn't carnivorous... It has only recently been tested by more rigorous methods whether _Ibicella_ is in fact able to digest proteins (i.e. to break them down by enzymatic hydrolysis), almost unanimously with negative results (CPN, in press). But if you remember the recent publications by Ellis & Midgley or Hartmeyer, you will see that the case may still not be entirely closed for sticky plants like _Ibicella_. If it can be shown that they live in a +/- obligate association with insects that perform the digestion, a sub-carnivorous mutualism could be assumed like in _Roridula_. If you add bacterial decomposition to the legitimate methods of cp digestion, you can call all sticky plants carnivorous. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 08:13:52 -0500 Subject: Re: (no subject) At 01:21 AM 1/27/99 -0800, you wrote: >In the pet shop the other day I noticed the reptile/turtle food "musca >larvae". Anyone know what particular varmit that is? I already feed my >plants freeze dried insect larvae and was thinking of trying the musca >larvae for variety. Angie Nichols, SC. Dear Angie, If memory serves me correctly....musca=fly. Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 09:35:11 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: (no subject) Hi Angie, Musca larvae is fly larvae. Yum! Your plants will love it. Chris On Wed, 27 Jan 1999, Angie Nichols wrote: > In the pet shop the other day I noticed the reptile/turtle food "musca > larvae". Anyone know what particular varmit that is? I already feed my > plants freeze dried insect larvae and was thinking of trying the musca > larvae for variety. Angie Nichols, SC. > ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 09:39:52 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: can ozone affect seed germination? Hi Chad, > I wonder, can ozone affect seed germination? > The fan inside my terrarium circulates the air very well. > However, when I remove the terrarium lid I can smell ozone. > I guess, the fan uses brushes. It uses 120VAC. I've never heard of a fan producing ozone, although I guess it's possible. Doesn't sound like that's your problem though. > > Once, I though I saw damp-off fungus attacking my Utric seeds. > Now, I'm not sure if it is there or gone. > The same fungus ruined most of my Sarracenia seeds. > The attack on my Sarra seeds happened so fast it appeared to > come from some flower debris that was with the seeds. > I bought a systemic fungicide to use if damp-off appears, again > in my Utric seeds and my new Sarra seeds. > I sterilized my soil in a microwave, with some water. > > Maybe, my Utric seeds need some warm and real sunlight. > I am using the tray method to water them and I am spraying them > with 'clean' water about 1 or 2 times per day. > I must admit, some days I forget to do that. > The water level is usually less than 4cm below soil level. Why they're not germinating depends a lot on what type of Utrics you're trying to germinate (aquatic, terrestrial, epiphytic, etc.). It sounds like the humidity and water levels are too high if you're getting damping off that quickly. In my terrariums, water level is never more than about 1-2 inches high, and the plants grow fine because the humidity around them is high enough. I don't have problems with fungus either. Warmth is definitely another consideration, but so is the type of Utric seed (ie: is it a temperate or tropical variety). Finally, newly germinated Utric is usually very small (except for some of the epiphytes), so it may be that it's there, just not noticeable. Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: "Jure Slatner" Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 19:32:17 +0100 Subject: Toetmoelk Hi, Peter Cole recently wrote: >I just hope it's better than the Ta"tmio"lk I tried a couple of years ago. I'd like to know where, when and by who Toetmoelk or Ta"tmio"lk or Filmjo"lk was/is produced. There are tree different names probably from tree nations? What is the procedure to do it. Jure Slatner ################### From: Dave Date: Wed, 27 Jan 99 14:12 EST Subject: Re: P. primulifolia pollination & feeding of cp's Dear Don, > I would like to know the proper way to pollenate my Pings., my P. > Primulifolia has bloomed two blooms and I use a smal, clean paintbrush to > pollenate the flowers one bloom dropped of a few days later, has it been > pollenated? Did I do something wrong? You cab tell if the pollination was successful when the ovary starts to swell as the seeds grow inside it. If the flower stalk dies with the flower then no seeds will grow. Dave Evans ################### From: Rick Walker Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 11:55:13 -0800 Subject: Re: P. primulifolia pollination > drury6@juno.com writes: > I would like to know the proper way to pollenate my Pings., my P. > Primulifolia has bloomed two blooms and I use a smal, clean paintbrush > to pollenate the flowers one bloom dropped of a few days later, has it > been pollenated? Did I do something wrong? The Ping Slide Show at: http://www.hpl.hp.com/botany/public_html/cp/slides/pings/pings.htm has a detailed drawing of ping flower parts explaining how to pollenate these flowers. Best regards, -- Rick Walker ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 15:12:04 -0700 Subject: Re: can ozone affect seed germination? If the fan uses brushes, then there are sparks and those make ozone. I imagine there are several ways to design an AC fan/motor but I thought DC motors used brushes, sometimes. I've noticed a kind of wax on the fan when it runs for a while- maybe that's the source of the smell. I haven't seen any fungus recently- false alarm? This is what I'm trying to germinate: U. menziesii Albany, W.A. U. gibba N.S.W. U. tridentata El Pinar, Uruguay Sometimes, you can peek through a vent in your 120VAC drill gun and see several tiny sparks. ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 14:44:11 -0700 Subject: Ping growing in mossy patches on glaciers? In THE SAVAGE GARDEN, on page 192, at the end of the third paragraph Mr. D'Amato writes '... a newly identified species (unnamed at this writing) has been found growing in mossy patches on glaciers in the Arctic.' Anybody have more information about that? ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 15:25:14 PST Subject: Back from Neblina! To all, First of all happy 1999 to everyone!! I've just returned from the wildest CP expedition I've ever been on. I spent nearly 6 weeks exploring around teh Amazon Basin in Northern Brazil with some friends. We also took a quick hop into Venezuela where we wanted to climb Mt.Roraima, but didn't have time. So we hung around the Gran Sabana -- which was not bad ta all: about 30 CP species!! The main objective of this trip was to reach the unreachable Mt.Neblina. It was extremely difficult, and for many days we thought we would never even be able to begin the expedition, much less reach the top. But in the end we made it -- don't try this at home, kids! CPs were not as common as we imagined up there and although we found some fantastic things, like H.tatei var.neblinae, we didn't find THE species that dragged me all the way up there: the magnificent D.meristocaulis. Anyways, I'll write more about this later to the listserv. I just wanted to say hello to everyone. And before anyone asks, sorry, but I do not cultivate CPs anymore and do NOT have any plants or seeds from this trip for trade or sale. But don't worry, most species will be made available through seed banks at first and later through tissue culture. So hold your horses..... OK, just to wet some appetites, here's the list of CPs seen on this trip. Mt.Neblina (Northwestern Amazonas state): D.roraimae (new subspecies?) D.sp. new (small rosettes, spatulate leaves, long scapes, white fls) H.tatei var.neblinae H.sp. new (small pitchers, small lids, coarse hairs in throat) U.alpina U.amethystina U.campbelliana U.humboldtii U.quelchii (pink fls) U.subulata Serra do Araca' (Northern Amazonas state): D.kaieteurensis D.roraimae U.amethystina U.pubescens (light purple-lilac fl) U.sandwithii(?) U.subulata U.sp. (affixed aquatic) U.sp. (in shady habitats with U.pubescens) Boa Vista area (Northern Roraima state): D.biflora(?) D.sessilifolia U.simulans/ or fimbriata Gran Sabana (Southern Bolivar state, Venezuela) Brocchinia reducta B.hectioides Catopsis berteroniana D.arenicola var.arenicola D.cayenensis D.communis D.felix D.intermedia D.roraimae G.filiformis G.guianensis (AMAZING!) G.repens H.heterodoxa U.amesthytina (white fls) U.calicyfida (red-veined leaf, no fls) U.cornuta/or juncea U.cucullata U.hispida U.pubescens (same as on Araca') U.pusilla U.sandwithii(?) U.schultesii(?) U.simulans/ or fimbriata U.subulata U.trichophylla U.triloba U.sp. (U.lloydii-like) U.sp. (U.lloydii-like, red calyx lobes) U.sp. (U.lloydii-like, giant) U.sp. (affixed aquatic) U.sp. (pygmy U.tricolor?) Well, I think that's it. More later! Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: Brian D Quinn Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 12:40:52 +1300 Subject: Utricularia novae-zelandiae I have some fresh U. novae-zelandiae seed collected a few days ago and am willing to send seed to any interested parties. Just contact me privately with your current postal address if interested. U. novae-zelandiae is a pretty flowered terrestrial, perennial Utric that is very easy to grow and non-invasive.....well non-invasive when compared to something like U. bisquamata! ;-) Cheers, Brian D Quinn Grey Lynn Auckland, NZ coro63@ihug.co.nz ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 15:44:42 PST Subject: VFT PIRANHA and Allen's volume 3 To all, Catching up on 6 weeks of old messages from the listserv, I saw that Allen Lowrie's 3rd volume is finally out! WOW! I can't believe it! Can you Jan? :):) I also noticed a discussion about the fantastic "piranha" VFT being developed by my good friends Ed Read and Ivan Snyder in L.A. The correct spelling in English is PIRANHA. The word originates from the TUPI Indian language (once widespread in Brazil) and means "toothed fish". This word was transliterated into the PORTUGUESE language. As some of you may know, the largest country in Latin America, Brazil, happened to be colonised by the PORTUGUESE and not the SPANISH, and thus that is why we speak PORTUGUESE in Brazil. The "nh" sound in PORTUGUESE is equivalent to the "~n" tilde sound of SPANISH. According to my English dictionary, it should be pronounced: "pi r\344n'ye" (the last 'e' is inverted, a sound as in "p'e'rhaps"). Hope this helps. Best Wishes to all, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Wed, 27 Jan 1999 19:05:24 -0500 Subject: Re: Nepenthes and Hard Water >I've heard that Nepenthes are not as choosy about the softness of their >water, but has anyone on the list actually tried using hard water for >an extended length of time, or know anyone who has? And how did the >Nepenthes fair? Trent here in sunny south Florida. Clyde Bramblett, near Homestead, Florida, waters his Nepenthes with well water. Kendall/Homestead well water is about as limey as you can get! I'm surprised he doesn't have stalactites hanging from the pitchers! Everything seems happy, and has been for years. The amazing part is he uses the same well water on his Sarracenias, which luckily also get the benefits of growing outside--rain. The Nepenthes are in a greenhouse/lathe house, so only get the rainwater during the summer months. Personally, I use R.O. water on my Nepenthes. Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida. ################### From: "Andreas Wistuba" Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 08:26:12 +0100 Subject: Back from Neblina! :-) Hi all, as Fernando pointed out the Neblina-trip was a great experience and a long-time dream coming true for all of us! I just received back my 53 rolls (!) of slide films and most of them (except the many slides with white birds on - hi Fernando...!) turned out quite well. Unfortunately Joe Nerz, Katrin Hinderhofer, Cristoph Scherber, Mauricio Piliackas and myself had to return to work after Neblina itself while Fernando, Gert Hoogenstrijd and Ed Read could continue to Venezuela. I should soon have pictures showing some of the CPs we've seen on my web page but will announce this as soon as I have made the scans and put them onto the page. Sorry to the people who wrote e-mails to me while I was in Brazil. I still did not answer all of them but I'm working hard. Thanks for your patience. Bye Andreas On 27 Jan 99, at 15:40, Fernando Rivadavia Lopes wrote: > > To all, > > > First of all happy 1999 to everyone!! I've just returned from > the wildest CP expedition I've ever been on. I spent nearly 6 weeks > exploring around teh Amazon Basin in Northern Brazil with some friends. We > also took a quick hop into Venezuela where we wanted to climb Mt.Roraima, > but didn't have time. So we hung around the Gran Sabana -- which was not > bad ta all: about 30 CP species!! > > The main objective of this trip was to reach the unreachable > Mt.Neblina. It was extremely difficult, and for many days we thought we > would never even be able to begin the expedition, much less reach the top. > But in the end we made it -- don't try this at home, kids! CPs were not as > common as we imagined up there and although we found some fantastic > things, like H.tatei var.neblinae, we didn't find THE species that dragged > me all the way up there: the magnificent D.meristocaulis. > ... Andreas Wistuba; Mudauer Ring 227; 68259 Mannheim; Germany Phone: +49-621-705471 Fax: +49-621-7152028 E-Mail: andreas@wistuba.com ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 00:52:22 PST Subject: RE: Ibicella lutea Dear Jan, First of all, thank you very much for your answer about Ibicella lutea, but there is something I want to tell you... I wrote already that I've been growing Ibicella for 3 years and I already know a bit about the way Ibicella lives. There is something that is strange to me... When I'm working in my greenhouse and I'm touching a carnivorous plant with enzymes (like Drosera and Pinguicula) than there appears (afer half an hour) red spots on my skin. I know for sure that the red spots are from the enzymes of my plants. The "strange" thing is that, when I touch an Ibicella, there also appears red spots on my skin... Aren't that "digesting" enzymes? I really believe what you wrote me, but that's something I still don't understand. Do you know how this is possible? Thanks in anticipation... Sam Vanderstraeten. ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 10:02:52 Subject: RE: Ibicella lutea Dear Sam, > When I'm working in my greenhouse and I'm touching a carnivorous plant > with enzymes (like Drosera and Pinguicula) than there appears (afer half > an hour) red spots on my skin. I know for sure that the red spots are > from the enzymes of my plants. How do you know that? Red spots on skin can be caused by a wide variety of substances, most of which are quite far away from being enzymes. > The "strange" thing is that, when I touch > an Ibicella, there also appears red spots on my skin... Aren't that > "digesting" enzymes? Not necessarily. Do you have plants that do not cause these spots (as a negative control)? How about _Roridula_? Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 01:12:29 PST Subject: Mailtje geven, mailtje krijgen Beste Proxifrans, Ik heb nog altijd niets van u gekregen... Ofwel heb je nog niets verstuurd, ofwel is jullie provider vreselijk traag! Toen ik je de eerste keer mailde, kreeg je de mail pas om 16 u. Maar ik ben zeker dat het aan jullie provider moet liggen, want al mijn andere mail (en dat is er al een pak) hab ik direct ontvangen! Als je tijd hebt, mail me dan eens terug... Tot vanavond! Sam ################### From: "~`~TomsRarePlants~`~" Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 05:51:05 -0000 Subject: D~ falconeri Hello, We sent out for seed now we found out that they dont have any seed until march or April . We regret that we will have to wait I was hoping to get this seed . We will be geting these seeds in march. D~arcturi D~capilaris liberty co, fl D~falconeri D~ lineris D~regia ibicella Nepenthes Lavicola Nepenthes macfarlanei Nepenthes macrovulgaris Best Wishes, Laura ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 05:43:19 PST Subject: Re: Ping growing in mossy patches on glaciers? >In THE SAVAGE GARDEN, on page 192, at the end of the > third paragraph Mr. D'Amato writes '... a newly > identified species (unnamed at this writing) has been > found growing in mossy patches on glaciers in the Arctic.' > Anybody have more information about that? Oh-oh! I hope this didn't come from the (hilarious) April Fool's message sent in by Juerg Steiger a year or two ago! Remember? The new Ping species growing in glaciers?? Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 00:20:27 -0700 Subject: Re: Ibicella lutea >When I'm working in my greenhouse and I'm touching a carnivorous >plant with enzymes (like Drosera and Pinguicula) than there >appears (afer half an hour) red spots on my skin. I know for >sure that the red spots are from the enzymes of my plants. The >"strange" thing is that, when I touch an Ibicella, there also >appears red spots on my skin... Sam, maybe you have alergies? I get red/white spots and itchy skin after touching grass and many other plants. However, I can't say it is impossible for enzymes to cause similar skin problems. I don't have cps that produce mucilage like a Ping or Drosera, yet. So, I haven't had the oportunity to try that. ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 15:21:52 -0800 (PST) Subject: Tell me about *your* CP web site Hi folks, I'm compiling a list of CP web sites. If you have a web page with CP content, could you please send me email telling me your web site URL? Be Proud! PLEASE send the email regarding this to me directly, and not to the listserve (where it might both be missed by me, and annoy your listserve-mates!). Thanks Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: Stephen Davis Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 17:05:20 -0800 Subject: Re: Tell me about *your* CP web site I don't see how that would annoy us. I can't get enough of these darn things. The more web sites the better. Of course, I guess we can wait for you to post them. :-( Barry Meyers-Rice wrote: > Hi folks, > > I'm compiling a list of CP web sites. If you have a web page with CP > content, could you please send me email telling me your web site URL? Be > Proud! > > PLEASE send the email regarding this to me directly, and not to the > listserve (where it might both be missed by me, and annoy your > listserve-mates!). > > Thanks > > Barry > > ------------------------ > Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice > Carnivorous Plant Newsletter > Conservation Coeditor > barry@carnivorousplants.org > http://www.carnivorousplants.org -- Stephen Davis [V-Card file stephend.vcf deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 17:32:52 PST Subject: Venezuelan Drosera Taxonomy Doubts To Jan and others interested in S.American CPs, Today I went to talk to my friend Rolf Grantsau and take specimens of the Drosera I collected on my most recent trip to N Brazil and S Venezuela for him to draw (he wants to make botanical drawings of all New World Drosera and is helping me tremendously with my taxonomy studies). My things still haven't arrived from Japan, including all my Drosera literature and Taylor's book. That is why there were so many "U.sp." and "(?)" in the list I sent in yesterday. Hopefully these will be identified soon. Anyways, Rolf has a lot of literature on Drosera and so we sat down to analyze some of the things I'd collected. Where do I start?!?! More doubts than I expected. I thought I knew those plants better, or maybe people have been paying too much attention to the larger CPs (Helis) and not enough to the smaller stuff like Drosera -- and let's not even get into small yellow flowered Utrics!!). Well, a few taxonomic doubts regarding D.felix, D.kaieteurensis, D.cayennensis, and D.arenicola. hope somebody can help me. First of all, the division of D.arenicola into 2 varieties is worthless if you ask me! I don't have the paper in front of me (at Rolf's), but the difference in flower scape length cited for D.a.var.arenicola and D.a.var.occidentalis is minimal -- I think up to 7cm and 8cm respectively -- and the difference in flower number ridiculous -- 1-10 and 4-10 respectively, I believe. I collected one in Kavanayen - area cited for D.a.var.arenicola in Flora of the Guyana Highlands -- which had 14 flowers (damn, I just broke one off by accident while counting!). Next, D.cayennensis. I remember fotographing what might've been this species at Bonn during last year's meeting. It was in the small greenhouse full of Drosera (beautiful D.regia, including the albino form) which we had to descend to enter. The plants were a pinkish-red color with short flower scapes near the entrance, remember Jan? Anyways, the type specimen is supposedly from somewhere around Cayenne in French Guyana, which is on a coastal plain I believe, where it must be hot and stuffy just like the D.sessilifolia and D.biflora habitat I saw just north of Boa Vista in Roraima state, N Brazil. Yet the ones I believed to be D.cayennensis were growing in the Gran Sabana in slightly shady habitats at about 1300-1400m. I'm wondering if this is truly D.cayennensis because of the altitude difference and also because the plants I saw in Venezuela as well as at Bonn (I think, I'll have to check the photos I took there - when I find them) had simple white hairs all the way up the scape as well as on the calyx lobes. The description of TYPE D.cayennensis I believe said simple hairs only on the bottom half of the scape and glandular ones on the upper half. I wonder if there's variation in this character....... Now the last doubt regards D.felix and D.kaieteurensis. What is the difference between these two species?!?!?! In the brief time I had, it seemed like the only difference was that D.felix had a single flower on a short scape, almost scapeless while D.kaieteurensis has a slghtly longer scape with several flowers. I found several populations around the Gran Sabana in areas cited for both species (in Flora of the Guyana Highlands and the description of D.felix) with plants that had inflorescences as described for D.felix as well as for D.kaieteurensis, not only in the same population, but on the same plant!! In fact almost every mature plant of this species had flower scapes, most of which were single flowered and short. Yet longer scapes with several flowers were not uncommon at all. It seems to me that D.felix is simply based on single-flowered specimens of D.kaieteurensis, that is, a synonym of D.kaieteurensis, unless anyone can tell me any other differences between these two taxa other than inflorescence length and number of flowers. And now that I believe I have the real D.kaieteurensis in hands, then the one I found on the Serra do Araca' is NOT D.kaieteurensis! What species native to northern S.America has spatulate leaves, inflorescences glabrous, erect, fragile (not as much as D.communis, but nowhere as thick as in D.kaieteurensis). I'll have to check the seeds since it could be some form between D.capillaris and its possible synonym D.tenella, although the plant did NOT look D.capillaris-ish at all. Nor D.colombiana-ish. Maybe D.esmeraldae??? Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil P.S. I'm still on the lookout for flowering specimens of D.linearis in alcohol for my friend Rolf to draw. If anyone can help me, I can help you with rare S.American CP seeds.... ################### From: "Sebastian Vieira U" Date: Thu, 28 Jan 1999 21:56:24 -0500 Subject: Lowries VOL 3 Hi, my mail crashed and i lost all last month messages. I can read from Fernandos posting that Lowries VOL 3 is finally out, cant believe it. Someone knows where to get one and how much is it? Regards, Sebastian ################### From: "Mark T. Bachelor" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 14:34:37 +1000 Subject: SUBSCRIBE CP MARK T. BACHELOR Greetings all and Happy New Year! I'm back! The summer holidays are over and we get students returning next week. Our computer system has been over hauled and upgraded again during the break and as a result I have no digest from December 30 on. If some one could please send me the last month's worth of digest I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks in advance. Regards Mark T Bachelor Biology Technican Melbourne Girls Grammar School Voice: +61 (03) 9866 1676 South Yarra, Victoria, Fax: +61 (O3) 9866 5768 Australia 3141 National Science Week, STAV Family Day Co-ordinator Lab Techs' Branch of STAV, South Yarra & Moorabbin Regional Rep. ################### From: "Jason Ashley" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 01:09:39 -0500 Subject: re: Fernando's CP Expedition How lucky to have such a treasure trove of CP in your backyard. All the more reason to save the rain forests of that lovely country. Personally I find this fascinating. If you have any pictures please think about posting them at a website or, perhaps, allow Rick to put them in the database where pictures are lacking. I'd love to see these species as I'm sure everyone else would. To say I envy you is something of an understatement. Someday perhaps.......someday. Many thanks for the mini travel log!! Best, Jason Ashley Warwick, NY USA Peace, love, empathy, --The Mighty KC ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 09:51:24 Subject: Re: Venezuelan Drosera Taxonomy Doubts Dear Fernando, > First of all, the division of D.arenicola into 2 varieties is worthless > if you ask me! I don't have the paper in front of me (at Rolf's), but > the difference in flower scape length cited for D.a.var.arenicola and > D.a.var.occidentalis is minimal -- I think up to 7cm and 8cm > respectively -- up to 2 cm w/ up to 4 flowers for var. arenicola vs. more than 2 cm w/ more than 4 flowers for var. occidentalis. > and the difference in flower number ridiculous - - 1- 10 1-4. > and 4-10 More than 4. > respectively, I believe. I collected one in Kavanayen - area > cited for D.a.var.arenicola in Flora of the Guyana Highlands -- which > had 14 flowers (damn, I just broke one off by accident while counting!). "More than 4" would include 14. > Next, D.cayennensis. I remember fotographing what might've been this > species at Bonn during last year's meeting. It was in the small > greenhouse full of Drosera (beautiful D.regia, including the albino > form) which we had to descend to enter. The plants were a pinkish-red > color with short flower scapes near the entrance, remember Jan? Anyways, > the type specimen is supposedly from somewhere around Cayenne in French > Guyana, which is on a coastal plain I believe, where it must be hot and > stuffy just like the D.sessilifolia and D.biflora habitat I saw just > north of Boa Vista in Roraima state, N Brazil. > > Yet the ones I believed to be D.cayennensis were growing in the Gran > Sabana in slightly shady habitats at about 1300-1400m. I'm wondering if > this is truly D.cayennensis because of the altitude difference and also > because the plants I saw in Venezuela as well as at Bonn (I think, I'll > have to check the photos I took there - when I find them) had simple > white hairs all the way up the scape as well as on the calyx lobes. In this case, both specimens were probably not correctly identified as _D. cayennensis, which has a glandular indumentum on its scapes. > The > description of TYPE D.cayennensis I believe said simple hairs only on > the bottom half of the scape and glandular ones on the upper half. I > wonder if there's variation in this character....... You should compare the seeds with those of the type specimen. > Now the last doubt regards D.felix and D.kaieteurensis. What is the > difference between these two species?!?!?! In the brief time I had, it > seemed like the only difference was that D.felix had a single flower on > a short scape, almost scapeless while D.kaieteurensis has a slghtly > longer scape with several flowers. I found several populations around > the Gran Sabana in areas cited for both species (in Flora of the Guyana > Highlands and the description of D.felix) with plants that had > inflorescences as described for D.felix as well as for D.kaieteurensis, > not only in the same population, but on the same plant!! In fact almost > every mature plant of this species had flower scapes, most of which were > single flowered and short. Yet longer scapes with several flowers were > not uncommon at all. > > It seems to me that D.felix is simply based on single-flowered > specimens of D.kaieteurensis, that is, a synonym of D.kaieteurensis, > unless anyone can tell me any other differences between these two taxa > other than inflorescence length and number of flowers. The two seem to be closely related to each other, indeed. I am, however, not in a position to recommend a grave taxonomic consequence. Perhaps your material allows unification of the two. > And now that I believe I have the real D.kaieteurensis in hands, then > the one I found on the Serra do Araca' is NOT D.kaieteurensis! What > species native to northern S.America has spatulate leaves, > inflorescences glabrous, erect, fragile (not as much as D.communis, but > nowhere as thick as in D.kaieteurensis). I'll have to check the seeds Yes. > since it could be some form between D.capillaris and its possible > synonym D.tenella, although the plant did NOT look D.capillaris-ish at > all. _D. capillaris_ can be tricky sometimes! Be sure the scape does not even have minute stipitate glands (these are often found in _D. capillaris_ specimens that look glabrous at first sight). > Nor D.colombiana-ish. This should have a hairy scape. > Maybe D.esmeraldae??? Maybe. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 03:40:16 PST Subject: Sarracenia x catesbaei Dear CP-ers, I'm a CP-enthusiast for 5 years and my favourite plants are (beside Ibicella lutea, that isn't a carnivorous plant) Sarracenia. I have all sorts of Sarracenia and also a lot of hybrids. I also have Sarracenia x catesbaei, but mine have hoods that are standing up. I saw a picture in "Letts Guide to Carnivorous Plants of the World" from "Gordon Cheers" on page "x" with a Sarracenia x catesbaei with hoods that are lying down. You can see that phenomenon very good on the pitcher in front of that picture. Is that phenomenon accidental or is that an other form of Sarracenia x catesbaei? If it is an other form of that plant, I would like to know where I can find seeds or plants. If somebody knows more about that form, please answer me... Thanks... Sam Vanderstraeten ################### From: "Stefan P. Wolf" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 16:08:57 +0100 Subject: Lowrie III bibliographic data Hi CPers! I received my huge freight boxes with fresh copies of Lowrie III yesterday and just finished typing chapter info and transcribing cover text. Here's some for the impatient who can hardly wait to get their copy: ====================================================================== Lowrie, Allen: CARNIVOROUS PLANTS OF AUSTRALIA VOL. 3. University of Western Australia Press, Nedlands, W.A., 1998. hardcover, 288-pp 340-cPh 57-bD M. The third and -- according to the cover text -- last volume of the famous series. 288 pages contain more than 340 colour photographs, 57 line drawings and a distribution maps for each described species. >From the contents (my comments in []): Preface; Acknowledgements; [some information how the] Photographs; [and the] Illustrations [were made]; Glossary; Corrections and validated names [for volumes 1 and 2]; Trapping methods; Perennial tropical Drosera [4 pages of text on habitat, climate, the Drosera petiolaris complex, dormancy, growth, flowering and new species]; Key to Groups of plants in Volumes 1, 2 and 3 [10 pages]: (Key to the tuberous Drosera in Volumes 1, 2 and 3; Key to the pygmy Drosera in Volumes 2 and 3; Key to the perennial tropical Drosera in Volume 3; Key to miscellaneous Drosera in Volumes 2 and 3; Key to Utricularia in Volume 3; Key to Byblis in Volume 3); Setocoris species--the sundew bugs [2 pages of text plus a page with 6 photos]; Habitats [8 pages text and photos]; Description of species [pages 45-279]: ( Utricularia, Aldrovanda, Cephalotus, Drosera, Byblis and Nepenthes [only N. mirabilis]); Bibliography [4 pages]; Index [to all three volumes, 4 pages]. ====================================================================== Cover photo and cover text is at http://www.angelfire.com/de/cpbooks/xlowrie3.html Best regards, Stefan Wolf. -- Dipl.-Inform. Stefan P. Wolf ................................................ mail : Zehlendorfer Str. 69, 24111 Kiel, GERMANY phone: (+49 431) 5973173 * fax: (+49 431) 697568 CP books >> http://www.angelfire.com/de/cpbooks/ ................................................ ################### From: Locsei Gabor Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 17:31:23 +0100 (CET) Subject: Medicinal use of CPs I found many interesting details about CPs as medicinal plants. The following lines may explain many people's interest in the genus Drosera. D. rotundifolia: 'Used with advantage in whooping-cough, exerting a peculiar action on the respiratory organs, useful in incipient phthisis, chronic bronchitis, asthma etc., the juice is said to take away corns and warts, and may be used to curdle milk. In America(!) it has been advocated as a cure for old age, a vegetable extract is used together with colloidal silicates in cases of arteriosclerosis.' (Source: Grieve, Mrs M.(1931): A Modern Herbal. Tiger Books Intern., 1992) A cure for old age? The Water of The Eternal Life? But what are benefits of growing Nepenthes? Any guesses? Have fun, Gabor ################### From: "Malouf, Perry" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 12:18:24 -0500 Subject: Re: Medicinal Use of CPs Locsei Gabor wrote: > I found many interesting details about CPs as medicinal plants... > ...But what are benefits of growing Nepenthes? Any guesses? My main benefit from growing them is pleasure. They are a pleasure to behold. And I get a wonderful sense of satisfaction when I am able to grow a Nepenthes to a good size, and have it stand out as a spectacular specimen. Perry Malouf ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 11:37:21 PST Subject: Re: Drosera sessilifolia To Matt and Jan, >Without a flower, I guess no human being will be able to tell these >two species apart (if they are not labeled, of course). Well Jan, there is at least one human capable of telling them apart without flowers: ME! And I believe my good friend Ivan Snyder in L.A. (the one who hybridized both species) may be even better than myself, since he has to tell them apart in cultivation, when D.sessilifolia is usually rather small and puny for some reason. It's true they are VERY similar species, but they're not too hard to differentiate in cultivation when you have the common form of D.burmannii. I've seen some odd forms of D.burmannii from N Australia which had quite weird leaf shapes and very red leaves. These may be a bit more confusing. Basically, the leaves of D.burmannii are more triangular and those of D.sessilifolia more rounded. The leaves (or tentacles) of the latter are also usually more reddish or pinkish. If they flower, you'll see erect scapes with pink flowers on D.sessilifolia and ascending scapes with white flowers in D.burmannii (although I've seen forms of this species with erect scapes and I think I've at least heard of pink flowered specimens too). Having just seen D.sessilifolia in the wild again, I've gained a few new insights into this curious species, or at least hypothesis. Me and a few others have noticed that in cultivation D.sessilifolia is always a miniature of what the parent plants looked like in the wild, never growing very large. When I found them N of Boa Vista last week, I noticed they were growing only in a small area near a road, where there were some houses, and where horses and cows occasionally passed by. Yet while exploring further away along the river, Gert and I could find no signs of D.sessilifolia, although there were apparently many good habitats. So what is going through my mind at the moment is that D.sessilifolia may need some kind of fertilizer to grow, both in the wild (from animal droppings) and in cultivation. It would be interesting to test this in cultivation, adding different types of fertilizer to see how big the plants get. If it is true tha D.sessilifolia likes areas fertilized by animal droppings, then we can speculate that D.sessilifolia was VERY common until a few thousand years ago, back before the natives dined on the last mammoths, giant ground sloths, and other extinct S.American megafauna species. :):) Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil P.S. I'll get in touch with you soon Matt, just let me get a bit more organized here! ################### From: "It's me again!!! (Tomasz Kowalski)" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 23:08:21 +0100 Subject: Tissue culture Hello Everybody, Can anyone tell me where can a get a special gel for tissue culture. Please send the replies under my e-mail. ################### From: Rick Walker Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 15:56:14 -0800 Subject: SUBscription attempt > Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 14:34:37 +1000 > From: "Mark T. Bachelor" > To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com > Subject: SUBSCRIBE CP MARK T. BACHELOR > Message-ID: <1.5.4.16.19990129152037.3f3fa296@gw.mggs.vic.edu.au> > > Greetings all and Happy New Year! > I'm back! The summer holidays are over and we get students returning next > week. Our computer system has been over hauled and upgraded again during > the break and as a result I have no digest from December 30 on. If some one > could please send me the last month's worth of digest I would greatly > appreciate it. Dear Mark, You need to send your subscription request to listserv@opus.hpl.hp.com not the cp listserv address (cp@opus.hpl.hp.com) itself. Make sure and leave your subject line blank. The command SUBSCRIBE CP MARK T. BACHELOR should be in the body of the message. Instructions on where to get the back-issues of the digest will be found in the listserv's welcome message. Best regards, -- Rick Walker ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 19:27:52 -0700 Subject: Re: can ozone affect seed germination? I can see something in my U. menziesii pot. It looks like a tiny white egg about 1mm thick. Sand, maybe? No, the sand grains look different- they are finer/smaller compared to this 'egg'. What will it do if it is growing? Often, plants grow roots, leaves, and stems. However, Utrics don't appear to have those- they grow 'stolons'. So, if this tiny 'egg' is a growing Utric, then what should I expect to see? The conditions in my terrarium were changed last week. I removed the fan and lowered the temps so the humidity is higher, and icreased the light intensity by using tinfoil. Should I stop misting that pot? Misting stirs around the thin layer of fine peat on the soil surface. Maybe, stirring around the peat disturbs the Utric 'egg' so it doesn't start growing stolons? I have an active imagination. Chad. ################### From: "Yee Han Chaung" (by way of panther@bluep.com) Date: Sat, 30 Jan 1999 13:47:29 +1100 Subject: Fw: FW: Answering Machines >> > > ACTUAL ANSWERING MACHINE MESSAGES >> > > ======================================================= >> > > "My wife and I can't come to the phone right now, but if >> > > you'll leave your name and number, we'll get back to you as >> > > soon as we're finished." >> > > >> > > "Hello, you've reached Jim and Sonya. We can't pick up the >> > > phone right now, because we're doing something we really >> > > enjoy. Sonya likes doing it up and down. I like doing it left >> > > to right, real slowly. So leave us a message. When we're >> > > done brushing our teeth we'll get back to you." >> > > >> > > "A is for academics, B is for beer. One of those reasons is >> > > why we're not here. So leave a message at the beep." >> > > >> > > "Hi. This is John. If you're the phone company, I already >> > > sent the money. If you're my parents, please send money. >> > > If you're my financial aid institution, you didn't lend me >> > > enough money. If you're my friends, you owe me money. If >> > > you are a female, don't worry, I have plenty of money." >> > > >> > > A narrator's voice) >> > > "There Dale sits, reading a magazine. Suddenly the >> > > telephone rings! The bathroom explodes into a veritable >> > > maelstrom of toilet paper, with Dale in the middle of it, >> > > his arms windmilling at incredible speeds! Will he make it >> > > in time? Alas no, his valiant effort is in vain. The bell >> > > hath sounded. Thou must leaveth a message." >> > > >> > > "Hi. Now you say something." >> > > >> > > "Hi, I'm not home right now but my answering machine is, >> > so you can talk to it instead. Wait for the beep." >> > >> > > "Hello. I am David's answering machine. What are you?" >> > > >> > > (From my Japanese friend in Toronto) >> > > "He-lo! This is Sa-to. If you leave message, I call you soon. >> > > If you leave SEXY message, I call sooner!" >> > > >> > > >> > > "Hi! John's answering machine is broken. This is his >> > > refrigerator. Please speak very slowly, and I'll stick your >> > > message to myself with one of these magnets." >> > > >> > > "Hello, this is Sally's microwave. Her answering machine >> > just eloped with her tape deck, so I'm stuck with taking >> > > her calls. Say, if you want anything cooked while you leave >> > > your message, just hold it up to the phone." >> > > >> > > "Hello, you are talking to a machine. I am capable of >> > > receiving messages. My owners do not need siding, >> > > windows, or a hot tub, and their carpets are clean. They >> > > give to charity through the office and don't need their >> > > picture taken. If you're still with me, leave your name and >> > number and they will get back to you." >> > >> > > "This is not an answering machine...this is a telepathic >> > > thought-recording device. After the tone, think about your >> > > name, your reason for calling, and a number where I can >> > > reach you, and I'll think about returning your call." >> > > >> > > "Hi. I'm probably home, I'm just avoiding someone I don't >> > like. Leave me a message. If I don't call back, it's you." >> > >> > > "Hi, this is George. I'm sorry I can't answer the phone right >> > > now. Leave a message, and then wait by your phone until I >> > > call you back." >> > > >> > > "If you are a burglar, then we're probably at home cleaning >> > > our weapons right now and can't come to the phone. >> > > Otherwise, we probably aren't home and it's safe to leave >> > > us a message." >> > > >> > > "You're growing tired. Your eyelids are getting heavy. You >> > > feel very sleepy now. You are gradually losing your >> > > willpower and your ability to resist suggestions. When you >> > > hear the tone you will feel helplessly compelled to leave >> > > your name, number, and a message." >> > > >> > > "You have reached the CPX-2000 Voice Blackmail System. >> > > Your voice patterns are now being digitally encoded and >> > > stored for later use. Once this is done, our computers will >> > > be able to use the sound of YOUR voice for literally >> > > thousands of illegal and immoral purposes. There is no >> > > charge for this initial consultation. However our staff of >> > > professional extortionists will contact you in the near >> > > future to further explain the benefits of our service, and to >> > > arrange for your schedule of payment. Remember to speak >> > cearly at the sound of the tone. Thank you." >> > >> > > "Please leave a message. However, you have the right to >> > > remain silent. Everything you say will be recorded and >> > > will be used by us for profit." >> > > >> > > Thoughts become actions. Actions become habit. >> > > Habit becomes character. >> > > >> > > AND THE QUOTE FOR THE DAY... >> > > "Never miss a chance to keep your mouth shut." >> > > >> > > >> > > Alcoa of Australia Ltd ACN 004 879 298 >> > > >> > > >> > > >> > > > >> > > > >> > > >> > > > ################### From: Dave Date: Fri, 29 Jan 99 23:22 EST Subject: Re: Sarracenia x catesbaei Dear Sam, > I'm a CP-enthusiast for 5 years and my favourite plants are (beside > Ibicella lutea, that isn't a carnivorous plant) Sarracenia. I have all > sorts of Sarracenia and also a lot of hybrids. I also have Sarracenia x > catesbaei, but mine have hoods that are standing up. F1 hybrid: S.flava * S.purpurea = S.* catesbaei (sp?) has upright hoods, like S. purpurea does. F2 hybrid: S. flava * (S. flava * S. purpurea) also = S.* catesbaei, but it has hoods like S.flava. Also, if you self-pollinate an F1 hybrid of S.* catesbaei you will get a rainbow effect in the characteristics of next generation. Some will like more like S.flava, while others will look more like S.purpurea. Sometimes these hybrids can look nearly 100% like one of the parent species, even though it's not. > I saw a picture in > "Letts Guide to Carnivorous Plants of the World" from "Gordon Cheers" on > page "x" with a Sarracenia x catesbaei with hoods that are lying down. > You can see that phenomenon very good on the pitcher in front of that > picture. Is that phenomenon accidental or is that an other form of > Sarracenia x catesbaei? It's not really a form and I'm not sure if/how form names are given to hybrids. I think you have to simply file all the possible characteristics of a particular hybrid under it's given name. If you really like a certain clone, say for the angle of it's hood, then you should name it as a cultivar so it gets reconition. I don't know if there is such a plant available on the market, but you at least know what to look for, or you could make it yourself (it takes a long time, but it's fun.). > If it is an other form of that plant, I would > like to know where I can find seeds or plants. > If somebody knows more about that form, please answer me... > > Thanks... > Sam Vanderstraeten BTW, I have red colored clone of this type, but it will not available until the spring, when the bogs thaw. Dave Evans ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Fri, 29 Jan 1999 15:27:48 -0500 Subject: D. whittakeri Does anyone have experience getting D. whittakeri to germinate? The reason I ask is that this species comes from areas outside W. Australia, the nexus of most tuberous droseras. Any posted protocols would be most appreciated! Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio ( D. filiformis just breaking hibernacula in my coolhouse!) markp@en.com ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Sat, 30 Jan 1999 18:01:33 +0000 Subject: Re: D. whittakeri In message <000a01be4bc5$d6cc3420$c8d2b4cf@markp.crscms.com>, Mark Pogany writes >Does anyone have experience getting D. whittakeri to germinate? The reason I >ask is that this species comes from areas outside W. Australia, the nexus of >most tuberous droseras. > >Any posted protocols would be most appreciated! > > Try soaking the seeds in water. Many tuberous Drosera seeds contain a chemical inhibitor which prevents germination. In habitat this will be gradually washed off by rains during the rainy season. The inhibitor prevents seeds germinating after summer storms when the conditions are not suitable for growth. Soak the seeds in a small dish of water and keep somewhere fairly cool and well lit (most tuberous species will not germinate if it is too warm). Check the dish daily. After several weeks you should see the seeds begin to germinate. Each germinating seed should be transferred onto a pot of soil (a pipette is ideal for this). You can sow the seed directly onto a pot of soil in the usual manner but you will often have to wait as long as a year for germination. Hope this helps. Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Sat, 30 Jan 1999 11:35:27 PST Subject: re: Fernando's CP Expedition Dear Jason, >How lucky to have such a treasure trove of CP in your backyard. I WISH it was my backyard! Please take a look at a map and you'll see that the Venezuelan Gran Sabana, for example, is almost the same distance away from my hometown, Sao Paulo, as it is from where you live, in New York state! And the total distance I travelled (by foot, plane, boat, and car) from the moment I landed in Manaus to when I flew out of there 6 weeks later, was nearly 4000km!!! And just the flight from Sao Paulo to Manaus lasts almost 4h! > All the more reason to save the rain forests of that lovely country. Thanks for the praise! Actually, we didn't see any CPs in rainforest, except for the epiphytic Utrics in the cloud forests of Neblina. Considering how much we hear about the destruction of the Amazon, we were very surprised at how much virgin forest there still is. While flying over the Amazon (S.Paulo -- Manaus, Manaus -- Sao Gabriel, and Manaus -- Boa Vista), it was amazing to see how the forest just went on and on, untouched, one massive green carpet. Yet it was also sad to see the huge holes and garbage left behind by the illegal gold prosperctors ("garimpeiros") up on Neblina. Unfortunately it's very difficult to control all the thousands of garimpeiros in the Amazon. First of all, there's not enough money to patrol all these huge national parks, some the size of small European countries. And second of all, even when removed, the garimpeiros quickly return. After all, it's rainforest all around, how are you going to keep them from walking back in?? >Personally I find this fascinating. If you have any pictures please >think about posting them at a website or, perhaps, allow Rick to put >them in the database where pictures are lacking. I'd love to see >these species as I'm sure everyone else would. It's surely in my plans. But I believe Andreas Wistuba will have his pictures up on his webpage much quicker. I haven't even gotten around to developing my film yet! >Many thanks for the mini travel log!! More to come....... Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Sat, 30 Jan 1999 22:45:32 -0500 Subject: Re:S. x Catesbaei >F1 hybrid: >S.flava * S.purpurea = S.* catesbaei (sp?) has upright hoods, like S. purpurea does. >F2 hybrid: >S. flava * (S. flava * S. purpurea) also = S.* catesbaei, but it has hoods like S.flava. >Also, if you self-pollinate an F1 hybrid of S.* catesbaei you >will get a rainbow effect in the characteristics of next generation. >Some will like more like S.flava, while others will look more like >S.purpurea. Sometimes these hybrids can look nearly 100% like one >of the parent species, even though it's not. >I think you have to simply file all the possible >characteristics of a particular hybrid under it's given name. If you >really like a certain clone, say for the angle of it's hood, then you >should name it as a cultivar so it gets reconition. Yea, I've seen this too. I've seen many young plants raised from wild collected seed, and the variation can be considerable, since the degree of backcrossing is unknown. I have a number of different clones of S. catesbaei, and they all have spade/shovel-shaped hoods. Color variation is significant. Some are solid dark red and others are veined to differing degrees. The hoods are fairly consistent, however, the best having a very nice geometry to the ruffling (geometric bilateralism?). Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida ################### From: "William M. Gorum, Jr." Date: Sun, 31 Jan 1999 02:13:44 -0600 Subject: Nepenthes and Drosera Hello All! For those of you who remember, I was recently given a tissue cultured Nepenthes and Drosera spp. After shocking them several times due to my own ignorance, they've both recovered. I am planning to set up a ten gallon aquarium to house them in. I wanna run my plan by you to see what y'all think. Ten gallon tank, layer of medium sized gravel covering bottom, will keep the plants' pots out of the standing water in the bottom, which will keep the humidity level elevated. I plan on covering the tank with a glass lid and I'm going to use three 18" flourescent tubes to light it. Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a mil...... Will wgorum@softdisk.com ################### From: Dionaea@aol.com Date: Sun, 31 Jan 1999 11:24:04 EST Subject: D. petiolaris complex Hello everyone: I am curious to hear about experiences that growers might have had with Drosera from the petiolaris complex. I would be interested to hear about germinating experiences, soil, temperatures, dormancies and any relevant information. I am asking because I got some seed from at the seedbank of D. ordensis and D. derbeyensis. Thanks. Christoph ################### From: "Haakan Murevaern" Date: Sat, 30 Jan 1999 23:42:24 +0100 Subject: RE: Toetmoelk Hello Jure and list, >I'd like to know where, when and by who Toetmoelk or Ta"tmio"lk or Filmjo"lk >was/is produced. There are tree different names probably from tree nations? >What is the procedure to do it. Hakan here in Sweden. The following text you find in the "Swedish flora" by Linn\351: If you put fresh (not yet cooled) milk from the cow onto fresh leaves of Tatort (Pinguicula) and leave it for a couple of days you will get the taetmjolk made in northern Sweden. The "a" and "o" in Tatort should have two dots over them and sonds something like "ae" and "oe". I have never tested to make it like that. This is a sourmilk called Tatmjolk (also with dot over a and o). It has a special dense (= Taet) consitency. >From this I suppose the swedish popular name of the plant Tatort (dense-herb) comes. The milk is made today with a special bacterial culture and without the plant. I like the taste of it. Filmjoelk is the more common form of sourmilk. Best Regards Haakan Murevaern See my Carnivorous Plants at http://www.algonet.se/~murevarn ################### From: Gary Kong Date: Sun, 31 Jan 1999 18:31:49 -0800 Subject: Nepenthes and bonsai mix-- Hi Everyone-- My N. sanguinea is quickly outgrowing its four inch pot, and will soon need to be re-potted. I have a bag of "Bonsai Mix," sold under the label "Whitney Farms." It contains: "Black Cinder Rock, Sphagnum Moss, Fir Bark Fines, and Black Cinder Sand." If I mix in some perlite to improve drainage, does this sound like a good medium for Nepenthes? Also, I could use some tips for repotting. For instance, many of the leaves are hugging the pot, way below the soil level in the pot. What do I do? Mound soil around the root ball? Bury the bottoms of the pitchers? Or do I force the recumbent leaves up by making the soil level uniform with the existing soil level? Thanks, Gary. ################### From: "Sebastian Vieira U" Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 06:42:11 -0500 Subject: Lowrie's VOL 3 Hi, DOes enyone know where can I buy it?? Thanks. Sebastian Vieira [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Lindblom, Mats" Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 13:52:47 +0100 Subject: Scales! Hi I know that the subject have been up before, but I don't remember the answers.....I've got scales on some of my CPs..They seem to prefer Sarrs, but also some Nephs have been attacked...Advises so far are limited to manually pick them away with a toothpick or similar.I\264ve done that - Thoroughly, and again..Problem is that they tend to return...Is there a decent way to get rid of the little fellows permanently, or do I have to spend the rest of my life looking for new scales....or kill the "infected" plants.... /Mats [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Adrian Arnold" Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 14:03:13 -0000 Subject: Re: D. whittakeri You might also try lightly misting the seeds with a hand sprayer on a daily basis - thus simulating natural rainfall to wash out any inhibitors. Regards, Adrian Arnold. > Subject: Re: D. whittakeri > In message <000a01be4bc5$d6cc3420$c8d2b4cf@markp.crscms.com>, Mark > Pogany writes > >Does anyone have experience getting D. whittakeri to germinate? > Try soaking the seeds in water. Many tuberous Drosera seeds contain a > chemical inhibitor which prevents germination. In habitat this will be > gradually washed off by rains during the rainy season. The inhibitor > prevents seeds germinating after summer storms when the conditions are > not suitable for growth. > > ################### From: Tom Massey Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 09:14:53 -0500 Subject: RE: Scales! I have found that wp Orthene works. It is better than malathion, soap, or pyrethrin (sp?) alternatives. Obviously, gotta be careful. Tom in Fl. -----Original Message----- Sent: Monday, February 01, 1999 8:00 AM To: Multiple recipients of list Hi I know that the subject have been up before, but I don't remember the answers.....I've got scales on some of my CPs..They seem to prefer Sarrs, but also some Nephs have been attacked...Advises so far are limited to manually pick them away with a toothpick or similar.I\264ve done that - Thoroughly, and again..Problem is that they tend to return...Is there a decent way to get rid of the little fellows permanently, or do I have to spend the rest of my life looking for new scales....or kill the "infected" plants.... /Mats [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: Ken Skau Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 09:30:54 -0500 Subject: Some information Related to the recent messages about potential medicinal uses of CP as described in old herbals, I found the following in Culpeper's Complete Herbal. Nicholas Culpeper lived from 1616-1654. SUN DEW (Drosera Anglica) Descrip. It has small, round, hollow leaves, somewhat greenish, but full of red hairs, which make them look very red, every one standing upon its own footstalk, reddish, and hairy likewise. The leaves are continually moist in the hottest day, yea, the hotter the sun shines, the moister they are, the small hairs always holding this moisture. Among these leaves rise up slender stalks, reddish also, three or four fingers high, bearing small whitish knobs one above another, these are flowers, which afterwards contain small seed. The root is a few small hairs. Place. It grows usually in bogs and wet places, and sometimes in moist woods. Time. It flowers in June, and then the leaves are fittest to be gathered. Government and Virtues. The Sun rules it, and it is under the sign of Cancer. The leaves, bruised and applied to the skin, erode it and bring out such inflammations as are not easily removed. The juice destroys warts and corns, if a little be frequently put upon them. I might also point out an interesting site for pictures of CP at http://www.csdl.tamu.edu/FLORA/gallery.htm . This site is not specific for CP but has some outstanding pictures of VFT, Drosera and Sarracenia including some excellent closeup pictures of traps. Kind Regards, Ken Skau ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 08:42:28 -0500 Subject: RE: Nepenthes and Hard Water >Trent here in sunny south Florida. Clyde Bramblett, near Homestead, Florida, >waters his Nepenthes with well water. Kendall/Homestead well water is about >as limey as you can get! I'm surprised he doesn't have stalactites hanging >from the pitchers! Everything seems happy, and has been for years. The >amazing part is he uses the same well water on his Sarracenias, which >luckily also get the benefits of growing outside--rain. The Nepenthes are in >a greenhouse/lathe house, so only get the rainwater during the summer >months. A trick orchid growers have used for years when they know they are using hard water is to flush the plants thoroughly when watering. This prevents the buildup of salts in the media. Maybe Clyde has learned this trick, which is why husbandry is just as important as chemistry. David Atlanta ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Sat, 30 Jan 1999 23:59:14 -0800 Subject: Ibicella lutea: Carnivorous or not? >Dear Jan, > >First of all, thank you very much for your answer about Ibicella lutea, >but there is something I want to tell you... I wrote already that I've >been growing Ibicella for 3 years and I already know a bit about the way >Ibicella lives. There is something that is strange to me... >When I'm working in my greenhouse and I'm touching a carnivorous plant >with enzymes (like Drosera and Pinguicula) than there appears (afer half >an hour) red spots on my skin. I know for sure that the red spots are >from the enzymes of my plants. The "strange" thing is that, when I touch >an Ibicella, there also appears red spots on my skin... Aren't that >"digesting" enzymes? >I really believe what you wrote me, but that's something I still don't >understand. >Do you know how this is possible? I was talking this over with Ivan Snyder and he claims he's read about people with alergic reactions to sundew enzymes. Also Ivan has been recently doing experiments on Ibicella and Proboscidea and he claims at least Ibicella is only carnivorous in high humidity settings. He claims the plant will secrete enzyme around an insect or digestible matter in high humidity meaning that it probably works in the wild like Byblis where it is actively carnivorous primarily during the morning hours when the morning dew is out. Jan, have you grown the plant and tested it yourself yet? 2 or 3 experiments isnt a good deal of testing to conclusively prove something especially if humidity is a factor which was unaccounted for. I'm not a 'true believer' that is plant is carnivorous as I might sound but I do think that other factors need to be accounted for before we draw a rigid conclusion. ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Sun, 31 Jan 1999 00:08:06 -0800 Subject: A call for local CP enthusiasts in South Bay area, CA I'm looking for local CP enthusiasts. Myself, Ivan Snyder, Ed Read, and Sean Samea are all pretty local and I believe there are a few more and I was wondering if they could email me personally for possible trading purposes or just to trade tips with. Also I'd be happy to work with any newbies to the CP scene as well. Up until I got into the loop I was growing CP for 2 years prior. I wonder how many other people there are out there growing CP by themselves with or without computers who just haven't met the right people to get into the loop. If anyone lives in the South Bay area (esp. Redondo bch, Hermosa bch, Torrance, etc) then I urge you to please email me. ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 19:21:33 Subject: Re: Ibicella lutea: Carnivorous or not? Dear Chris, > Also Ivan has been recently > doing experiments on Ibicella and Proboscidea and he claims at least > Ibicella is only carnivorous How did he test carnivory? > in high humidity settings. He claims the plant will secrete enzyme It secretes mucilage. There may be enzymes in this liquid but none of which has been found to have digesting activity. Did Ivan find such activity? Please remember that moulds and bacteria will be encouraged to grow in a humid environment. So it would probably be the best to use sterile plants from in vitro culture. > around an insect or digestible matter in high humidity > meaning that it probably works in the wild like Byblis where it is actively > carnivorous primarily during the morning hours when the morning dew is out. > Jan, have you grown the plant and tested it yourself yet? Yes. > 2 or 3 experiments > isnt a good deal of testing to conclusively prove something especially if > humidity is a factor which was unaccounted for. The plants I have tested (with more than 2 or 3 experiments, even with pieces of the leaves actually immersed in water, which should provide quite a deal of humidity) were grown in a comparatively humid environment, supposedly in a more humid one than will be encountered at its native habitat in Argentina (and surrounding countries). Barry Meyers-Rice and Jon Wallace & al. have conducted slightly different experiments under their respective growing conditions with the same objective to find evidence for digestive activity. All with negative results. This is IMHO significantly more experimental data than ever published before. > I'm not a 'true believer' > that is plant is carnivorous as I might sound but I do think that other > factors need to be accounted for OK, it's your turn, convince me by accounting for whatever "factors" you like, as long as your conclusions are based on facts. But please do not just cite the time-honoured 1915 paper once again. > before we draw a rigid conclusion. I would not recommend to draw any rigid conclusions here. What we are talking about are hypotheses. Experiments are designed to test these hypotheses, and to improve them accordingly. There will (hopefully!) never be a "final truth" of plant carnivory. Be always prepared for the unexpected! Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Jerelyn Parker" Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 15:52:52 -0500 Subject: How fast does Sarracenia purpurea grow? My undergraduate independent research has focused on the seed dispersal of _Sarracenia purpurea spp. purpurea_. I need to know what the growth rate of this plant is. None of the published articles that I have encountered mention this, because I think that most studies are too short to follow the growth of S. purpurea. My hope lies in "how to.." guides, etc. I think. Does anyone on this list know of any carnivorous plant grower's guides that would tell me the growth rate of S. purpurea? Oh, and I cannot seem to get this list out of digest mode. Does anyone know the "command"? Thanks! Jerelyn Parker ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 15:48:58 -0500 Subject: allergies and cp's > There is something that is strange to me... > >When I'm working in my greenhouse and I'm touching a carnivorous plant > >with enzymes (like Drosera and Pinguicula) than there appears (afer half > >an hour) red spots on my skin. I know for sure that the red spots are > >from the enzymes of my plants. The "strange" thing is that, when I touch > >an Ibicella, there also appears red spots on my skin... Aren't that > >"digesting" enzymes? > Years ago, detergent manufacturers had to remove enzymes from their product because some people developed an allergic reaction to the enzymes in the soap. If I remember correctly, allergic reactions went beyond dermatitis and involved the pulmonary system in some people. That happened because in addition to the skin contact people were more likely to breathe the soap in while dispensing it. It would not surprise me if some people developed an allergic skin reaction to the digestive enzymes in plants. The literature is full of examples of allergic skin reactions to plant products. Two examples are poison ivy and poison oak. One must first have an initial skin contact with a plant, which induces the sensitivity, but does not produce symptoms. However, subsequent contact once you are sensitized is needed to produce symptoms. Usually five days to three weeks after contact are needed to develop a skin reaction, although symptoms can appear in 12 to 48 hours for poison ivy and poison oak. It's the low molecular weight compounds in the plants sap (called haptens) that react with enzymes on your skin to produce the reactive antigen that induces the allergic response on the skin. Only skin areas that actually touch the plant will develop a reaction, plus those areas where you may mechanically move the hapten or antigen once things start to itch. The palms are less likely to show a reaction because the thicker skin affords more protection than say the back of the hand and arms. Plants can also cause contact urticaria, which can have an immunologic or nonimmunlogic component to the response. An example of an nonimmunologic contact urticaria is being stuck by nettles, which inject chemicals (for example, acetylcholine, histamine, and serotonin) through the plant's hair. The American ladyslipper (Cyp reginae) is another example. Urticaria is characterized by hives and inflammation (redness) of the skin. Certain edible vegetables can cause an allergic urticaria. An example includes peeling potatoes, which will result also in sneezing or wheezing. Some plants can also sensitize the skin to UV irradiation. For example, plants from the carrot and citrus families. The fuocoumarins in these plants penetrate moist skin and will burn the skin upon exposure to sunlight or fluorescent light. Plants can also cause simple primary chemical irritation similar to skin damage produced by acids. Plant examples here are buttercups, daphne, and peppers. I'm guessing that this is the basis of pepper sprays causing of eye irritation. My guess is that you are experiencing a contact allergic reaction similar to poison ivy. It would be interesting if someone could collect enough Drosera dew to use a microprobe to measure the pH. Regardless, all of this can be easily solved: wear gloves and long sleeved shirts when working closely with your drosera or pinguicula or grin and bear it. David Mellard, PhD Toxicologist ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 13:18:28 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: How fast does Sarracenia purpurea grow? Hi Jerelyn, > > My undergraduate independent research has focused on the seed dispersal > of _Sarracenia purpurea spp. purpurea_. I need to know what the growth rate > of this plant is. None of the published articles that I have encountered > mention this, because I think that most studies are too short to follow the > growth of S. purpurea. My hope lies in "how to.." guides, etc. I think. > Does anyone on this list know of any carnivorous plant grower's guides that > would tell me the growth rate of S. purpurea? This is going to vary widely. I assume you wish to know how long it takes until the plant is mature, well, in it's southern range, it will grow a lot quicker as opposed to its northern extremes where winter lasts a lot longer and the summer growing season is short. It will, of course, also depend on soil differences. On a very rough average, S.purpurea will take anywhere from 3 up to 8 years to mature. I think this is why it's not reported in the scientific literature. > Oh, and I cannot seem to get this list out of digest mode. Does anyone > know the "command"? I think it's SET CP ACK (in the main body) sent to listserv@opus.hpl.hp.com, however, don't take my word for it, it's in the introductory e-mail you would have received when subscribing. > > Thanks! > Jerelyn Parker > > Good luck with the project. Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 19:46:03 +0000 Subject: Re: D. whittakeri I'm not too familiar with weather conditions in Western Australia during late summer/autumn but I suspect you would need to spray for several hours at a time to simulate the natural rainfall. :-) Far easier to soak the seeds for a few weeks! >You might also try lightly misting the seeds with a hand sprayer on a daily >basis - thus simulating natural rainfall to wash out any inhibitors. > >Regards, Adrian Arnold. > >> Subject: Re: D. whittakeri > >> In message <000a01be4bc5$d6cc3420$c8d2b4cf@markp.crscms.com>, Mark >> Pogany writes >> >Does anyone have experience getting D. whittakeri to germinate? > >> Try soaking the seeds in water. Many tuberous Drosera seeds contain a >> chemical inhibitor which prevents germination. In habitat this will be >> gradually washed off by rains during the rainy season. The inhibitor >> prevents seeds germinating after summer storms when the conditions are >> not suitable for growth. >> >> > Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: Dave Date: Mon, 01 Feb 99 17:43 EST Subject: Re: Nepenthes and Drosera Dear Will, > Ten gallon tank, layer of medium sized gravel covering bottom, will keep > the plants' pots out of the standing water in the bottom, which will > keep the humidity level elevated. I plan on covering the tank with a > glass lid and I'm going to use three 18" flourescent tubes to light it. > > Any comments or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Sounds like a good plan. When you cover the tank, don't seal it up tight. You still want some air and lower humidity to come through. This will help keep fungus down as well as keep your plants out of conditions that are too "soft." Soft refers to having the humidity so high that when plants growing in soft conditions are exposed to normal humidity levels, they start to shrivel in a couple minutes and are very, very easily shocked. Good luck, Dave E ################### From: CMcdon0923@aol.com Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 19:30:22 EST Subject: Fungus Help I apologize for asking this question here, since I'm SURE it has been covered before. But this is my first experience with this problem, so..... I have a group of Sarracenia outdoors right now, and everybody appears to be "sleeping" nicely. However, just yesterday I noticed that one of the S. rubra wherryi has a grayish mold or fungus on the top of the rhizome, and about the first half-inch of the stumps remaining from the pitchers. Can I safely assume this is botrytis? I have segregated the plant in question, and none of the other pots show any visible signs of a problem. My question is: Can anyone recommend a SPECIFIC BRAND NAME of fungicide (e.g., product XYZ by Ortho, etc.) to safely use on the plant. I also assume a treatment of the other pots might be in order, just incase. One readily available fungicide was Daconil (by Ortho). Anybody have any experiences with this one? I know that Pietropaolo and D'Amato talk about benomyl, Capstan, etc., but I have been unable to find any of these in the several garden centers I visited. Actually I did find one product in which Capstan was but one ingredient, but it also contained Malathion and one other substance whose name I don't remember. It's sold as a treatment for roses. Thanks in advance, Craig McDonald Frisco, Texas Zone 8 ################### From: Peter Cole Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 1:31:55 +0800 Subject: Re: Toetmoelk "Jure Slatner" wrote: >Hi, >Peter Cole recently wrote: >>I just hope it's better than the Ta"tmio"lk I tried a couple of years ago. >I'd like to know where, when and by who Toetmoelk or Ta"tmio"lk or Filmjo"lk >was/is produced. There are tree different names probably from tree nations? >What is the procedure to do it. Sorry for the delay replying - I have got rather behind with the CP Digests. I doubt I made it in strict accordance with Lapp tradition (for one thing I used P.grandiflora instead of P.vulgaris, and for another I know nothing of Lapp cuisine. Perhaps you're supposed to use reindeer milk - who knows?) but I believe Ta"tmio"lk is the Lapp word for it (there's a passing reference to it in SLACK - Carnivorous Plants.) I've not heard of the other names. The theory is simple enough - a bit like making a junket (that's a milk pudding curdled with rennet, for the benefit of those who've not come across it before.) The acidic juices, and presumably the proteolytic enzymes in the plant will cause the milk protein to set (or something like that - ask a chemist if you want a reliably scientific description of what happens.) It seemed worth giving it a go in the interest of science. I coarsly chopped 5 or 6 plants and mashed them into the inside of a sieve using the back of a spoon. Then I added 1 pint (or it might have been half a pint - I can't quite remember,) of full fat milk. The theory was that the milk would run through the sieve and coagulate in a bowl, but it didn't work out that way, so it was more a matter or sieving out all (well, as much as I could,) of the green stringy bits after the whole lot had mixed. Within 10-15 minutes it had curdled into long ropy strands and I figured was ready for consumption. Perhaps not surprisingly, it wasn't very nice - rather bitter and with a texture like toad spawn. Worse than sago, but then I've never been much of a fan of that sort of thing. I tried adding some sugar, but it didn't improve it much. I didn't finish it and wouldn't want to try it again. Even the cat wouldn't eat it! I recall we had some discussion on the list last year (or maybe 97?) after I tried it, but I've had some bad computer crashes since then and lost all my mail archives. I do remember one of our Nordic subscribers saying that it was commercially available to some extent somewhere. I hope it tastes a lot better with P.vulgaris (or perhaps you only need a tiny quantity of Pinguicula,) or I really can't see how anyone would want to eat it. Still that goes for sago, tapioca and many other such substances that inexplicably appear (and presumably are bought,) in the shops. If you fancy making some yourself, I would advise: 1) use P.vulgaris not P.grandiflora 2) use less Pinguicula - perhaps only 1 plant (or less) per pint 3) don't mash it up so much - just pour on the milk and strain off after a few minutes, or squeeze out the juice to add to the milk 4) it will probably still taste horrible. Happy cooking, Peter ps: if anyone is waiting for an Email from me, please bear with me - I've been so busy catching up with orders after the Christmas postal chaos that I've had to rather neglect the Net. Fear not, I will mail soon. Kamil Pasek, if you are reading this, please drop me an Email - I have lost your Email address. mailto:carnivor@flytrap.demon.co.uk : http:www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/cchome.htm Cambrian Carnivores,17,Wimmerfield Cr.,SWANSEA,SA2 7BU, UK : tel 01792 205214 Carnivorous Plants,Seeds & Tissue Culture Kits - mailorder,export & wholesale ################### From: Ron Schlosser Date: Mon, 01 Feb 1999 18:21:02 -0800 Subject: Re: Fungus Help On 01-Feb-99, CMcdon0923@aol.com wrote: > I apologize for asking this question here, since I'm SURE it has been > covered before. But this is my first experience with this problem, so..... > I have a group of Sarracenia outdoors right now, and everybody appears to > be "sleeping" nicely. However, just yesterday I noticed that one of the S. > rubra wherryi has a grayish mold or fungus on the top of the rhizome, and > about the first half-inch of the stumps remaining from the pitchers. Can I > safely assume this is botrytis? > I have segregated the plant in question, and none of the other pots show > any visible signs of a problem. My question is: Can anyone recommend a > SPECIFIC BRAND NAME of fungicide (e.g., product XYZ by Ortho, etc.) to > safely use on the plant. I also assume a treatment of the other pots might > be in order, just incase. One readily available fungicide was Daconil (by > Ortho). Anybody have any experiences with this one? I would recommend using Daconil for the fungus, I have seen it labeled for use on Venus Fly traps and have used it on my Darlingtonia and Sarracenias with no problem, don't get them on sundews or pings, won't kill them but they don't like it. > I know that Pietropaolo and D'Amato talk about benomyl, Capstan, etc., but > I have been unable to find any of these in the several garden centers I > visited. Actually I did find one product in which Capstan was but one > ingredient, but it also contained Malathion and one other substance whose > name I don't remember. It's sold as a treatment for roses. All ornamental uses of Benlate (benomyl) have been canceled for a number of years now. > Thanks in advance, > Craig McDonald > Frisco, Texas > Zone 8 ################### From: "~`~TomsRarePlants~`~" Date: Mon, 1 Feb 1999 23:22:35 -0000 Subject: Proboscidea parvifora known as the Devils claw Hello Can you tell me how to grow the Devils claw from seed I've never been able to keep it alive. also has any one been able to grow cephalotus follicularis from seed i'll be geting it in soon, and i want to do right. Can you help me in my endeavor? I would like to be succesful at if for a change. Laura Fritts frittsmb@msn.com ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Tue, 02 Feb 1999 01:17:18 PST Subject: Re: Re: Ibicella Dear Jan, Thanks for your mails about Ibicella\205 You wrote: >If it can be shown that they live in a +/- obligate association with insects that >perform the digestion, a sub-carnivorous mutualism could be assumed like in >_Roridula_. If you add bacterial decomposition to the legitimate methods of cp >digestion, you can call all sticky plants carnivorous. So, you mean that plants who live together with bacteria aren\222t carnivorous\205 What do you think about Heliamphora? I think Heliamphora (and Darlingtonia, I think) lives also together with bacteria\205 Isn\222t Heliamphora carnivorous? Can you tell me more about that? Kinds regards, Sam Vanderstraeten. ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Tue, 02 Feb 1999 01:18:25 PST Subject: Utricularia calycifida Dear CP-ers, (Dear Dave, thanks for you information about Sarracenia x catesbaei\205) A friend of me has a question for you all\205 He has a beautiful Utricularia calycifida, a big one. But some big leaves had a strange phenomenon. On the top of that leave, there grows a little \223extra\224 leave\205 He asks what he can do with that and how\205 Thanks in anticipation, Sam. ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 11:35:44 Subject: Re: Ibicella Dear Sam, > So, you mean that plants who live together with bacteria aren\222t > carnivorous\205 Not this way. Bacteria live together with almost everything. Only plants that *depend* on microbes (or other organisms) for digestion are sub-carnivorous (at the most). > What do you think about Heliamphora? I think Heliamphora > (and Darlingtonia, I think) lives also together with bacteria\205 Isn\222t > Heliamphora carnivorous? Once again (I have written this at least two times on this list already, I fear some subscribers are becoming a little tired of reading it again and again), _Heliamphora tatei_ *does* have endogenous proteolytic activity. _Darlingtonia_ is presently under investigation. Kind regards Jan ################### From: Loyd Wix Date: 02 Feb 1999 13:05:55 Z Subject: WARNING - Tatmjolk!! Dear All, I thought it was worth while putting down a few words of caution regarding the current list interest in fermented dairy products involving Pinguicula before some one ends up with food poisoning! Most milk for consumption these days is pasteurised to ensure the removal of any pathogenic bacteria from the milk. Prior to introduction of pasteurised milk, a whole host of diseases such as TB and food poisoning such as Salmonellosis were transmitted to people. Even now, each year many major outbreaks of food borne infection are attributed to non pasteurised milk. Thus contaminating milk with Pinguicula leaves does run the real risk of food poisoning - just think what may be attached to those leaves! Things will be made worse by storing the contaminated milk at elevated temperatures as milk is an excellent medium to grow pathogenic bacteria. So please be careful!!! >set (or something like that - ask a chemist if you want a >reliably scientific description of what happens.) It >seemed worth giving it a go in the interest of science. OK I'm a Food Scientist (rather than a chemist) and my main interest is in ice cream but I do know a bit about such fermentation's. Pinguicula leaves have been used as a substitute Rennet to make cheese over much of their European range. The use in Scandinavia was to make these thick ropy fermented milk products. From what I understand from the literature most of the time a portion of an early batch of Tatmjolk was used to start a new batch. P.vulgaris leaves were used only when a previous batch was unobtainable or the milk was perceived as separating too quickly. Thus I believe we are talking about a bacterial fermentation rather anything enzymatic from the plants. Fresh (unpasteurised) milk contains many organisms which although not harmful will cause changes to the milk. These bacteria can consume the milk sugar lactose (many bacteria cannot utilise this sugar) and produce lactic acid as a by product. This causes the acidity of the milk to rise and when the pH gets to below pH5.2, one of the milk proteins (casein) starts to precipitate and comes out of solution. This can cause the milk to separate into the precipitated casein 'curds' and an aqueous phase of the whey proteins which are more pH stable. With Tatmjolk type products such a separation is undesirable though some ropy culture bacteria have the ability to produce starch type materials and in addition rather than forming single cells, these organisms form long chains or ropes of cells attached to one another. This has the effect of preventing separation of the acidified material (starch type materials are used to stabilise yoghurt drinks for similar reasons), as well as introducing the peculiar stringy texture to the material. Such bacterial starter cultures are now commercially available and are extremely safe and reasonably reliable to use - far less hit and miss compared to using Pinguicula leaves. Peters experience: >Within 10-15 minutes it had curdled into long ropy strands >and I figured was ready for consumption. Perhaps not >surprisingly, it wasn't very nice - rather bitter and >with a texture like toad spawn. Worse than sago, but then >I've never been much of a fan of that sort of thing. I >tried adding some sugar, but it didn't improve it much. I >didn't finish it and wouldn't want to try it again. Even >the cat wouldn't eat it! From what I remember Peter you used what was left in a carton of (pasteurised) milk getting close to its best before date. In which case from your description I do not believe you made true Tatmjolk. Pasteurisation also destroys the natural milk bacteria which cause the milk to go sour but in a non offensive manner. What tends to happen with pasteurised milk is the milk becomes the home for low temperature spoilage organisms whilst in the fridge such as Pseudomonad ssp - the same organisms which can make prawns glow in the dark. These organisms start to break down the milk proteins and fat and thus tend to make the the milk putrefy rather than going pleasantly sour. The bitterness you tasted would indicate this. Tatmjolk should be sour stringy but pleasant. Hope this is of interest Loyd ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 08:19:59 -0500 Subject: tuberous drosera germination >I'm not too familiar with weather conditions in Western Australia during >late summer/autumn but I suspect you would need to spray for several >hours at a time to simulate the natural rainfall. :-) Far easier to soak >the seeds for a few weeks! Hi Phil and all, A couple of months ago I planted a whole host of tuberous drosera seed and was planning on burning leaves on top and chanting before setting them in a tray of water. I haven't done that yet since I ordered some smoke filters. The instructions with the smoke filters said to soak the filters in water and then drop in the seeds. That's not an option now so I thought of soaking the filters in water and then spraying the seeds after setting the pots in a tray of water. What would you and others suggest? Go back to the burning leaves and chanting or stick with spraying smoke-saturated water? And yet another idea I had was to enclose a seeded pot in plastic and set a banana peel inside to release ethylene gas. Seems like I remember reading somewhere that ethylene gas was released from burning leaves and was responsible for germination of some species. David Atlanta ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Tue, 02 Feb 1999 05:50:23 PST Subject: CP for trade Howdy, list. As always, I've got to make some room. Have some extra stuff, if anyones interested in trading... D. paradoxa (large plant) D. intermedia x capillaris (dormant plants) D. madagascariensis Rhodesia (small plants) D. madagascariensis (small plants) D. burmanii green (small plants) D. sessilifolia (small plants) D. sessilifolia x burmanii (small plants) D. trinervia (seedlings) D. trinervia (small plants) D. cistiflora (small plants, not doing much for me :( ) D. sp.Brazil (like a small red capillaris, could be capillaris?) D. nidiformis (small plants) D. pygmaea (plants and possibly seed) D. occidentalis (plants and possibly seed) D. pulchella D. callistos D. pygmy hybrids (common stuff, have to see) D. intermedia (Gran Sabana - tropical) D. filiformis f (dormant, small plants) D. burkeana ? D. capillaris ? I'm sure there's more but nothing comes to mind right now. I am only interested in seed or disease/pest-free plants right now (tissue culture preferred). Heres a list of some things I need: D. petiolaris complex (except paradoxa, derbyensis, ordensis and derb x ord) - falconeri seed would be nice!!! ;) D.burmanii red D.indica red D.oblanceolata D.slackii D.neocaledonica South American Drosera African Drosera Heliamphora Small Mexican Pings (elhersae, esseriana, gypsicola, etc) Dont be shy, email me! Thanks in advance... Matt New York, USA ################### From: "Richard Jenkins" Date: Tue, 02 Feb 1999 09:52:05 PST Subject: Re: Allergies and CP David and All, >Plants can also cause simple primary chemical irritation similar to >skin >damage produced by acids. Plant examples here are buttercups, >daphne, and >peppers. I'm guessing that this is the basis of pepper sprays >causing of >eye irritation. >My guess is that you are experiencing a contact allergic reaction >similar to >poison ivy. It would be interesting if someone could collect enough >Drosera dew to use a microprobe to measure the pH. The pH of the mucilage of Drosera capensis is reported to be 5.0 in _The Carnivorous Plants_ by Juniper et al. I don't think this would be sufficient to damage human skin in the short term. Drosophyllum on the other hand is reported to have a pH of 2.5-3.0. I wouldn't want any of that in my eye! Richard Jenkins ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 14:29:14 EST Subject: Re: Proboscidea parvifora known as the Devils claw Laura, > Can you tell me how to grow the Devils claw from seed I've never been able > to keep it alive. IMHO, It is one of the easiest plants to grow. In fact, I have it come up year to year in my garden (Williamsport, PA) from seed. I am sure it will continue to grow there, even though I moved!!! If you are starting them in pots, I would use as large a pot as you can find and plant 2 or 3 seeds about 1 inch deep in regular potting soil. I have seen them come up even when planted way too deep. (from 3 inches deep.) I am kind of surprised you are able to kill it actually! The only thing is that it isn't hardy, so it would need protection from the cold. Fertilize like any regular house plant. > also has any one been able to grow cephalotus follicularis from seed i'll be > geting it in soon, > and i want to do right. Can you help me in my endeavor? I would like to be > succesful at if for a change. 50/50 peat sand, sow seeds on the surface, and cover with a clear cover. Place in indirect light (or under fluorescent lights) and temps around 70 worked for me. Hope this helps Take care & keep on growing, Thomas Hayes DANGEROUS PLANTS www.tcscs.com/~thayes ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 14:47:49 -0500 Subject: RE: Allergies and CP Hi Richard, >The pH of the mucilage of Drosera capensis is reported to be 5.0 in _The >Carnivorous Plants_ by Juniper et al. I don't think this would be >sufficient to damage human skin in the short term. You're right. That pH will not damage skin. >Drosophyllum on the other hand is reported to have a pH of 2.5-3.0. I wouldn't want any of >that in my eye! Yes again. pH levels of buffered solutions that are below 4.5 start to irritate the eye. pH levels between 3.5 and 4.5 can cause small breaks in the corneal epithelium. It also depends upon the chemical because hydrochloric acid at pH 3 is not irritating as opposed to pH 1, which will send you searching for water. David ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 20:44:34 +0000 Subject: Re: tuberous drosera germination David, >>I'm not too familiar with weather conditions in Western Australia during >>late summer/autumn but I suspect you would need to spray for several >>hours at a time to simulate the natural rainfall. :-) Far easier to soak >>the seeds for a few weeks! > >Hi Phil and all, > >A couple of months ago I planted a whole host of tuberous drosera seed and >was planning on burning leaves on top and chanting before setting them in a >tray of water. I haven't done that yet since I ordered some smoke filters. >The instructions with the smoke filters said to soak the filters in water >and then drop in the seeds. That's not an option now so I thought of >soaking the filters in water and then spraying the seeds after setting the >pots in a tray of water. > This might work though I have my doubts since the quantity of smoky water you are spraying over the plants will presumably be pretty small. I believe the key thing is that the seeds soak up enough of the smoky water to break their dormancy, hence the instructions to soak the seed in the water rather than spray it on the soil surface. BTW soaking the seeds in giberellic acid is also very good at breaking seed dormancy. At least the results I got from treating D. fimbriata seed last year was very impressive. >What would you and others suggest? Go back to the burning leaves and >chanting or stick with spraying smoke-saturated water? >And yet another idea I had was to enclose a seeded pot in plastic and set a >banana peel inside to release ethylene gas. Seems like I remember reading >somewhere that ethylene gas was released from burning leaves and was >responsible for germination of some species. > Allen Lowrie has what looks like a pretty good method involving a kettle barbecue. Basically he lights some vegetable matter in a small container (fireproof of course!) and places it in the barbecue. He then puts the pot or pots of seed on a rack so they are above the burning stuff and shuts the lid down tight. The smoke fills the inside of the barbecue and gradually permeates the soil in the pots. I think he leaves the pots in for several hours at least and then waters in the smoke compounds with a fine overhead spray. I'm not sure about the role of ethylene in breaking see dormancy. I know there is a theory that ethylene released during bush flowers is responsible for inducing flowering in certain tuberous Drosera species but I'm not sure if this has ever been scientifically proven. The last resort of course is to simply wait. Its a long wait admittedly but if you do not get germination this season you may get some next fall/autumn. I certainly never throw out a pot of tuberous Drosera seed for at least a year. In some rare cases I have had germination after two years - this must be some sort of record! Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 14:37:15 -0700 Subject: Re: D. petiolaris complex On Sun, 31 Jan 1999 Dionaea@aol.com writes: >I am curious to hear about experiences that growers might have had with >Drosera from the petiolaris complex. I would be interested to hear about >germinating experiences, soil, temperatures, dormancies and any relevant >information. I am asking because I got some seed from at the seedbank >of D. ordensis and D. derbeyensis. Thanks. I am experimenting on this goups of Drosera as well. In general, they seem to prefer warm to hot temperatures (up to 105f is fine). I have been growing them in 50:50 peat sand mix. While they don't seem to go completely dormant, they do seem to slow down when the temperatures drop below 70. I have never exposed them to temps below 55f. I keep them damp to wet when they are actively growing and just slightly damp when they are not. Under these conditions, D. broomensis, D. paradoxa, D. dilato-petiolairs and D. lanata seem to be thrive. D. fulva, D. caduca, D. ordensis, D. falconeri, D. kennealyi, D. darwinensis, D. derbyensis D. petiolaris and D. brevicornis do OK. I am open to suggestions from anyone else with experience growing these plants. Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 01:04:13 -0500 Subject: RE: Scale I have found that wp Orthene works. It is better than malathion, soap, or pyrethrin (sp?) alternatives. Obviously, gotta be careful. Tom in Fl. To second Tom's advice I would also recommend Orthene. Experience has shown me that it works well, is easy on most CPs, and continues to ward off pests long after it is applied. It smells to high heaven so use in an enclosed tank setup could be problematic! Use gloves and a face mask when applying it. Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Tue, 2 Feb 1999 21:04:35 -0400 Subject: Re: Fungus Help >I apologize for asking this question here, since I'm SURE it has been >covered before. But this is my first experience with this problem, >so..... > >I have a group of Sarracenia outdoors right now, and everybody appears >to be "sleeping" nicely. However, just yesterday I noticed that one of >the S. rubra wherryi has a grayish mold or fungus on the top of the >rhizome, and about the first half-inch of the stumps remaining from the >pitchers. Can I safely assume this is botrytis? >Craig McDonald >Frisco, Texas >Zone 8 I can't really help you here, you've got serious trouble from your description, but you might try dusting the plants with sulphur _before_ they go dormant. Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson New Brunswick, Canada The Great White Frozen North ################### From: drury6@juno.com Date: Tue, 26 Jan 1999 16:11:59 -0600 Subject: nepenthes habitat What other plants grow with nepenthes? ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Wed, 03 Feb 1999 08:22:06 -0500 Subject: bicalc mutation!!! To all- I am pretty excited about this one. I currently grow a few different forms of N. bicalc. A "smallish" one I have just put out its largest pitcher yet (about 2 1/2 inches. The bizzare part is that it has TWO full sets of teeth!!! One set in front of the other?!? Trent Meeks is going to come over to photograph it later this week and we will submit it to the ICPS newsletter. Has anyone ever seen this before?? What would a good cultivar name be??..... N. bicalc var. JAWS??!!!? :-) ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1999 18:28:52 Subject: looking for a text Dear Listeners, Mesdames, Messieurs, I have tried to obtain a text published in 1871 via interlibrary loan. Unfortunately, however, without success. Arvet-Touvet (1871) "Essai sur les Plantes du Dauphinee", Grenoble, page 50 (perhaps with separate illustration!). Thanks to Juerg Steiger's efforts I know that there is one library that does have the whole book, but they do not loan it: Universite de Grenoble I Institut National Polytechnique (de Grenoble) - Section Sciences, Bibliotheque, Domaine universitaire. Boite Postale 66 F-38402 Saint-Martin-d'Heres, Cedex. France Tel. +33 0476514284. Fax +33 0476444621. Chef: Marie France Rochard. If someone reading this (most probably one of our French colleagues) is able to send me a photocopy of the above cited reference (only the chapter dealing with _Pinguicula_, *NOT* the whole book!), would you please contact me at schlauer@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Merci beaucoup d' avance pour l' assistance. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "John Green" Date: Wed, 03 Feb 1999 11:23:55 -0700 Subject: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids Q1: Can pygmy Drosera gemmae be stored? What is the best method and how long can they be kept in storage? Q2: I've had a difficult time growing Sarracenia from seedlings. I notice that as the seed sprouts, it produces the cotyledons (sp?) about 1 cm above the soil, and then all the pitchers are produced at that spot, the same place I assume the rhizome will develop. Should I push some of the soil up around the plant to bring it up to that level? Q3: When making a hybrid cross between Sarracenia species, does it make a difference in the offspring which plant produces the seed? John Green Salt Lake City, UT ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1999 11:16:44 -0800 (PST) Subject: Announcing the CP Web Ring ----INTRODUCTION Hello all CP Web Masters! Let me tell you about http://www.tbcpc.org/webring/ For as long as I've maintained the CP FAQ, I've been battling with the notion of how we can keep an updated list of CP Web sites. If you look at Yahoo or other search engines, you will see that the majority of great web sites owned by CPers are not easily found. Now we have a solution for this. I've been working with the inestimable Web Guru Derek Glidden on developing a "Web Ring" for carnivorous plant web sites. A Web Ring is a set of sites that are all joined by a linking icon at the bottom of each participating site. The linking icon has front/back buttons so you can travel from the site you are on, to the preceding and following web sites in the Ring. There are also links the the Web Ring home where there is a list of everyone participating on the list. ----BENEFITS The great benefits of the Web Ring are two-fold. First, this is finally a way of getting a good list of CP web sites together in one place. People surfing the web will be able to easily move from one site to another. The list of sites will be kept at the Web Ring home, providing another way of surfing sites. There are amazing sites on the web which are hard to find by the search engines. The Web Ring will show you where they are. Second, the Web Ring will vastly increase traffic to your CP Web Site. This is because your web site will be linked to other heavily travelled sites. I will shortly upload v7.0 of the CP FAQ, which will have a number of links to the Web Ring. The Ring is also featured at the ICPS web site. Furthermore, I expect that the on-line nurseries will be joining the Web Ring (nurseries, private web sites are all welcome) and while they will be benefiting from free publicity, your web site will benefit from heightened traffic. When we stabilize some aspects of the Web Ring, we will register it with the appropriate search engines. Unlike other Web Rings, by joining you will not have to have annoying ads printed on your web site. This is because, with the programming prowess of Derek Glidden, we do not have to rely on professional services. ----THIS IS GREAT! I am very excited about the CP Web Ring. It is one of those ideas which, once you think about it, seems vastly overdue! It is all possible, of course, by the marvelous work done by the following: Derek Glidden (derek@carnivorousplants.org)---Web Ring Guru. Derek is also web guy for the Tampa Bay CP Club. Jay Lechtman (jay@carnivorousplants.org)---ICPS President Barry Meyers-Rice (barry@carnivorousplants.org)---myself, CPN editor. I also am the keeper of the CP FAQ. ----HOW TO JOIN... In order to be fair to everyone, sites on the CP Web Ring *must* have significant CP content, of course. We do not want to include sites which are just lists of links to other sites---the Web Ring will already serve this function. A good Web Ring site must have new content. Photos, text, good stuff. So if you are proud of your CP web site, go to the Web Ring home and sign on. Each site will be looked at by Derek, myself, and ICPS president Jay Lechtman to make sure it is appropriate and then you can follow the instructions and join! We are just starting out (last I looked the Web Ring just had test sites on it) but it looks great already. Yay Derek! Again, the site is: http://www.tbcpc.org/webring/ The Web Ring is still evolving a little, but 95% of the work is done and it is time to have your site added to the list! During this initial phase, please be understanding and if you see a way we can improve the Web Ring, YOUR Web Ring, please contact us! Welcome! Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1999 15:05:44 -0500 Subject: Sar seedlings >Q2: I've had a difficult time growing Sarracenia from seedlings. I >notice that as the seed sprouts, it produces the cotyledons (sp?) >about 1 cm above the soil, and then all the pitchers are produced at >that spot, the same place I assume the rhizome will develop. Should >I push some of the soil up around the plant to bring it up to that >level? I know you're going to hate to hear this but Sarr seedlings are easy. When I hear people say they aren't, I strongly suspect that the reason is either insufficient light or cold/cool temperatures. I grow my seedlings under fluorescent lights as close to the bulb as possible and then put them outside during hot weather. I occasionally find a seedling that seems to have lifted itself above the mix. I not too kindly push it back down. I don't know if this works or not because (and I hate to say this, too) there's too many seedlings to worry about The advice about light and temp apply to the growing season and germinating seed and not the lower temps and lower light levels that induce dormancy. David Atlanta ################### From: "Napolitano, Michael" Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1999 15:33:01 -0800 Subject: S.Oreophila seeds Hi All! I've decided to de-lurk to ask for the sage wisdom of the group. I have a few S. Oreophila seeds given to me by the good folks at Peter D'amato's California Carnivores last September. They have been sitting in the fridge in a waterproof plastic bag since then. I would like to try to get them started soon. What advice can anyone give me on the best way to get a good germination rate. What is the best medium? More or less water in infancy? Any preferred ways to start them, or just stick 'em in the peat? They will be growing in San Francisco, so the threat of frost is pretty nil. Any advice is much appreciated, and hopefully will help bring more of these wonderful plants into the world. _Mike Napolitano ################### From: Peter Cole Date: Thu, 4 Feb 1999 2:43:38 +0800 Subject: RE: Toetmoelk "Haakan Murevaern" writes: .. >If you put fresh (not yet cooled) milk from the cow onto fresh leaves of >Tatort (Pinguicula) and leave it for a couple of days you will get the >taetmjolk made in northern >Sweden. I guess I shouldn't have mashed them up then :) Happy growing, Peter mailto:carnivor@flytrap.demon.co.uk : http:www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/cchome.htm Cambrian Carnivores,17,Wimmerfield Cr.,SWANSEA,SA2 7BU, UK : tel 01792 205214 Carnivorous Plants,Seeds & Tissue Culture Kits - mailorder,export & wholesale ################### From: "Don Elkins/Sean Madison" Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1999 22:15:02 +1300 Subject: Nepenthes soil mix Hello List I was curious as to what is the favorite soil mix for Nepenthes that the list is using?I am using combinations of peat/fine bark. Also has anyone used leaf mould as an ingredient? Where these plants grow in the wild,I know a few grow in peaty soils,but what is the soil like for most Nepenthes? Sincerely Don Elkins [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: Loyd Wix Date: 04 Feb 1999 12:57:13 Z Subject: The size of P.lusitanica Dear All, still trying to catch up with this years digest - I did not have the opportunity to comment on P.lusitanica from a week or so ago so here goes: >>One of the things that's bothering me is that the plants >>are maybe 1 cm in >1 cm diameter is about the right size. Actually if you read the literature this is very small! Both Casper in his Monograph and Webb in his Irish Flora quote 4cms in diameter. The largest plants I have seen in habitat reached 5cm (Slieve Mish Mountains Co Kerry Republic of Ireland) although 4cm would be a reasonable average size for mature (flowering) plants at these locations. I sent seed collected from these Irish sites to the UKCPS seed bank, Allen Lowrie and a few chums. Many of the plants that I have germinated from this seed are already 1cm in diameter. After seeing these large Irish plants I changed the conditions I was growing my English (Hampshire) plants. By increasing the humidity these are now 2cm in diameter. The next thing to try is that the Irish plants were growing in relatively mineral rich mountain side seaps and not typical bog conditions. Thus increasing the mineral content of the compost or the application of a folia feed may be advantageous. Regards Loyd ################### From: Nicholas Plummer Date: Thu, 04 Feb 1999 08:14:38 -0500 Subject: North Carolina plant permits, Sarr oreophila Has anyone successfully obtained the requisite permits to grow Sarracenia oreophila in North Carolina? In July, I sent an application form to the N.C. Plant Conservation program. I have since followed up with two phone calls, and I still haven't heard anything regarding my application. Is the process just slow as molasses? Should I assume that the application was denied, or should I resubmit? Nick ---------------------- Nicholas Plummer nplummer@duke.edu ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Thu, 4 Feb 1999 09:25:29 -0500 Subject: RE: North Carolina plant permits, Sarr oreophila >Has anyone successfully obtained the requisite permits to grow >Sarracenia oreophila in North Carolina? In July, I sent an application >form to the N.C. Plant Conservation program. I have since followed up >with two phone calls, and I still haven't heard anything regarding my >application. Is the process just slow as molasses? Should I assume >that the application was denied, or should I resubmit? Hi Nick, Are you sure you need a permit. In Georgia, you need a permit to take protected plants from the wild, not to grow protected plants. Permits are issued if you prove that you are rescuing plants and get written permission from the owner. I have such a permit to rescue Cyp. acaule. All Sarracenia that are native to Georgia are protected in Georgia but you can grow them if you grow them from seed or get plants from a person or business that grows them (and those plants are not wild collected). I assume the same is true for the two federally protected plants, although I'm sure the government bureaucracy will drive you insane first. David Atlanta ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Thu, 4 Feb 1999 09:08:58 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: S.Oreophila seeds Hi Mike, > Hi All! > I've decided to de-lurk to ask for the sage wisdom of the group. I > have a few S. Oreophila seeds given to me by the good folks at Peter > D'amato's California Carnivores last September. They have been sitting in > the fridge in a waterproof plastic bag since then. I would like to try to > get them started soon. What advice can anyone give me on the best way to get > a good germination rate. If they're fresh, just sow them without any stratification. If they're from over a year ago, they may need stratification for good germination. To do this, place the seeds on a moist paper towel in a ziploc bag in the fridge for about 4 weeks before sowing. I always get near 100% germination doing this. > What is the best medium? Live sphagnum moss. > More or less water in > infancy? Same as adults. I like to fill up their container and let it drop over a period of about a week before refilling. Seems to work for me. > Any preferred ways to start them, or just stick 'em in the peat? Just sow them on top of the sphagnum. Live sphagnum is great because it seems to ward off fungal attacks, which Sarr seed seems prone to when place on a peat mixture, even in good light. > They will be growing in San Francisco, so the threat of frost is pretty nil. > Any advice is much appreciated, and hopefully will help bring more of these > wonderful plants into the world. S.oreophila is pretty cold hardy compared to others as it regularly sees snow in its mountain habitat. If you sow indoors, make sure to have good lighting, Sarrs are light pigs and can't seem to get enough. I place all my seedlings about 1 inch under twin fluorescent bulbs. They really do start to grow like weeds in live sphagnum. Make sure to thin them out by summer, as if they're cramped, they tend to grow slower. Good luck! > _Mike Napolitano > > Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Thu, 4 Feb 1999 14:13:37 EST Subject: Re: That glacier ping Greetings folks, Peter here at California Carnivores! There has been occasional chit chat about that Pinguicula I mentioned in the introduction to The Savage Garden, where, speaking of the fact that most carnivorous plants come from temperate, and not tropical, climates, I wrote that a new species was found growing "on glacial ice". Fernando mentioned a few days ago that the letter Joe Mazrimas had shown me had been an April Fools joke. Fernando is indeed correct on this point, and Juerg was kind enough to send me a copy of the original message, which, as good practical jokes should be, seemed very serious! Apparently, according to Juerg, the response to it indicated that many people, including yours truely, found it quite believable! Juerg was quick to point out that he has found P. leptoceras on moraines within 300 yards of glaciers, which is close enough for the purpose of that sentence in my book. The book will be amended for its second printing. As for other news: Here at California Carnivores we have in stock a limited quantity of D. stolonifera ssp. stolonifera. These are large, fairly mature plants that are breaking the soil surface now, and are completely adjusted to the northern hemisphere. They are in five inch pots. Price is $20. We may have younger ones come up that may sell for about $10. Check our website californiacarnivores.com for ordering information, or call us at (707) 838-1630. Th-th-th-th-th-that's all folks! Peter ################### From: "Nigel Hurneyman" Date: 04 Feb 99 17:23:45 +0000 Subject: Re: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids Hi John, Regarding storing pygmy gemmae, in my experience you can store most of them in the fridge provided you keep them slighly moist. Small gemmae (occidentalis) keep for a very long time, over a year if you are lucky. Larger gemmae (scorpioides) keep for a much shorter period, perhaps a month or two. There are one or two really tricky species (ericksoniae) which I can't seem to keep for any time at all. The longer you keep them in the fridge, the more gently you have to acclimatise them when you sow them, and have the fungicide handy. Hope this helps, NigelH ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Wed, 3 Feb 1999 20:24:27 +0000 Subject: Re: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids John, >Q1: Can pygmy Drosera gemmae be stored? What is the best method >and how long can they be kept in storage? > Depends on the species. Generally the smaller flatter (fishscale-like) gemmae can be stored for quite a long time if kept a) wet and b) chilled. To keep them wet store them between a fold of dampened kitchen roll and place this in a small ziploc bag. Keep this in the fridge. I have kept gemmae of D. pulchella this way for up to six months, though generally the longer the gemmae are stored the lower the percentage that start into growth successfully. The larger gemmae tend to sprout regardless of the temperature and will start to grow even when kept in the fridge. Storage times for this type of gemmae can be little more than a week at the most. >Q2: I've had a difficult time growing Sarracenia from seedlings. I >notice that as the seed sprouts, it produces the cotyledons (sp?) >about 1 cm above the soil, and then all the pitchers are produced at >that spot, the same place I assume the rhizome will develop. Should >I push some of the soil up around the plant to bring it up to that >level? > All that is happening is that as the initial root pushes into the soil the plant itself gets forced up. You can carefully bury the plant again once it has formed the first or second pitcher. However, if you bury the seed to about its own depth when sowing you will find that the tendency of the seedling to push clear of the soil is greatly reduced. >Q3: When making a hybrid cross between Sarracenia species, does it >make a difference in the offspring which plant produces the seed? > Not as far as I know. There is probably a convention as to which plant (the plant bearing the pollen or the plant bearing the seed) is listed first but I can't remember which way round it is. Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: Dave Date: Thu, 04 Feb 99 18:57 EST Subject: Re: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids Dear Phil W. > >Q3: When making a hybrid cross between Sarracenia species, does it > >make a difference in the offspring which plant produces the seed? > > > Not as far as I know. There is probably a convention as to which plant > (the plant bearing the pollen or the plant bearing the seed) is listed > first but I can't remember which way round it is. The seed bearing plant (mother) is the one listed first. As for the first question, it does matter for some plants, but CP'ers haven't come up much definative data on for CP's yet. If there is anyone who might be able to add info, I reckon that would be Phil Sheridan, who has done alot of breeding experiments with Sarracenia. Dave Evans ################### From: Tony Camilleri Date: Fri, 05 Feb 1999 10:01:45 +0930 Subject: Borneo visit I will be visiting Sabah and Mt Kinabalu in December and would appreciate any comments or contacts about finding Nepenthes from people who have been there before. Please e-mail me privately with any useful information. tona@topend.com.au P.S: I have heard there is a good Nepenthes nursery in Sabah, could anybody confirm that. Regards, Tony Camilleri Australia ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Thu, 04 Feb 1999 21:11:50 -0500 Subject: Re:Nepenthes Soil Mix Don and Sean, This is a recurring topic on the Digest. Every Nepenthes grower seems to have concocted their own mix, based upon their growing conditions- micro-climates- greenhouse in Europe or a lathe house in south Florida? A few factors are consistent- well drained, yet moisture retentive, and a mostly neutral to acidic ph. I have my own mix, and I'm constantly adjusting. Some species seem to need very specific soil characteristics- ultrabasic or lateritic materials, but most grow well in a well drained sphag. peat and clay ball/pumice/perlite mixture, maybe with fir bark, sphagnum moss, coir fiber, charcoal as an added component. Lately, I have placed a couple of plants in pure sphagnum moss to see what would happen. I've had wonderful results, as long as the moss is not packed to tightly. these plants also require less watering. I have also noticed that N. mirabilis prefers a heavy peat moss mix, and N. bicalcarata likes a peaty mix, but not as heavy as mirabilis. I have found that coir peat breaks down quickly into a reddish sludge, and rot out a Nepenthes root system very suddenly. Be careful if you use these "just add water" bricks! Good growing, Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Thu, 4 Feb 1999 18:31:06 -0800 (PST) Subject: Cultivar Registration Hey All, Jan and I have been working to make the whole cultivar registration process a little more clear. There are two steps to the process. The first is in having your cultivar or cultivar-group description published in a widely circulated journal. The second is in registering your cultivar or cultivar group. Obviously, the zeroeth step is in developing a good plant! At the ICPS Website (http://www.carnivorousplants.org) we have set up an area where you can download the Cultivar Registration Form, and an example of a completed form. You can also learn a little more about what a cultivar is, what a cultivar-group is, etc. Developing these forms with Jan has been a definite learning experience for me! I think this is a major step forward in making it easier for growers to validate their bogus-named pseudo-cultivars. It is no longer a mystery of what must go into a cultivar description, what's a nominant, registrant, etc etc. It's all there for you! Cheers! Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: Dave Date: Thu, 04 Feb 99 21:58 EST Subject: Re: Cultivar Registration Congratulations Barry and Jan! > At the ICPS Website (http://www.carnivorousplants.org) we have set up an > area where you can download the Cultivar Registration Form, and an example > of a completed form. > > You can also learn a little more about what a cultivar is, what a > cultivar-group is, etc. Developing these forms with Jan has been a > definite learning experience for me! This is really great news, I beleive this will help a lot of growers understand and use cultivars instead of bogus names. I'll be sure to refer this site to anyone who has plant(s) they feel should have be named. On this note, Tom Hayes, I think we have more than a couple interesting plants between the two of us. Let's see about naming them, instead of just talking about like we have been! ;^) Dave E ################### From: "Bruce Salmon" Date: Fri, 5 Feb 1999 17:02:51 +1300 Subject: The Savage Garden Dear Peter and All. Something has been bugging me about the book, The Savage Garden. On some pages you will notice photos that look as though they have been in a fire or in a supervillans vat of acid. e.g. p. 110 (H. nutans), p. 236 (N. albomarginata) etc. What is the significance/story behind these photos. Thanks Bruce [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Fri, 05 Feb 1999 01:25:23 PST Subject: RE: Medical uses of CP - Part III PART III Provided that the above described rules are carried out on a regular base CARNIVORA (TM) treatment could be initiated according to the following recommendations: Introduction CARNIVORA ( TM ) CARNIVORA (TM), a standardized phytopharmacon of pressed juices of Dionaea muscipula, is used for the treatment of cancer and chronic diseases in man. Highest qualitiy is ensured by strict consideration of GMP-guide- lines resulting in extremely low endotoxin activities of less than 3.5 ng/ml. In long and short term in-vivo and in-vitro studies CARNIVORA 9TM0 proved to be completely untoxic and no-mutagenic. Studies carried out in tissue cultures, laboratory animals and in man, have revealed the folowing therapeutic effects of CARNIVORA (TM): 1. cytostasis 2. Mitotic inhibition 3. Immunoinduction-Immunestimulation and Modulation. 4. Starvation of the single tumor cell by decreasing the ATP content. 5. Virucidal effect 6. Alleviation of pain CARNIVORA (TM) has been proven to be asafe product and shows positive effects in the treatment of cancer, chronic diseases and HIV infection in man, By combining silicagel column-chromatography preparative TLC, and HPLC on ODS-phase various components were isolated from CARNIVORA (TM). Kreher et Al. 1988 reported for the first time the isolation of hydroplumbagin -4-0~ glucopyranoside, a component of this carnivorous plant diontea muscipula, component. In a primary in vitro screening for anti-HIV activity in human lymphocytes CARNIVORA (TM) proved to be highly efficacious. In this test the concentration of the viral protein p24 is determined in the supperrnatent of HIV infected cells grown in the presence of CARNIVORA (TM). Additionally, the concentration of viral RNA measured in the cells is a good indicator of virus replication. The anti viral effect is determined by comparison of the p24- and RNA- concentrations in medicated and control cells. Result with CARNIVORA 9TM0: Inhibition of p24 -synthesis: 100% Inhibition of RNA-synthesis:100% In a pilot study on humans CARNIVORA (TM) demonstrates its effect in regard of improved Karnowsky index and body weight, decrease of beta 2 micro- globulin, constant levels of neopterin, increase of CD4 helper cells and total T lymphocytes. Toxicology: Acute toxicity : An acute toxicity study has been conducted in Spraque-Dawley rats, The mean LD 50 ranged from 1500 mm to 1750 mg/ kg bw. Subacute toxicity: In a 90 day study CARNIVORA (TM) did not show any toxic reactions in male rats at 30 times and An female rats at 60 times the recommended human dose rate. Mutagenicity and genotoxicity: CARNIVORA (TM) was not mutagenic when assessed in the Ames test and the chromosomal aberration test in the bone marrow of the Chinese hamster. There was no indication for genotoxicity when CARNIVORA (TM) was evaluated in the SOS- Chromotest. Composition The composition of CARNIVORA (TH) formulation is as follows: CARNIVORA (TM) injectable solution The 50 ml bottle contains the steril pressed juice of the entire fresh plant, Dionaea muscipula, adjusted to 2% dry residue and isotonicity with Mannitol. CARNIVORA(TM) drops 1 ml CARNIVORA (TM) contains : The pressed juice of the entire fresh plant, Dionaea muscipula, adjusted to 2% (W/W) dry residue 0.33 ml, ethanol 86%, and aqua purificata 0.34 mil. Indications The use of CARNIVORA ( TM ) Is reconmended for the treatment of the following diseases: Adult malignant tumors (except Sarcomas ) Ulcerative colitis Crohn\355s disease Rheumatoid arthritis Neurodermitis Multiple sclerosis Immune deficiency diseases HIV lnfections, LAS, ARC:, AIDS Chronic Fatigue Syndrom Herpes labialis and urogenitalis Dosage and treatment schedule: Following are the recommendations for treatment with CARNIVORA 9TM0: CARNIVORA (TM) 50 ml injectable solution I.V. infusion: 3 to 5 ml CARNIVORA (TM) diluted in 250 ml 0.9 % NaCL daily, Monday through Friday, In Glioblastomas dilution should be with 250 ml Mannitol 10% instead of NaCL. The duration of the infusion should be 2 to 3 hours. After 2 to 3 weeks, at the time when a sudden decrease of the total T cells indicates an overstimulation, the dosage has to be decreased and adjusted individually. In cases of urothel carcinomas instillations of 5 to l0 ml once per week help to prevent reoccurence, it applied up \353 I.M./ S.C. injections: After 4 weeks intensive I.V. treatment long term intramuscular or subcutaneous injections should follow. The dosage should also be adjusted according to the results of the immune monitoring and clinical relevant markers. According to my experience the mean maintenance dosage range B is between 1 and 2 ml s.c. or i.m. CARNIVORA (TM1 100 ml formulation) Oral application: Daily 3 to 5 times 50 drops before meals diluted in some water or tea. The oral formulation should be applied in case of all tumors of the intestinal tract together with i.v, i.m. or s.c. CARNIVORA (TM) treatment. Patients Suffering from lung or bronchial cancer should inhale true drops by means of a cold vaporizer ( no ultrasound ) 3 to 5 times per day,(Mix 2 ml of the oral formulation with 2 ml 0.9 % NaCL 3-5/day). In HIV related diarrhea the drops are of additional benefit, also the inhalations in case of Aspergillus and Candida infections. Dr. Med. Helmut Keller Medical Director Recommended Reading: Balch, J.: Prescription for Nutritional Healing, Avery Publishing Group Inc. Garden Park NewYork . Dostal, V.- et al.: Immunmonitoring and additive Immuntherapie, Hippokrates Verlag Stuttgart 1990 W-Germany Keller, H.-Venusfliegenfallen - Extrakt hilft gegen Krebs, Arztliche Praxis, XXXVII. Jahrgang Nr. 36 1985 Werk- Verlag Dr. E. Banaschewski 8 Munchen Grafelfing 1985 W- Germany Keller,H.- Acta Empirica 1985, Band 34 Heft6, June 1995, Krebstherapie mit einem pflanzlichen Wirkstoff-erst Erfahrungen mit einem neuen Phyto- onkologicum, Karl F. Haug Verlag GmbH & Co. 6900 Heidelberg W Germany Lane, W.-Sharks don\355t get cancer, Avery Publishing Group Inc. Garden Park, New York 1992. Wagner,H.-Structure elucidation of Plumbagin-analoges from Dionea Muscipula and their immunemodulating activities in vitro and in vivo. Sopron, Hungary August 24-27 1988 The CARNIYORA (TH) formulations can be ordered at the address Below . Prices: 50 ml CARNIVORA (TM) .......................injectable DM: $320.80 100 ml CARNIVORA (TM) drops ...........................DM: $177.55 shlpping fee DM: 30.00 is not included. Please make cheques payable to the address above. It is our policy to receive payment before goods are sent out. Fischer Manager Edgar Fischer, Manager Carnivora-Forschungs-GmbH Postfach 8, Lobensteiner Strasse 3 D-8646, Nordhalben, Germany Phone: 011-49-9267-1662 Fax: 011-49-9267-1040 *** END PART III *** Much greetings, Sam Vanderstraeten. ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Fri, 05 Feb 1999 10:28:19 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Nepenthes species To all thoughs who know about Nepenthes, Which of these Nepenthes are highlanders or lowlanders? adnata, argentii, aristolochioides, borneensis, danseri, deaniana, diatas, eustachya, eynae, faizalliana, fallax, glabrata, hamata, lamii, lavicola, longifolia, macrophylla, mapuluensis, masoalensis, mikei, ovata, philippinensis, spathulata, sumatrana, talangensis, & tenuis. Sincerely, Robert Simkunas II ################### From: "David Bradley" Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 07:58:11 +1100 XSubject: Nepenthes species Hello everyone, I am brand new 2 the listserve, so thought I should do something about introducing myself. I live in Australia, in a small town called Bundanoon, located in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales. We are 680 metres above sea level, so we get some frosts & temps down 2 minus 6 degrees. With such conditions I grow the Sarracenia genus, along with the North American Droseras, the hardy D. binata complex, Utricularia, some South African Droseras, & the beautiful Heliamphoras. I find that my Sarras really do love the icy winters, as they flower the best after some good freezes, & my seeds come up like weeds, after being exposed 2 the numerous frosts. At present I grow my Sarracenias out in the open in a large trough, 6 cm deep. They love this outdoor posy, & tend 2 colour up very nicely & produce numerous offsets along the rhizomes. I do help them along by removing the old pitcher bases, which usually reveals the dormant buds, as well as the occasional notching here & there. Of late I have been getting in2 the S. rubra subspecies, as in the past I was more so interested in the S. flava complexes (2 which I still am, & I am always looking out 4 the rarer varieties & forms). The beautiful S. rubra ssp. alabamensis would have 2 be my fave one, as the Autumn pitchers are really something else. A bit of history about me. I first got in2 the c.p's when I was about 8 or 9 years old, with the trusty old ambassador, the Venus Flytrap! I was actually very lucky from the outset, & have never stopped since then. I didn't get in2 the Sarracenia Genus until I was about 13, having obtained my first S.X readii from the 'Big Banana' in Coffs Harbour. It went on 2 be a very healthy & dividable plant. At that stage I was living in Wollongong, on the coast of NSW. I was quite happy with this & a few weedy D.capensis alongside my robust D. muscipulas. I finally moved back 2 my home area of the Southern Highlands when I was 24, & that is when my passion really exploded! I am now 26 & have quite a few plants in my collection. Soon I will be moving 2 Bowral, close 2 the 'Babe country' of Robertson, & I will have access 2 a glasshouse! It will be my first time in such a structure, so it will be interesting 2 see how the plants like it. As I grow the hardy genera outdoors over Winter, I will leave it as a cool 2 cold greenhouse. It is quite exciting 2 say the least! I best sign off 4 now. I hope that I haven't bored too many people. I am looking 4ward 2 all of the hints & info that I will discover on the Listserve. By 4 now. Regards Nathan J.Clemens ################### From: Dave Date: Fri, 05 Feb 99 22:52 EST Subject: Re: drosera morphology Dear David, > I'm growing several Drosera montana v tomentosa (gawd, I hope I spelled it > right) via Fernando (thanks) and noticed that the flower stalk has dew on > the flower bracts and for a short distance just below the flowers. No dew > is present on the lower portion of the stalk. The fascinating part of this > is that the dew on the flower bracts has managed to catch some gnats. > Hopefully the same would not happen to the insect pollinator of choice in > its native Brazil. Would anyone like to offer an evolutionary explanation > for why this would evolve. A nearby Drosera brevifolia, which produces dew > on the entire flower stalk, has not caught any insects on the flower stalk. Well, I have seen bugs getting caught on some flower stem of D. brevifolia. But they did not appear to have been digest, just stuck. I suppose that your question could be answered like this: The pollinator of this plant, D. montana v. tomentosa knows better than to get caught on the flower stalk, while insects with whom the plant doesn't have such an intimate relationship (like pests) don't know and therefore get caught. Dave E ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Fri, 5 Feb 1999 18:42:31 -0700 Subject: Re: Nepenthes species On Fri, 5 Feb 1999 08:42:39 -0800 z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU writes: >To all thoughs who know about Nepenthes, > > Which of these Nepenthes are highlanders or lowlanders? > Since I happened to have Jebb & Cheek next to the computer I thought these might help. Lowlanders are generally considered to grow below 1000m and highlanders above 1000m. obviously there is some degree of "intermediate" but the highland lowland concept can be useful if not taken too seriously. adnata, 100-1000m argentii, 1400m aristolochioides, 2000-2200m borneensis, 1300-1880m danseri, 0-300m diatas, 2400-2600m eustachya, 0-1600m eymae, 1500-1800m glabrata, 1600-2000m hamata, 1400-2500m lamii, 1460-3520m macrophylla, 2000-2600m mapuluensis, 700-800m masoalensis, 30-400m mikei, 1100-2400m ovata,1800m spathulata, 1500-2100m sumatrana, 0-1000m Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: "Jens Rotthauwe" Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 17:16:45 +0100 Subject: Proboscidea and Ibicella seeds Hello List ! I am looking for seeds of any varieties of Proboscidea and Ibicella. I can offer Drosophyllum, VFT, Darlingtonia and maybe some other seeds for trade. Thanks for your help ! Kind regards Jens ___________________________________ Jens Rotthauwe uzsb09@uni-bonn.de Im Jagdfeld 61 53125 GERMANY [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Jure Slatner" Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 17:39:49 +0100 Subject: Re: Toetmoelk Hello, Peter Cole wrote: >Perhaps you're supposed to use reindeer milk - who knows?) but I believe Ta"tmio"lk is the Lapp word for it >there's a passing reference to it in SLACK -Carnivorous Plants.) I've not heard of the other names. I find names Toetmoelk and Filmjo"lk in Juniper, Robins, Joel - Carnivorous Plants: 'The Leaves of Pinguicula, as they were once in Britain, are still used by the Lapps to curdle and thicken milk, producing Toetmoelk or Filmjo"lk.' Is there any British name for it? Bon appetit, Jure Slatner ################### From: Kurt Gereck Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 11:54:06 -0800 Subject: Allen Lowrie's germination methods. I am searching for the instructions Allen Lowrie included in one of his 98' catalogs on his efficient ways of germinating different seed species, primarily on Heliamphora. If anyone has this information, or knows where to find it, I would greatly appreciate the spreading of knowledge. ################### From: strega@split.it (Tassara) Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 21:20:35 +0100 Subject: D.stenopetala germination Hi to everybody! Does anyone have any positive experience in germinating seeds of Drosera stenopetala? I've tried several manners, but none seems to work. Thank you! Filippo Tassara Genova, Italy ################### From: Dionaea@aol.com Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 17:51:11 EST Subject: D. erythrorhiza var. imbecilia Question to anyone who can help: Lowrie has a variety of D. erythrorhiza listed as "imbecilia." Can someone tell me how this plant differs from the others? Is this a smaller plant than the others? Thanks. Christoph ################### From: "Mark and Karen" Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 13:21:09 +0000 Subject: Carnivorous passionfruit Greetings all, Forgive me if this subject has already been covered but I'm looking for a copy from 'The Journal of Bio. Sciences' Vol. 20 1995 pages 657 - 664 entitled 'Defence and Carnivorey, Dual Role of Bracts in Passiflora foetida' by T.R. Radhamanim. Thanks in advance Mark ----------------------------------------- Mark and Karen (marked@xtra.co.nz) 8 Rugby Street, Levin, New Zealand ----------------------------------------- ################### From: nile smith Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 00:28:21 +0000 Subject: Wanted: Utricularia gibba nile smith nxs@postmark.net Hello, Does anybody here in the U.S.A. have a sprig or two of U. gibba they would be willing to sell to me? I'd also be interested in buying any other kind of aquatic, but mainly U. gibba. I'd appreciate any help. Thanks, Nile Smith nxs@postmark.net P.S. If you can help, please respond to my e-mail address. ################### From: Joe and Kathy Mazrimas Date: Sat, 06 Feb 1999 17:21:14 +0000 Subject: How to order Lowrie's book Many folks asked how to order the long-awaited book by Lowrie. This is one way to get it. I just did the following. First the facts: Title:Carnivorous Plants of Australia Vol 111, paperback. Allen Lowrie ISBN: 187 556 0599 Pub: International Specialized Book Services, Jan 1999. Then, search on the internet for Barnesandnoble.com and under search mode you just need to use the ISBN above. His book will come up, put it in your shopping cart and check out. Checkout is easy, only name, address and e-mail is required. I preferred to give my credit card number by phone and that is an option. Phone 1-800-843-2665 after placing your order. Book will arrive in 3-5 weeks. Each copy costs $62.40 which includes handling and shipping. Remember, Vol 1 and 2 are out of print! ################### From: "Scott Mcphee" Date: Sat, 6 Feb 1999 19:19:01 -0800 Subject: Ping moranensis Greetings folks, I am having something interesting happen with my Ping. moranensis 'G'. I purchsed one from Cal Carnivores in August of 97. Last year the dormancy consisted of a modest reduction in leaf size and lack of glands. This year, the plant is forming tight winter succulent rosettes. I have taken it out of the water now to prevent rot. I do not think that the cause of dormancy in this case is the enviornment in which the plant is located because I propagated it last year and now have four other plants that have not behaved this way, and all the moranensis are located next to each other. I am thinking that it has to do more with the fact that it is now a six growth plant in the two inch pot. Any one else have this happen? Any thoughts on this?? Regards, Scott Mcphee in rainy N. California ################### From: Stephen Davis Date: Sat, 06 Feb 1999 21:21:59 -0800 Subject: Re: Wanted: Utricularia gibba Nile,\\ I would not even think of selling it to you. It grows so easily I've had 2 people give me pieces of it. Give my your addres and I'd be glad to send you some. If you have any spares of aquatics I'd be interested in a trade. Otherwise I'll just send it and hope you help someone else some day like some people have been so kind to me. :-) Stephen Davis nile smith wrote: > nile smith > nxs@postmark.net > > Hello, > > Does anybody here in the U.S.A. have a > sprig or two of U. gibba they would be > willing to sell to me? I'd also be interested > in buying any other kind of aquatic, but > mainly U. gibba. I'd appreciate any > help. Thanks, > > Nile Smith > nxs@postmark.net > > P.S. If you can help, please respond > to my e-mail address. -- Stephen Davis [V-Card file stephend.vcf deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: Kevin Snively Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 03:08:13 -0800 Subject: Another new Cp book Has any one seen this book yet Title Carnivorous Plants Author Camilleri, Tony ISBN 0864179170 Publisher Kangaroo Press Pub. Date 01/19/99 Binding Trade Paper Pages 96 Can you tell us a bit about it? krs ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Fri, 5 Feb 1999 21:17:02 +0000 Subject: Re: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids In message <199902050018.QAA04138@hplms26.hpl.hp.com>, Dave writes >Dear Phil W. > >> >Q3: When making a hybrid cross between Sarracenia species, does it >> >make a difference in the offspring which plant produces the seed? >> > >> Not as far as I know. There is probably a convention as to which plant >> (the plant bearing the pollen or the plant bearing the seed) is listed >> first but I can't remember which way round it is. > > The seed bearing plant (mother) is the one listed first. As >for the first question, it does matter for some plants, but CP'ers >haven't come up much definative data on for CP's yet. If there >is anyone who might be able to add info, I reckon that would be >Phil Sheridan, who has done alot of breeding experiments with >Sarracenia. > As I understand genetics the only thing that matters is whether a particular gene effecting a certain characteristic is recessive or dominant. I can't see how the seed bearer has any influence on this. I don't claim to be any sort of expert in this field and as so I am aware that I am probably standing on fairly shaky ground! At least I'm happy to accept that its probably no where near as straightforward that that. :-) Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: "David Bradley" Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 22:21:05 +1100 XSubject: Re: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids Dear Kevin Snively I can shed some light on the new book by the Australian author Tony Camilleri, as it is in my collection. Be4 I go on, U can get copies through the Australian Carnivorous Plant Society, if U are a member. Check their website out on http://www.camtech.net.au/acps. The book is 104 pages, A4 size, soft cover, & published by Kangaroo Press, of the Viacom Company, in Sydney, New York, London, Toronto, Tokyo & Singapore. It was on sale on the 10th of October, 1998, in my town of Bowral, NSW. Tony is a member of the Victorian Carnivorous Plant Society, & I have seen his listserve messages whilst viewing past listings, so he must be on line. The book is very impressive, as it is chock full of A4 size & smaller (100 2 be exact) colour photos of very good quality & clarity. The book covers the following Genera: 1. Dionaea 2. Drosera 3. Byblis 4. Aldrovanda 5. Sarracenia 6. Darlingtonia 7. Cephalotus 8. Nepenthes 9. Pinguicula 10. Utricularia It also has a section on various cultivation methods, as well as pests & diseases, societies, nurseries & a total liisting of known cp's. Well worth adding 2 one's collection, as it presents very well & is a good overview & introduction 2 cp's (It discusses the various Genera & gives brief cultural directions). I hope that this will give U a better idea of the book. I wish U luck in locating a copy or two. Regards Nathan Clemens sundew@mitmania.net.au ################### From: "~`~ TomsRarePlants~`~" Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 08:00:09 -0000 Subject: CEPHALOTUS PLANTS GREETINGS Hi any one have Cephalotus for sale or trade ? Thanks Tom frittsmb@msn.com ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 08:26:50 EST Subject: Re: CEPHALOTUS PLANTS Dear Tom & List, > Hi any one have Cephalotus for sale or trade ? ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 08:40:04 EST Subject: Re: CEPHALOTUS PLANTS; take two! Dear Tom & List, Perhaps I should get some viagra, I seem to suffer from premature "sending messages" :) Actually I should wait until after I get some caffeine to touch the keyboard..... > Hi any one have Cephalotus for sale or trade ? I have lots of small ceph plants available for either sale or trade. Anyone interested can drop me e-mail for more info. Tom Hayes DANGEROUS PLANTS ################### From: "John Odum" Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 06:12:26 PST Subject: S.purpureae Water Hello All, I'm sorry if this question has been covered before. I have searched through the achives for an answer with no success. I have a few recently acquired S.purpureae that appear to be doing quite well. Both have produced new growth and have begun to develope some red coloration. My question is, should the pitchers occasionaly be flushed with clean water? Due to there structure it would seem that this would happen when growing outside with rain. I was also wondering how full the pitchers should be? When filling the trays I use DI water with all of my plants. This is my first experience with any Sarracenia, but I deffinately look to acquring more in the future. Thanks. John Odum ################### From: Peter Keller Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 09:18:17 +0000 Subject: Cp Books This message is just asking a favor. I maintain a web site for retired firefighters and have a page linked to Barnes and Noble. Any orders through this site will result in a 5% return which will be used to support our older retiree's (pre-71) who retired without benefits (eye glasses, dental etc.) Any assistance would be appreciated. the URL is below. -- Peter F. Keller pkeller@suffolk.lib.ny.us pfk6@juno.com http://www.hoflink.com/~scarf ################### From: "Michael Hunt" Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 09:30:59 -0500 Subject: Re:Carnivorous Plants by Tony Camilleri Kevin, Adding to Nathan's comments on the book Carnivorous Plants. Its well worth the price of under $20.00 in the U.S. I obtained my copy from the Book Shop at Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota Fl. They do ship. The phone number is (941) 366- 5731 ext. 44. Also they currently have a couple copies of Nepenthes Of Boreno by Charles Clarke, which is IMO the absolute best book written on the Boreno plants to date! And the price has dropped on this by $20.00. It is a hard book to get, so hurry. :-) Take care, ~Mike -----Original Message----- To: Multiple recipients of list >Dear Kevin Snively > I can shed some light on the new book by the Australian author Tony >Camilleri, >as it is in my collection. Be4 I go on, U can get copies through the >Australian Carnivorous Plant Society, if U are a member. Check their >website out on http://www.camtech.net.au/acps. > The book is 104 pages, A4 size, soft cover, & published by Kangaroo >Press, of the Viacom Company, in Sydney, New York, London, Toronto, Tokyo >& Singapore. It was on sale on the 10th of October, 1998, in my town of >Bowral, NSW. > Tony is a member of the Victorian Carnivorous Plant Society, & I have >seen his listserve messages whilst viewing past listings, so he must be on >line. The book is very impressive, as it is chock full of A4 size & >smaller (100 2 be exact) colour photos of very good quality & clarity. The > ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 09:34:47 EST Subject: Re: The Carow CP calendar - LAST CALL Dear list, Last Call for orders - They are being ordered Monday the 8th. No more exceptions as I don't want to keep the people who already ordered waiting :) > The volunteer for collective orders in the USA is: -snip- I realize that the calendar page is very slow to load, but the size and quality of the pictures makes up for the wait. (Thanks Andreas!) Thomas K. Hayes DANGEROUS PLANTS www.tcscs.com/~thayes ################### From: "david ahrens" Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 06:47:17 PST Subject: David Ahrens Re: self-introduction I first got into cp's by being a VFT murderer at the age of ten years, the usual route into the hobby. Ten years ago , I tracked down a supplier of flytraps in a book published for buying plants difficult to find. The nursery told me how easy they were to grow, and so I thought that I would have a go. Untill recently I have had a collection of Sarracenias, nepenthes, heliamphora, and a few drosera. I have had to leave most of the collection with a friend for a few years , untill I can buy somewhere where I can erect another greenhouse. I am actively involved in the British society, and in the last few years I have attended the conferences in Atlanta and Bonn regards David Ahrens nepenthesdave@hotmail.com ################### From: "Kenneth Low" Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 23:02:10 +0800 Subject: Book Dear All, Well, about the Carnivorous plants book by Toni Camelleri has nice fully coloured pics of CPs(my favourtie is the Utrics in the wild blooming across the grow covering with a mass of purple stalks) and inside includes total listing of the CPs. The photography i must admit is magnificent! It has divided chapter of different species of CPs and also a guide on how to care, potting mix, type of light the plant require, watering the the type of pots the plant require. On a Aldrovanda section, it teaches you how to care it by produsing carbon dioxide, carbon dioxide increases the grow rate. There is also an illustrated map on where can you find the specific plants. Well, an interesting book and useful for people who want to cultivate plants like these! Recommended! Great book! Clayton [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: Angie Nichols Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 11:19:48 -0800 Subject: another new CP book Hi Kevin. Being a sucker for any new publication on CP, since there aren't very many, I ordered the book from amazon.com for around $l6.00. It has alot of nice 8 1/2" by 11" photographs and offers growing instructions. I consider it a nice addition to my CP library but I continue to think of Slack's book as my CP bible and D'amato's book as my CP encyclopedia. Angie Nichols, SC. ################### From: Davidogray@aol.com Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 15:12:23 EST Subject: An Introducion/ reintroduction Hello to everyone, my name is David O'Hollaren Gray and I am happy to be back after a two year hiatus. I'm 39, live in San Francisco and have had a life- long interest in natural history -- my first words were 'pretty flower' ( it was a Cattleya ). I have grown CP since the age of 12, but unlike almost everyone else, I think my first plant was a Darlingtonia which is common enough in my native Oregon. I after gathering and dispersing a large collection a couple of times, I have now decided to develop my serious interest in Nepenthes. I have a B.S. in Horticulture and experience with a wide variety of exotic and hardy plants; I have also served on the boards of plant societies and organizations in Oregon. But more to the purpose here; I have been doing what I can to help organize the ICPS Conference 2000 in San Francisco. Those interested in attending the organizing meeting to be held Sat. Feb. 13 at !:00 p.m. at the Berkeley Botanical Garden meeting rooms should e-mail me for an agenda ( if you didn't already get one ). We will certainly post a brief report from that meeting, here and I hope to update the conference web page soon after. We have lots of great new ideas for this conference, So I hope you will all keep the latter part of May 2000 or late June free. Enough of the sermon, I really am exited about the way my Nepenthes are responding to my "growth chamber"; the foliage color and trap production is magnificent ( if I do say so myself ). I grow mostly highland hybrids ( ! ) and h/l species with an eye to eventually developing hybrids that might be suitable as a "windowsill Nepenthes". I welcome e-mail correspondence on any of these topics Thanks, good growing, and Cheers, David O. Gray davidogray@aol.com ################### From: Olivier Marthaler Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 21:34:53 +0100 Subject: Re: Swiss CP annual meeting/exhibition, June99 7 February, 1999 Hi everybody, If some of you still don't know the new Botanic Garden of Neuch\342tel University, in Switzerland, there will be a great opportunity to discover it this June. (BTW, Neuch\342tel is right between Zurich and Geneva, for those who had a D in Geography!) The Swiss meeting for CP freaks will take place there, instead of Dulliken where it was held these past years. Don't worry, most activities will be bilingual or trilingual, as French, German and English will be spoken on that occasion. Besides the very exhibition, there will be place for swapping, selling, discussing, eating and drinking! Among loads of various species, a few RARITIES will be displayed for one of the first times ever: -Nepenthes ARISTOLOCHIOIDES, -Nepenthes sp. Kemiri, -... and 2 new highland Nep. species discovered in the Philippines last year by some buddies of mine + myself. Obviously they won't be adult plants, as even if in-vitro's grow fairly fast, you can't do miracles with ARISTOLOCHIOIDES in 2 1/2 years!!! Among CP "VIP", Joachim Nerz, Andreas Wistuba from Germany will attend and present a slide show on Sunday 20 June, Jacques Boulay from France will also talk ab. CP on Saturday. So welcome all of you in June, and cheers to loads of good friends round the world I haven't kept in touch with personally lately! More news later! Olivier, below more than one metre of snow at the moment! ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 12:27:34 -0800 (PST) Subject: Ibicella >Hello List ! >I am looking for seeds of any varieties of Proboscidea and Ibicella. >I can offer Drosophyllum, VFT, Darlingtonia and maybe some other >seeds for trade. Thanks for your help ! Kind regards Jens Ibicella seeds are available for $1/pack to ICPS members. Follow the links to the seedbank from www.carnivorousplants.org Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Sun, 7 Feb 1999 16:51:07 -0800 (PST) Subject: Web Ring Hey folks, I'm really pleased to see the interest in the Web Ring! Already within just a few days we have a functioning ring of sites. More people apply every day! We have not formulated a precise set of requirements that a web site must have in order to be approved for the web ring. However, there are a few general guidelines for you web masters to remember when submitting a site. 1)Make sure the page you want to link to the web ring is your CP page. We all have other interests, but those aren't really relevent to the *CP* web ring. You can always have a link on your CP page to "More about me", that the surfer can follow to find out about those interests you have in aerial kite photography, etc etc. But don't register your home site with the Web Ring if surfers would have to follow a link or two to get to the real CP area! 2)Pages filled mostly with promises of content to come aren't quite up to standard either. Get that site ready *before* submitting it to the web ring. 3)Polish that site! Remove broken links, try to clean up the spelling, and have a nonconfusing navigational structure. We aren't trying to snub anyone with the web ring, rather we want to keep a high standard to make it a great surfing experience for everyone concerned! Get that site ready, and submit it to the Ring!!! Cheers Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: Stephen Davis Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 21:35:02 -0800 Subject: Re: Ibicella Barry, Are the Ibicella seeds still there? Last I saw, the ICPS seed bank was out, but the page hasn't been updated since Jan 2. I know because I sent a message to confirm some seeds I wanted and ended up with a kind reply that nearly half were already gone. Looks like we need to replenish the bank. I'm sending some misc. Drosera seed with my order to help. Stephen Davis Barry Meyers-Rice wrote: > >Hello List ! > > >I am looking for seeds of any varieties of Proboscidea and Ibicella. > >I can offer Drosophyllum, VFT, Darlingtonia and maybe some other > >seeds for trade. Thanks for your help ! Kind regards Jens > > Ibicella seeds are available for $1/pack to ICPS members. Follow the links > to the seedbank from www.carnivorousplants.org > > Barry > > ------------------------ > Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice > Carnivorous Plant Newsletter > Conservation Coeditor > barry@carnivorousplants.org > http://www.carnivorousplants.org -- Stephen Davis [V-Card file stephend.vcf deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 23:34:14 PST Subject: Drosera and Indian Dyes I'm taking a class in ethnobotany called Edible, Medicinal, and Poisenous plants and in the book it states that Drosera sps. - Sundew can be used as a permanent red dye for clothing. Does anyone have any further information on this? Are there any other carnivorous plants that feature dye properties? ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Sun, 07 Feb 1999 23:34:27 PST Subject: Edible Ibicella I've been told you can cook like a vegetable or pickle and eat premature Ibicella lutea Devil's Claws? Does anyone else know of any other edible carnivorous (or subcarnivorous) plants? Any edible sundews? ################### From: Davidogray@aol.com Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 03:00:08 EST Subject: Re: inheritance of characteristics Regarding whether or not it matters which parent is female ( or male ) There are two other kinds of inheritance besides simple dominant/recessive -- there is incomplete dominance ( or qualitative characteristics ) such as the intensity of coloring in flowers and leaves; and there is mitochondrial DNA and some factors passed on this way are heavily influenced by the female parent. I don't know of any specific genes that have been identified in CP, but perhaps someone in genetic sciences will respond with more information. Cheers, David >As I understand genetics the only thing that matters is whether a >particular gene effecting a certain characteristic is recessive or >dominant. I can't see how the seed bearer has any influence on this. ################### From: "Malesiana Tropicals" Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 14:56:54 +0800 Subject: Web Page Update Greetings all! Just wanted to let everyone know that our website has been updated today with a dozen new Nepenthes photographs, including N. gymnamphora (the 'true' form from Java) and N. densiflora. Enjoy! Cheers, Ch'ien Lee Malesiana Tropicals www.malesiana.tropicals.com.my ################### From: "Richard Jenkins" Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 00:24:00 PST Subject: D. stenopetala germination Hi Filippo and All, I managed to get some germination from D. stenopetala seeds last year. I sowed seed under differing conditions to determine the best approach. Essentially the only germination (10%) that occurred was from seeds sown on pure peat and left in my greenhouse (Northern UK climate). Stratification or sowing seeds into water was unsuccesful. Patience is necessary as germination took 6 months. Richard ################### From: "Richard Jenkins" Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 00:28:17 PST Subject: Camilleri book Dear All, I agree with everyone else that this book has superb photos but am I the only one to find it frustrating that many of them, particularly the pings, are described as, for example, _Another new species of ping_ rather than by their species name? I'd also say that the book is a good introductory book but a more experienced grower might prefer D'Amato's book. Richard ################### From: nile smith Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 08:54:08 +0000 Subject: A bug's life (and death) nile smith nxs@postmark.net I don't know if this is an appropriate contribution, but I was just considering carnivorous plants from a bug's point of view. Little bug, alas, is doomed To suffer fate extreme Lured by taste of nectar sweet Upon the verdant sheen Further up the leaf it climbs To claim it's prize obscene Until, at last, it's tiny soul Has fallen to the green Sorry if this "bugs" anyone. :} Nile Smith nxs@postmark.net ################### From: "nigel hurneyman" Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 02:55:26 PST Subject: Anthocyanins Out (off-topic?) I am trying to discover or breed an anthocyanin-free form of a non-carnivore (heresy!). Does anyone know why anthocyanin-free forms arise, or has anyone noticed anything unusual about the conditions in which anthocyanin-free forms appear, eg Darlintonia 'Othello', the heterophyllous S purpureas and Drosera capensis 'alba'. Thanks in advance for your help, NigelH ################### From: "Stefan Ploszak" Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 04:20:09 PST Subject: Re: Sarracenia hybrids >>> >Q3: When making a hybrid cross between Sarracenia species, does it >>> >make a difference in the offspring which plant produces the seed? >>> > >>> Not as far as I know. There is probably a convention as to which plant >>> (the plant bearing the pollen or the plant bearing the seed) is listed >>> first but I can't remember which way round it is. I posed this very question to a well known, but modest Sarracenia hybridizing expert. He finds that a seedling's appearance isn't influenced by which parent is the pollen donor/seed barer. Hybrids are simply intermediates of each parent. Selfing an F1 hybrid produces seedlings which tend toward either parent and everything in between. My understanding of the convention for listing a hybrid is that the seed barer is listed first. If it is not known which parent is the seed barer, the parents are listed in alphabetical order. With the mild weather we're having my thoughts are on hybridizing Sarracenia, but no flower stalks yet. Spring is near, Stefan ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 07:36:06 -0500 Subject: RE: drosera morphology >The pollinator of this plant, D. montana v. tomentosa knows better >than to get caught on the flower stalk, while insects with whom the >plant doesn't have such an intimate relationship (like pests) don't >know and therefore get caught. grin, like your reasoning Dave. ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 06:47:32 +0000 Subject: St Louis ICPS Chapter meeting We'll be holding our rescheduled second meeting of the St. Louis chapter of ICPS this Thursday, Feb 11 at 7 pm at the Missouri Botanical Garden. I'll be showing slides of cp's in their native habitats, and we'll discuss some basic care and cultivation of cp's. All are welcome, beginners or experienced growers alike. Let me know if you are interested! Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden susan.farrington@mobot.org (314)577-9402 ################### From: Loyd Wix Date: 08 Feb 1999 13:34:53 Z Subject: More on Pinguicula fermentation Dear Jure, >I find names Toetmoelk and Filmjo"lk in Juniper, Robins, >Joel - Carnivorous Plants: 'The Leaves of Pinguicula, as >they were once in Britain, are still used by the Lapps to >curdle and thicken milk, producing Toetmoelk or Filmjo"lk.' >Is there any British name for it? Cheese! As far as I am aware the use of Pinguicula in parts of the UK was as a 'vegetable rennet' to make cheese. Traditionally cheese was produced by adding rennet (an enzyme extracted from a calf's stomach) to milk. The rennet has a specific action on the milk protein casein, removing small fractions from it which causes it to curdle and thicken up. The resultant mixture is cut in order to separate the curds and whey ( as in the nursery rhyme) - the curds are then pressed together to form cheese. But what happens if you are in the middle of no where (Snowdonia for example) with lots of milk by no calf to slaughter for the stomach? This is where Pinguicula leaves were also used to facilitate in separating the curds and whey to produce cheese. On the one occasion I tried Pinguicula fermentation it went down this 'cheese' route rather than the tatmjolk route. I reconstituted whole milk from skimmed milk powder, dairy cream and water. This was homogenised to disperse the fat and then pasteurised (HTST 83 deg C, 20 seconds). The milk left the chilled section of the pasteuriser at 4deg C and was passed through a sieve containing P.grandiflora leaves and into a sterile milk churn. Over a period of 5 days the material became steadily thicker until a cheese type curd was produced. I saw no sign of the ropeyness characteristic of tatmjolk. I suspect that the curds were formed by low temperature microbial activity rather than anything enzymatic from the plant. Such a process for making cheese would have similar health risks as per my previous message so be careful! Oh and for cheese lovers everywhere most cheese these days uses microbial rennets rather than calf's stomach! Bonn appetite Loyd ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 08:52:05 -0500 Subject: RE: Anthocyanins Out (off-topic?) >I am trying to discover or breed an anthocyanin-free form of a >non-carnivore (heresy!). Does anyone know why anthocyanin-free forms >arise, or has anyone noticed anything unusual about the conditions in >which anthocyanin-free forms appear, eg Darlintonia 'Othello', the >heterophyllous S purpureas and Drosera capensis 'alba'. Hi Nigel, Anthocyanin production in Sarracenia involves two pathways that start with the 2-carbon molecule acetic acid. Once the pathways merge, 5 enzymes are responsible for producing the anthocyanin pigment. A mutation that inactivates any of the 5 molecules will produce an anthocyanin-free plant. Cultural conditions can also affect anthocyanin production, although I don't think it's know exactly why (or how) it interrupts anthocyanin production. I suspect that a mutation earlier in one of the two pathways before they merge will affect the amount of anthocyanin produced thus affecting coloration. For instance, if one of the two pathways is inactivated, the plant has only 1 of the early pathways to use in producing anthocyanin. This results in a smaller amount of anthocyanin and hence less color. Smaller amounts of anthocyanin production can probably happen with mutations after the pathways merge if an enzyme is produced that is only partially efficient in converting the pre-anthocyanin molecule to the next molecule in the pathway. It would be interesting to breed the anthocyanin-free form of S. purpurea venosa that ABG recently released with the anthocyanin-free form of S. purpurea purpurea. Since they evolved in different locations, there's a good chance that the mutations are on different genes. If normal color purpurea were produced from that cross, you've just proved that the genetic mutations are on different genes and hence involve different enzymes. Chromatography will also give this answer because you can see which enzymes are missing. I have both plants and hope someday to cross them when they bloom. You could do this with any Sarr antho-free forms, too. Now, I've just given someone a very nice CPN article if your plants are more mature than mine. CPN had a nice article on anthocyanin production in 1998. I have it on file and will send it to you if you send me a private reply. David Atlanta ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 09:36:19 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Edible Ibicella Hi Chris, > I've been told you can cook like a vegetable or pickle and eat premature > Ibicella lutea Devil's Claws? Does anyone else know of any other edible > carnivorous (or subcarnivorous) plants? Any edible sundews? > > They're all edible, whether or not they taste good (or are poisonous) is another thing. I do know that N.American Indians used to use S.purpurea for a myriad of ailments, same with D.rotundifolia. Most of the time, the roots, or entire plant, was boiled down, however I wouldn't be surprised if the occasional leaf was eaten as well. No offence Chris, but I wouldn't think of inviting you over to my place. I like my plants too much to have them eaten by someone ;)! Happy growing (or eating!) Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: "Kelley, Ian" Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 09:47:17 -0800 Subject: RE: Ping moranensis YES! I purchased the same plant from CC in spring of '98 in a 2" pot. The leaves were overflowing the edges, and I plan to repot this month - mine is doing the exact same thing, the large, floppy leaves are dying off, leaving a tight bud with what looks like 40 small leaflets. I couldn't tell if this was succulent dormancy or a burst of fresh growth, since I'd read of but never seen the succulent phenomenon. I keep this plant indoors year round, so any dormancy would likely be brought on by photoperiod rather than temperature - at any rate, I'm leaving mine in the water to see what will happen, although I'll take it out at first sign of distress. I sure don't know why this happens, I am a babe in the Ping woods. Let me know what happens with yours, I'm repotting mine in a couple of weeks.... - Ian Kelley rainy, rainy San Francisco > -----Original Message----- > From: Scott Mcphee [SMTP:hyphae@email.msn.com] > Sent: Saturday, February 06, 1999 7:27 PM > To: Multiple recipients of list > Subject: Ping moranensis > > Greetings folks, > > I am having something interesting happen with my Ping. moranensis 'G'. > I > purchsed one from Cal Carnivores in August of 97. Last year the > dormancy > consisted of a modest reduction in leaf size and lack of glands. This > year, > the plant is forming tight winter succulent rosettes. I have taken it > out of > the water now to prevent rot. > > I do not think that the cause of dormancy in this case is the > enviornment in > which the plant is located because I propagated it last year and now > have > four other plants that have not behaved this way, and all the > moranensis are > located next to each other. > > I am thinking that it has to do more with the fact that it is now a > six > growth plant in the two inch pot. Any one else have this happen? Any > thoughts on this?? > > Regards, > > Scott Mcphee in rainy N. California > > ################### From: Christer Berglund Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 19:11:57 +0100 Subject: nep deformation and pitchers Hi People, I've read in the book Savage Garden (section about tissue culture) that it's common for nepenthes grown on to much cytokinin to suffer from deformation, like gnarled shoots or profusion of axillary buds. Now I wonder if a plant with this problem is damaged permanently, or if it in time will return to normal growth? I have a N. singalana which behaved a little strange some time ago. At first it grew some nice pitchers, but on the next two leaves the pitcher development stopped. Then the plant grew some more leaves with pitchers. Suddenly about one month later, the "dormant" tendril of one of the older leaves developed a pitcher. It was minute compared to all the others, but still... Anyone else encountered "delayed" pitcher development? Regards, -- Christer Berglund E-mail: christer.berglund@amiga.pp.se ################### From: Dave Date: Mon, 08 Feb 99 14:33 EST Subject: Re: Drosera and Indian Dyes Dear Chris, > I'm taking a class in ethnobotany called Edible, Medicinal, and > Poisenous plants and in the book it states that Drosera sps. - Sundew > can be used as a permanent red dye for clothing. Does anyone have any > further information on this? Are there any other carnivorous plants that > feature dye properties? I'm not sure if this is what you're looking for, but I noticed that water turns adark blue when Byblis liniflora seeds are added. Some sort of coating on the seeds... Dave E ################### From: "John Green" Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 13:23:49 -0700 Subject: Re: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids Thanks for all the helpful comments regarding my original posting. I understand now why some of the gemmae I received a week ago (thanks Kamil) were already growing (I'm not complaining!) As for the Sarracenia seedlings, I wish I were having as much success as some of you. I tried a bunch last year and only have two Red-tube flavas that are still surviving. I think my troubles may have more to do with the harsh, dry climate here than anything else. I'll try pushing the seeds into the soil just a bit as Phil Wilson suggested, but I wonder; do the seeds need light to germinate? Thanks again, John Green Salt Lake City, Utah ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 15:36:53 -0500 Subject: RE: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids >I wonder; do the seeds need light to germinate? Yes, Sarr seed need light to germinate. The brighter, the warmer, the better. You might still get germination if a very thin layer of soil covers the seed because light penetrates soil for a short distance but it's better not to cover the seed. David Atlanta ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 21:05:01 +0000 Subject: bamrice@ucdavis.edu Barry, Just had a quick look through your web site and I notice the address for the IPSG is incorrect. It should read: 14, Rope Walk Martock Somerset TA12 6HZ England You had the postal town of Somerton which was part of my previous address! Its no big deal since the crucial part of the address is the post code. Next time you are updating the site will be fine for the correction. Also I notice that the link from the Carnivorous Plant Database to Other CP Links is broken. I can't remember who actually runs this site now but maybe you could pass the message on. On a different but related subject (it was why I wanted to look at the CP links site) I am looking for some specific CPs for the UK CPS year 2000 Chelsea Flower Show display. Specifically I am looking for South American Drosera species - D. villosa mainly but any others would be welcome too. Part of the display will feature CPs from every continent that they are present in and we are particularly short of sundews from South America. If you have any ideas (I still have to tackle the obvious source - Fernando) perhaps you could let me know. I've tried all the commercial nurseries I know of without any success. We are even willing to pay good money for the right plants - if only I could find someone who keeps them! Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 20:56:42 +0000 Subject: Re: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids John, >As for the Sarracenia seedlings, I wish I were having as much success >as some of you. I tried a bunch last year and only have two Red-tube >flavas that are still surviving. I think my troubles may have more to >do with the harsh, dry climate here than anything else. I'll try >pushing the seeds into the soil just a bit as Phil Wilson suggested, but >I wonder; do the seeds need light to germinate? > No definitely not! In fact I find in general that I get better germination if I cover the seeds. I suspect that seeds sown directly on the surface of the soil run the risk of desiccating at that vital moment when the seed case splits and the seedling is about to emerge. It only takes one sunny day and the local humidity on and around the seed can drop dramatically. Some growers (e.g. Adrian Slack) recommend adding a layer of chopped live sphagnum to cover the seed and this probably has a similar effect. Pure peat is just easier to use! Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 12:34:38 -0500 Subject: Welcome David! David Ahrens wrote in his introduction: I first got into cp's by being a VFT murderer at the age of ten years, the usual route into the hobby. A sworn affidavit stating one has in the past "killed at least one VFT" should be a requirement of acceptance into the ICPS! ...well, not really. But it would at least serve as a bit of comic relief. I'll shut up now. Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Mon, 8 Feb 1999 12:44:54 -0500 Subject: S. purpurea water Hello All, I'm sorry if this question has been covered before. I have searched through the achives for an answer with no success. I have a few recently acquired S.purpureae that appear to be doing quite well. Both have produced new growth and have begun to develope some red coloration. My question is, should the pitchers occasionaly be flushed with clean water? Due to there structure it would seem that this would happen when growing outside with rain. I was also wondering how full the pitchers should be? When filling the trays I use DI water with all of my plants. This is my first experience with any Sarracenia, but I deffinately look to acquring more in the future. Thanks. John Odum John- The S. purpurea that I have encountered in the wild usually have varying amounts of liquid in them. After a heavy rain they can be filled to the top, long periods of dry conditions will cause most of the fluid to evaporate except for the "nutritious sludge" at the bottom. My advice if you are growing them outdoors would be to keep them half filled, though I let Mother Nature take her course throughout the growing season. You will find that your plants catch ample prey without any artificial intervention. Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 18:20:10 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Me, Myself, I & Meself To all those reading, I read that it is customary to give a little info. about one's self if you are new. So here I go. My nane is Robert Simkunas II. Nick names include the classical Rob & Bob, but other variants exsist such as: RobertO, RobO, BobO, Robear, Robertodendron, & Robertivore. Nick names describing personallity include: HotRod & Blurr (for my interest in fast cars), FX (becuase I tend to be descriptive with sound effects), 00 Turok (my paintball call sign based on my two favorite video games "Turok" & "007"), Mr. Technical (becasue I am usually detailed when talking about many subjects), and... And that's it for nick names. I am 25 years old, that's five hands, single white male looking for single female. Interests are: fast cars, fast jets, big trucks, Nintendo, painting, drawing, paintball, bike riding, mountain climbing, adventuring, exploring, astronomy, pottery, humor, sculpting, flying, Jesus Christ, botany, horticulture, carnivorous plants, and hopes to be obducted by aliens, befriend them, and aquire a starship because it is just taking the human race too long to develope a stardrive. My interest in carnivorous plants earned me the nick name Robertivore and my collection started out with two Venus Bug Traps that died in a freak freeze on April 11th I forget which year. 5 hours of 15 F had slaughtered them. Last year later I restarted my collection with two S. purpureas & two S. flavas. One S. purpurea was eaten to death by an unknown creature. It was a slow death as I painfully watched my plant get eaten away little by little without ever finding the insect responsible. That year I quickly acquired three dieing Dionaea muscipulas that where rescued from a Kroger supermarket and are now... Alive... Alive! ALIVE!! Wahhahahahahahahah ha haha ha he ho hehe ho ho. What else? Oh yeh! I am also a student at SFA majoring in Horticure & Art. Robertivore ################### From: Mike Vogl Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 17:40:59 -0700 Subject: Roridula germination Hello all- I have recently recieved some seeds of Roridula dentata. Does anyone out there who has experience growing this plant have any advice or recommendations on germinating it? Thanks- -Jonathan Mitchell ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Mon, 08 Feb 1999 20:13:18 PST Subject: CPs in Feb.'99 National Geographic To all, I bought the February 1999 issue of National Geographic today and to my surprise and joy found an article on ant-plant relationships, including some nice pictures of N.bicalcarata and the ants which live in its tendrils. But most of all, I was overwhemingly happy to see the name of our illustrious friend Charles Clarke! CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!! I had no idea you were the one who discovered those swimming ants in Neps! I suggest everybody run out and get your copy now before Charles buys them all! Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil P.S. Sorry to those who've written to me lately. I've been a bit busy, but I'll reply ASAP! ################### From: Alastair Robinson Date: Tue, 9 Feb 1999 04:06:00 -0500 Subject: Re: nep deformation and pitchers Chris, I get this happening regularly with two plants in particular - Nepenthes rhombicaulis and N. talangensis. It is much more pronounced in the latter, in which the tendrils on leaves seven or eight positions from the apex will spontaneously start to elongate and develop into pitchers, although these are not much smaller than the rest of the plant. And yes, it occurs *after* pitchers have already been produced further up the plant. I notice on the Malesiana Tropicals web-page that this species grows *very* slowly - it is thus a happy observation that I can make when I see my TC'd plant growing like the clappers - faster than either of my N.rafflesiana and N.truncata. Anyway, I understand that Nn.rhombicaulis, talangensis and aristolochioides are closely related - perhaps it would be fair to assume that the third species would also demonstrate this particular growth habit? Warmest Regards, Alastair. (It is now snowing - "London grounded to a halt yesterday as half-an-inch of snow fell on the roads" ;) We are a quaint country). ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Tue, 09 Feb 1999 04:21:59 PST Subject: CP trade ? Hi list, I dont know why but my last message to the list received an underwhelming response... Anyone want to trade for some Drosera? (don't worry, Joe, I've reserved some for you!) D.trinervia burmanii green sessilifolia burmanii x sessilifolia pygmaea ocidentalis pulchella several other pygmies nidiformis madagascariensis madagascariensis rhodesia intermedia gran sabana venezuela (tropical) sp brazil like capillaris (small and red) intermedia x rotundifolia sp venezuela "d2" pinguicula primuliflora byblis liniflora seed (shortly) and more.... Looking for: D indica red D burmanii red D neocaledonica D oblanceolata D petiolaris forms S American & African Drosera... Heliamphora seed preferred! Thanks in advance.. Matt NY NY ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 9 Feb 1999 08:49:02 -0500 Subject: RE: Me, Myself, I & Meself > I read that it is customary to give a little info. about one's self >if you are new. So here I go. > My nane is Robert Simkunas II. Nick names include ....... > I am 25 years old, that's five hands........ > My interest in carnivorous plants earned me the nick name Robertivore........ > What else? ........ chuckle. Hi Rob, Bob, Robo, Bobo, Robertivore....... Welcome to the list. I can't wait to see what you have in store for us....... David Atlanta ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Tue, 09 Feb 1999 08:52:55 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Darlintonia, The Piosonous Snake Lilium For Cobra Lily experts, Robertivore again. I need seed germination tips for Darlingtonias. Any mass quanities of info would be helpful. Thanks, Robert Simkunas II ################### From: JDPDX@aol.com Date: Tue, 9 Feb 1999 09:50:41 EST Subject: RE: Camerelli CP Book Like many others have mentioned, this book is worth owning for the photographs alone. They are spectacular, and cover a good range of species. The cultural instructions I found to be a bit on the brief side. The book is fine for introducing people to CP, but could have a bit more detail on certain species; i.e.--cold hardiness of certain Drosera or Sarracenia species for those who wish to grow outdoors. Overall, however, nice job. Jeff Portland, OR ################### From: "Joachim Nerz" Date: Wed, 10 Feb 1999 00:19:36 +0100 Subject: Neblina & Minas Gerais Hello everybody, first of all a big apologize to the people, who tried to contact me since end of December; back from Neblina I just now find the time for mailing! Just a notice: In the next future I want to add some photos of Brazilian CP's and its habitats from our expedition to Neblina and our trip to Minas Gerais and the 'Orgelmountains' at our homepage (Carnivorous Plants in its habitats), managed by Matthias Schmidt! It is interesting, but at the plateau of Neblina it is by far not as easy to find Heliamphora as e.g. on Roraima-tepuy; I think, it is due to the different geologic structure, because different to Roraima, the Neblina-tepuy is folded and it seems, that for this reason there are more different small habitats with different species as on the tepuys in the North! So, oftenly you can find patches with dense, nearly impenetrable forest besides shrubby areas, dominated by genera like Bonnetia and oftenly the huge Broccinia tatei or you can find the vegetation of steep cliff-faces! >From literature I know, there must be also vast open boggy areas, the real habitat of e.g. Drosera meristocaulis! But the few expeditions, which visited these very remote areas usually used a helicopter! Anyway, after several days searching for Heliamphora, we've found it: an open swampy area with the beautiful H. t. neblinae; it is quite interesting, but each patch of it looks different; the plants in the open area are usually reddish, without stem, but you also can find patches with nearly green plants and some plants besides shrubs start to get short stems, which could reach in single plants nearly one meter! Also the shape of lid is very variable from patch to patch; some plants have very nice, comparable large red lids! The other CP- species, we've found there listed Fernando several days before (see his mail from 27.01.1999)! It is quite interesting, that in many species you can find slight differences to the populations of the more Northern tepuys! E.g. Utricularia quelchii shows somewhat pink to violet flowers on Neblina and at Roraima it shows its very purple-red flowers; besides that, it is nearly the same! Back from Neblina, our group did split. To recover from the very difficult expedition to Neblina, Katrin Hinderhofer and myself decided, to visit some CP-areas in the Southern part of Brazil; other members of the expedition (Andreas Wistuba, Christoph Scherber and Mauricio Piliackas) had to go back to home or continued to Venezuela (Fernando Rivadavia, Ed Read and Gert Hogenstreed). So, with some good informations from Fernando Rivadavia and Mauricio Piliackas, we realy could concentrate on the most interesting CP-areas; at several sites in Minas Gerais we were able to see pretty large plants of D. graminifolia, the gracile D. spec. 'Emas', D. chrysolepis (with- and without stem), D. montana, D. montana var. schwackei, maybe D. tomentosa, D. communis, and D. hirtella; from Lentibulariaceae we have found Genlisea aurea (very pretty plants with large yellow flowers), G. glabra, maybe G. pygmea (has still to be identified), G. violacea, the huge G. spec. 'Cipo', which seems to be quite close to G. uncinata, U. neottoides, which is growing just in little rivulets, the very common U. subulata, U. amethystina and 2 or 3 more Utrics; unfortunately I am not too familiar with the taxonomy of CP's from Southern Brazil, so there are still some questionmarks! It is quite obvious, that there are several relations between the CP-species of Minas Gerais, at S-Brazil and the Guyana-shield in Venezuela and Northern Brazil; so you can find species like G. repens, G. pygmea, G. filiformis in both areas, others are specific for the S. (e.g. G. aurea or G. violacea), or for the Guyana-shield in the N. (e.g. G. guyanensis); the same at Drosera; as I know, both regions belong to the very old sandstone-area, which is divided since long time by the huge Amazon-basin! It is quite interesting, that in some areas of Minas Gerais (S) you realy can see flat-topped tablemountains, like in the Roraima-area (N), but much more decayed! Another quite interesting area you can find quite close to Rio de Janeiro: the 'Orgelmountains'; it's shape is very interesting, very steep and very smooth rockwalls, oftenly so smooth and steep, that it is free of vegetation or just single specimen of Bromeliaceae are able to grow there; and especially these Bromeliaceae are interesting for CPers: in some of it you can find the stranke U. nelumbifolia, growing exactly like U. humboldtii in the leave-axils! Other CP's, we could find in the area were D. villosa, Utricularia geminiloba (quite common there) and Utricularia tricolor with its pretty large violet flowers! It is quite funny, in several days in the Southern part of Brazil, we have found more CP-species as in several weeks at the Neblina-expedition! Bye Joachim Joachim Nerz Arndtstr. 2 71032 B\366blingen Germany Tel. +49 07031 / 233563 Fax +49 07031 / 225483 e-mail: joachim.nerz@albatros.tue.bawue.de ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Tue, 09 Feb 1999 20:47:22 PST Subject: Re: Re: drosera morphology Dear David, I seem to have missed your mail about the bugs getting caught on the glands of D.montana var.tomentosa bracts. I believe it is probably coincidence that tehy were gaught. I've seen a mosquito caught on a D.m.montana scape. Anyways, the glands on bracts and scapes is very common in Drosera and other non CPs. Most likely it helps keep the crawling non-pollinators out of the flowers and away from the nutritious pollen. In fact that's how carnivory is suspected of having begun at least in the Droseraracea/Nepenthaceae lineage (see previous discussions and Jan's mails on Plumbago), with these glands acquiring digestive capabilities and then spreading to the leaves. Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil P.S. I'm glad to know your plants are thriving, congrats! ################### From: steve steve Date: Tue, 9 Feb 1999 21:55:52 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: CPs in Feb. 99 National Geographic Dear All, I am not a regular reader of National Geographic and almost never buy it but a couple of days ago I picked one up as the Biodiversity cover was intriguing. Like Fernando I was delighted to see the article on ants and N. bicalcarata. The article mentions Charles Clarke and Roger Kitching but it is actually written by Mark W. Moffett. He is also responsible for the photos which are superb. p122-123 double page macro photo showing ants on the pitcher tendril. p124 one of the sharpest photos of a nep. pitcher that I have ever seen. p125 a close macro photo of a section through a tendril showing the ants and larvae. p126 a view down into a pitcher showing a trapped cricket with a Colobopsis ant swimming around it. p127 an amazing full page macro photo which, if I am looking at it correctly, is an interior view looking up under the peristome where the ants have dragged the cricket out of the fluid. Having dragged it up there they can then eat it in safety. The text is limited but the photos are so good that a brief description is more than enough. As Fernando says... get your copy now! Steve ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Wed, 10 Feb 1999 08:14:17 -0800 (PST) Subject: Ibicella seed >> Ibicella seeds are available for $1/pack to ICPS members. Follow the >>links to the seedbank from www.carnivorousplants.org > > Are the Ibicella seeds still there? Last I saw, the ICPS seed bank > was out, but the page hasn't been updated since Jan 2. I know > because I sent a message to confirm some seeds I wanted and ended up I should think so. This summer I concluded my tests on Ibicella and dumped a lot of seed at the seedbank. (Maybe I just collected them and they're in my fridge right now? I'll check!!! If so, I'll email back, otherwise there should be lots at the seed bank.) Barry ################### From: Rick Walker Date: Wed, 10 Feb 1999 12:47:02 -0800 Subject: Ibicella seeds from ICPS seedbank I'm forwarding this for Barry. -Rick ------- Forwarded Message Rejected message: sent to cp@opus.hpl.hp.com by BAMRICE@UCDAVIS.EDU follows. Reason for rejection: suspicious subject. This often happens when you forget to edit your Subject: line and it still contains the word "Digest". Such messages are now automatically rejected by the listserver. Please edit your message headers and resubmit your posting to the listserver. - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- >> Ibicella seeds are available for $1/pack to ICPS members. Follow the >>links to the seedbank from www.carnivorousplants.org > > Are the Ibicella seeds still there? Last I saw, the ICPS seed bank > was out, but the page hasn't been updated since Jan 2. I know > because I sent a message to confirm some seeds I wanted and ended up I should think so. This summer I concluded my tests on Ibicella and dumped a lot of seed at the seedbank. (Maybe I just collected them and they're in my fridge right now? I'll check!!! If so, I'll email back, otherwise there should be lots at the seed bank.) Barry ------- End of Forwarded Message ################### From: Ross.Rowe@ea.gov.au (Ross Rowe) Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 09:14:16 +1000 Subject: Re: Darlintonia, The Piosonous Snake Lilium Robert Place the seed in an envelope, immerse in water and freeze the whole lot for 36 hours. Sow the seed on live sphagnum and in about 2-4 weeks you will have virtually complete germination. Place the pot in a sunny spot. and in a shallow tray of water. Clay pots are good for helping keep the soil/moss cool. Ross Rowe Canberra Australia ______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________ Author: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU at Internet For Cobra Lily experts, Robertivore again. I need seed germination tips for Darlingtonias. Any mass quanities of info would be helpful. Thanks, Robert Simkunas II ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Wed, 10 Feb 1999 18:23:31 PST Subject: CP Free or for Trade...Last Call! Hi list... Sorry to bother everyone about this again but I've got a few plants packed up and would like to find homes for them immediately. Trades preferred but if I've got extra I dont mind sending stuff for free (donations gladly accepted) :) Here's whats going out this time, **email me your address** if youre interested (even if I already have it). Not necessarily first come first served as I owe a few people: Large seedlings/small plants: D.sessilifolia, D.burmanii green, D.trinervia white, D.burmanii x sessilifolia, D.capillaris?, D.nidiformis, D.pulchella, D.nitidula x occidentalis, P.primuliflora, D.capensis wide US growers preferred cause it's simplifies things. Thanks in advance! Matt NYC ################### From: "Russell Elliott" Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 13:10:43 +0000 Subject: Re: 3 Q's: gemmae, seedlings and hybrids Hi Everyone, >No definitely not! In fact I find in general that I get better >germination if I cover the seeds. I suspect that seeds sown >directly on the surface of the soil run the risk of desiccating at >that vital moment when the seed case splits and the seedling is >about to emerge. It only takes one sunny day and the local >humidity on and around the seed can drop dramatically. Like Phil, I also just cover my Sarracenia seed, but with chopped spaghnum as Slack recommends. Before sowing though, the seed is thoroughly mixed (and stratified) with the chopped moss, and is then spread over the surface of the growing container filled with spaghnum moss. Even though the seed is covered, I suspect enough light infiltrates the gaps in the spaghnum to assist germination. I usually get better than 90% germination using this technique. As Phil also mentioned, Sarracenia seedlings are susceptible to a hot, dry environment, and will quickly die if exposed to these conditions (as I have often found!!!!!) -Russell Elliott ********************************************************** Russell Elliott, Seed Bank Director, Australian Carnivorous Plant Society, Membership enquiries Brian Denton: bdenton@camtech.net.au Seed Bank enquiries Russell Elliott: relliott@senet.com.au WWW: http://www.camtech.net.au/acps ********************************************************** ################### From: "Mark T. Bachelor" Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 13:29:13 +1000 Subject: Re: RE: Camerelli CP Book >Like many others have mentioned, this book is worth owning for the >photographs alone. They are spectacular, and cover a good range of >species. > >The cultural instructions I found to be a bit on the brief side. The >book is fine for introducing people to CP, but could have a bit more >detail on certain species; i.e.--cold hardiness of certain Drosera or >Sarracenia species for those who wish to grow outdoors. > >Overall, however, nice job. > >Jeff Portland, OR > A lot of the photos in this book are plants owned by members of VCPS. Many of them were taken during our annual show year in Nov 87, and others at members' homes. As far as details on cold hardiness of certain species are concerned, the only plants that we cannot grow outside are Nepenthes, other tropicals and plants that require very cold conditions. Melbourne is a very good place to grow CP. Most Drosera and all Sarras grow happily outside. They are more danger from the summer heat than they are of cold (actually our coldest winters have produced the best flowering - we only get frosts a few times in late winter), so such information is not at hand. As long as we keep the water up to them in summer they do fine. Regards Mark T Bachelor Biology Technican Melbourne Girls Grammar School Voice: +61 (03) 9866 1676 South Yarra, Victoria, Fax: +61 (O3) 9866 5768 Australia 3141 National Science Week, STAV Family Day Co-ordinator Lab Techs' Branch of STAV, South Yarra & Moorabbin Regional Rep. ################### From: "~`~TomsRarePlants~`~ fritts" Date: Wed, 10 Feb 1999 19:30:10 PST Subject: Aristilochia deblis ? Hello Im hope someone has this plant or seed. What is it and were does it grow ? I heard about it , is it carnivorous ? Thanks Tom Frittsmb@msn.com ################### From: Stephen Davis Date: Wed, 10 Feb 1999 20:25:18 -0800 Subject: Re: CP Free or for Trade...Last Call! Hey Matt, I know you remember me. I am one of those that owes you. I am trying. I accidentially posted a private reply on the list when someone asked for U. giba, and got several people asking for some in trade. I sent each of them your list as for what I'd take in trade, but to no avail. Sorry. However, all those people now owe me. :-) Except for one that I will probably accept something else as he doesn't like the Radar thing and doesn't want to owe anyone. We have a meeting of the BACSP coming up in March, and I'm doing PR for the ICPS 2000 convention here in the bay area, so I have to meet with some of those people soon. Perhaps I can find something there. Anyway, I'm always interesed in new plants. Of the ones you mentioned, the following are plants I don't have D.sessilifolia, D.burmanii green, D.trinervia white, D.burmanii x sessilifolia, D.capillaris?, D.nidiformis, D.pulchella, D.nitidula x occidentalis, P.primuliflora, D.capensis wide Well, I guess I'm just starting. I don't have any of the ones on your list. Care to risk me going further into your debt? I can send some money now, more later too. Stephen Davis 7010 Via Cordura San Jose, CA 95139 408-229-2264 Sundew Sundew wrote: > Hi list... Sorry to bother everyone about this again but I've got a few > plants packed up and would like to find homes for them immediately. > Trades preferred but if I've got extra I dont mind sending stuff for > free (donations gladly accepted) :) > Here's whats going out this time, **email me your address** if youre > interested (even if I already have it). Not necessarily first come > first served as I owe a few people: > > Large seedlings/small plants: > D.sessilifolia, D.burmanii green, D.trinervia white, D.burmanii x > sessilifolia, D.capillaris?, D.nidiformis, D.pulchella, D.nitidula x > occidentalis, P.primuliflora, D.capensis wide > > US growers preferred cause it's simplifies things. > Thanks in advance! > Matt > NYC -- Stephen Davis [V-Card file stephend.vcf deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: Stephen Davis Date: Wed, 10 Feb 1999 22:02:12 -0800 Subject: Re: OOPS sorry list! CP Free or for Trade...Last Call! OOPS, Sorry guys! [V-Card file stephend.vcf deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 08:42:52 Subject: Re: Aristilochia deblis ? Dear Tom, > Subject: Aristilochia deblis ? > Im hope someone has this plant or seed. Sorry, I do not have it. > What is it As the name tells already, it is an _Aristolochia_ (birthwort). > and were does it grow ? Japan. > I heard about it , Great! > is it carnivorous ? No. Like all _Aristolochiae_ (and quite a few other plants), it depends on invertebrates for pollination and not for nutrition (cf. previous discussions on this list). For more information, please refer to a standard textbook of Botany. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "David Bradley" Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 22:49:21 +1100 Subject: 1.Thrip control & 2.the S. rubra complex Dear all I have a problem with the dreaded thrips on a few of my carnivorous plants, growing in Australia. What I am wanting to know is what chemicals would be safe to use on Darlingtonia californica & Heliamphora nutans? Some of the ideas so far have been Folimat, Malathion, Confidor & Rogor. The Rogor I am led to believe is poison on Nepenthes & possibly the live Sphagnum. Any ideas on what is tried & true would be most appreciated. Another piece of advice I am after is with the Sarracenia rubra subspecies. I have read that it can take a few years once one repots a specimen for it to send out the proper Autumn pitchers, at the original size. Is this what other S. rubra growers have experienced? I am also wanting to know what various forms of S. rubra ssp. alabamensis do exist in cultivation. Is it true that there is a red form of the otherwise type golden green colour? Thanks for any help that anyone can provide, either on the listserve or my email address. Nathan J. Clemens sundew@mitmania.net.au ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 13:07:12 -0500 Subject: Re: Aristilochia deblis ? >Dear Tom, > >> Subject: Aristilochia deblis ? >> Im hope someone has this plant or seed. > >Sorry, I do not have it. > >> What is it > >As the name tells already, it is an _Aristolochia_ (birthwort). (snip) > >> is it carnivorous ? > >No. Like all _Aristolochiae_ (and quite a few other plants), it >depends on invertebrates for pollination and not for nutrition (cf. >previous discussions on this list). For more information, please >refer to a standard textbook of Botany. > >Kind regards >Jan Just to expand on this a _very_ little: _Aristolochiae_ (sometimes called Dutchman's Pipe) has a reputation for being carnivorous in large part because dead insects are commonly found in its bloom. If you smelled like decomposed meat you would have flies on you, too. Many Arisaemae (Jack-in-the-Pulpit) and Aroids have got this reputation, also, and for the same reason. Commercial plant catalogues seem to delight in perpetuating this type of annoying mis-information. If you look carefully into the throats of most funnel shaped blooms, or inflorescences,that have been open for a while, you can usually find dead insects. In many instances the insect just can't find its way out. You might also find a fat, live Wolf Spider (Eastern Maritime Canada; jumping, non-web spinner, or other hunting bugs), or some such, depending on your part of the world. Draw your own conclusions. Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson New Brunswick, Canada, Zone 8-5, 8-5, 8-5 ... The Great Brown North ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 09:34:43 -0800 (PST) Subject: Pinguicula emarginata Hi all, Stuck at home due to the snowstorm that shut-down Vancouver, I had some time to go back and read some CPN articles. Specifically, I was reading the recent article by Loyd Wix on P.emarginata and was hoping someone might have some seed for trade. If so, please e-mail me privately, so we can hopefully work out a deal. Thanks! Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Gallep@aol.com Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 12:59:35 EST Subject: GFP-Homepage The homepage of the Carnivorous Plant Society for the German-Speaking Area has two new Webmasters: Gaby Schulemann and Ansgar Rahmacher. Our homepage is just getting revised, if you have any ideas or proposals or know any interesting / new links please address to Webmaster@gfp.org (or, if there are any difficulties with this address, to Gallep@aol.com). The address of our homepage is http://www.gfp.org (or: http://194.88.160.101) Yours Frank Gallep -President GFP- ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 10:51:55 -0800 (PST) Subject: CP FAQ update Hi Folks, I've finally finished with v7.0 of the CP FAQ which is now online. In addition to a suite of technical improvements, I've more than doubled the number of images on the site. If anyone finds a broken link or other problem (even an image that's not appearing), please contact me. I've tried to address the oversights that have appeared in the previous FAQ versions. Many of the new FAQ pages are in the conservation section, finally bringing that part up to date. If you are a newbie or otherwise curious, the FAQ is at the address below. Thanks for your feedback, everyone. Barry --------------------- Dr. Barry Meyers-Rice bazza@sarracenia.com Carnivorous Plant FAQ--author www.sarracenia.com/faq.html Carnivorous Plant Newsletter--editor www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: "Eric BRET" Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 20:13:01 +0100 Subject: Re:subscribe -----Message d'origine----- De : cp@opus.hpl.hp.com subscribe ################### From: "It's me again!!! (Tomasz Kowalski)" Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 21:38:48 +0100 Subject: Seeds Hello to everybody I have one question. I have just purchased some seeds of Mimosa pudica, Aristolchia grandiflora and Desmodium gyrans. I know they are not carnivorous plants but maybe someone could help me. I do not have any infos how to grow them. What condition they need etc. If someone know the answer please send me an emial under kowal@starogard.com Thank you in advance Tomasz Kowalski ################### From: Brewer Charles E PHDN Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 15:54:49 -0500 Subject: RE: Seeds Tomasz, Sow the seeds on top of moist soil, in a warm place. This plant likes it damp, similar to VFTs, but will die if kept to cold. I usually start my seeds inside the greenhouse in the spring and grow them all summer long. I fertilize weekly with 1/2 strength and collect seeds in August. For good seed development, grow several plants at the same time allowing cross pollination. I use stand potting soil or used Sarr/VFT soil. Hope this helps. Charles Brewer Va. Beach, Va. > -----Original Message----- > From: It's me again!!! (Tomasz Kowalski) [SMTP:kowal@starogard.com] > Sent: Thursday, February 11, 1999 3:54 PM > To: Multiple recipients of list > Subject: Seeds > > Hello to everybody > I have one question. I have just purchased some seeds of Mimosa pudica, > Aristolchia grandiflora and Desmodium gyrans. I know they are not > carnivorous plants but maybe someone could help me. I do not have any > infos > how to grow them. What condition they need etc. If someone know the answer > please send me an emial under kowal@starogard.com > Thank you in advance > Tomasz Kowalski ################### From: Peter Cole Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 0:39:56 +0800 Subject: Re: Anthocyanins Out (off-topic?) on Mon, 08 Feb 1999 02:55:26 PST "nigel hurneyman" wrote: > I am trying to discover or breed an anthocyanin-free form of a > non-carnivore (heresy!). Does anyone know why anthocyanin-free forms > arise, or has anyone noticed anything unusual about the conditions in > which anthocyanin-free forms appear, eg Darlintonia 'Othello', the > heterophyllous S purpureas and Drosera capensis 'alba'. They most likely arise naturally by spontaneous mutation, and might in some cases confer environmental benefit, though I suspect in most merely don't disadvantage the plants. As for trying to breed antho-free plants, I can only suggest sowing lots of seeds and seeing what you get, or try stressing some plant tissue in vitro - I see all manner of strange mutations on occasion (sadly seldom viable,) including a particularly attractive albino (no chlorophyll but antho-producing,) Darlingtonia last year. It faded away before I could figure out how to graft it onto some normal tissue :( Happy experimenting, Peter mailto:carnivor@flytrap.demon.co.uk : http:www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/cchome.htm Cambrian Carnivores,17,Wimmerfield Cr.,SWANSEA,SA2 7BU, UK : tel 01792 205214 Carnivorous Plants,Seeds & Tissue Culture Kits - mailorder,export & wholesale ################### From: Peter Cole Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 0:39:53 +0800 Subject: Re: Edible Ibicella on Sun, 07 Feb 1999 23:34:27 PST "Chris Hind" wrote: .. > I've been told you can cook like a vegetable or pickle and eat premature > Ibicella lutea Devil's Claws? Does anyone else know of any other edible > carnivorous (or subcarnivorous) plants? Any edible sundews? I'd not heard that of Ibicella, but certainly Proboscidea parviflora was formerly cultivated by the Hopi Indians as a foodstuff. I believe there is a varietal name attached to the stock originating from cultivation, but I can't remember exactly what it was - var. hokama-something or other I half remember. Perhaps you could dry roast D.stolonifera tubers and serve them as nibbles :-) Happy growing, Peter mailto:carnivor@flytrap.demon.co.uk : http:www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/cchome.htm Cambrian Carnivores,17,Wimmerfield Cr.,SWANSEA,SA2 7BU, UK : tel 01792 205214 Carnivorous Plants,Seeds & Tissue Culture Kits - mailorder,export & wholesale ################### From: "Estudio Contable Bondone" Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 00:04:18 -0300 XSubject: Re: Edible Ibicella Hola, yo soy Martin y les escribo porque yo tambi'en cultivo plantas carnivoras, lo que me gustaria seria conseguir nuevas especies, si ustedes saben de alguien que venda plantas o semillas, me podrian mandar la direccion, si quieren les puedo contar todo lo que se. Estoy estudiando biologia, con especializacion en botanica, en la universidad UHABI. E-mail> martinmatias@ciudad.com.ar [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: Stephen Davis Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 22:29:36 -0800 Subject: Re: Edible Ibicella (really Proboscidea) You can get quite a few different varieties of Proboscidea (Devils Claw) from Native Seed/Search. They are a group in AZ that exists to conserve the traditional crops, seeds and farming methods of the Native Americans. http://desert.net/seeds/home.htm. email nss@azstarnet.com Phone: 520-622-5561 A very interesting catalog. I picked up at the Phoenix Botanical gardens, (a must see for both plant and animal lovers, by the way) while looking for Ibicella. They don't have Ibicella, but the Proboscidea is referred to as "Devils Claw" (lighting, thunder and organ music playing in the background) Since a lot of people have been asking about the edible nature of it, their catalog says: "Cultivated by many Southwest tribes, the seed is rich in oil and protein. The black fiber of the fruit or "claw" is used in basketry. Dried seeds can be peeled and eaten, and are sometimes used to polish ollas. The young fruits, when still tender, can be cooked as an okra-like vegetable." To tie this in with CP, perhaps can do the same thing with Ibicella, but the connection seems to be the common name, and the shape of the seeds. I'm not sure that is really a connection, except in our own minds. But I'm not a botonist, and I have yet to set eyes on a living plant of either genus. By the way, if you are weaving baskets with the claws, avoid multiple claws to prevent the birth of twins. Lots of interesting info, but it's off topic. Hope this hasn't driven too many people crazy already. Stephen Davis Still haven't been able to contribute a darn thing to this list about CP, but someday... Peter Cole wrote: > on Sun, 07 Feb 1999 23:34:27 PST > "Chris Hind" wrote: > .. > > I've been told you can cook like a vegetable or pickle and eat premature > > Ibicella lutea Devil's Claws? Does anyone else know of any other edible > > carnivorous (or subcarnivorous) plants? Any edible sundews? > > I'd not heard that of Ibicella, but certainly Proboscidea parviflora was > formerly cultivated by the Hopi Indians as a foodstuff. > Stephen Davis [V-Card file stephend.vcf deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Guy Van der Kinderen" Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 16:21:25 +0100 Subject: Re: Aristolochia debilis Dear Tom, > Im hope someone has this plant or seed. > What is it and were does it grow ? > I heard about it , is it carnivorous ? Aristolochia debilis (note spelling) is not a carnivorous plants, but it may catch insects for pollination, as many (all?) other Aristolochia do. I heard about this species from the Botanic Garden here, and I would not be surprised if they have this species to. I think it originates from China. I will take a look and contact you in private. (I hope you are not confusing with Nepenthes aristolochioides which, of coarse, is carnivorous.) Kind regards, Guy Van der Kinderen University of Gent ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 01:17:53 -0800 Subject: Re: Estudio Contable Bondone Hola Martin, mi nombre es Chris. El dont I sabe mucho espa\361ol tan si mi escritura mira su divertido porque el software l\363gica de la traducci\363n que usaba im encontr\363 en altavista.digital.com. Usted puede desear intentar la bater\355a del germen de ICPS para los g\351rmenes baratos en http://www.primenet.com/~tjjohns/seed.htm o comprar las plantas en el sitio de Tom Hayes en http://www.tcscs.com/~thayes / m\355 tambi\351n un comandante de la biolog\355a pero especializaci\363n en gen\351tica m\341s bien que la bot\341nica. Heh, this is bound to get a laugh. ;) ################### From: JDPDX@aol.com Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 10:16:15 EST Subject: Re: Insecticides, S. rubra complex << I have read that it can take a few years once one repots a specimen for it to send out the proper Autumn pitchers, at the original size. Is this what other S. rubra growers have experienced? >> The S. rubra species I have the most of is S. rubra rubra and S. rubra ssp. jonesii, and both of these will produce nice autumn pitchers the first year after a rhizome division provided you don't break them up too small. I always do my division and repotting in the very early spring just before they come out of dormancy. I live in the Pacific Northwest in the US which is a cool rainy climate with warm mild summers and mild wet winters. Everyone seems to have their favorite insecticides for CP pests, but I've had great luck with Orthene. I've also used insecticides based on pyrethrins and permethrin with no ill effects to plants. Just avoid spraying in the heat of the day. Jeff ################### From: "John Green" Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 08:35:07 -0700 Subject: Sarracenia hybrids and their names I notice that in Peter's book and "CP of the USA and Canada" by Don Schnell, they both give lists of the names of Sarracenia hybrids commonly found in the wild. Hybrids with S. oreophila are never listed, and I realize this is probably because there are no naturally occuring S. oreo hybrids. Have names been given to all the other hybrids that are typically produced only by growers? If so, where could I find such a list? Also, I note that S. leuco x S. rubra = S. x readii, but is this for S. rubra ssp. rubra, or all subspecies of the rubra complex? Would it have a different name if you used S. rubra alabamensis, etc., or would you just note the particular subspecies that was used? The same question goes for S. x rehderi, and all other rubra hybrids. I'm planning on experimenting a bit this year with my plants and would like to know the correct names. Thanks in advance for your help. John Green Salt Lake City, Utah ################### From: "Dean Cook" Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 07:54:27 -0800 Subject: CP and PC Virus Hello all, Happy February. For most of us the growing season is just about upon us, another month or 2 depending on where you live. This is the time for repotting and dividing of most of the plants and taking cuttings off of our Nepenthes plants to create new. For us, there is a seasonal problem of Weevil grubs in our darlingtonia, nasty little things. For us, Orthene works well for these creatures as well as many other pests. We mix the ornamental strength on all of our chemicals we use. When we mix this, we also add some Funginex or other fungicide which seems to help with any problems that may arrise in the spring with fungus. With any insecticidal treatment, it is best to try a smaller area of the plants to make sure that your plant or its conditions doesn't cause the plant to have leaf burn, which will happen potentially on some new tender growth or younger plants also the temperatures need to be cooler when spraying, we normally do ours in the evenings prior to complete darkness. Currently we ar e dividing many of our sarracenia and will have many extras available this year. Feel free to look on our older page at http://www.televar.com/~cooks and look at the grow list and see if there are any that you are looking for. Our page it not current there as to availability, however prices are the same. Our new page at http://www.flytraps.com is continuously being updated with new items as they arrive or we divide our inventory. This page will also have more than just plants in the future, so keep an eye on it as it grows and feel free to e-mail any questions or comments directly to me at cooks@flytraps.com Now down to the PC virus part. There is a Happy99 virus that is floating around, unknown to the senders of the e-mails, attached to anything they send out. I was unfortunate to have gotten one of them and open it. Here is where you will find the fix for it, for me it was too late and I had to format my hard drive to get rid of it http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Heights/3652/SKA.HTM For t hose of you whom I regularly speak with, or have in the past please send a current e-mail to me and I will add you to my address book for future new mailings. Take Care Dean Cook's Carnivorous Plants and More [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 17:48:17 Subject: Re: Sarracenia hybrids and their names Dear John, > (...) and I realize this is probably because there are no naturally > occuring S. oreo hybrids. Have names been given to all the other > hybrids that are typically produced only by growers? If so, where > could I find such a list? http://www.hpl.hp.com/bot/cp_home Using the search string "\* \[S" will output all names and formulae of _Sarracenia_ hybrids published so far (rather long list). > Also, I note that S. leuco x S. rubra = S. x readii, but is this for S. > rubra ssp. rubra, or all subspecies of the rubra complex? The name was created to include all infraspecific taxa of _S. rubra_, because _S. *readii_ is a hybrid name at specific level (a nothospecies, not a nothosubspecies, nothovariety, or anything else). > Would it have > a different name if you used S. rubra alabamensis, etc., or would you > just note the particular subspecies that was used? If you wanted to keep the information for the record (all ambitious breeders should do this), you should note the precise hybrid formula, including the infraspecific classifiation of the parents (if there is one like in your example). The (scientific) name will remain _S. *readii_. But if you felt that something distinguishes it from the hybrid involving the typical subspecies of _S. rubra_, you could of course describe the plant either as a new cultivar (preferably, if the plant is of horticultural origin) or as a new nothosubspecific taxon under _S. *readii_. > The same question goes for S. x rehderi, and all other rubra > hybrids. A similar answer like above applies for these as well. > I'm planning on experimenting a bit this year with my plants and would > like to know the correct names. Thanks in advance for your help. So far, no infraspecific classification has been used for cp hybrids. One -merely theoretical- exception being _Drosera *californica_, which would be a nothovariety rather than a nothospecies if the two parents were regarded as varieties of one and the same species, in which case it should be called _D. filiformis nothovar. californica_ (NB: This would be a new combination that should be publised together with a reference to the basionym before it is used to label plants!) Please note that no hierarchical grouping of cultivars is possible, while taxa are hierarchical groups, i.e. a cultivar cannot include other cultivars as subdivisions. Either they are the same or they have equal rank and are mutually exclusive. Several cultivars can, however, be included in a common cultivar-group. This applies for cultivars of pure species and of hybrids alike. Kind regards Jan ################### From: Brewer Charles E PHDN Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 11:44:19 -0500 Subject: RE: Anthocyanin free Purps/Purp for sale 1. I have a limited of S. Purp ssp Purp (Anthocyanin free) for sale. These plants were started from seeds about three years ago and they seem to do well with high humidity and warm summers. The asking price is $10.00, which includes shipping. I have about 12 plants to sell and will sell them on a first come, first serve bases. 2. I also have a bunch of nice Cephs for sale. These plants are between two and three years old and have been growing in aquariums. I am selling them for $23.00 per plant which includes shipping. This sale is limited to the US only (sorry) If interested please contact me via email. Charles Brewer brewerce@nswcphdn.navy.mil ################### From: Peter Keller Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 18:02:21 +0000 Subject: Volume #3 The U.S. distributor just rec'd their supply of Loweri's Vol. #3 and are mailing them out to who ever ordered them. Expected to take about nine days. Barnes and Noble will also begin mailings. I would like to thank Tom Hayes for installing a link to my web site for anyone that would like to order Vol #3 thru B & N. By the way Tom, Who is "Dale Evans". -- Peter F. Keller pkeller@suffolk.lib.ny.us pfk6@juno.com http://www.hoflink.com/~scarf ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 22:48:30 +0000 Subject: Re: 1.Thrip control & 2.the S. rubra complex Hi, > Any ideas on what is tried & true would be most appreciated. > Another piece of advice I am after is with the Sarracenia rubra >subspecies. I have read that it can take a few years once one repots a >specimen for it to send out the proper Autumn pitchers, at the original No I have never found this to be the case. >size. Is this what other S. rubra growers have experienced? I am also >wanting to know what various forms of S. rubra ssp. alabamensis do exist in >cultivation. Is it true that there is a red form of the otherwise type >golden green colour? The sub-species is rare enough in cultivation to never (to my knowledge) offer substantially different forms. Treat any claims with a degree of suspicion since in my experience many supposed "forms" of S. rubra ssp are no more than mis-named hybrids. I have certainly never heard of the red form - though I'd like to see it if it exists!! Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: "William M. Gorum, Jr." Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 18:49:08 -0600 Subject: hybrids Hey Listmembers: I've got a question for you. I'm fairly new to the CP world, and I've noticed that some of the plants available are hybrids. Is the propagation of hybrids standard practice in horticulture? I spend the majority of my free time caring for the several breeding pairs of parrots that I have in my care, and in the world of aviculture, serious bird breeders will often harshly condemn the breeding of hybrids because we have such a limited number of bloodlines available in the U.S. Some people go so far as to not breed different subspecies together? Are hybrids not such a big deal here? Breeding mutations are one thing, but breeding hybrids is totally different altogether from a bird keepers point of view. I am unaware of status of many of the plants kept in captivity, as far as endangered or threatened species are concerned. This topic is a fast way to start a flame war on an avicultural list, but in all good intentions, this is NOT the goal here, I'm simply trying to educate myself. Thanks in advance..... Will wgorum@softdisk.com ################### From: Dave Date: Fri, 12 Feb 99 19:40 EST Subject: Re: Volume #3 Dear Peter and Tom, > I would like to thank Tom Hayes for installing a link to my web site > for anyone that would like to order Vol #3 thru B & N. > By the way Tom, Who is "Dale Evans". Yeah, I'd like to know too. :) "Dave Evans" ################### From: drury6@juno.com Date: Thu, 11 Feb 1999 14:45:23 -0600 Subject: D. Adelae deformations I have noticed that lately the leaves of my D. Adelae have been deformed. I don't think it is due to insects, the leaves are like that when they open up. Is this happening to other growers? I am getting new shapes, not chew marks or any thing like that. I have gotten hourglass shaped leaves, leaves with notches, and just generally deformed leaves. Don Drury ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 20:10:12 -0700 Subject: Re: hybrids On Fri, 12 Feb 1999 "William M. Gorum, Jr." writes: >Is the propagation of hybrids standard practice in horticulture? I spend >the majority of my free time caring for the several breeding pairs of >parrots that I have in my care, and in the world of aviculture, serious >bird breeders will often harshly condemn the breeding of hybrids because >we have such a limited number of bloodlines available in the U.S. This is a good question - and one that might even spark some interesting debate in the horticulture world - so I think I'll answer to the list. While in the CP world, there are definitely some species purists I think you will find that most people don't passionately object to the idea of hybridizing. For myself, I think hybrids can be interesting and fun. However I think its important to keep carefull records of your hybrids and since I live in Colorado the risk of any hybrid CP that I create getting established in the wild is pretty much zero. I think a lot of the concerns about animal hybridization revolve around: 1. Concerns of hybrids escaping into the wild, 2. The ethics of creating a sentient creature that does not know what species it is. 3. Going through the effort of raising some hybrid creature when captive propagation is percieved as an attempt to save genetic material from extinction. For complaint 1, plant hybrids are not rare in nature and while plants can "escape", they tend to be easier to keep captive than animals. It also seems that most of the hybrids are created in non native areas - eg Nepenthes hybrids seem to mostly be from Europe, Japan and North America. For complaint 2, only a few of us think our plants are sentient (you know who you are!). While I have a hard time composting perfectly good plants, I have no ethical concerns about planting several hundred seed, saving a few and culling the rest. Complaint 3 might be a valid one for us. There are certainly those that think hybrids are a waste of good greenhouse space. In this age of extensive tissue culturing though, I don't particularly feel like I'm doing much to preserve rare genetic material since frequently I'm just growing the exact same clone as hundreds of other folks. My two cents Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 22:49:45 EST Subject: Re: Volume #3 - B&N links.... Dear Pete, "Dale" & list, > > I would like to thank Tom Hayes for installing a link to my web site > > for anyone that would like to order Vol #3 thru B & N. > > By the way Tom, Who is "Dale Evans". Currently he just goes by the masked CP'er, but I will let everyone know if I find out his real identity. I would like to ask the rest of the CP folks with pages to copy the code below and put B&N links to Pete's page. Like Pete already said, the rebate goes to help retired firefighters out. We are spending the $$ anyway, so it may as well go a little further and help those who help protect us. Again, the link should point to Pete's page and not directly to B&N. Take care & keep on growing, -Tom- Hayes DANGEROUS PLANTS www.tcscs.com/~thayes The image bn_affil.gif is available at the following URL: http://www.tcscs.com/~thayes/graphics/bn_affil.gif The link code is between the lines below..... ___________________________________________
Peter Keller's Page - not CP Related
5% of the sales from this site's Barnes & Noble Banner helps support retired firefighters. Please make your $$ go a little further
______________________________________________ ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 21:25:09 -0700 Subject: store these seeds for 2 years? I have several cp seeds I wanted to plant. However, unexpectedly I may be away from home for about 2 years, after the month of May. I need to know how long I can save my seeds and what my losses may be. I'm assuming they aren't too old, already. Malaysian Nepenthes, mostly highland and one lowland Mexican Pings, 3 need a dormancy and 2 don't need it Australian Drosera caduca, paradoxa Sarracenia purpurea ssp. purpurea Maybe, if I can't store them, I'll plant them in a closed terrarium. Does Sarracenia need a dormancy while it is young? I thought of trading the seeds but that would give me more plants or seeds- not what I want. Seed storage isn't a topic in most cp books. Chad C. ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Fri, 12 Feb 1999 21:24:56 -0700 Subject: Desmodium gyrans virus? I know, this is a carnivorous plants mailing list. However, almost everybody I emailed about Mimosa and Desmodium also had carnivorous plants. Part of our fascination with c. plants may be their oddity, so some cpers grow other odd plants? Anyway, I was looking at my D. gyrans seeds and noticed 4 seeds were light tan with black specs and squigles; 2 seeds were redish brown (maroon?) with less obvious black specs and squigles; and 3 seeds looked intermediate light tan to redish brown and had dark splotches instead of specs and squigles. To summarize that- I'm seeing a lot of variation in the colors of the seed coats. Don't ask me the difference between dark splotches and specs. I'm not sure how to describe that :) Use your imagination. Sometimes, those colors may mean a virus is in the seed. I've seen that in pea seeds- my experience. I can't remember where D. gyrans is from. In 1970 the virus was found in D. canum from Florida. Is it possible this virus may infect D. gyrans plants grown in the USA? I used www.metacrawler.com , and typed in Desmodium virus and clicked Search. One of the results: http://image.fs.uidaho.edu/vide/descr299.htm Below, that is only a small part of the webpage. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% Desmodium mosaic potyvirus Host range and symptoms First reported in Desmodium canum; from Florida, U.S.A; by Edwardson et al. (1970). Natural host range and symptoms Symptoms persist. Desmodium canum - mosaic, leaf malformation. Transmission Transmitted by a vector; an insect; Aphis craccivora, Myzus persicae; Aphididae. Virus transmitted by mechanical inoculation; transmitted by seed (8%). Geographical distribution Spreads in the USA. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% ################### From: Dave Date: Fri, 12 Feb 99 23:45 EST Subject: Re: store these seeds for 2 years? Dear Chad, > unexpectedly I may be away from home for about 2 years, > > Malaysian Nepenthes, mostly highland and one lowland These are fairly short lived. > Mexican Pings, 3 need a dormancy and 2 don't need it > Australian Drosera caduca, paradoxa I can't be sure but these may live, if kept refridgerated. > Sarracenia purpurea ssp. purpurea You can refridgerate these for sure. > Maybe, if I can't store them, I'll plant them in a > closed terrarium. Does Sarracenia need a dormancy while > it is young? I thought of trading the seeds but that > would give me more plants or seeds- not what I want. Chad, given the circumstance, I would just give the seeds to those who want, and ask for some more later. I'd be sure to send the short-lived seeds to a seed bank or friens and keep the long-lived stuff the fridge. DAve Evans ################### From: "~`~ TomsRarePlants ~`~" Date: Sat, 13 Feb 1999 06:16:58 -0000 Subject: Nepenthes seeds Hi we have planted Nepenthes seeds from the seed bank we just sprinkle seed on moist soil keep warm and light on for days a week went by then on the second week they came up . I never turned off the lights and im here to say the last 3 times i faild at it . ? Do you think the light had something to do with it ? We will have small Nepenthes ventricosa red and N gracilis for $7 and N Bicalcurata for $23.00 anyone want to buy or trade for these plants E-mail us at frittsmb@msn.com Thanks Tom @ Laura Fritts and son Daniel he's 4 ################### From: "NEIL ARMSTRONG" Date: Sat, 13 Feb 1999 15:23:43 -0000 Subject: Re: Hybrids & variety confusion Dear William & List, I thought I would give my two penny's worth on this subject. I only discovered recently that most non CP hybrids are sterile, (I grow CP's, but I'm no gardener). I suppose that we take for granted that "our" plants can be crossed every which way, but it has led to huge confusion, especially with Sarracenia hybrids which now seems to be completely out of control. Know one seems to know anymore if a plant is genuine or miss- labled. Another problem we seem to have at the moment is the question over wether long standing variety's are what we thought they were, for example, is S. Maxima a seperate variety, or just a large form of S. Flava, common in the wild? This leads to huge problems for the average grower, especially if they breed and sell to an unsuspecting person, labelling becomes meaningless. I read with interest Peter D'Amato's new book (Very good by the way) about the variety of new VFT's that are springing up are Tissue Culture mutants, is this a worrying trend? Could this happen to more species? I'll stop now, I'm beginning to rant. Cheers, Neil. ################### From: Davidogray@aol.com Date: Sat, 13 Feb 1999 10:22:11 EST Subject: hybrids in horticulture Will, and list, William M. Gorum, Jr." writes: >Is the propagation of hybrids standard practice in horticulture? >Are hybrids not such a big deal here? Breeding mutations are one thing, but >breeding hybrids is totally different altogether from a bird keepers point of view. In horticulture, unlike aviculture and the husbandry of endangered animal species, hybrids are not judged as "bad". First, most plants don't have a limited breeding lifespan (in the right hands - don't tell those poor VFT at K-Mart ); individual plants of a rare species can be propagated, tissue- cultured, and otherwise increased to give the grower more material to breed with - you can't take a toe off your Spix's Macaw and make a new macaw can you? One plant can be the parent of hybrid offspring at one breeding and pure species the next. Second, there is the phenomenon of *hybrid vigor* which simply is that hybrids between two species or forms are often much more vigorous and hardy than either parent - I bet you know lots of people who are taller than their parents, right?. This makes breeding hybrids a worthy and desirable pursuit. Third, humans do not have complete and utter control of all life and those sneaky bees sometimes make hybrids when we're not looking. When a plant in cultivation is rare, growers would normally make an effort to produce seed of the true species, form, etc. - but sometimes ( as is often the case with Nepenthes ) plants different enough to cross-pollenate don't flower at the same time; so the grower crosses the flowering plant with whatever he/she has flowering at the same time to take advantage of the opportunity. As for the very good points raised by Rich Ellis: >1. Concerns of hybrids escaping into the wild, >2. The ethics of creating a sentient creature that does not know what >species it is. >3. Going through the effort of raising some hybrid creature when captive >propagation is perceived as an attempt to save genetic material from >extinction. 1. We've said, hybrids do occur in the wild, and man-made hybrids do "escape" - but both the ICPS and other conservation organizations condemn intentional introduction of non-native material. There is no way to stop this from happening. 2. I've never heard a CP complain about being created - let's wait and ask the first human-chimp cross how he feels about the subject. 3. Sadly, the evidence on reintroductions of captive raised endangered species shows the survival rate is dismal and that as a strategy for long- term survival, captive breeding just doesn't work. We have got to save habitat. Hope this helps your understanding, and keep breeding those parrots, Cheers, David O. Gray Davidogray@aol.com ################### From: Oliver.Gluch@t-online.de (Oliver Gluch) Date: Sat, 13 Feb 1999 16:54:28 +0100 Subject: Pinguicula macroceras Hi folks, anybody out there, especially in the US which grows P. macroceras from a location in North-America and especially P. macroceras ssp. nortensis from the Oregon-Californian border region. I would like to trade some winter buds and can offer a very large scale of Pinguicula species. Anyone interested can contact me privately. Oliver ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Oliver Gluch Lindenallee 44 26122 Oldenburg Germany eMail: Oliver.Gluch@t-online.de Pings on the Net under http://home.t-online.de/home/oliver gluch/home_e.htm ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- ################### From: Christer Berglund Date: Sun, 14 Feb 1999 00:23:22 +0100 Subject: Re: nep deformation and pitchers > > I get this happening regularly with two plants in particular - > Nepenthes rhombicaulis and N. talangensis. It is much more > pronounced in the latter, in which the tendrils on leaves seven or > eight positions from the apex will spontaneously start to elongate > and develop into pitchers, although these are not much smaller than > the rest of the plant. And yes, it occurs *after* pitchers have > already been produced further up the plant. Hi Alastair, and thanks for your reply. At least now I know that my N. singalana isn't abnormal. It's been growing normal pitchers lately, so it will be interesting to see if this behaviour reoccurs in the future. The plant in question is currently the fastest growing species of the ones that I have. The growing area does not have large temperature fluctuations, or is particularly cool, so I don't know if it's a "good" representative of Sumatran highland nepenthes. > Malesiana Tropicals web-page that this species grows *very* slowly - > it is thus a happy observation that I can make when I see my TC'd > plant growing like the clappers - faster > than either of my N.rafflesiana and N.truncata. Anyway, I Good to hear that you have success with N. talangensis. I don't keep this species, but if it's possible, I would like to know the day/night temperature that you grow it in. I'm interested in acquiring some more Sumatran highlanders (like inermis, carunculata), so the info would be of great help to me. If anyone have experience with inermis/carunculata, I would appreciate some culture info. Thanks, -- Christer Berglund E-mail: christer.berglund@amiga.pp.se ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Sun, 14 Feb 1999 17:08:13 Subject: Re: Nepenthes species Dear Rich & al., > Since I happened to have Jebb & Cheek next to the computer I thought > these might help.(...) > adnata, 100-1000m Obviously, Jebb & Cheek have mistaken the statement "about 100 m from (...) towards (...)" (in the Bahasa Indonesian text by Tamin & Hotta) for an altitude. To the best of my knowledge, _N. adnata_ has so far never been observed below 700 m alt in the wild. The label on the holotype specimen states "ca. 1000 m", which is probably the source of the upper limit given by Jebb & Cheek. I would not call _N. adnata_ a lowland species. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "~`~ TomsRarePlants ~`~" Date: Sun, 14 Feb 1999 11:38:45 -0000 Subject: Blackwater Extract Happy Valentine's Day from frittsmb@msn.com Hi CP'ers Carnivorous plants R COOL Here's how we use Blackwater Extract to grow seeds :) Good for fish ? B2~ B6, B12 Nicotinic amide,panthenol, biotin and peat extract . " NEVER "use on venus fly trps they hate it.... I put my soil in the oven to kill any bugs found in the soil ,then i used Terta Black water Extract to add a low PH., i pour cold water not from the tap ,over the soiI . We buy Reverse Osmosis water this helps. When the soil was just still hot i sprinkled seeds and put the pot in a ziplock bag and kept lights on for three days I seen the sundew seeds grow in less than a week . :0} Try this on your Sarracenia seed do all the above~ then put in the fridge for a month or two see how you may just may have more seeds come up . Bonsai Grass make a cool ground cover and it never gets tall i like it because it keeps soil some what on the damp side and its pretty like me ..Laura HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY Guys and Gals Good Growing :0) Thanks Tom Jonson only one pack seed has failed to grow so far it was N ampullaria. Laura Fritts frittsmb@msn.com venusflytraps@hotmail.com ################### From: "~`~ TomsRarePlants ~`~" Date: Sun, 14 Feb 1999 14:20:33 -0000 Subject: Utricularia Machorhiza lives in Kentucky ? By frittsmb@msn.com Hi Cp List Utricularia Machorhiza and D. rotundifolia.... I was surfin and went to this place on the web http://www.tra.gov/moreinfo/rnhp/etpn They list this under Endangered and threatend plants :( I would like to find seed of this plant . Will trade a nice plant for seed or plant . Also I heard that D. rotundifolia grows in my state I would like to go and see it and to plant seed were it grows so it will be there so my son can see it too. Its sad when these plants leave the wild due to people seeing these plants as weeds I hope someone has seen these plants in Ky . I do not plan to dig these plants from my state I want preserve these plants here in Kentucky if I can fine them ? What has Been Lost ,,,, Never give UP the fight to save a plants Life!!! frittsmb@msn.com venusflytraps@hotmail.com Thanks Tom ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Sun, 14 Feb 1999 18:21:26 EST Subject: Re: On some artwork in The Savage Garden Greetings folks, Peter here at California Carnivores! I've been away for a week due to a horrible case of what I believe to be food poisoning, and am making a sloooow recovery. I felt like I had Rosemary's Baby growing inside of me. Ugh. As I was catching up on my hundreds of emails, I noticed someone mentioned something about the quality of certain photographs in The Savage Garden, mentioning N. albomarginata and Heliamphora nutans among others. These are not photographs, per se. They are a form of artistic rendering called color transfers. I am not sure of the actual process, but a photographer, Sharon Bergeron, who also has many photos in the book, took her own photographs and produced these color transfers from them. I believe they are hand painted. We then had Jonathan Chester, another photographer, take slides of them, and this is what appeared in the book. So they are Jonathan's photographs of Sharon's color transfers of her own photos! We sold for a while beautiful greeting cards of Sharon's works, but they have all sold out. If anyone out there can add further to the process of color transfers, perhaps they can add to the discussion. The commentator (I'm sorry I can't recall who made it) seemed not to like them, but perhaps he thought they were photographs or slides. During my illness, I missed Drosera pauciflora blooming in the greenhouse. I have not seen my plants bloom since the mid 1980s. Marilee reports that only two visitors fainted. Th-th-th-th-th-that's all, folks! I think I'm going into labor! Peter ################### From: "William M. Gorum, Jr." Date: Sun, 14 Feb 1999 21:58:55 -0600 Subject: hybrids...again :) Me again! Thanks for all of the info on hybrids. I only wish I could TC a Spix's macaw (FYI, Spix's Macaws are one of the rarest birds in the world, with only one male being left in the wild, and only a few breeding pairs in captivity). Anyway, I can see why hybridization is not as severely frowned on in horticulture like it is in aviculture. I have a little more information that I can use to formulate an opinion on the subject, and I would once again like to thank you for the help. TTYL, Will wgorum@softdisk.com ################### From: "Ted A. Hadley" Date: Mon, 15 Feb 1999 07:32:17 -0800 Subject: Devil's Claw (Ibicella or Proboscoidea) Hi All, I just want to add some notes about the Devil's Claw (Ibicella or Proboscoidea) and its native environment in the Sonoran Desert of southern Arizona. As a Tucson (AZ) native, my family always collected the dried seed pods of the Devil's Claw for decorations and craft projects. This plant is common in S. AZ, almost to the point of being troublesome in some areas. Climate: Tucson gets 7 inches of rain annually. Ajo gets about 5 inches of rain annually Rain seasons: wet winter, wet summer. Dry, humid late spring. Very dry autumn. Summer high temps: 110 F (common), 115 F (uncommon, maybe 10 days per year), 120 F rare Summer low temps: 70 F (rare), 80 F (common), 90 F (uncommon) Winter high temps: 75 F (common), 80 F (uncommon), 85 F (rare) Winter low temps: 15 F (rare), 20 F (common), 25 F (frequent) elevation: Tucson: 2500 feet, Ajo about 1000 feet Soil: sandy with rocks and clay (unconsolidated). Very little humus or other organic matter. The mineral makeup is acidic in geochemical terms: quartz, plagioclase, muscovite, biotite, almandine, some amphiboles and magnetite. Environment: common in sandy washes (seasonal rivers). The plants are most abundant at elevations above 2500 feet, up to about 4000 feet maximum. By growing in dry washes, they receive much more water than the rainfall statistics indicate; the dry washes are usually damp 12 inches below the surface year round. In the vicinity of my sister's home (Catalina, AZ, elevation about 3200 feet), the plants make impenetrable masses in the Canada del Oro wash. They are considered a weed and often destroyed in disturbed areas of the desert. The plants do not grow in forest, chaparral, or grassy plains. They are known to me only in the desert areas. They always seem to have full sun (and in the desert, that's LOTS of sun!). I found some dried seed pods while vacationing there last week and extracted about 20 seeds. I will try growing them at my new home in Sunnyvale, CA. Ted Hadley ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Mon, 15 Feb 1999 17:16:50 Subject: Re: Devil's Claw (Ibicella or Proboscoidea) Dear Ted, > I just want to add some notes about the Devil's Claw (Ibicella or > Proboscoidea) and its native environment in the Sonoran Desert of southern > Arizona. As a Tucson (AZ) native, my family always collected the dried seed > pods of the Devil's Claw for decorations and craft projects. This plant is > common in S. AZ, almost to the point of being troublesome in some areas. _Ibicella_ is definitely not native in AZ. Its natural range is limited to subtropical S America. What you have is certainly _Proboscidea_. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Mellichamp, T. Larry" Date: Mon, 15 Feb 1999 12:00:04 -0500 Subject: RE: hybrid names Larry Mellichamp Biology Dept. UNC Charlotte Charlotte, NC 28223 Phone (704) 547-4055 FAX (704) 547-3128 Email tlmellic@email.uncc.edu http://www.bioweb.uncc.edu/Faculty/mellichamp/ "Be nice - have you given your pitcher plant a bug today" Also, I note that S. leuco x S. rubra = S. x readii, but is this for S. rubra ssp. rubra, or all subspecies of the rubra complex? Would it have a different name if you used S. rubra alabamensis, etc., or would you just note the particular subspecies that was used? The same question goes for S. x rehderi, and all other rubra hybrids. I'm planning on experimenting a bit this year with my plants and would like to know the correct names. Thanks in advance for your help. REPLY: If you view the S. rubra complex as one species with many subspecies (or varieties), the hybrids would all be S. rehderi. And, they may look vastly different since S. alabamensis has a VERY different appearance than S. rubra rubra. If, however, you view the S. rubra complex as several species and subspecies, as I view it, then a hybrid involving S. jonesii, for example, could be given a new hybrid name. Likewise, using S. alabamensis ssp. wherryi (and NOT calling it S. rubra ssp. wherryi) you could give your hybrid a new name because it involves a "different species," so to speak.. To be sure, this would complicate nomenclature. But it is complicated already with people having different views of what is a species, subspecies etc. Regards, Larry ################### From: "Tom fritts" Date: Mon, 15 Feb 1999 14:01:05 -0000 Subject: Fw: Drosera linearis Goldie , Drosera brevifolia ,P pumila P. villosa tomsrareplants@hotmail.com Hi This is the plants or seeds we are looking for can anyone help us thanks. D.linearis ..D.brevifolia we will pay $ or trade..Please e-mailus at tomsrareplants@hotmail.com Because we have had some problems with our hacker {Daniel }the son he, loves to make the computer do tricks . :) Ever seen a computerstand on it's head ? I think he,s tryed that... He' did make the make the computer play dead ... >Home crash sight frittsmb@msn.com my son is the Alien ? Computer crash and fix at our home daily He's a sneaky one.... [ hes 4 ] Never leave him at the computer alone... Even our Furby s are strange they make a , >burb,kiss ,and love the words boring,tickle me,hungrey,,ect" and play dead and Eat batteries are they Carnivorous ? Two days play and my son will make the furby bite the dust. Hey Energizer Bunny try to keep up with our son . ~`~ > Have a Happy day ! > > > thanks > Laura > > > > > ################### From: Terre Golembiewski Date: Mon, 15 Feb 1999 15:24:19 -0500 Subject: Star Trek Voyager & carnivorous plant enthusiasts Pitcher plants were mentioned in this past week's episode of Star Trek Voyager (episode title "Bliss"). Unfortunately, a series character stated that pitcher plants attract insects by means of pheromones. ################### From: Bruce Salmon Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 11:07:55 +1300 Subject: N. adnata Dear Rich & al., > Since I happened to have Jebb & Cheek next to the computer I thought > these might help.(...) > adnata, 100-1000m Obviously, Jebb & Cheek have mistaken the statement "about 100 m from (...) towards (...)" (in the Bahasa Indonesian text by Tamin & Hotta) for an altitude. To the best of my knowledge, _N. adnata_ has so far never been observed below 700 m alt in the wild. The label on the holotype specimen states "ca. 1000 m", which is probably the source of the upper limit given by Jebb & Cheek. I would not call _N. adnata_ a lowland species. Kind regards Jan The N. adnata that I found in the wild was at 500m and grows well in a hothouse. It grows in sandstone cliff areas that only get to about 1000m at the most. Bruce ################### From: Dave Date: Mon, 15 Feb 99 19:40 EST Subject: Re: Re: Hybrids & variety confusion Dear Neil, > Another problem we seem to have at the moment is the question over > wether long standing variety's are what we thought they were, for example, > is S. Maxima a seperate variety, or just a large form of S. Flava, common > in the wild? Wait a minute here. I want to clarify this one for those who didn't read CPN last year. _Sarracenia flava var. maxima_ **does not** refer to the size of the plant. This is a common mis-perception. In this case, var. maxima refers to a variety of the species _S. flava_ that doesn't have red veining or red splotches. You could have a very short S.flava that fits this description and it will still be S. flava var. maxima, growing next to a much taller (and larger) plant with red coloration and it will not be maxima. Other examples include _Nepenthes maxima_. This species is not known for it's size--This has nothing to do with the name. Dave Evans ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Mon, 15 Feb 1999 20:03:25 PST Subject: Free CP Update Thanks to all who offered a home for some of the extra Drosera I had. I emailed the lucky recipients and regret to inform the rest of you that I ran out of time and plants so that's all for now :( I still have a limited number of other Drosera for trade so if anyone wants to swap, please drop me a line! Still looking for: D.indica RED, D.burmanii RED, D.neocaledonica, D.oblanceolata, the true D.affinis, as well as others :) Thanks in advance! Matt NYC ################### From: "Edward Read" Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2099 00:18:15 -0800 Subject: Costa Rica cps Howdy Folks, Well, running around Neblina and Cerro do Araca for a month eating *farofa and watching for **mapinguari wasn't enough for me. Now I'm off to beautiful Costa Rica (if I get through the semester alive). Unable to find any hits on Costa Rica using the search engine on the database, I'm writing in hope that someone knows of the species and locations of cp's there. I know this question was asked a while back but I couldn't locate any responses. Maybe someone can help me? Thank you in advance, my eyes are red from scanning through Taylor's book for mentions of Costa R. Take Care and Have Fun! Edward Read e-mail: bioman-ed@geocities.com http://www.geocities.com/rainforest/9848/ *farofa (sp?) is this delicious grit made from manioc. I must have eaten 5 lbs. of the stuff. It's great for camping, if you don't get the rice cooked all the way it's o.k., you'll just think all that hard crunchy stuff is the farofa!!! Those bugs that fly in the pot or the stuff scooped up after the pot fell on the ground? no problem, it's the farofa!!! How come I can't find that stuff here in L.A.? **Mapinguari (sp?) is the giant 8 ft. man eating sloth that can kill you with it's odor. (Well, that's according to the natives) No comments about that one I'm just barely getting over the nightmares. Warning!!!!! If you have red hair do not, I repeat, do not go to Yanomami land with Fernando, he might trade you to the Yanomami women for only two bananas!!! ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 08:02:42 -0500 Subject: Re: Fw: Drosera linearis Goldie , Drosera brevifolia ,P At 11:05 AM 2/15/99 -0800, you wrote: >Hi >This is the plants or seeds we are looking for can anyone help us thanks. >D.linearis ..D.brevifolia >we will pay $ or trade..Please e-mailus at tomsrareplants@hotmail.com > Because we have had some problems with our hacker {Daniel }the son he, > loves to make the computer do tricks . :) > Ever seen a computerstand on it's head ? I think he,s tryed that... > He' did make the make the computer play dead ... >>Home crash sight frittsmb@msn.com my son is the Alien ? > Computer crash and fix at our home daily He's a sneaky one.... [ hes >4 ] > Never leave him at the computer alone... > Even our Furby s are strange they make a , >>burb,kiss ,and love the words boring,tickle me,hungrey,,ect" > and play dead and Eat batteries are they Carnivorous ? > Two days play and my son will make the furby bite the dust. > Hey Energizer Bunny try to keep up with our son . ~`~ >> Have a Happy day ! >> >> >> thanks >> Laura Is this really cp listserv material? I wish I had the same amount of time as everyone else out there. Can we all try to refocus our topic material to cp information. I may (as usual) sound heartless, but many of us have busy schedules to keep up with and we really need to keep discussions and information limited to horticultural material. I am sure there are more appropriate forums for discussions on crashing computers and Furby's! TOFYT!!!! ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 14:45:30 Subject: Re: Costa Rica cps Dear Ed, > Now I'm off to > beautiful Costa Rica (if I get through the semester alive). Unable to find > any hits on Costa Rica using the search engine on the database, You should use an appropriate search term. Costa Rica is abbreviated C.Rica in the database (cf. explanations at http://www.hpl.hp.com/botany/public_html/cp/html/db_formt.htm). I got 9 hits (add the ubiquitous _U. gibba_ and _U. subulata_, and you have 11; Missouri lists only 7). All are fairly widespread _Utriculariae_, perhaps the most noteworthy being _U. endresii_ and _U. praetermissa_, both of the epiphytic _U. alpina_ group. I would not be surprised if some of the more widespread species of _Drosera_ grew there as well. The sub-cp enthusiast may find some delight in the _Catopsis_ growing there. Not really much to write home about, cp-wise. Better look for parasitic or saprophytic plants, or just enjoy the beach! Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 08:29:09 +0000 Subject: Aquatic cp's I've just finished renovating and expanding the carnivorous plant bog display here at the Missouri Botanical Garden, and I added a little pool in which to grow some aquatic cp's. It's roughly three feet long by about 1 1/2 to 2 feet wide, and is about 18" deep. I've put a cedar log in it to make it look "natural" and have planted some sundews in cavities of the log. I'm thinking of trying to grow Utricularia inflata in the pool, since that seems like possibly the showiest species for the public to be able to see. I'd also like to put in some U. gibba since we do have that natively in Missouri, but I don't expect people will notice it much. Does anyone have experience growing U. inflata? How acidic does my water need to be? (I've added peat to the reverse osmosis water and have it down to 5.5 so far). The display is in a conservatory that is cool in winter (45 or so at night), and hot in summer (95 to 105 is common). The pool will get a fair bit of sun, though not full sun. The log will help shade underneath the surface of the water. Also, if this will work, anyone know where I can get U. inflata? (or some other showy utric. if this one wouldn't work). I already have some good U. gibba growing along. Thanks for any help! Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden susan.farrington@mobot.org (314)577-9402 ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 09:29:25 -0500 Subject: RE: hybrid names To be sure, this would complicate nomenclature. But it is > complicated already with people having different views of what is a > species, > subspecies etc. > > Regards, > Larry ################### From: sales Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 14:30:00 Subject: old newbie Hi list I don't know if anyone on the list has a long enough memory to know me, my name is Leigh Perkins and I was a member of the list around 14 months ago, right up to the point of getting made redundant. Well the good news is that I've now found a new employer who have blessed me with e-mail, and so it's good to get back on the list. Those of you that do remember me will know I'm in England and as such grow most of the plants capable with an unheated greenhouse (at last count, some 40 different kinds). A big (very) belated thank you must go to Kamil Pasek for his great generosity at the time of our last communication - Kamil, there were more seeds than I had room for!! :) - thanks again. Thanks also to those who were kind enough to send me seeds, gemma, plants and good sound advice when I was starting out. It's really good to be back - Right! What have I missed?? Leigh Perkins sales@novacom-mwave.com Novacom Microwave Ltd. 28 High Street Nettleham Lincoln LN2 2PG England Tel: +44 (0) 1522 751136 Fax: +44 (0) 1522 754408 ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 09:32:38 -0500 Subject: RE: hybrid names > > To be sure, this would complicate nomenclature. But it is >complicated already with people having different views of what is a species, >subspecies etc. Hi Larry, I'm not doing too well with the computer this morning. I'm still hoping that I didn't send a blank message to the list. Anyway, Larry, would love to hear you muse about taxonomy and the rubra complex in detail. I have several rubra (labeled as subspecies or varieties) and still don't have a good handle on what to look for to verify that they were named correctly. Wanta take a stab? David Atlanta ################### From: "Steve Heggood" Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 10:03:41 -0500 Subject: Stinky Plant I realize that this question is a little off subject, but since by nature, cp collectors have a flair for the bizarre and unusual in the plant kindom I'll risk it. There was a fellow in South Carolina when I used to live up there had a plant that smelled of carrion when it bloomed that attracted flies. It was a beautiful thing when it bloomed, but you'd probably put it at the back of the lot rather than your shrub bed. Anyone know what it is and sources? Thx, -steve- ################### From: Tom Massey Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 11:43:11 -0500 Subject: Plants and seeds available For those interested: I have a number of Neps. and a few other CPs available for trade or sale. Neps. include bicalcurata, sanguinea, truncata, rafflesianna, gracilis, others, and a few hybrids like tricocarpa. This is all TC or rooted cuttings. I will also have cuttings in a month or so of N. ampullaria, and amp. Cantley's red. (or is it Kantley?) I also have a few VFT varieties incuding an all green, red dragon, and the cup shaped (we gotta come up with a name for that!). I would prefer trading as opposed to selling; fresh or rooted cuttings or TC is fine. Neps preferred but other CPs okay too. Sorry, domestic only. For seeds I have a number of fresh Sarrs., both species and hybrids, most of the hybrids are F1's or F1 back to a species. Seed I can send anywhere in exchange for seed of Nep, Drosera, or anything of interest. I may owe someone something, if I do, don't hesitate to remind me. Respond to my email rather than the list. Okay end of advertisement, Tom in Fl. ################### From: Doug Burdic Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 12:13:27 -0800 Subject: Re: Stinky Plant Steve Heggood wrote: > > I realize that this question is a little off subject, > but since by nature, cp collectors have a flair > for the bizarre and unusual in the plant kindom > I'll risk it. > > There was a fellow in South Carolina when I > used to live up there had a plant that smelled > of carrion when it bloomed that attracted flies. > It was a beautiful thing when it bloomed, but > you'd probably put it at the back of the lot rather > than your shrub bed. Anyone know what it is > and sources? > Thx, > -steve- ======================================================================== Steve and All, This plant is probably in the Araceae family and could be Dracunculus, Helicodiceros, Sauromatum or Amorphophallus although there are several other genera in this family which also give off a 'carrion odor' when they flower. Check out the links below for information and sources: http://hoya.mobot.org/ias/ http://www.plantdelights.com/ (good source for plants) Best Wishes, Doug ################### From: "Michael Hunt" Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 15:23:34 -0500 Subject: Re: Stinky Plant.......... You are being polite a plant that smelled of carrion when it bloomed that attracted flies. It was a beautiful thing when it bloomed, but you'd probably put it at the back of the lot rather than your shrub bed. Anyone know what it is and sources? Thx, -steve- Steve, I would almost bet its a Stapelia, a succulent from the Asclepiad family. I grow many of this genus. Infact I have one getting ready to bloom now that was labelled Dog sh*t flower at the nursery because of the horrid smell. I was told I was the first customer to buy one. The common one, the Carrion Flower is S. gigantea. I can most likely give you a piece in late spring. Of course many other plants stink to high heaven. I remember my large groups of S. purpurea that ate large amounts of slugs in the summer. Wow, it would clear out the area quick and attract bottle flies by the hundreds. And a real pretty stinker is the Dead Horse Arum. I also agree that alot of the coloration with cps is to attract flies and such to rotting flesh, such as Dionaea, or various Nepenthes. Take care, ~Mike St. Petersburg Fl ################### From: nile smith Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 21:52:12 +0000 Subject: Aquatic CP's nile smith nxs@postmark.net Hi List, I just ordered some Aldrovanda and I really want it to survive. The last Aldrovanda I had slowly died over a period of a couple weeks. I would appreciate any advise I could get on keeping Aldrovanda alive in cultivation. Also, I've got a small pond on my property, about 12' x 15' x 5' deep. Does anybody know how I could acidify it to the point where it will allow aquatic CP's to survive in it? Thanks, Nile Smith ################### From: bd670@scn.org (Michael Feddersen) Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 14:12:07 -0800 (PST) Subject: Thailand Hello, I am using this account since my other was terminated from the newsgroup a couple of years back. I hope this makes it thru. Let me introduce myself again. My name is Tom Kahl/Nepenthes Club. I have just returned from a successful trip to Thailand on Nepenthes and some other stuff. I found several types I have not seen before. Recorded were five types but not counting the variations of N. mirabilis and ampullaria there were close to 10 varieties. I also set up some public cp displays at two botanical gardens. They are interested in more material and info. If you would like to participate please contact me at bb626@scn.org. This is my regular E-mail account. I was able to bring back on permits about 20 Nepenthes plants. I also brought back on permits some Amorphopallus tubers but this subject probably belongs on another newsgroup. The permit process is fairly simple since I am the only one exporting from Thailand and they recognized me from before on a previous trip. While there I ran test on soil and water. Prelinenary results were amazing since they were growing quite different than the current data in print. I'll try and post more on this later. Truly, Tom Kahl/Nepenthes Club ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 15:20:20 -0800 (PST) Subject: ICPS web site Hey all, The ICPS has gotten a long-needed revision. If you see anything on it that needs fixing, please contact me. Cheers Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 17:16:01 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Aquatic CP's Hi Nile, If you don't have a container prepared for the Aldovanda already, it probably won't survive. At least that's been the opinion of most people. There was a recent CPN issue devoted to Aldrovanda and its cultivation. Basically, take a large container with a large surface area to depth ratio (ie: shallow, kiddie wading pools are ideal), fill with some peat moss and water and allow it to age and then introduce some other aquatic plants (eg: Typha) which the Aldrovanda need for protection against algal accumulation on themselves and for further conditoining of water (nutrient uptake, etc.). Anyways, after a few months outdoors, the pool will then be ready to introduce Aldrovanda into it. So sorry to say, but your plants may not survive if they're being shipped in the next couple of weeks. Other hints, they apparently appreciate some amount of hardness in the water (via addition of CaCO3) and high CO2 concentrations (the aquatic plant people have all sorts of neat tricks for increasing this in aquaria and ponds). As for how to prepare your outdoor pond for aquatic utrics, I just mix about a handful of peat for every cup of water, so expand this formula as needed. The peat will quickly acidify the water and turn it a lovely coppery brown colour. Good luck! Hapy growing, Chris On Tue, 16 Feb 1999, nile smith wrote: > nile smith > nxs@postmark.net > > Hi List, > > I just ordered some Aldrovanda and I really > want it to survive. The last Aldrovanda I > had slowly died over a period of a couple > weeks. I would appreciate any advise I could > get on keeping Aldrovanda alive in cultivation. > > Also, I've got a small pond on my property, > about 12' x 15' x 5' deep. Does anybody > know how I could acidify it to the point > where it will allow aquatic CP's to survive > in it? Thanks, > > Nile Smith > > ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Rick Walker Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 17:51:45 -0800 Subject: Re: On some artwork in The Savage Garden > If anyone out there can add further to the process of color transfers, > perhaps they can add to the discussion. The commentator (I'm sorry I > can't recall who made it) seemed not to like them, but perhaps he > thought they were photographs or slides. If I recall correctly, this process starts with an original photo taken with a Polaroid camera. After developing, it is possible to delaminate the image from the paper carrier. The thin colored membrane can then be applied in various ways to canvas or art paper or other media. The funny colors around the image are caused by the way the chemicals bath the image during the developing process. Normally, these irregularities are hidden under the paper border of the Polaroid carrier. For unusual effects, the image can also be stretched during transfer and is often hand colored or further manipulated for a one-of-a-kind image. -- Rick Walker ################### From: "Ross Rowe" Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 13:58:10 +1100 Subject: Re: Aquatic CP's - Aldrovandra Dear Chris and Nile - Hi Its about 30 deg C here in Canberra today and since early November I have been growing some Aldrovandra in a small plastic container 13cm diameter, and 10 cm deep. It has a bit of peat in the bottom and tap water (or overflow from the pots above dripping into it). A little pond water was also added to provide a few bugs. Tap water in Canberra is good for growing CP. It is in a shady position as recommended to me by the person who passed me a piece just about 3 cm (4 nodes) long including the growing point. It grew to about 10 cm long and I think in late December I cut the hind portion into 2 lengths of 4 nodes, each of which produced a new growing point fairly promptly. My technique has not produced a mat of plant or flowers as yet (nor has it survived a winter yet. The Australian Aldrovandra specimens apparently rarely form an overwintering bud. Anyway there may be good reason to hope for the survival of your plant when it arrives, especially prior to establishing a more suitable setup as described by Chris. I have also grown Utricularia gibba by similar method or on wet peat (as for local terrestrial species like U. dichotoma) or in a deeper fishtank with the plant laid on a couple of cm of peat for a time (several weeks) and then flooded to the brim. It grew to the surface rapidly and is now radidly filling the tank (I now have to look carefully for the piece of Aldrovandra I also introduced to the tank). The plants growing on wet peat are flowering prolifically (and are a season older) and even appear to be fortunately crowding out a bit of weedy U. subulata which was also in the tray. Hope you have good success whatever techniques you use. >>> Chris Teichreb 17/02/1999 12:27:23 pm >>> Hi Nile, If you don't have a container prepared for the Aldovanda already, it probably won't survive. At least that's been the opinion of most people. There was a recent CPN issue devoted to Aldrovanda and its cultivation. Basically, take a large container with a large surface area to depth ratio (ie: shallow, kiddie wading pools are ideal), fill with some peat moss and water and allow it to age and then introduce some other aquatic plants (eg: Typha) which the Aldrovanda need for protection against algal accumulation on themselves and for further conditoining of water (nutrient uptake, etc.). Anyways, after a few months outdoors, the pool will then be ready to introduce Aldrovanda into it. So sorry to say, but your plants may not survive if they're being shipped in the next couple of weeks. Other hints, they apparently appreciate some amount of hardness in the water (via addition of CaCO3) and high CO2 concentrations (the aquatic plant people have all sorts of neat tricks for increasing this in aquaria and ponds). As for how to prepare your outdoor pond for aquatic utrics, I just mix about a handful of peat for every cup of water, so expand this formula as needed. The peat will quickly acidify the water and turn it a lovely coppery brown colour. Good luck! Hapy growing, Chris On Tue, 16 Feb 1999, nile smith wrote: > nile smith > nxs@postmark.net > > Hi List, > > I just ordered some Aldrovanda and I really > want it to survive. The last Aldrovanda I > had slowly died over a period of a couple > weeks. I would appreciate any advise I could > get on keeping Aldrovanda alive in cultivation. > > Also, I've got a small pond on my property, > about 12' x 15' x 5' deep. Does anybody > know how I could acidify it to the point > where it will allow aquatic CP's to survive > in it? Thanks, > > Nile Smith > > ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: "Ross Rowe" Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 14:32:40 +1100 Subject: Re: Thailand Hi Tom I live in Canberra Australia, am a member of the Australian CP Society and have some association with the Australian National Botanic Gardens (via work and friends). Are you only interested in Nepenthes or other material eg Utricularia and Drosera. Regards Ross Rowe >>> Michael Feddersen 17/02/1999 9:21:57 am >>> Hello, I am using this account since my other was terminated from the newsgroup a couple of years back. I hope this makes it thru. Let me introduce myself again. My name is Tom Kahl/Nepenthes Club. I have just returned from a successful trip to Thailand on Nepenthes and some other stuff. I found several types I have not seen before. Recorded were five types but not counting the variations of N. mirabilis and ampullaria there were close to 10 varieties. I also set up some public cp displays at two botanical gardens. They are interested in more material and info. If you would like to participate please contact me at bb626@scn.org. This is my regular E-mail account. I was able to bring back on permits about 20 Nepenthes plants. I also brought back on permits some Amorphopallus tubers but this subject probably belongs on another newsgroup. The permit process is fairly simple since I am the only one exporting from Thailand and they recognized me from before on a previous trip. While there I ran test on soil and water. Prelinenary results were amazing since they were growing quite different than the current data in print. I'll try and post more on this later. Truly, Tom Kahl/Nepenthes Club ################### From: "Ross Rowe" Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 16:58:59 +1100 Subject: Re: Plants and seeds available Hi Tom Ross from Canberra Australia responding: I would be interested to see more details of the seed you have available for trade, I am only able to import seed (or I think sealed TC cultures ) for quarantine reasons. My stock of seed for trade is unfortunately a bit limited, but I may have some seed of some local CP like D. peltata, U. dichotoma (soon), U. monanthos(soon) which I could trade. I have other seed but it tends to be more common material like binata, burmanni, spatulata - I can also access seed listed on the ACPS seed bank as I am a member of the Soc. I also have contact with a number of local growers, for whom I coordinate some informal meetings to share plants around. This includes a couple of Nep enthusiasts whom I know would be particularly keen on Nep seed. Any way perhaps we can talk/write further on what we could trade or provide each other. Regards Ross Rowe Canberra Australia >>> Tom Massey 17/02/1999 3:58:36 am >>> For those interested: I have a number of Neps. and a few other CPs available for trade or sale. Neps. include bicalcurata, sanguinea, truncata, rafflesianna, gracilis, others, and a few hybrids like tricocarpa. This is all TC or rooted cuttings. I will also have cuttings in a month or so of N. ampullaria, and amp. Cantley's red. (or is it Kantley?) I also have a few VFT varieties incuding an all green, red dragon, and the cup shaped (we gotta come up with a name for that!). I would prefer trading as opposed to selling; fresh or rooted cuttings or TC is fine. Neps preferred but other CPs okay too. Sorry, domestic only. For seeds I have a number of fresh Sarrs., both species and hybrids, most of the hybrids are F1's or F1 back to a species. Seed I can send anywhere in exchange for seed of Nep, Drosera, or anything of interest. I may owe someone something, if I do, don't hesitate to remind me. Respond to my email rather than the list. Okay end of advertisement, Tom in Fl. ################### From: "Ross Rowe" Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 17:11:01 +1100 Subject: Re: Free CP Update Hi Matt About a year back you very generously sent me some of your excess Sarracenia seed - the majority of which germinated very well and is pressing on. Thanks Again I would have loved to offer a home to some of your Drosera but live imports to Australia are difficult due to quarantine requirements. I have a few seed for trade (local D.peltata and U. dichotoma, the rest are very common species like binata, spatulata). I have a few D.burmanni seed but probably mixed all green and green with red hair forms. Do you have any seed for trade? I would love to hear from you again if you do. Regards Ross Rowe Canberra Australia >>> "Sundew Sundew" 16/02/1999 3:14:38 pm >>> Thanks to all who offered a home for some of the extra Drosera I had. I emailed the lucky recipients and regret to inform the rest of you that I ran out of time and plants so that's all for now :( I still have a limited number of other Drosera for trade so if anyone wants to swap, please drop me a line! Still looking for: D.indica RED, D.burmanii RED, D.neocaledonica, D.oblanceolata, the true D.affinis, as well as others :) Thanks in advance! Matt NYC ################### From: "Ross Rowe" Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 17:17:42 +1100 Subject: Re: old newbie Good to hear your back Leigh - I must admit I dont particularly recall your previous involvement with the list - maybe I haven't been here as long as I think. It is certainly nice to have an employer and then one which gives us internet/email access for this type of forum. I grow most CP and coordinate irregular meetings for a group of growers here in Canberra. We are enjoying I dare say warmer weather than you at present c. 30 deg.C. I similarly grow in an unheated glasshouse, whatever I can get my hands on. If you ever have seed for trade (donations) I would love to hear from you again. I have fairly limited material for trade at present but let me know if you are interested and we can talk further. I would be particularly interested in seed of Utrics and Pinguicula. Regards Ross Rowe Canberra Australia >>> sales 17/02/1999 2:03:55 am >>> Hi list I don't know if anyone on the list has a long enough memory to know me, my name is Leigh Perkins and I was a member of the list around 14 months ago, right up to the point of getting made redundant. Well the good news is that I've now found a new employer who have blessed me with e-mail, and so it's good to get back on the list. Those of you that do remember me will know I'm in England and as such grow most of the plants capable with an unheated greenhouse (at last count, some 40 different kinds). A big (very) belated thank you must go to Kamil Pasek for his great generosity at the time of our last communication - Kamil, there were more seeds than I had room for!! :) - thanks again. Thanks also to those who were kind enough to send me seeds, gemma, plants and good sound advice when I was starting out. It's really good to be back - Right! What have I missed?? Leigh Perkins sales@novacom-mwave.com Novacom Microwave Ltd. 28 High Street Nettleham Lincoln LN2 2PG England Tel: +44 (0) 1522 751136 Fax: +44 (0) 1522 754408 ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 08:28:32 -0800 (PST) Subject: amusing gaff re: ICPS and Ibicella Hi All, In my last posting I wrote: >Hey all, >The ICPS has gotten a long-needed revision. If you see anything on it >that needs fixing, please contact me. When I should have specified the *ICPS* *WEBSITE* Chuckles all round! Last night I found a last big packet of Ibicella seed in my refrigerator. I sent them off to Tom Johnson (ICPS seed bank) so he will have PLENTY for anyone interested in this plant. Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 12:23:29 -0500 Subject: Re:Polaroid transfers in Savage Garden > If anyone out there can add further to the process of color transfers, > perhaps they can add to the discussion. The commentator (I'm sorry I > can't recall who made it) seemed not to like them, but perhaps he > thought they were photographs or slides. >If I recall correctly, this process starts with an original photo taken >with a Polaroid camera. After developing, it is possible to delaminate >the image from the paper carrier. The thin colored membrane can then >be applied in various ways to canvas or art paper or other media .. The Polaroid transfer process works best with Polaroid Type 669. No two "transfers" are ever exactly alike. The technique uses an original color transparency projected onto the sheet of polaroid film. The most popular method is to use the Daylab printer or the Vivitar Slide Printer, which allows the artist to print onto the polaroid stock in the daylight. Via trial and error, once a print of proper density is achieved, a new print is made and pulled through the polaroid rollers. Now, instead of waiting 90 seconds and peeling off a print, the print is immediately peeled off and discarded, and the "negative" is placed face down on a sheet of wet watercolor paper. The neg is squeegeed carefully, and after a period of time (determined by temperature, ambiant humidity), and voila! there is a color polaroid on watercolor paper. Once dried, the artist may retouch the picture, etc. Transfers have a unique color palette and a certain softness to the image, and are very prone to chance error-which could work to your benefit. The print size is limited by the Polaroid film pack used, which includes 4x5, 8x10, and 20x24! There are other techniques and tortures done to Polaroid materials, including "emulsion transfer", where stretching is popular. Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida I too would like to see a current "breakdown" of recognized varieties/subspecies of S. rubra. ################### From: Alastair Robinson Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 13:39:00 -0500 Subject: Re: nep deformation and pitchers Hey Chris, I should apologise for not replying sooner - I don't often read all of the digests that come my way, and so it took someone else's pointing your message out to me for me to notice. When I replied to your original posting, I didn't even think to mention that I also have Nepenthes singgalana in my collection. It is a small plant, just a few centimetres across (I picked it up at a BCPS open day - it originally came from Andreas, I assume), but has also started growing really rapidly recently. It seems to be a common feature of the species from this group - well, at least with regard to those that have come to me through tissue cultured material. Let's see - my plants all grow together in coldframes mounted with fluorescent strip lighting. Humidity is fairly constant in the day at ca.70 %, going up to the eighties or nineties at night (incidentally, just like their habitats). My daytime temperatures vary - at the moment, about 24 deg centigrade, falling to about 18 deg at night. Later in the summer, they will rise to about ca.32 degrees centigrade, which is fine for my highland plants PROVIDED that the temperature falls suitably low at night. When I was atop the summits of G. Trus Madi and G. Mulu last summer, I noted daytime air temperatures in excess of 25 degrees, and soil temperatures up of 30 degrees, so these plants can take daytime heat (not to mention painfully intense sunlight) - just be aware that these conditions take a plunge come evening - Trus Madi was a few degrees above freezing... believe me - really pleasant to sleep in :) I would assume that Nepenthes inermis and N. carunculata would respond to the same conditions as the species you already grow. I am especially interested in the former and would be happy to hear about how you fare. By the way, do you know of anyone who has spare plants of N.bicalcarata to sell? Thanks for your time, Alastair - - http://www.geocities.com/rainforest/vines/8690/glade.html Alastair_R@compuserve.com ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 17:23:30 EST Subject: Utrics for sale Dear All, Looking thru the latest issue of 'Practical Fishkeeping' (march issue available from UK WH Smiths etc) I came across the following Utrics for sale: U.gibba (page 66) 5 plants for 1.09 25 plants for 4.79 >From Java Aquarium Planting PO Box105 Sale Cheshire UK M33 3TY Phone:0161 962 7787 And U.vulgaris (carpet plant)???? page 101 29 pence each or 1.23 for 5 plants >From Green Line Aquatic Direct The Orchard Hospital Drove Phone:01406 364949 Long Sutton Spalding Lincs PE12 9EL I can't vouch for their quality (perhaps someone could?)or what sort of water they're kept in but I'm thinking of purchasing some when the warmer weather arrives. Steve Gordon from Liverpool, can you send me your email address as I lost it when my computer crashed. John 'wishing I was in Australia RIGHT NOW' Wilden Southport Lancs. UK ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 17:52:02 EST Subject: U Humboltii Dear All, This may seem like a long shot but does anybody have any spare U.humboldtii to swap(UK) or sell( UK & World)? I know the plant is quite rare but wouldn't mind having a go at growing it. All the best John Wilden Southport Lancs UK ################### From: "John Green" Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 16:08:22 -0700 Subject: Aldrovanda cultivation About a week ago someone mentioned that to grow Aldrovanda successfully you need to increase the concentration of CO2 in the water. How do you do that? (My wife will think I'm crazy if I sit with a straw and blow bubbles into the water! Maybe I can get the kids to do it?!?) ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 15:51:19 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Aldrovanda cultivation Hi John, > About a week ago someone mentioned that to grow Aldrovanda successfully > you need to increase the concentration of CO2 in the water. How do you > do that? (My wife will think I'm crazy if I sit with a straw and blow > bubbles into the water! Maybe I can get the kids to do it?!?) > That was me. As I mentioned, the aquatic plant people use all sorts of methods for increasing CO2 concentration in the aquarium which can likely be used outdoors in small pools as well. First of all, if you keep the surface area to volume ratio high, there will be more CO2. Secondly, you can artificially introduce CO2 through pressurized tanks with regulators (this can get extremely fancy and expensive!) or through a simple yeast, sugar, water mixture (ie: fermentation). Addition of CaCO3 helps buffer against rapid pH drops associated with addition of CO2 and can be used by plants as an alternate CO2 source in times of need. Anyways, I don't want to go into too many details since this is peripheral to cp's at best. If you want more details, look at the FAQ's in the Krib (short for Kribensis) maintained by Erik Olsen under the aquatic plant section. Gives all sorts of interesting info, including stories of exploding yeast bottles and pressurized CO2 canisters :)! In fact, if you follow the directions given for growing healthy aquatic plants given there and on the aquatic-plant listserv, growing Aldrovanda should be easy! Ok, that's enough of that ;)! Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: bb626@scn.org (SCN User) Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 16:22:16 -0800 (PST) Subject: Thailand irrigation Hello again, There was a posting within the last month on hard water and Nepenthes. Some of the problems I thought while in Thailand would be the water. Common irrigation is for the grower to pump water from the klongs. Klongs are the common waterways throughout Thailand, more still water than flowing. This is pumped thru pvc piping and out some sort of sprinkler head whether lumarc or mee or other. TDS tests of the klongs read 370 ppm 2 years ago and 470 ppm this month. I suspect it rises during the dry season Feb to May. This was in Bangkok. Some othe areas were less say 180ppm. Tap water was worse over 900ppm two years ago and now pushing 1300ppm. The plants that I have growing there get the klong water thru a sprinkler system and are doing fine. Most likely the offset of the rains leaches out any harmful salts. I'll continue to monitor this. Test of the water on Mt. Legaspi Mindinao showed TDS of 150ppm. But with the heavy rainfall I doubt if this had any effect considering the traps on N. merrilliana were the size of a young cocoanut or US football. TDS of the rains usually read 0 but water collected from the roof varied depending on the covering. From 50ppm to 470ppm. I think these plants are alot more tolerable than I previously thought especially with the soil test results. I'll get into this later. Truly, Tom Kahl/Nepenthes Club -- ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Wed, 17 Feb 1999 17:52:56 -0800 (PST) Subject: Carlo Balistrieri, Taxes Hi! Does anybody have contact information for Carlo Balistrieri? Also, is anyone on this list proficient in US taxes and would like to give the ICPS officers a little help finishing our non-profit paperwork? Cheers Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 01:22:19 PST Subject: Part I bis - Medical uses of CP The oncologists told me there really was no hope of saving my life. Williams explained. "They said that they would try chemotherapy; if I was still alive, they would then give me radiation; if I remained alive, they would finally send me for surgery." I asked "What will all this do for me?" And they answered, "Just buy you a little time." Immediately, therefore, my husband bought us airline tickets for Bad Steben and we left for me to have Carnivora treatment. "I received one three-hour intravenous injection a day, Monday to Friday. I had no side effect; except to feel better. Gradually I gained a sense of well-being. "The appearance of my breasts came back to normal. The blackness and inflammation totally disappeared, " Williarns said. Mr. and Mrs. Williams remained with Dr. Keller for three months. "At home, now, I take Carnivora intramuscular injections five days a week, administered by my husband," Mrs. Williams explained. I speak to Mrs.Williams about once a month. Her cancer is completely gone and, since the time of her deadly diagnosis nearly 2 years ago, it has not returned. Now, my wife, who has breast cancer, is taking Carnivora regularly as part of her cancer therapy She has been doing so since our first visit to BadSteben. In addition to its success in cancer, Carnivora has had a dramatic effect on patients infected with HIV, the virus cited as the cause of AIDS . Dr. Keller learned that various strengths of the Carnivora formulations work for all diseases in which immune stimulation and modulation are required. Besides having the ability to reduce the growth rate of tumor tissue, Carnivora increases the number and activity of the sick person's T-helper cells and other immune system components I have observed laboratory test readings on HlV-positive patients, recorded by Dr. Keller and some American holistic physicians. The patients' T-helper cell counts rose from as low as 11 per cubic mil-limeter of blood ro well beyond 700, while the T-suppressor cells decreased sharply. This makes the individual\\355s important helper/suppressor ratio almost normal. The most surprising, result has been Carnivora's direct effect in reducing the viability of the HIV. Quite simply, an identified biochemical ingredient in Carnivora kills the AIDS virus. Also, the Beta-2 Microglobulin test, which measures the amounts of plasma proteins produced by HIV, decreases. This rest for beta-2 levels is judged to be the most accurate of all predictors of HIV progression to AIDS. A decrease in beta-2 levels indicates that the HIV patient is not advancing to full-blown AIDS. Because Carnivora is not approved in the U.S., American doctors are forbidden by law from stocking or prescribing it for patients. Such prescriptions must come from an attending physician outside of the country. Therefore, Helmut Keller, the extract's developer, offers the appropriate protocol to persons with cancer, AIDS, or some other degenerative or infectious disease who furnish him with medical records. Also, any patient who suffers from a life- threatening illness has the right to import a three-month supply of Carnivora or other non-FDA-approved remedies for his or her personal use. This being done, there are two methods by which Carnivora may be administered for the American patient. First, the patient or a skilled person like a nurse can give intramuscular or intravenous injections at home. When Carnivora has been used in its most purified form, which is protected under Keller, no side effects have been reported. Second, by acting merely as the rnedical technician and following Dr. Keller's protocol, your own American physician can administer the treatment. Indeed, it is best that you have medical supervision when you add Carnivora to your treatment program against cancer, AIDS, or other pathologies. MORTON WALKER, D.P.M., wrote about cancer treatment with shark cartilage in our May/June issue He is currently writing a book on the Carnivora treatment to be published by the Avery Publishing Group next year. Natural Health-September/October 1992 Resources:Helmut Keller, M.D. The Chronic Disease Control and Treatment Center AM Reuthlein 2, D-8675, Bad Steben W-Germany Phone:011-49-9288-5166 Fax:011-49-9288-7815 Edgar Fischer, Manager Carnivora-Forschungs-GmbH Postfach 8, Lobensteiner Strasse 3 D-8646, Nordhalben, Germany Phone: 011-49-9267-1662 Fax: 011-49-9267-1040 A 50-ml vial of Carnivora, appropriate for intramuscular or intravenous use, cost about US $318.00 Dionaea Muscipula/VENUS Fly-Trap Plant The Venus Fly-Trap Plant (Dionaea Muscipula) is one of several species of carnivorous plants. Our Herbal extract is made from fresh Dionaea Muscipula plants and meets the highest standards of excellence. The live plant to finished product ratio is 1:3 and contains 256 pure Dionaea Muscipula extract in a base of a special white wine and grain alcohol. Reasonably priced. Available in 4 02 and 8 oz bottles. Vital Health Products, Muskego, Wl 1-414-679-1846 Directions for Taking Venus Fly Trap Herbal Extract. 1. Sublingual - full strength. Take l/2 to 1 teaspoon under the tongue. Hold until absorbed (3 lo 5 minutes). To test for sensitivity, start with a few drops under the tongue. 2. Sublingual - diluted. Add l/2 to 1 tsp of the herbal extract to 1 tsp of water and place under tongue until absorbed. Wash balance down with a glass of water. 3. Premixed in water. Add ln to 1 tsp to a glass of water and take on a empty stornach. Repeat above doses three times a day or as directed by a Health Care Professional. 4. Double Doses - 2 Tsps 3 times daily, take only for 5 of each 7 days using one of the above methods. (I e. Take Monday through Friday, stop on Saturday and Sunday). Note to first time users: Start off with a 1/4 tsp three times a day for the first day-and increase dosage in 1/4 tsp increment until you reach the desired level. *Complimentary Supplements: Silymarin (Milk Thistle), L-Cystune, Garlic and cruciferous vegetables, Barley Grass Juice powder, Astragalus, Beta- Carotene, Vitamin E, Soy Protein powder, Soy Milk, Raw Carrot, Celery and Beet juice, Blackstrap Molasses and fresh lemon juice. Use as directed by a Health Care Professional. Avoid sugar and alcoholic beverages. *Complimentary Diets: Vegetarian or Marcobiotic. Alcohol Sensitive? To reduce alcohol content of the herbal extract, preheat 6 tablespoons of water to 120 degrees F. Use a thermometer. Remove from stove and add one days portion of the herbal extract (i.e. 1 or 2 Tbsp) to the preheated water. Mix and let stand for 30 minutes. Divide into 3 portions for use To take, use Method 2 or 3 above. Venus Fly Trap Extraa is sold only as food supplement. Consult a Physician or Health Care Practitioner for more information. *** END PART I bis *** ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 01:19:59 PST Subject: Yes, part I of the medical uses of CP Hi all, Today I received a mail from Rick Walker. >The listserv rejects postings larger than 300 lines. Yours was >351. Please edit and resend if you like. > >Best regards, >-- >Rick Walker Now, you are all going to see my first part of the medical uses of CP about Dionaea Here it is: PART I The following is presented as informational only. No information in these articles should be taken as a recommendation. If you have any questions about the relationship between Venus Flytrap - Carnivora and your health, seek the advice of a qualified health professional. I have tried the Venus Fly Trap Herbal Extract and it has been potent and effective for me. It costs about the same as other herbal extracts but this one really works. I would advise anyone trying this to start with only ten drops in a "0" size gelatin capsule 3x a day for a week and work your way up from there. The plants used in the extract are organically greenhouse cultivated in South Carolina according to the supplier. I was curious about the plumbagin component of the active ingredientin VFT, Andreas Prilop (april@macb033.rrzn.uni-hannover.de) provided the following: "Plumbagin" is not a specific German term but a trivial name used in both English and German. Plumbagin 5-Hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone 1,4-Dihydro-5-hydroxy-2-methylnaphthalene-1,4-dione 5-Hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthalenedione C11-H8-O3 [481-42-5] Ref.: CAS Registry Handbook. Common Names - M.D. The following was recieved from RBF1000@aol.com Wed, Jan 4, 1995 10:43 PM PST Venus' Flytrap Cancer and AIDS Fighter of the Future? A German doctor achieves promising results with this carnivorous plant Following the removal of malignant polyps from his colon, President Ronald Reagan sent to Nordhalben, Germany, for an herbal extract to take as a preventive against the cancer's spread Thereafter, he drank 30 drops of this extract, Carnivora, in a glass of purified water or herb tea four times a day. According to records kept by the extracts German manufacturer, the former U.S. president still buys these drops today. Carnivora is derived from the plant Venus' Flytrap (Dionaea muscipula). This is a standardized solution used in the treatment of chronic diseases, including most forms of cancer, ulcerative col-itis, multiple sclerosis, all types of herpes infections, chronic arthritis, and almost any immune deficiency state, including AIDS. In cases of cancer, Carnivora works therapeutically to shrink solid tumors, according to its proponents, but does not help with blood abnormalities such as leukemia. Also, it works best if the patient has not previously undergone chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Carnivora's proponents also claim that in other clinical applications, it has been effective in boosting immune function and eliminating the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) from the blood. Carnivora can be administered as drops for use orally or by inhalation, or it can be given by injection. Laboratory studies indicate that purified Carnivora is safe, and its new drug application is pending approval by the German Food and Drug Adrninistration. It is readily available for application to patients by physicians in Germany and other European countries Carnivora remains unapproved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), however, and cannot be imported or used legally except by people suffering from life- threatening illnesses such as cancer and AIDS. The discoverer of Carnivora is a researcher and oncologist, Helmut Keller, M.D., who first studied the Venus' Flytrap at Boston University in 1980. He moved to Germany a year later to find more freedom for his Carnivora research. I visited Dr. Keller at his clinic in Bad Steben,~ Germany, in June 1991, and I was given access to his files. I have also interviewed about 50 of his patients. One was 65-year-old Betty Williams of Ames, Iowa. Diagnosed with inflammatory breast disease, the most lethal form of breast cancer, she sought treatment from Dr. Keller. Mrs. Williams's case study reveals that the skin of her right breast was at first red, swollen, warrm, indurated, and painful. All of the symptoms resembled an infection, but diagnosis by biopsy-revealed that it was inflammatory carcinoma. Death was likely to occur in a matter of weeks, and the doctors had no hope for her survival. By the time three American oncologists separately confirmed the diagnosis and prognosis, her breast was turning black. **** END OF PART ONE **** ################### From: "Sam Vanderstraeten" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 01:25:36 PST Subject: Yes, here it is, part 1 of CP medical uses Dear all, today I received this message: >The listserv rejects postings larger than 300 lines. Yours was >351. Please edit and resend if you like. > >Best regards, >-- >Rick Walker So, here it is, the first part of Medical uses of CP... Here it is: PART I The following is presented as informational only. No information in these articles should be taken as a recommendation. If you have any questions about the relationship between Venus Flytrap - Carnivora and your health, seek the advice of a qualified health professional. I have tried the Venus Fly Trap Herbal Extract and it has been potent and effective for me. It costs about the same as other herbal extracts but this one really works. I would advise anyone trying this to start with only ten drops in a "0" size gelatin capsule 3x a day for a week and work your way up from there. The plants used in the extract are organically greenhouse cultivated in South Carolina according to the supplier. I was curious about the plumbagin component of the active ingredientin VFT, Andreas Prilop (april@macb033.rrzn.uni-hannover.de) provided the following: "Plumbagin" is not a specific German term but a trivial name used in both English and German. Plumbagin 5-Hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthoquinone 1,4-Dihydro-5-hydroxy-2-methylnaphthalene-1,4-dione 5-Hydroxy-2-methyl-1,4-naphthalenedione C11-H8-O3 [481-42-5] Ref.: CAS Registry Handbook. Common Names - M.D. The following was recieved from RBF1000@aol.com Wed, Jan 4, 1995 10:43 PM PST Venus' Flytrap Cancer and AIDS Fighter of the Future? A German doctor achieves promising results with this carnivorous plant Following the removal of malignant polyps from his colon, President Ronald Reagan sent to Nordhalben, Germany, for an herbal extract to take as a preventive against the cancer's spread Thereafter, he drank 30 drops of this extract, Carnivora, in a glass of purified water or herb tea four times a day. According to records kept by the extracts German manufacturer, the former U.S. president still buys these drops today. Carnivora is derived from the plant Venus' Flytrap (Dionaea muscipula). This is a standardized solution used in the treatment of chronic diseases, including most forms of cancer, ulcerative col-itis, multiple sclerosis, all types of herpes infections, chronic arthritis, and almost any immune deficiency state, including AIDS. In cases of cancer, Carnivora works therapeutically to shrink solid tumors, according to its proponents, but does not help with blood abnormalities such as leukemia. Also, it works best if the patient has not previously undergone chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Carnivora's proponents also claim that in other clinical applications, it has been effective in boosting immune function and eliminating the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) from the blood. Carnivora can be administered as drops for use orally or by inhalation, or it can be given by injection. Laboratory studies indicate that purified Carnivora is safe, and its new drug application is pending approval by the German Food and Drug Adrninistration. It is readily available for application to patients by physicians in Germany and other European countries Carnivora remains unapproved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), however, and cannot be imported or used legally except by people suffering from life- threatening illnesses such as cancer and AIDS. The discoverer of Carnivora is a researcher and oncologist, Helmut Keller, M.D., who first studied the Venus' Flytrap at Boston University in 1980. He moved to Germany a year later to find more freedom for his Carnivora research. I visited Dr. Keller at his clinic in Bad Steben,~ Germany, in June 1991, and I was given access to his files. I have also interviewed about 50 of his patients. One was 65-year-old Betty Williams of Ames, Iowa. Diagnosed with inflammatory breast disease, the most lethal form of breast cancer, she sought treatment from Dr. Keller. Mrs. Williams's case study reveals that the skin of her right breast was at first red, swollen, warrm, indurated, and painful. All of the symptoms resembled an infection, but diagnosis by biopsy-revealed that it was inflammatory carcinoma. Death was likely to occur in a matter of weeks, and the doctors had no hope for her survival. By the time three American oncologists separately confirmed the diagnosis and prognosis, her breast was turning black. *** End of part 1 *** ################### From: "Andreas Wistuba" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 12:31:16 +0100 Subject: Re: U Humboltii On 17 Feb 99, at 15:13, JWi5770869@aol.com wrote: > Dear All, > This may seem like a long shot but does anybody have any spare > U.humboldtii to swap(UK) or sell( UK & World)? > > I know the plant is quite rare but wouldn't mind having a go at growing > it. > > All the best > John Wilden > Southport > Lancs > UK > I sell it regularily, please see my list at the link below. Bye Andreas Andreas Wistuba; Mudauer Ring 227; 68259 Mannheim; Germany Phone: +49-621-705471 Fax: +49-621-7152028 E-Mail: andreas@wistuba.com ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 07:43:48 -0500 Subject: RE: Carlo Balistrieri, Taxes >Does anybody have contact information for Carlo Balistrieri? Hi Barry, His email address is CABalist@facstaff.wisc.edu. I have a snail address if this email address is not current. David ################### From: Steven Stewart Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 08:14:28 -0500 Subject: _Nepenthes bicalcarata_ available Hello, Steven Stewart here, I guess it is time to part with some of the _Nepenthes bicalcarata_ I have been growing for the past couple of years. Thanks to the help of Cliff Dodd, I have been having great luck with a batch of 60+ seedlings, (now almost flowering size!). The size of the original plants prohibits their shipping, but I have quite a few asexual off-shoots, all numbered for future reference, to possibly gain cultivar status for any with special features. I am selling the 4" pot size plants for $20.00 each, which includes shipping. There are also some 1 gallon plants available for $50.00. I am currently only certified to ship in the U.S.. If anyone is able to personally pick up a plant in Florida a few of the larger plants are also available. I am afraid these plants are going to outgrow my greenhouse this spring (problems, problems :)). Please E-mail me at if you are interested. Take Care, Steven Stewart, I.B.W. Enterprises Inc. Sanford, Florida 32771 ################### From: "Douglas W. Darnowski" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 09:52:42 -0500 Subject: Aldrovanda culture Regarding Aldrovanda culture, I have accidentally found a large increase in growth when placing Japanese-form plants in a tank with guppies, along with the usual rushes, Lemna, etc. Whereas similarly grown plants without fish present have not branched during the winter, these plants have grown vigorously (increase averaged 3-5 growing points per original growing point during 6-8 weeks). I had been hoping that the fry from the guppies would be caught by the Aldrovanda, but the baby fish turned out to be too large. (I have tried to raise Daphnia magna and a few other crustaceans (using various techniques) as an appropriately-sized prey species without great success. Any advice on that point?) I do not yet know why this has occurred, but my first suspicion is elevated CO2 due to respiration by the fish. These plants are being kept at about 60F/15C night and 70F/21C day, with 14h day/ 10h night. The fish have been well fed, so I assume that inorganic nutrients are abundant (haven't yet tried to measure). The plants have stopped producing large traps depite not becoming fully dormant (or the fish have been eating the traps--I haven't had a chance to observe this closely enough as the plants are at home--my pay comes for working on soybean molecular and cell biology). Perhaps increased nutrient levels are causing suppression of carnivory, or perhaps this is partial dormancy. The petioles are all much more robust than on leaves from plants, and their color is lighter but not pale, as if more body color (e.g. white flavonoid) is present. The stems seem to be less robust than for plants cultivated otherwise. This is anecdotal since it only concerns approx. 6 plants (Japanese form; I am calling a single growing point not attached to another enlarged growing point) in one tank, and I have started a similar smaller tank for Australian red Aldrovanda. Once summer comes, I am planning a more systematic experiment, with replicates and controls, to determine the effect on Australian, Japanese, and Polish Aldrovanda, to measure CO2 and nutrient levels, etc. If this effect turns out to be consistent among the various Aldrovanda clones in cultivation, it could be useful for increasing material. Plants could then be returned to fish-free conditions for resumption of trap production and carnivory. Does anyone have similar experience with Aldrovanda and fish? Also, is there an ichthyologist or someone who is a fish hobbyist who can recommend a species of fish which would reproduce in captivity and the fry of which would be of an appropriate size for Aldrovanda to catch? Doug Darnowski ****************************************************************************** ****************************************************************************** Douglas Darnowski Department of Crop Sciences 384 ERML 1201 West Gregory Drive University of Illinois Urbana IL 61801 work ph: (217) 244-6150 fx: (217) 333-4777 home ph: (217) 356-6606 fx: (217) 356-4454 email: darnowsk@staff.uiuc.edu ################### From: "John Green" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 09:40:00 -0700 Subject: Re:Aldrovanda Cultivation Thanks Chris, for the information on how to add CO2 to the water. In case anyone else is interested, you go to the website below and select "Carbon Dioxide." It gives a lot of complicated and expensive ways using CO2 canisters, and also gives a cheap way using yeast and sugar which would probably work fine for most of us. http://faq.thekrib.com/plant-qa.html ################### From: Peter Cole Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 17:45:33 +0800 Subject: Re: Hybrids & variety confusion on Sat, 13 Feb 1999 15:23:43 -0000 "NEIL ARMSTRONG" wrote: > Dear William & List, > I thought I would give my two penny's worth on this subject. > I only discovered recently that most non CP hybrids are sterile, (I grow > CP's, but I'm no gardener). I suppose that we take for granted that "our" > plants can be crossed every which way, but it has led to huge confusion, True with many (most perhaps), but don't forget that almost all interspecific Drosera hybrids are sterile (in itself perhaps a good reason to regard D.burmanii + sessilifolia as synonymous or at least subspecies), and that we know almost nothing about Utricularia hybrids - the genus that accounts for ~1/3 of all carnivorous species. Out of the ~14 genera of carnivorous plants, I'm only aware of 3 or 4 that produce fertile interspecific hybrids routinely(-ish) - Sarracenia, Heliamphora, Nepenthes and Pinguicula(?), and none that will hybridise intergenerically. If you want to see total hybrid chaos, find a book on orchids and have a look at some of the hybrid parentages! > especially with Sarracenia hybrids which now seems to be completely out of > control. Know one seems to know anymore if a plant is genuine or miss- > labled. Another problem we seem to have at the moment is the question over > wether long standing variety's are what we thought they were, for example, > is S. Maxima a seperate variety, or just a large form of S. Flava, common It is a distinct form (I'm not sure if it has been properly described as a cultivar - I'm sure Jan will let us know! :) but is no larger than many (most?) other flava forms - it is identifiable by the almost complete lack of red veining, and the very distinctive roundish, incurved lid. I find it consistently shorter than many S.flava, most S.alata and the very nice Marstons' S.alata*flava'maxima' which is probably my favourite Sarracenia. > in the wild? This leads to huge problems for the average grower, especially > if they breed and sell to an unsuspecting person, labelling becomes > meaningless. All too often true I'm afraid. This is a nightmare genus for taxonomists, as it has been bred and hybridised for well over a century in cultivation often by growers with little or no understanding of taxonomy. > I read with interest Peter D'Amato's new book (Very good by the way) about > the variety of new VFT's that are springing up are Tissue Culture mutants, > is this a worrying trend? It depends - if I ever meet a 9-foot sentient D.muscipula var.triffidus, I'll let you know :) > Could this happen to more species? It can happen to any species in vitro - genetic mutation is quite common in tissue that is multiplied by tissue culture, especially when cell-lines are recultured over many generations. Mutation is the primary means by which new species are naturally created, but in controlled conditions, unfavourable mutations can survive where they would not have in the wild, not least because they may be specifically selected by growers for their unusual colour or shape. Take the 'cup-tooth' VFT for example - it is at a tremendous disadvantage over a 'regular' plant, being unable to catch insects. If it arose in nature, it would most likely die out before reproducing, but it is kept alive by growers who want something unusual in their collection. I suppose it might be considered worrying if there was any danger of vigorous mutants getting into the wild gene-pool, but I have yet to see any Dionaea mutants (the main genus that seems to be currently affected,) that in any way out-perform the 'regular' wild plants. This may explain the lack of a wide variety of naturally occurring forms (compared to, say, N.alata.) I'd worry a lot more about economically important crop-species that could be damaged than about CPs, which in the grand scheme of things are relatively insignificant ornamentals. That's not to say they're less important than other species, but the risk is so much smaller by virtue of the fact that only a few thousand people worldwide have modest personal collections (often thousands of miles away from the wild habitat,) compared to the trillions of wheat and rice plants (for example) that are grown each year. And even with such species, viruses, pests and diseases are far more of a risk than incidental mutation (which occurs naturally anyway.) It goes without saying, of course, that such specimens should never be deliberately introduced into the wild (I said "very little", not "no" danger.) Happy growing, Peter mailto:carnivor@flytrap.demon.co.uk : http:www.flytrap.demon.co.uk/cchome.htm Cambrian Carnivores,17,Wimmerfield Cr.,SWANSEA,SA2 7BU, UK : tel 01792 205214 Carnivorous Plants,Seeds & Tissue Culture Kits - mailorder,export & wholesale ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 19:24:01 Subject: Re: Hybrids & variety confusion Dear Peter, > True with many (most perhaps), but don't forget that almost all > interspecific Drosera hybrids are sterile (in itself perhaps a good > reason to regard D.burmanii + sessilifolia as synonymous or at least > subspecies), Have you really tested this? So far most _Drosera_ hybrids involving parents with *equal* ploidy have in fact been *fertile*. The only well known sterile hybrid (yes, Fernando, I know that there are other examples but these are not as well-known as this one) is _D. anglica * rotundifolia_ (cf. my previous, repeated messages to this list!), involving a (probably hybridogenic, tetraploid) parent with 40 (_D.a._) and a (diploid) parent with 20 chromosomes (_D.r._). Very much confusion was created by this hybrid, which is, in terms of fertility, the *exception* rather than the rule. Much of the nonsense published in the literature concerning hybrid fertility in _Drosera_ can in fact be traced back to this single, rather abnormal (but widespread) hybrid. The fertility of a _Drosera_ hybrid can definitely *not* be taken as evidence for the specific identity of the parents. Likewise, the fertility of a _Drosera_ plant is *not* definitive proof of its non-hybrid nature. > and that we know almost nothing about Utricularia hybrids - the > genus that accounts for ~1/3 of all carnivorous species. Out of > the ~14 genera of carnivorous plants, I'm only aware of 3 or 4 > that produce fertile interspecific hybrids routinely(-ish) - > Sarracenia, Heliamphora, Nepenthes and Pinguicula(?) _Dionaea_, _Aldrovanda_, _Drosophyllum_, _Triphyophyllum_, _Darlingtonia_, and _Cephalotus_ are monotypic. No chance for interspecific intrageneric hybrids whatsoever! > > (...) wether long standing variety's are what we thought they were, > > for example, is S. Maxima a seperate variety, or just a large form > > of S. Flava, common > > > It is a distinct form (I'm not sure if it has been properly > described as a cultivar - I'm sure Jan will let us know! :) It is a (valid) variety (accepted by yours truly since Don Schnell's recent revision and clarification) of _S. falva_, i.e a taxon, not an established cultivar. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 11:15:25 PST Subject: Neblina Expedition part 1 To all, Here it is, finally, the long version of the Neblina expedition account. I'll send it in bit by bit since it's a bit long. Unfortunately we decided to keep a few habitat details as secret, sorry. Anyways, now I should finally have the time to start replying to you friends who are waiting for one. It's been a long carnaval too.... :) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mt.Neblina is a "Fantasy Island" for many botanists, a mountain lost in the middle of the Amazon rainforest, with highly endemic vegetation. The few botanical expeditions that have made it to Mt.Neblina were only possible because of helicopters, which are unfortunately too expensive for us simple unsponsored mortals. Myself, Andreas Wistuba, and Joachim Nertz have long dreamed of one day going to Mt.Neblina and had even discussed it briefly a few times. While they were interested mainly in Heliamphora, I had all my thoughts concentrated on a "missing link" Drosera species called D.meristocaulis, known only from Neblina. In June 1998, I met Andreas and Joe at the ICPS Conference at Bonn and among the endless CP talk, we began discussing Neblina again. Oh, how fantastic it would be if we could go there! Could we actually make it? By the end of the conference, we finally gathered the courage and decided that we would attempt to hike up Mt.Neblina in December '98, leaving 6 months of preparation ahead. What was the closest town? How would we get there? Would we have to travel by boat? Were there any trails to the top of Neblina? We simply didn't know. Well, we had a few clues, snippets of information from here and there, maybe rumors, and that was all. So I told Andreas, Joe, and others intererested in joining us that even if we didn't make it to Neblina, we could still have a great time exploring beautiful CP areas in southern Brazil as a consolation prize. After the Bonn Conference, we immediately began gathering all the info we could on Neblina, but lots of it depended on me since I was the only one who spoke Portuguese. And the problem was that I was finishing my master course at the University of Tokyo and had practically no time for anything else other than the thesis. After obtaining my master degree in September I had to wrap up all my loose ends in Tokyo and prepare all my things to be shipped back to Brazil. I then took several weeks of holiday and arrived back in Brazil in mid November, which left me only a month to prepare for the Neblina trip. And worst of all, I still hadn't gotten the courage to break the bad news to my parents, who were expecting me back home for our first family Xmas in 3 years! In the end, they took it rather well, considering that they don't share my biological/adventurous interests and especially the prejudice that people in southern Brazil (as well as in other countries) have regarding the Amazon - considered by most as a separate country almost, where temperatures reach nearly 100 degress Celsius and humidity is 1000%, where mosquito clouds are so thick you can't see your outstretched hand, where there are hundreds of deadly tropical diseases, one piranha in every cubic centimeter of river water, giant alligators and jaguars everywhere, as well as millions of cannibalistic natives, violent and deadly garimpeiros (independent gold or other mineral prospectors), while the rest of the people are all somehow connected to cocaine traffic passing through the Amazon from Colombia to Europe and USA. Nevertheless, several people were interested in joining our Neblina expedition. For varied reasons a few had to give up and in the end we were 8: Joachim Nertz, Andreas Wistuba, Katrin Hinderhofer, Christoph Scherber (Germany), Gert Hoogenstrijd (Holland), Ed Read (USA), Mauricio Piliackas (Brazil), and myself. We met in Manaus, capital of the Amazon, between the 18th and 21st of December. As we waited for each person to arrive, those of us who were there used our time to explore the town. We walked around the fish markets, the large port, visited a local herbarium with some interesting Drosera collections, attempted to find some CPs on our own, and best of all, went see the place where the Solimoes and Negro Rivers meet, where the Amazon River officially begins. The Negro has a dark Coca-Cola water while the Solimoes has a muddy light-brown color. The chemical composition of each is so different that the waters do not mix for many kilometers. It's really unbelievable to see that clear-cut line where the rivers meet, as the pilot zig-zagged us along on the small boat we'd rented. From Manaus we took a small plane to the small town of S\343o Gabriel da Cachoeira, near the border with Colombia and Venezuela, passing over an endless green carpet of uninterrupted rainforest and wide rivers with beautiful white sandy beaches. We were even rewarded with a fantastic preview of Neblina and surrounding highlands. I had a great 1st impression of S.Gabriel, a small town imbedded in the vast rainforest on the margin of the Rio Negro, with brilliantly white wide sandy beaches , and with a beautiful view of small highlands in the vicinity. Nonetheless, over the following days I slowly built up a deep hatred for that small town, which will take many years to fade, if it ever does. The days we spent in that town were absolute hell for me. Since I was the only one in the group who spoke Portuguese and English, I had the unfortunate weight of interpretating for 7 people every minute of the day on my back. I also had to solve almost all the problems, small and large. I don't know how many times I criss-crossed that town under a blistering sun to talk with different people who could give us some kind of information on Neblina. But what really got to me were all the negotiations. Not only the ones involving the trip to Neblina, but also the ones involving the short boat rides we took along the Rio Negro from S.Gabriel or the taxi rides to look for CPs in deforested areas along the only road dirt in the area. I just know that the locals were REALLY not used to dealing with tourists, always wanted more money than they deserved, hardly ever gave us all they'd promised, and always wanted more money in the end. Xmas passed and I hardly noticed, even though we were kindly invited for Xmas Eve dinner at the house of a local we'd befriended, a guy called Geronimo. This was a solitary case of friendship we experienced in that damned little town, which was immersed in a "Wild West" frontier atmosphere, forgotten in an isolated corner of the world, with an unsettling lawlesness. Call it prejudice or whatever, but people were often extremely lazy and/or dishonest in S.Gabriel and I'm sure at least some were involved with cocaine traffic or other illegal activities, including our friend Geronimo. I was dying to get out of there ASAP! Unfortunately this wasn't an easy task at all. Endless contacts and negotiations -- most with unconvincing and seemingly unreliable garimpeiros who had worked illegally in and around Neblina -- finally landed us with 2 guides who demanded a very hefty price! We also had to bargain heavily for the boats, boat motors, fuel, food, as well as a car that would take us 80km north to the river where we'd begin the boat ride. Not to mention all the trouble we had before and after arriving in S.Gabriel with the permits from FUNAI (the government agency responsible for Indians and their forest reserves) and IBAMA (responsible for national parks, flora, and fauna). But in the end all the trouble was worth it. We finally had everything needed, including even a permit to collect plants inside the Mt.Neblina National Park! The boat ride upriver was done partly on two small aluminum speedboats, but mostly in one large wooden canoe, and in total it lasted two whole days. We were very lucky the rivers were full, or else we would've been sitting on those boats for much longer. The "jungle cruise" was beautiful, the boat winding its way through twisted rivers separating green walls of trees, occasionally passing by Indian villages and even some very high and beautiful mountains. Surprisingly though, we saw very few animals, except for numerous flocks of white cranes which some people -- Hi Andreas!! :):) -- insisted on photographing EVERYTIME!! One problem would haunt us all along the trip to and from Neblina: WEIGHT. We simply had too much but nobody wanted to leave any of their own things behind. The heavy boats slowed our journey upriver to the base of Neblina. Once there, I had a hell of a time arguing with the guides and the 3 Ianomami indian porters we'd picked up along the way, all of whom suddenly refused to carry up as much weight as they'd promised. This meant that I also had to discuss with each group member about what he or she should leave behind. Absolutely NOT what I had in mind for a holiday! Eventually though, we slowly shed some of our belongings as we got higher and higher up the face of Neblina, as our legs became wearier, as each of us realised the sacrifices we had to make in the best interests of the group, leaving behind an extensive trail of things to be picked up on the return journey. But weight problems would become a constant and exausting issue all the way up and down Neblina. The climb up Neblina was mostly through endless, thick, steaming rainforest. It was over 30km uphill to the 2000m summit camp, where there was supposedly more open vegetation and lots of CPs. From there we'd still have a few more km and an extra 1000 vertical meters to the actual summit of Neblina (3014m). It took us two exhaustive days of hiking through endless forest before we saw any CPs. It would be an understatement to say we were all sick of forest, especially if you consider how much we'd worked, payed, and stressed ourselves out to get that far. And to make things even worse, the forest was so thick that we couldn't even see Neblina, to incentivate us to go faster. As we climbed higher, temperatures became slightly cooler -- or should I say less suffocating? At around 1400m we began finding fallen epiphytes on the forest floor. There was a surprisingly clear and abrupt transition around 1600m, where all the trees were suddenly covered with mosses. We'd entered the cloud forest. And sure enough, we immediately found our first CP: U.alpina!!! What a sight for sore eyes, what a relief, an explosion of joy! We scrapped all our chances of seeing any wildlife for days as we screamed wildly to the group members behind us, further down the mountain, announcing what we'd found, that CPs had finally begun appearing. I guess we only rejoiced more when we reached the top of Neblina -- and when we found H.tatei var.neblinae....... ----------------------------------------------------------------- To be continued... Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Kelley, Ian" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 11:41:17 -0800 Subject: fungicides I've been plagued by "damp off", a grayish, fuzzy-type (a technical term ;-) fungus in the moist, still-air trays where I've been sprouting gemmae this winter. At the recommendation of the local hydroponics store, I've tried the product "Triple Action 20" by Consan (distributed by Parkway Research in Houston, Tx), a broad-spectrum algaecide and fungicide marketed both for plants and hard surfaces (like locker rooms). I tried it at the weakest recommended dilution on a tray of pygmy droserae several days ago, and all seems to be well. The lengthy pamphlet recommends weekly treatments, although I am inclined to use it sparingly and only as needed. Can anyone supplement my meager testimonial with experience of their own? Has anyone else tried this product? Is it safe on my Sarrs.? On my utrics? Any more testimonial info would be appreciated, as always. Ian in still-rainy San Francisco ################### From: "Richard Jenkins" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 12:07:52 PST Subject: Re: Medical uses of CP Dear Sam and all, Unsubstantiated claims about non-licensed drugs which have no biologically plausible mechanism of action are very common and repeating them leads to the danger of lending a spectre of truth to claims of efficacy (which probably is limited to increasing the bank balance of the prescribing clinic/doctor). If there are any randomised, double blind, placebo controlled trials of the use of Carnivora which demonstrate its efficacy I would be very interested but until then its best to leave quackery well alone. Not only will the use of unproven drugs endanger the lives of patients it will also endanger the survival of the CPs from which the drug is made. Richard ################### From: "LaPedis, Ron" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 12:01:56 -0800 Subject: Rosemary's baby... Peter, Ron from San Francisco. I had the same and thought the same. However, everyone else who ate what I did for the last few days was fine. Must be some new killer flu. Ron LaPedis Compaq Tandem Division Global Development Systems & Engineering Cupertino, California USA Phone +1 (408) 285-7787 Fax +1 (408) 285-6230 Compaq's Tandem Division: supporting 90% of stock trades, 80% of ATMs, 66% of credit validations, 65% of funds transfers, 66% of 911 calls, and 50% of public email systems DISCLAIMER: All personal and professional opinions presented herein are my own and do not, in any way, represent the opinion or policy of Compaq Computers. ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 12:16:09 -0800 (PST) Subject: Medicinal uses of CP > The oncologists told me there really was no hope of saving my life. > Williams explained. "They said that they would try chemotherapy; if I Etc., etc., etc., blah blah blah Well, it had to happen sooner or later. Somebody has decided to make a buck by claiming a tincture of Venus Flytrap will save lives. And what better way than to claim, by anecdotal stories and hand-waving, that the mighty demons of cancer and AIDS can be dispelled by "Carnivora." I've had friends deal with these conditions, and I know that in terror people will seize upon any far-fetched claim to get cured. Shysters will do anything to make money. Sheesh. Needless to say, anecdotes of "Williams" and others getting cured by miracle tinctures do not constitute science. I have a vicious flu today, but I'm not blaming the new french roast coffee blend I had at the coffee house yesterday. The same with this anecdotal nonsense of a few people. The crooks who try to make money off other people's fear get no sympathy from me. Barry Meyers-Rice (NOT necessarily representing the ICPS or Carnivorous Plant Newsletter) ################### From: "bogplants@aol.com" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 18:31:30 -0000 Subject: my new address bogplants@aol.com Hi CP List Sorry to post this . Ive moved from frittsmb@msn.com to bogplants@aol.com Attention # Charles Brewer Iv'e lost your address please E-mail me so i can send you payment for the two plants . Good Growing, Tom Fritts TRP bogplants@aol.com ################### From: "Ross Rowe" Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 13:02:43 +1100 Subject: Re: Aldrovanda culture Hi Douglas I was very interested to read you culture notes. The red Aussie forms sounds very interesting and I would be interested to learn of a local source. Regards Ross Rowe Canberra Australia >>> "Douglas W. Darnowski" 19/02/1999 3:05:54 am >>> Regarding Aldrovanda culture, I have accidentally found a large increase in growth when placing Japanese-form plants in a tank with guppies, along with the usual rushes, Lemna, etc. Whereas similarly grown plants without fish present have not branched during the winter, these plants have grown vigorously (increase averaged 3-5 growing points per original growing point during 6-8 weeks). I had been hoping that the fry from the guppies would be caught by the Aldrovanda, but the baby fish turned out to be too large. (I have tried to raise Daphnia magna and a few other crustaceans (using various techniques) as an appropriately-sized prey species without great success. Any advice on that point?) I do not yet know why this has occurred, but my first suspicion is elevated CO2 due to respiration by the fish. These plants are being kept at about 60F/15C night and 70F/21C day, with 14h day/ 10h night. The fish have been well fed, so I assume that inorganic nutrients are abundant (haven't yet tried to measure). The plants have stopped producing large traps depite not becoming fully dormant (or the fish have been eating the traps--I haven't had a chance to observe this closely enough as the plants are at home--my pay comes for working on soybean molecular and cell biology). Perhaps increased nutrient levels are causing suppression of carnivory, or perhaps this is partial dormancy. The petioles are all much more robust than on leaves from plants, and their color is lighter but not pale, as if more body color (e.g. white flavonoid) is present. The stems seem to be less robust than for plants cultivated otherwise. This is anecdotal since it only concerns approx. 6 plants (Japanese form; I am calling a single growing point not attached to another enlarged growing point) in one tank, and I have started a similar smaller tank for Australian red Aldrovanda. Once summer comes, I am planning a more systematic experiment, with replicates and controls, to determine the effect on Australian, Japanese, and Polish Aldrovanda, to measure CO2 and nutrient levels, etc. If this effect turns out to be consistent among the various Aldrovanda clones in cultivation, it could be useful for increasing material. Plants could then be returned to fish-free conditions for resumption of trap production and carnivory. Does anyone have similar experience with Aldrovanda and fish? Also, is there an ichthyologist or someone who is a fish hobbyist who can recommend a species of fish which would reproduce in captivity and the fry of which would be of an appropriate size for Aldrovanda to catch? Doug Darnowski ****************************************************************************** Douglas Darnowski Department of Crop Sciences 384 ERML 1201 West Gregory Drive University of Illinois Urbana IL 61801 work ph: (217) 244-6150 fx: (217) 333-4777 home ph: (217) 356-6606 fx: (217) 356-4454 email: darnowsk@staff.uiuc.edu ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 21:21:23 -0500 Subject: Re: Thailand irrigation-hard water >Test of the water on Mt. Legaspi Mindinao showed TDS of 150ppm. >But with the heavy rainfall I doubt if this had any effect considering the >traps on N. merrilliana were the size of a young cocoanut or US football. >TDS of the rains usually read 0 but water collected from the roof varied >depending on the covering. From 50ppm to 470ppm>. Trent here in south Florida. I was one of the respondents concerning hard water and Nepenthes. However, you mention N. merrilliana -one of my favorite subjects. Why? Because it is so difficult to grow. My plant has NEVER been subjected to a temperature below 55 degree F, and even that was only for a few hours. Humidity has never dropped below 60 percent where I grow it, and light levels are giving me nice medium green leaves. I water it with RO. water. It rarely produces a pitcher, and if it does, it is about the size of a peanut. The problem has got to be the soil! Any cultural suggestions from those of you who have seen it in the wild? Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida. ################### From: Davidogray@aol.com Date: Thu, 18 Feb 1999 23:09:11 EST Subject: poll on conference in 2000 All readers of this list, I need your response to a question that has come up in the planning process for the ICPS Conference in the year 2000. We have the option of holding the conference in May or in June. May is better for the viewing of Darlingtonia and Pinguicula flowers in their native sites. June is better for many people in academia. The conference will be held in San Francisco at the Fort Mason Center on San Francisco Bay. The projected cost for the conference is about $95 US. There are many hotels in that area for between $70 and 90 a night; as well, there is a hostel on the grounds of the Fort. So I am conducting kind of a poll. I need to know how many people definitely will come only if the conference is held June 17,18,19 2000, and how many will come definitely only if the conference is held May 19,20,21 2000. If you definitely plan to come no matter whichever of the two dates respond with " either ". If you're not sure yet if you will be able to come, don't respond yet. Please send your responses as and e-mail to me at Davidogray@aol.com in the subject field put June 19,20,21 2000 or May 17,18,19 2000 or either you don't need to put anything but an x in the body of the message; its very helpful to our planning process if everyone who reads this responds RIGHT AWAY if they are planning on attending -- even if you live in the area. Thanks very much in advance, and Cheers, David ################### From: juerg.steiger@iae.unibe.ch (Juerg Steiger) Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 09:22:51 +0200 Subject: Re: poll on conference in 2000 >June 19,20,21 2000 x Juerg F. Steiger MD Institute for Medical Education IAWF University of Bern, Faculty of Medicine Inselspital 37a CH-3010 Bern, Switzerland Phone: +41 (0)31 632 98 87 Fax: +41 (0)31 632 98 71 juerg.steiger@iae.unibe.ch http://www.iawf.unibe.ch/MME ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 06:08:49 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: N. merrilliana Trent, Perhaps your light levels are too low for pitcher formation. If you are using artificial lighting, perhaps there is some frequency missing that the leaves need for pitcher formation. - Carl On Thu, 18 Feb 1999, Trent Meeks wrote: > However, you mention N. merrilliana -one of my favorite > subjects. Why? Because it is so difficult to grow. My plant has NEVER been > subjected to a temperature below 55 degree F, and even that was only for a > few hours. Humidity has never dropped below 60 percent where I grow it, and > light levels are giving me nice medium green leaves. I water it with RO. > water. It rarely produces a pitcher, and if it does, it is about the size of > a peanut. The problem has got to be the soil! Any cultural suggestions from > those of you who have seen it in the wild? > > Trent Meeks > Pompano Beach, Florida. > > ################### From: bd670@scn.org (Michael Feddersen) Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 15:44:40 -0800 (PST) Subject: N. merrilliana Hello, For soils of Nepenthes and especially the ones on Mt. Legaspi, Mindinao, Philippines it was a type of laterite. It's appearance and consistancy was a crumbly rusty soil simular to crushed pumice but it held more water. The Nepenthes that were growing in this were either in it straight or growing in a small crack in the soil along with some other plant, shrub or tree{ Punta Tugus} It's easier to say that tree than spell it. Anyways I found then along stream or not in the open or the tree as a vine support and a little shade. Sunburn was also visible but when i found ripe seed onthe flower spikes these were at the tops of short trees 7meter along a 10meter embankment. Fully eposed to the sun. But being and embankment they did not face direct south. The leaves redden up nicely with the added light. Also as for the previous misconceptions that the plants were epiphytic the appearance along embankments where they were common only had the tops growing up into the scrub and trees overhanging the road giving the appearance of being epiphytic. A closer examination of several kilometers of these plants found the base of it firmly rooted in the ground. It was rather difficult to distinguish between the vines of Nepenthes and other plant when both have defoliated. The soils tested higher in iron, magnetic and stightly acid. Also they were defecient in N,P and K. A loose well drained soil slightly acid[the iron in the laterite lowers the ph] should do well. These plants are tropical as in night temps not below 75-80 degrees F for any long term. I ought to know I slept there. Truly, Tom Kahl/Nepenthes Club ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 21:44:14 -0500 Subject: Re: N. merrilliana ---------- >From: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com >To: Multiple recipients of list >Subject: CP digest 1728 >Date: Fri, Feb 19, 1999, 2:39 PM > > Perhaps your light levels are too low for pitcher formation. If you > are using artificial lighting, perhaps there is some frequency missing that > the leaves need for pitcher formation. All of my Nepenthes are grown under lathe house conditions. I use 70 percent shade shadecloth during the summer, and plastic+60 percent shadecloth in the winter. N. mirabilis, N. cantleyi (natural hybrid of gracilis x bicalcarata) and several manmade hybrids grow side by side with my N. merrilliana, and they all have nice pitchers. Obviously something is lacking in its artificial environment. I still suspect something in the growing medium. I await any further comments. Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida ################### From: CPimages Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 22:55:24 -0600 Subject: OT - Stinky Plant Sorry to be a bit belated with this, but Carl and I are trying to catch up on emails. Steve asked about a "stinky plant". Have you thought about Skunk Cabbage? Don't know the scientific name without looking it up (might be one of those Doug mentioned), but it's a common woodland plant in upstate NY, blooms in the spring, and most emphatically stinks like a well-used outhouse. Sherry ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Fri, 19 Feb 1999 22:59:51 PST Subject: Re: Medical uses of CP >Dear Sam and all, >Unsubstantiated claims about non-licensed drugs which have no >biologically plausible mechanism of action are very common and >repeating >them leads to the danger of lending a spectre of truth to claims of >efficacy (which probably is limited to increasing the bank balance >of >the prescribing clinic/doctor). If there are any randomised, double >blind, placebo controlled trials of the use of Carnivora which >demonstrate its efficacy I would be very interested but until then >its best to leave quackery well alone. Not only will the use of unproven >drugs endanger the lives of patients it will also endanger >the survival >of the CPs from which the drug is made. >Richard Oh geez, comeon. You're taking things farrr too seriously. If people choose to try it and get sick thats their problem. Each person takes responsibility for his/her actions. Don't censor or withhold information that may potentially if unlikely have some validity. No offense, but I believe i speak for many many people on the net when i say I dont want you or anyone else making up my mind for me. I dont need to be protected from myself. I agree it looks pretty quack to me as well but this whole thing reminds me of the time back in highschool where my science teacher told me not to tell people in class how they could look at the partial eclipse that was occurring because they might do it wrong and blind themselves. This may sound harsh but theres this thing called evolution which has been going on for millions of years and I'm a big believer in it. ################### From: "Fabio d'Alessi" Date: Sat, 20 Feb 1999 11:04:28 +0100 Subject: Re: Medical uses of CP >Oh geez, comeon. You're taking things farrr too seriously. If people >choose to try it and get sick thats their problem. Each person takes >responsibility for his/her actions. Don't censor or withhold information >that may potentially if unlikely have some validity. No offense, but I >believe i speak for many many people on the net when i say I dont want >you or anyone else making up my mind for me. I dont need to be protected >from myself. I agree it looks pretty quack to me as well but this whole >thing reminds me of the time back in highschool where my science teacher >told me not to tell people in class how they could look at the partial >eclipse that was occurring because they might do it wrong and blind >themselves. This may sound harsh but theres this thing called evolution >which has been going on for millions of years and I'm a big believer in >it. Sorry, Chris, but I have to *strongly* disagree. You clearly are not in the typical state of mind for a patient affected by AIDS of tumor. I work at the laboratory of Human Genetics at the University of Padua, and, as the name implies, we're doing a lot of research on terrible and extremely painful human rare diseases. Syndromes which no one here have ever heard, but that still make a lot of people suffer _a lot_. Well, when you *SEE* this people, when you hear what they say... what they HOPE. You cannot even imagine what kind of state of mind enter these people, once they have rare diseases, or grave diseases such as cancer and or AIDS. Barry has been very polite to simply "disagree" with people trying to make money with homemade recipes. After all, a posting related to some interesting medical use of CP has been intriguing and interesting to read. But as far as tumors, AIDS and miracles, I have to strongly disagree, and we must be extremely careful. Want an example? In italy, many months ago, an old medical doctor claimed to have discovered the cure for cancer. Now, who works on oncology knows that it is quite impossible to find the universal cure for cancer, but still this man claimed to have found it. And he was not a sneaky guy trying to sell homemade mixtures. He brought scientifical data, surveys on patients, cases of tens and tens of terminal-stage cancers resolved like miracles. What happened after this recalls, distant medieval phobias. People breaking the doors of the pharmacies to get the "magical" medicine (which was a mixture of human hormones) and so on. The worst is that many decided to stop with radio-therapies and chemical-therapies in favor of this miracle therapy. Just think that this phenomenon had proportions that pushed the italian government to take extremely serious measures, in grave emergency. The phenomenon implied hundreds of thousands of cancer-affected patients. What happened last month, after months of delirium, is that several italian and non-italian scientific teams, testing the miracle mixture, found simply *NO* relevance, *NO* validity, absolutely *NO* effects of this mixture against *ANY* cancer. In just something like 3-4% of the cases the tumor was slighly slowed. In the meanwhile, hundreds of patients died or worsened because of their choice to stop with traditional cures in favor of this. I think someone out there will think "it's their fault, they should blame themselves". I think it different. People out here are not oncologists, and they simply cannot JUDGE if this or that could be useful or not. They HAVE to rely on someone who is an oncologist. This is why oncologists need to be EXTREMELY careful about such declarations. And the same applies to who makes medicines, treatments, and the like. Companies that make, for example, aspirin, know that in particular experimental conditions high doses of aspirin can have some retarding or blocking effects on some tumors (far more than any drosera). But have you ever heard Bayer claiming "aspirin is a serious anti-tumoral medicine"? Now, let's stop this and back to CPs. f -- Fabio d'Alessi - Laboratory of Genetics, Department of Biology, University of Padua, Italy. ################### From: JDPDX@aol.com Date: Sat, 20 Feb 1999 13:55:46 EST Subject: Re: Consan 20 In a message dated 2/19/99 11:39:57 AM Pacific Standard Time, cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: << Can anyone supplement my meager testimonial with experience of their own? Has anyone else tried this product? Is it safe on my Sarrs.? On my utrics? Any more testimonial info would be appreciated, as always. >> I've used this product for about 3 years and have had good luck with it. It seems fine on any of the harder leaf cp such as Sarracenia and Nepenthes. I've also used it on Drosera capensis and D. binata species successfully, but use caution on very delicate plants. You do need to use it as often as it says since this compound breaks down fairly quickly. Incidentally, the chemical used in this stuff is a quanternary ammonium compound ("quats") and is found in many commercial disinfectancts. It tends not to be as corrosive as bleach, yet very effective. If you happen to have an Amway distributor handy, they carry a product identical to Consan 20, and it's a bit cheaper. The concentration is the same. It's called Amway Germicidal Concentrate (WE-8996). Be sure to get this one and not any of the germicidal cleaners. This stuff contains no detergents. I've also had good luck with sulfur based fungicides on Sarracenia and Cephalotus. Jeff Jeff ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Sat, 20 Feb 1999 19:41:29 +0000 Subject: Fernando Rivadavia Lopes makes a mistake! I was sad to see the excellent article on Neblina ruined by a mistake. "where temperatures reach nearly 100 degress Celsius and humidity is 1000%, where mosquito clouds are so thick you can't see your outstretched hand, where there are hundreds of deadly tropical diseases, one piranha in every cubic centimeter of river water, giant alligators and jaguars everywhere, as well as millions of cannibalistic natives, violent and deadly garimpeiros (independent gold or other mineral prospectors), while the rest of the people are all somehow connected to cocain traffic passing" Clearly Fernando made no mention of the cockroaches (cucurachas) which, as all true adventurers know, are by far the most disgusting inhabitants of the Amazon whether on land, see or in the air (and cockroaches make every effort to find you in all 3). Only joking - lovely article Fernando. (But not joink about the cockroaches!!!). Paul PS If you ever just leave a country having, at great expense, obtained an exceedingly rare (literally unique) live plant specimen , and fancy a stop off in the Amazon, NEVER leave the container slightly open so that the specimen can breath while you sleep!!! How do I know this? Clue to translation of this "PS" - For plant specimen read 'lovely looking fresh smelling crisp juicy foliage'. Clue two - cockroaches occupy every available cubic millimetre of the amazon during the night. ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Sat, 20 Feb 1999 19:58:00 +0000 Subject: Re: CP Conference Planning (Not a date vote) Much as I appreciate the effort that goes into planning the Conference, I thought the vote on a preferred date based on known attendance missed one major point. If I'm not mistaken, the academic profesionals will probably get the trip paid for by their institutions (or will I now receive a hail of hate mail!!!). The rest of us have no such chance of an expense claim. Bearing this in mind, June flights are usually considerably more expensive than May flights, a serious issue when flying at one's own expense from Europe (and if paying $60-90 per night once there!!!). To pay more and then not see the local wild plants at their best - hmmm!!!. Just a comment. Paul ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Sat, 20 Feb 1999 23:41:05 -0500 Subject: N. merrilliana Trent, You wrote: All of my Nepenthes are grown under lathe house conditions. I use 70 percent shade shadecloth during the summer, and plastic+60 percent shadecloth in the winter. N. mirabilis, N. cantleyi (natural hybrid of gracilis x bicalcarata) and several manmade hybrids grow side by side with my N. merrilliana, and they all have nice pitchers. Obviously something is lacking in its artificial environment. I still suspect something in the growing medium. I await any further comments. I just finished reading Tom Kahl's response concerning his observations while at the plants natural habitat. He mentioned laterite. Normally I keep out of nep discussions due to my short time cultivating this genus but thought I might chime in on this one. Right now I am conducting a small personal experiment with tuberous drosera, potting some up with the standard 75% silica sand 25% peat mix and others with the addition of laterite soil. In the past some growers have noted differences in coloration, growth, and overall vigor using laterite with some species of tuberous drosera. You might try adding some laterite to the N. merrillianas medium to see what, if any, changes occur. I think there needs to be some research done that addresses this medium, whether from hobby growers or from professional horticulturists. Since laterite is of tropical origin and some species of Nepenthes do grow in it there might be trace elements involved here that contribute to the particular species well being. Since I live in the US I had to obtain my supply of laterite through a specialty aquatic plant grower. I know from recent personal experience the company Dupla no longer has a US distributor, being a major supplier of laterite in the past. You may have to do a little hunting to obtain it. My 2 cents, Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio ( "Lake Effect" going full steam right now) markp@en.com ################### From: Christer Berglund Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 11:27:37 +0100 Subject: Thanks and questions (was: nep deformation and pitchers) Hi Alastair, Thanks for the very interesting information. > When I was atop the summits of G. Trus Madi and G. Mulu last > summer, I noted daytime air temperatures in excess of 25 degrees, > and soil temperatures up of 30 degrees, so these plants can take Did you by any chance see N. lowii in both locations? If so, did you see any differences in their habitat (or temperature). Yes, I'm interested in this species too, and I'm hoping to find a form that might be more warmth tolerant. > By the way, do you know of anyone who has spare > plants of N.bicalcarata to sell? > I wish I could help, but unfortunately I don't know anyone who grow this species. Hey CPeople! I've read that some of you on this list have visited Borneo, to look at nepenthes. Where is the best place to go for a beginner (Mt. Kinabalu?), and when did you arrange/reserve the hikes? Before going to Borneo, or at the actual spot? Regards, -- Christer Berglund E-mail: christer.berglund@amiga.pp.se ################### From: DroseraMAN@aol.com Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 10:52:49 EST Subject: Importing via In Vitro tube or flask Hello everyone, I'm Joseph (DroseraMAN@aol.com). I was thinking or importing some CP here to the USA via In Vitro cultures and was wondering if anyone could advise me concerning import regulations? Thanks, Joseph (DroseraMAN@aol.com) ################### From: "Haakan Murevaern" Date: Sat, 20 Feb 1999 18:26:11 +0100 Subject: New Society in Scandinavia Hello all, For your information: The Scandinavian Carnivorous Plant Society (SCPS) has just started! The official language for this society is Swedish. We are at the moment 14 members. Our first meeting takes place at the Botanical garden in Lund, Sweden Sunday May 23. For more information email me or Barbro.Berggard@envir.lu.se you can also get information in Swedish on the page http://www.algonet.se/~murevarn/scps.html Haakan Murevaern See my Carnivorous Plants at http://www.algonet.se/~murevarn ################### From: Nicholas Plummer Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 16:34:10 -0500 Subject: N. merrilliana Mark Pogany wrote: >Since I live in the US I had to obtain my supply of laterite through a >specialty aquatic plant grower. I know from recent personal experience >the company Dupla no longer has a US distributor, being a major >supplier of laterite in the past. You may have to do a little hunting >to obtain it. This surprises me. The Winter 1999 Pet Warehouse catalog lists both forms of Dupla laterite as well as the Dupla mineral supplements. The Pet Warehouse website is http://www.ptwhse.com/ However, the Dupla stuff is quite expensive and may be overkill for CP applications. There are cheaper brands, and in some parts of the country you may be able to harvest your own iron-rich red clay, which is what laterite is AFAIK. One might also try a dilute sol'n of chelated iron for plants that come from laterite soil. Nick -------------- Nicholas Plummer nplummer@duke.edu http://www.duke.edu/~nplummer/ ################### From: Nicholas Plummer Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 16:35:34 -0500 Subject: Re: N. merrilliana I wrote: >The > Pet Warehouse website is http://www.ptwhse.com/ Oops, that should be http://www.petwhse.com/ ################### From: "Adao Pereira" Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 22:52:29 -0000 Subject: Aldrovanda culture, Utricularia and algae Hello! Many things have been said about this, and I wanted to share some questions and thoughts... It seems that the presence of fish will increase [CO2], but it will increase [NH3] in the water, too. The 1st thing is good and the 2nd will make the plant stop producing traps, right? Isn' there a way to reduce the [NH3]? If you put some aquatic plants, won't they use the NH3 for their own growth, letting the water more pure? What kinds of plants should be, then? I remember that Azolla sp. have simbiotic cyanobacteria. Cyanobacteria have heterocists whose function is to capture nitrogen (I don't know in which form - N2 or NH3?) and give it to the plant (I'm not sure...). You know, something like the simbiotic bacteria that live on the roots of peas, etc... So, Azolla would be good for reducing the nitrogen in the water??? What about other aquatic plants? Water lilies, Lemna sp., Salvinia sp., water hyacinth, etc... Placing an air pump constantly producing bubbles won't increase the [CO2]? Isn't this enough? Also, I read that some people use "peat tea" to grow it (because of the pH), this is, boiling water with some peat. Does this work? What should be the desired pH, then? Now, about Utrics and algae... I had some U. gibba and U. vulgaris growing outdoors, and so, there was lots of algae growing with them. Then, I took one cutting of each and placed it indoors, at 30 C and plenty of light in a very small container. Guess what! All the algae died! Not even a little bit survived! Now, the plants are thriving without any algae (I really mean it, ALL the algae disappeared!), and growing very, very fast. Can't this be applied to Aldrovanda? I heard that this plant can die because of algae, what if one places it in such an environment? Thanks, Miguel ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 18:10:12 EST Subject: Re: Chit chat Greetings folks, Peter here at California Carnivores! I've gotten over my Rosemary's Baby stomach virus and gave birth to the most horrifying cultivar we've ever seen! Marilee said "Kill it!" but it ran out of the greenhouse before we could. (Ironically, we do have a Sarracenia cultivar tentatively named "Rosemary Woodhouse", and thanks to Jan's tremendously helpful cultivar forms, this and many others will see publication finally this year) Anyway, I did catch the last flower of D. pauciflora, which bloomed mostly during my illness. As Glen Rankin and others have previously stated, it was probably winter chill that caused them to bloom. In December it was so cold that even with the heaters going full blast, it probably dropped to the upper 30s in the greenhouse, where normally the temperature's closer to 50 F. Thanks to Trent and Rick for the info they offered on color transfers that appeared in The Savage Garden. Calling all volunteers! California Carnivores is getting extremely busy this time of year, so if any Bay Area CPers want to help out when it isn't raining, remember it's $50 in plants for 6 hours of slave labor! Th-th-th-th-that's all, folks! Peter ################### From: "TED HADLEY" Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 16:27:36 -0800 Subject: Sphagnum Peat from Home Depot Hi USA members, I recently purchased a large block of "Compressed pure sphagnum peat" from Home Depot, the popular low-budget home improvement & building supply retailer. The source of the peat is Canada, and since the printing on the bag is half-French, I would assume probably from... Quebec? Well, the appearance is very much like Pete D'Amato's description in "The Savage Garden": light brown, consistency of sawdust, etc. However, when I grabbed a handfull and crumbled a bit, I found small chips of wood. Is this normal? It really looks like it is at least in part really just sawdust. I added it to water and let it soak. I though peat would sink, but this stuff floats. Does anyone have experience with this stuff? BTW: It was really cheap. Something like a couple of dollars for about 2-3 cubic feet. Thanks, tedh. -------- Ted A. Hadley, Senior Mineralogist hadleyt@usa.net Mineralogical Investigation Services Sunnyvale, CA 94087 USA ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 22:03:17 EST Subject: Thomas Hayes and DANGEROUS PLANTS Hi everybody, I need to update my address book.... Can anybody that knows me can drop me a line? Thanks! If you don't know me, time to exercise your delete key! ****************************************************************************** ******************* For those of you that know me, hello and just a quick note to let you know that I somewhat recently moved to the Washington DC area, Falls Church, VA to be exact. I would like to thank several of my CP friends for their help with the move- Jay Lechtman & Ed Munn in particular! Moving a large collection of plants is a pain, and if anybody is moving into this area, I will be happy to help you as well. After taking the past two months to completely paint half the house, and build several new terrariums, I have taken a computer position at NASA. I don't want anybody writing me to think I died, just because I don't get back to you as fast as in the past. My new address info is: DANGEROUS PLANTS Thomas K. Hayes 7420 Tillman Drive Falls Church, VA 22043 ph: 703-893-9212 (best time to reach me is M-F, 7-10 PM) hayes7@aol.com www.tcscs.com/~thayes For those of us in the northern hemisphere, a great spring to everybody :) And for the folks on the "other side", may the winter be mild. Take care & keep on growing, Thomas Hayes ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 17:07:35 -0700 Subject: Sterile Drosera hybrids (was Hybrids & variety confusion) On Thu, 18 Feb 1999 SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de writes: >Have you really tested this? So far most _Drosera_ hybrids involving >parents with *equal* ploidy have in fact been *fertile*. The only well >known sterile hybrid (yes, Fernando, I know that there are other >examples but these are not as well-known as this one) is _D. anglica * >rotundifolia_ (cf. my previous, repeated messages to this list!), >involving a (probably hybridogenic, tetraploid) parent with 40 >(_D.a._) and a (diploid) parent with 20 chromosomes (_D.r._). I was under the impression that one of the most popular pygmy sundews in cultivation, formerly referred to as "Lake Badgerup", was in fact D. nitidula ssp. omissa x D. occidentalis ssp. occidentalis and that this was a sterile hybrid. Fact or fiction? Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 20:30:35 -0700 Subject: Re: Thomas Hayes and DANGEROUS PLANTS Hi Tom, I know you You know me We're great friends like friends should be With a great big hug and a kiss from me to you Won't you say you love me too On Sun, 21 Feb 1999 19:12:18 -0800 Hayes7@aol.com writes: >Hi everybody, > >I need to update my address book.... Can anybody that knows me can >drop me a >line? Thanks! If you don't know me, time to exercise your delete >key! > >************************************************************************ ****** >******************* >For those of you that know me, hello and just a quick note to let you >know >that I somewhat recently moved to the Washington DC area, Falls >Church, VA to >be exact. I would like to thank several of my CP friends for their >help with >the move- Jay Lechtman & Ed Munn in particular! Moving a large >collection of >plants is a pain, and if anybody is moving into this area, I will be >happy to >help you as well. > >After taking the past two months to completely paint half the house, >and build >several new terrariums, I have taken a computer position at NASA. I >don't >want anybody writing me to think I died, just because I don't get back >to you >as fast as in the past. My new address info is: > >DANGEROUS PLANTS >Thomas K. Hayes >7420 Tillman Drive >Falls Church, VA 22043 > >ph: 703-893-9212 (best time to reach me is M-F, 7-10 PM) >hayes7@aol.com >www.tcscs.com/~thayes > >For those of us in the northern hemisphere, a great spring to >everybody :) >And for the folks on the "other side", may the winter be mild. > > >Take care & keep on growing, > >Thomas Hayes > > Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 22:23:37 -0500 Subject: Re: N. merrilliana Thanks for the input, folks. Tom, your detailed description of N. merrilliana natural habitat was fascinating and verified the lowland nature of this species, and Mark's description of tuberous Drosera grown in a laterite mix also helped. I have located an aquarium supplier who sells laterite for freshwater aquatic plants, but before using it, I want to make sure there are no fertilizer additives. Right now is not a good time to repot due to winter conditions. In another couple of months I'll go for broke and try a laterite mix. Tonight the expected low is about 48 F, so the heater goes on to keep the temp above 55 F. Even at this temp., I don't think N. merrilliana will be very happy. Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Sun, 21 Feb 1999 22:59:40 EST Subject: Re: Thomas Hayes and DANGEROUS PLANTS Hey Rich, > I know you > You know me > We're great friends like friends should be > With a great big hug and a kiss from me to you > Won't you say you love me too I like you a lot and all, but not that much! Can't we just stick to a nice hand shake? This is why Barney should be KILLED in public! Jokes like this, might otherwise be taken seriously.... :) Take care, -Tom ################### From: nile smith Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 06:33:10 +0000 Subject: N. ampullaria problem nile smith nxs@postmark.net Hi List, A few months ago I bought a N. ampullaria plant through the mail. After it arrived, it was exposed to unacceptably low humidity for several days. The pitchers whithered and the leaves started to turn brown. I finally found a clear plastic container large enough to house it in. Now, a couple months later, the plant still lives, but just barely. The two remaining leaves still have some green in them, and the stem looks relatively healthy, but the growing point has dried up and is not putting off any new foliage. I smeared some shoot-ez hormone wax on the stem where the dormant buds should emerge, but nothing has happened so far. Does anybody have an idea how I can bring it back to health? Thanks in advance for any advice, Nile Smith ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 05:01:19 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Sphagnum Peat from Home Depot Hello list, Carl here in central Florida. I have been using peat from Home Depot (HD) for several years for use in growing mixes for CPs, ferns, etc. The package I purchase says something like, "Milled Canadian Peat". I have never found large amounts of wood chips or floating sawdust in it. However, I suspect that the peat supplier for HD stores in California may not be the same as for HD stores in Florida. Maybe the local store manager in California got a "special" deal on 20 tons of packaged peat. - Carl On Sun, 21 Feb 1999, TED HADLEY wrote: > Hi USA members, > > I recently purchased a large block of "Compressed pure sphagnum peat" from > Home Depot, the popular low-budget home improvement & building supply > retailer. The source of the peat is Canada, and since the printing on the > bag is half-French, I would assume probably from... Quebec? > > Well, the appearance is very much like Pete D'Amato's description in "The > Savage Garden": light brown, consistency of sawdust, etc. However, when I > grabbed a handfull and crumbled a bit, I found small chips of wood. Is this > normal? It really looks like it is at least in part really just sawdust. I > added it to water and let it soak. I though peat would sink, but this stuff > floats. > > Does anyone have experience with this stuff? BTW: It was really cheap. > Something like a couple of dollars for about 2-3 cubic feet. > > Thanks, > > tedh. > -------- > Ted A. Hadley, Senior Mineralogist hadleyt@usa.net > Mineralogical Investigation Services Sunnyvale, CA 94087 USA > ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 08:33:01 -0500 Subject: Re: Sphagnum Peat from Home Depot Hi All: Ted A. Hadley wrote: >Hi USA members, > >I recently purchased a large block of "Compressed pure sphagnum peat" from >Home Depot, the popular low-budget home improvement & building supply >retailer. The source of the peat is Canada, and since the printing on the >bag is half-French, I would assume probably from... Quebec? Not necessarily. New Brunswick and other provinces have major commercial peat bogs. Canada has two national languages, English and French and all products are labeled in those languages. Some, specifically for export to the States may only have english. >Well, the appearance is very much like Pete D'Amato's description in "The >Savage Garden": light brown, consistency of sawdust, etc. However, when I >grabbed a handfull and crumbled a bit, I found small chips of wood. Is this >normal? It really looks like it is at least in part really just sawdust. I >added it to water and let it soak. I though peat would sink, but this stuff >floats. Milled peat often contains small pieces of stems and twigs that have not completely decomposed. This stuff _is_ taken from bogs where a variety of things used to grow. Peat bogs are great preservers of things. Dried peat will, indeed, float on water and needs to be mixed in by hand. This is because the water content is "compressed" out of it and dry peat is difficult to rehydrate. Never use the stuff in a potting mix until you have thoroughly soaked and mixed it with water. You will be amazed at just how much liquid the stuff will soak up. It can be mixed into a garden "as is", but care should be taken to mix it well (break up those large clumps) with the soil and it should be heavily watered afterwards several times. It is not advisable to try to spread it on a windy day. > >Does anyone have experience with this stuff? BTW: It was really cheap. >Something like a couple of dollars for about 2-3 cubic feet. As you are buying by weight, you are getting a great deal because you are not paying for water content. When you buy bagged compost or plant soil it is always a good idea to check how moist the stuff is and how heavy. The heavier the mix the more water you are buying. It makes a terrific acidic soil amendment, but breaks down after a year or two in the garden. Seasonal applications, along with compost, etc, can help build up a wonderfully organic soil. In pots, it can last for two-three years depending on the conditions. Once wet, it is great for your CP's as is, or for use in a soiless CP mix. Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson Maritime New Brunswick, Canada, Zone 5, now ... The Great Cold Brown North (no snow cover) ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 14:35:46 Subject: Re: Sterile Drosera hybrids Dear Rich, > >Have you really tested this? So far most _Drosera_ hybrids involving > >parents with *equal* ploidy have in fact been *fertile*. (...) > I was under the impression that one of the most popular pygmy sundews in > cultivation, formerly referred to as "Lake Badgerup", was in fact D. > nitidula ssp. omissa x D. occidentalis ssp. occidentalis and that this > was a sterile hybrid. So you know the chromosome number of _D. occidentalis_? If you really do, please tell it to me. It has AFAIK not been published yet. *Equal* ploidy in the context above means equal number of chromosomes. For the mentioned hybrid this would mean that _D. occidentalis_ would require to have the same chromosome count as _D. nitidula_ (in the form Lowrie & al. erroneously regarded as subsp. omissa, distinctly different from the type of the latter taxon), i.e. 2n=28. > Fact or fiction? Difficult to tell with a missing chromosome count. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Steve Alton" Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 14:00:07 -0000 Subject: Hello! Hi - I have just subscribed, and been told that an introductory posting is called for, so here goes.... My name is Steve and I work at the Millennium Seed Bank, part of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, England. I have been growing CPs for, er, 16 years (can it really be that long?), ever since I was a kid, but for the last 10 years or so most of my collection has been in "storage" ie. looked after by my parents, due to lack of space (I _will_ buy a greenhouse one day!) with just a few choice plants accompanying me from windowsill to windowsill as I have moved houses and jobs. The bulk of my collection consists of Sarracenias - most of the species represented plus the beginnings of an interesting hybidisation programme, also "on hold". Added to those are a few Drosera and my pride and joy, a big, healthy, red Cephalotus under a plastic dome. I visit these plants (and my parents!) regularly to prune, repot and generally moon around, dreaming of conservatories. Living with me currently are a couple of Sarracenias and two Nepenthes in hanging baskets, above the bath but still not happy enough to produce pitchers. Aims for this year are to expand my windowsill collection with a few Drosera, to try Polypompholix and Byblis for the first time, to have another go at Darlingtonia from seed, and possibly Heliamphora if I can get hold of some. And that's me - look forward to being part of the list. Steve Alton UK Co-ordinator - Millennium Seed Bank Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Wakehurst Place Tel: 01444 894079 Fax: 01444 894069 ################### From: "Marek Sv\mtek" Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 15:10:53 +0100 Subject: Drosera petiolaris Toto je vmcedmlna zprava ve tvaru MIME. --------------3F0E2AF2A5C341278D08CEAE Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit All readers of this list, I would like to plant an interesting group of genus Drosera. I\264m looking for more information about growing of the plants from group D. petiolaris. I will be very pleasant for every notice about your experiences or some literature. Marek --------------3F0E2AF2A5C341278D08CEAE Content-Type: text/x-vcard; charset=us-ascii; name="vcard.vcf" Content-Description: Vizitka Marek Sv\355tek,MUDr. Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="vcard.vcf" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit begin: vcard fn: Marek Sv\355tek,MUDr. n: Sv\355tek,MUDr.;Marek org: KAR VFN adr;dom: Bolonsk\341 309/25;;;Praha 10;Czech Republic;109 00; email;internet: msvitek@vfn.cz tel;work: 02/24962243 x-mozilla-cpt: ;-1 x-mozilla-html: FALSE version: 2.1 end: vcard --------------3F0E2AF2A5C341278D08CEAE-- ################### From: "Eric D. Singer" Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 09:25:56 -0500 Subject: Re: Thomas Hayes and DANGEROUS PLANTS At 08:09 PM 2/21/99 -0800, you wrote: >Hey Rich, > >> I know you >> You know me >> We're great friends like friends should be >> With a great big hug and a kiss from me to you >> Won't you say you love me too > >I like you a lot and all, but not that much! >Can't we just stick to a nice hand shake? > >This is why Barney should be KILLED in public! >Jokes like this, might otherwise be taken seriously.... :) No, no, no It goes like this: I Love You You love Me Homo-sexu-ality They All think We are Friends But we're really Les-bi-ans Being gay gives me access to the best jokes involving homosexuals. We really need to grow at least one purple dinosaur eating plant to save the world from Barney. Take Care, Eric D. Singer edsinger@mindspring.com ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 08:05:00 -0700 Subject: Re: Sterile Drosera hybrids Greetings Jan and all interested parties, > > >Have you really tested this? So far most _Drosera_ hybrids involving > > >parents with *equal* ploidy have in fact been *fertile*. (...) > > I was under the impression that one of the most popular pygmy sundews in > > cultivation, formerly referred to as "Lake Badgerup", was in fact D. > > nitidula ssp. omissa x D. occidentalis ssp. occidentalis and that this > > was a sterile hybrid. >So you know the chromosome number of _D. occidentalis_? If you >really do, please tell it to me. It has AFAIK not been published yet. >*Equal* ploidy in the context above means equal number of >chromosomes. For the mentioned hybrid this would mean that _D. >occidentalis_ would require to have the same chromosome count as _D. >nitidula_ (in the form Lowrie & al. erroneously regarded as subsp. >omissa, distinctly different from the type of the latter taxon), i.e. >2n=28. Afraid I certainly don't have a chromosome count. I gather their is some controversy here but I'm not sure if you are questioning: A. the sterility of the plant or B. the supposition that the plant is a hybrid with the above named parents. If B, then is it safe to assume that sterility of hybrids is always a result of differing ploidy? Re: Thomas Hayes and DANGEROUS PLANTS I'm feeling a tad red faced at the moment . . .Public apology for cluttering the listserver. The only excuse I can offer is that I have been home a lot recently with a sick one year old and have obviously seen a wee too much Barney and Teletubbies. . . . Time for tubby bye bye aaacck Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: koudela@ure.cas.cz Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 16:02:52 +0000 Subject: D.stenopetala germination Filippo and others interested in this matter, I would like to add my 2 cents. Thanks to a very good friend of mine in NZ (he will recognize himself, THANKS!!!), I was able to get fresh seeds of D.stenopetala and D.arcturi last year. I distributed some to my local friends as well as tried to germinate them myself. Friends reported me mixed results but as for me, I got excellent results when I sow the seeds onto peat (+ a small addition of sand), kept the soil wet (the water level was about 7 cm below the soil surface) and placed the pots to a fridge for 2 months. I did not count the sowed seeds but now I have many seedlings of both species! But I feel the key thing will now be to keep them alive. Regards, Ivo *************************************************** Mgr. Ivo Koudela work address: home address: IREE AS Palachova 33/3 Chaberska 57 Zdar nad Sazavou 182 51 Prague 8 591 01 Czech Republic Czech Republic tel: +422 6881804 tel.: +42 616 25458 fax: +422 6880222 e-mail: koudela@ure.cas.cz *************************************************** ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 09:21:40 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Aldrovanda culture, Utricularia and algae Hi all, > Hello! > > Many things have been said about this, and I wanted to share some questions > and thoughts... > It seems that the presence of fish will increase [CO2], but it will > increase [NH3] in the water, too. They increase the CO2 levels slightly, and increase ammonia (NH4) levels by a great deal. Nitrate (NH3) is formed via bacterial decomposition pathways and is usually not as readily available for aquatic plant uptake as is ammonia. > The 1st thing is good and the 2nd will make the plant stop producing traps, > right? Isn' there a way to reduce the [NH3]? Yep, don't put fish in the tank, or very few. > If you put some aquatic > plants, won't they use the NH3 for their own growth, letting the water more > pure? What kinds of plants should be, then? I remember that Azolla sp. have > simbiotic cyanobacteria. Cyanobacteria have heterocists whose function is > to capture nitrogen (I don't know in which form - N2 or NH3?) N2 > and give it > to the plant (I'm not sure...). You know, something like the simbiotic > bacteria that live on the roots of peas, etc... So, Azolla would be good > for reducing the nitrogen in the water??? Aquatic cyanobacteria (aka blue-green algae) is not the same as the Rhizobium (sp?) nodules found on aquatic plants. Blue-green algae appears during warm calm periods when nitrogen levels are low and phosphorus generally in appreciable amounts. They do so well becuase they have heterocysts which fix atmospheric nitrogen, generally for themselves. If other plants get any benefit from them, it's from the breakdown of their cells after death and release of stored nutrients. > What about other aquatic plants? Water lilies, Lemna sp., Salvinia sp., > water hyacinth, etc... These are mainly floaters, which is important since Aldrovanda requires partial shading, but also since it will shade out algal growth, especially benthic varieties which get their nutrients from the water sediment interface. Submergent aquatics such as Bacopa will take up nutrients quickly, since they grow so fast. In a cooler tank, you could also try Myriophyllum, or Elodea, but watch the state/provincial laws, as these are both considered noxious weed species in many areas. > Placing an air pump constantly producing bubbles won't increase the [CO2]? > Isn't this enough? No, an air pump will drive off any of the dissolved CO2 in the water and only increase O2 content. CO2 has a hard enough time dissolving in water, as it is a gas, so bubbling a mixture is a sure way to make sure you get rid of it all. > > Also, I read that some people use "peat tea" to grow it (because of the > pH), this is, boiling water with some peat. Does this work? What should be > the desired pH, then? With peat tea, it's generally at a pH of 4 or below (depends on how much peat is added). From non-controlled experiments, I can only convey anecdotal information, specifically that it appears to benefit the plants somewhat, but that it isn't absolutely necessary (except in the case of aquatic cp's, where they definitely appreciate it). > > Now, about Utrics and algae... I had some U. gibba and U. vulgaris growing > outdoors, and so, there was lots of algae growing with them. Then, I took > one cutting of each and placed it indoors, at 30 C and plenty of light in a > very small container. Guess what! All the algae died! Not even a little bit > survived! Now, the plants are thriving without any algae (I really mean it, > ALL the algae disappeared!), and growing very, very fast. > Can't this be applied to Aldrovanda? Probably due to low light levels, or simply shock from movement. I'll bet if you leave it for a while, some of the low-light tolerant diatoms will start to grow, although they're not as bothersome as the vaious filamentous algae. As I've said before to people, try it, and if it works for you, then yes, it's a valid growing method! > I heard that this plant can die > because of algae, what if one places it in such an environment? In an algal rich environment or inside in lower light levels? As I said above, try it and see what happens. > > Thanks, > Miguel > Sorry to go on like this, especially about a topic that is marginally related to cp's, although there seems to be interest in it. As I mentioned in another post, try surfing the web, especially looking at the krib which gives tons of information on growing aquatic plants at home. As with most aquatic plants, if you don't take the time to set-up their environment ahead of time, you'll probably lose them in the long run, and I think this is the real key to successfully growing Aldrovanda. Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: Alastair Robinson Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 12:37:39 -0500 Subject: Re: Thanks and questions Hey Christer, Yes, I observed Nepenthes lowii on both Trus Madi and Mulu, as well as Kinabalu. All plants grew in roughly similar conditions, so that can't be of much use to you. I am not aware of any clones of N.lowii that are any more temperature tolerant than the rest, although finding one would be helpful to many. When I went back to Kinabalu last year, I actually found Nepenthes villosa between the Kandis and Ubah shelters - these names may mean nothing to you, but happen to be two of the lowest shelters on the trails - the N.villosa found here, not far off the trail, appears even before N.tentaculata (and kilometers below its normal range). I would entertain that such specimens may be just the ones that might be found to grow more easily in cultivation - however, one mustn't forget that unusual localised conditions (microclimates &c.) may play a part in such occurrences. On a larger scale, take G. Santubong, near Kuching - at 810m, it isn't a very high mountain, but local conditions are such that one is able to find mossy-forest towards its summit where Nn.tentaculata and veitchii are found well below 'normal' altitudes (granted, the latter species does grow in the lowlands in certain areas!). >>N. bicalcarata... I wish I could help, but unfortunately I don't know anyone who grow this species. << Thanks, no problem! It would appear that most growers of this species are in the States, which doesn't help me all that much (UK) - at the moment, it costs a little too much for me around here. >>Where is the best place to go for a beginner (Mt. Kinabalu?)<< If it must be Borneo, then G.Kinabalu is perhaps the best and most accessible mountain you could hope to ascend - offering some obviously fine species. It is actually easier to view Nepenthes in the lowlands where you can rely on luck by trawling rural roadsides in a car (although certain ones such as N.bicalcarata are harder to find like this). Anyway yes, G. Kinabalu is a good beginner's mountain - the climb is comparatively easy if you are fairly active. A little less so if you are not, but by all means still do-able! Anyhow, once there, Nepenthophiles become gripped by this 'force' and seem to be dragged excitedly up the mountain by their belts whether or not their bodies are physically capable of the trek ;) G. Trus Madi and G. Mulu take a little more organising, and are also more difficult, seeing that they are not managed in the same way as G.Kinabalu is. Neither are difficult in the technical sense, but both are rather tiring. The latter, G. Mulu, takes the longest (we spent two nights on the mountain to reach its summit and come back down) to conquer, but is certainly a favourite of mine - quite a fantastic mountain and by all means the most fun. >>when did you arrange/reserve the hikes?<< When I went to Borneo in 1995, I arranged the minutae two or three days beforehand while in Kuala Lumpur, Peninsular Malaysia. In 1998, I did it all from here (London) via the internet about three weeks in advance - several tour groups are online right now, and the rest are almost as reachable by fax and telephone. If you have acquaintances/friends out there, then even better - you may not have to organise anything as they will know best what to do. It is cheaper to arrange the hikes when you are right there, but I wouldn't advise this as you can't guarantee that your attempts will succeed - all in all, the more prudent action is to plan and book everything well in advance - and, if possible, in conjunction with your inward and outward bound flights. Another good place to see Nepenthes is in Peninsular Malaysia. A no fail trip would be to travel to one of the three main highland areas (Cameron Highlands, Genting or Fraser's Hill) where you will find Nn. ramispina , sanguinea and macfarlanei. In the lowlands (you have a choice of the whole country really) you can find Nn. ampullaria (regularly upper-pitchered forms if you travel to Mersing), rafflesiana (several forms), gracilis (several forms), mirabilis and albo-marginata. The latter species has an unusual distribution however - mainly the north and south ends of the western seabord with scattered localities in between. Hope this helps. Regards, Alastair. ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 09:45:26 -0800 (PST) Subject: Ethnobotanical uses for CP Hi Folks, I'm gathering tales of ethnobotanical uses for CP. These will be incorporated into a FAQ entry. (This is inspired by the "Carnivora" propaganda we were all recently spammed with). Any such anecdotes should be directed to me at bazza@ucdavis.edu. Cheers Barry --------------------- Dr. Barry Meyers-Rice bazza@sarracenia.com Carnivorous Plant FAQ--author www.sarracenia.com/faq.html Carnivorous Plant Newsletter--editor www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 18:51:55 Subject: Re: Sterile Drosera hybrids Dear Rich & al., > I gather their is some > controversy here but I'm not sure if you are questioning: > A. the sterility of the plant or > B. the supposition that the plant is a hybrid with the above named > parents. I do not doubt any of the two possibilities above. I only doubt that the plant is sterile *just* because it is a hybrid. I guess it may be sterile due to aneuploidy (the parents perhaps having different chromosome counts). BTW: Several members of Bryastrum that are usually considered "pure" species are apparently sterile as well. > If B, then is it safe to assume that sterility of hybrids is always a > result of differing ploidy? Not always. There are other reasons in many cases. In _D. anglica * rotundifolia_ (the most studied and best known of all sterile _Drosera_ hybrids), however, sterility is rather certainly the result of aneuploidy and *not* merely a result of its hybrid nature. Kind regards Jan ################### From: dfung@hamber.vsb.bc.ca Date: 22 Feb 1999 10:47:36 EDT Subject: Re: Sphagnum Peat from Home Depot Canadian peat moss in California is likely to have come from British Columbia while that in Florida is probably from eastern Canada. The peat bog that produces "Sunshine Brand" peat moss is just south of Vancouver and does contain bits of twigs and sticks. Just adjacent to the peat mining operations is a huge natural bog which is the home of Drosera rotundifolia, Drosera anglica and Drosera obovata. Other than some aquatic utrics, Pinguicula vulgaris, Pinguicula macrocerus and the most westernly colony of Sarracenia purpurea, these are the only CP's found in Western Canada. -Doug Fung ################### From: caroline Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 12:31:28 -0800 (PST) XSubject: Re: Sphagnum Peat from Home Depot I recently got an analysis if my city's water, which is supposed to be the purest in the state of Oregon. Chemicals in our water include: Nitrate 0.1 mg/l Sulfate 0.3 mg/l Sodium 2.8 mg/l Chloroform .0048 mg/l No other chemicals were detected, and Chlorine wasn't mentioned in the report. What chemicals in city water are harmful for cp's? Does Chlorine really evaporate off? Would you give your cp's this water? I look forward to hearing from ya all. Caroline ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 16:13:35 -0500 Subject: Taylor County CP hunt Jay L. and I went searching in Taylor County, Georgia (USA), for what some call the ancestral Sarracenia rubra this past weekend. While I'm not sure about Jay all I found was a bunch of scratches on my body from all the brambles and bushes we had to wade through. We did run across a cluster of Pinguicula growing along the raised banks of a tiny stream. These were the only cp's we saw that day and to my surprise when we got back to the car to check Don's book on location of US temperate pings, his maps did not show any pings extending that far inland into Georgia. For those not familiar with the Southern US, several temperate pings exist along the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama and further along the gulf coast. But Don's maps show them as being fairly close to the ocean. Taylor County borders what we call here in Georgia the fall line, which separates the sandy coastal plains from the hilly, clay-based piedmont. The coast is probably another 2 to 3 hours by speeding car. I plan to go back when they flower and then again when seed are ready so hopefully the mystery will be solved if my timing is right. I guess I should tell you that they look like lutea/primulaflora/caerulea type, although I think Jay said that the leaves were not long enough for primulaflora. Jay and I talked about why people were calling Taylor County rubra as ancestral. Anyone know how that name got started and whether or not the difference in morphology warrants the distinction? David Atlanta P.S. A bit of humor: as we were walking down the roadside, a car pulled into the driveway of an abandoned house and a tough looking little guy got out and asked, "Who y'all represent." Since Jay is technically a Yankee, I took over, this being my part of the world and seeing how I can say y'all without blinking an eye (or really thinking about it twice.) When I told him we were looking for plants, there was a look of ...... well, you can imagine.... somewhere being puzzlement and did I hear you right. Jay produced his camera, I said I grew up in South Carolina, and we had a nice conversation. He told us that the lady who owned the abandoned house had been having trouble with a neighbor over land rights, and he was making sure we were not part of the other side. I thought things were going real well until he turned around to point out some mature white cedars, and I saw the gun in his back pocket. The thought of running flashed and was quickly discarded. Jay had the keys. I got real busy proving we were looking for plants and pulled out Don's book and showed him S. alata. The more we talked about plants or rather the more we listened to the local dispute, the friendlier he became. I have his phone number and an invitation to come back once I talk to the owner. ################### From: "Adao Pereira" Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 21:46:30 -0000 Subject: Aldrovanda culture, Utricularia and algae Hi Chris and all! Thank you for your help! Any further discussion on this will be welcome, too! > > Now, about Utrics and algae... I had some U. gibba and U. vulgaris growing > > outdoors, and so, there was lots of algae growing with them. Then, I took > > one cutting of each and placed it indoors, at 30 C and plenty of light in a > > very small container. Guess what! All the algae died! Not even a little bit > Probably due to low light levels, or simply shock from movement. > I'll bet if you leave it for a while, some of the low-light tolerant > diatoms will start to grow, although they're not as bothersome as the No, no, the light level is rather high! I'm using a halogen lamp! The container is completely closed, so it can be the lack of CO2 or something... I don't know. What I know is that they've been growing for more than two months in these conditions, and the Utrics thrive while the algae don't even appear. > In an algal rich environment or inside in lower light levels? As > I said above, try it and see what happens. In 30 C and lots of light... I'll try it anyway. I mean, no, I won't! The plant likes partial shade... Thanks again! Good growing, Miguel ################### From: "Mellichamp, T. Larry" Date: Mon, 22 Feb 1999 19:57:53 -0500 Subject: RE:Aldrovanda culture In response to inquiry from : "Adao Pereira" I grew some Aldrovanda beautifully here in Charlotte, NC during summer of 1999. I placed the just-growing plants in a 3' diameter (3 feet deep as well) tank of aquatic plants (Including Pickerel-weed, Utricularia gibba, and bull-rushes). Air temps during summer ranged from 85-95 deg F, falling to 70 at night. Water temp would have been WARM. The water was a combination of rain water, and our city water with pH of 8. Our water quality is very good. Algae growth was minor. The Aldrovanda plants grew in open water AND in about 1" water ABOVE the layer of Utricularia (we kept filling the tank as water went down, and the Utric stayed lower in the water). The Aldrovanda grew very fast, constantly forking, and breaking into separate plants. By summer's end we had a dozen or more separate plants 1-4 inches long. The plants flowered several times, and seemed to make seeds pods. In fall they formed dormant turions and sank to the bottom of the tank. We will see if they come back this spring. There were a few minnows also in the tank, and snails. In all it seemed a balanced situation. I had read that the conditions for Aldrovanda were exacting, so I was surprised to get such good success with so little effort on my part. Larry Mellichamp Biology Dept. UNC Charlotte Charlotte, NC 28223 Email tlmellic@email.uncc.edu "Be nice - have you given your pitcher plant a bug today" ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 08:34:40 Subject: temperate pings Dear David, > For those not familiar with the Southern US, several temperate pings exist > along the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, > Alabama and further along the gulf coast. The *temperate* _Pinguicula_ species found in the USA are _P. vulgaris_ and _P. macroceras_. These do not exist (AFAIK) in the subtropical regions you mentioned above. The species you meant are termed "coastal plain species" or SE US species, botanists refer to them as subgen. Isoloba (the temperate species above belong to subgen. Pinguicula). Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Malesiana Tropicals" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 17:13:00 +0800 Subject: Re: N. merrilliana Trent (and anyone else interested in N. merrilliana), Thought I might add a few more comments on the culture of this species while the topic is still hot... Tom's description of the plant's natural habitat was very accurate; I visited the site several years ago and was amazed at the unusual laterite soil they were growing in. One observation I'd like to add is that this region in coastal Mindanao can experience a considerable dry season (up to several months long) during which very little rain falls. The soil surface at this time can become very dry and hot. Perhaps to compensate for this, N. merrilliana seems to develop an unusually deep root system - it is possible that the plants are able to tap moisture several feet beneath the soil surface. It is thus not suprising that most of the problems people have had with growing N. merrilliana have been due to rotten roots. Any plant that is adapted for a dry climate (or season) will obviously have trouble dealing with excess moisture. It is possible that N. merrilliana is very sensitive in this manner. My solution for the this has been to water my plants less frequently than for other Nepenthes (about once a week), allowing the media to intermittently dry out. I also keep them in large pots (I have my biggest in a 10-gallon deep terracotta pot). The results so far have been great: my two largest plants (3 years old) are over 2-feet in diameter (leaf span), and are sporting larger and larger pitchers with each new leaf. Still a far cry from the 40+cm pitchers in the wild, but satisfying nonetheless! I hope this helps, and would be keen to hear from other growers who have tried similar methods. Best regards, Ch'ien Lee Kuching, Sarawak ################### From: "James D Annan" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 09:43:14 +0000 Subject: UK sources? Hello, I am new to the list and have only a couple of CPs (the ubiquitous VFT and a sarracenia purpurea). I actually found this list while I was desparately trying to save their lives, but some helpful advice from elsewhere seemed to do the trick before I got round to posting... Anyway, the point of my post is to ask for any recommended UK suppliers for CPs. I have a small pond and I'm looking for things that will cope with the british climate (as well as maybe something interesting for a windowsill). There seem to be several species which would do, but where can I get them? Thanks, James Annan ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 07:36:12 -0500 Subject: RE: temperate pings darnit. English continues to fool me. or maybe I should say science. > -----Original Message----- > From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de > [SMTP:SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de] > Sent: Tuesday, February 23, 1999 2:42 AM > To: Multiple recipients of list > Subject: temperate pings > > Dear David, > > > For those not familiar with the Southern US, several temperate pings > exist > > along the coasts of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, > > Alabama and further along the gulf coast. > > The *temperate* _Pinguicula_ species found in the USA are _P. > vulgaris_ and _P. macroceras_. These do not exist (AFAIK) in the > subtropical regions you mentioned above. The species you meant are > termed "coastal plain species" or SE US species, botanists refer to > them as subgen. Isoloba (the temperate species above belong to > subgen. Pinguicula). > > Kind regards > Jan ################### From: "Marek Sv\mtek" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 14:46:12 +0100 Subject: Re: N. ampullaria problem Toto je vmcedmlna zprava ve tvaru MIME. --------------68DF9D3B5D3BDA860A371218 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit > Hi List, > > A few months ago I bought a N. ampullaria plant through the mail. > After it arrived, it was exposed to unacceptably low humidity > for several days. The pitchers whithered and the leaves started > to turn brown. I finally found a clear plastic container large > enough to house it in. Now, a couple months later, the plant still > lives, but just barely. The two remaining leaves still have some > green in them, and the stem looks relatively healthy, but the > growing point has dried up and is not putting off any new foliage. I > smeared some shoot-ez hormone wax on the stem where the dormant buds > should emerge, but nothing has happened so far. Does anybody have > an idea how I can bring it back to health? Thanks in advance for > any advice, > > Nile Smith Hi Nile, I supposed you should replant your plant. It is very probably some damage of root system. Try all the plant carefully extract from the planting medium. Clean roots, cut dead and putrescent roots or a part of the stem and the rest spray with some stimulator. Then put the plant into the new planting medium, which should be airy e. g. the orchid substrate. You can cover the pot with a plastic bag to maintain high humidity. Then put the pot into an aquarium or greenhouse. The plants need a lot light. Many successes, Marek Sv\355tek --------------68DF9D3B5D3BDA860A371218 Content-Type: text/x-vcard; charset=us-ascii; name="vcard.vcf" Content-Description: Vizitka Marek Sv\355tek,MUDr. Content-Disposition: attachment; filename="vcard.vcf" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit begin: vcard fn: Marek Sv\355tek,MUDr. n: Sv\355tek,MUDr.;Marek org: KAR VFN adr;dom: Bolonsk\341 309/25;;;Praha 10;Czech Republic;109 00; email;internet: msvitek@vfn.cz tel;work: 02/24962243 x-mozilla-cpt: ;-1 x-mozilla-html: FALSE version: 2.1 end: vcard --------------68DF9D3B5D3BDA860A371218-- ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 10:28:34 -0500 Subject: Drosera hybrid Jay L was looking at D. brevifolia from Hampstead (I forget the source) and said that he thought it was a hybrid between brevifolia and capillaris because (1) two inflorescences arose from the same plant, (2) the inflorescences were much taller than expected for brevifolia. To add a little more to the description, the plants are large for brevifolia, the inflorescence has dew along the entire length of the inflorescence, and the plant has more of a petiole than I would expect for brevifolia. I could take measurements if that would help. Does anyone know whether or not the hybrid for capillaris x brevifolia would have dew? Are there other characteristics I could look for that would help in determining whether or not it's brevifolia or a hybrid? Remember, I'm taxonomically challenged. David Atlanta ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 17:32:51 Subject: Re: Drosera hybrid Dear David, Fernando, & al. > To add a little more to the description, the plants are large for > brevifolia, the inflorescence has dew along the entire length of the > inflorescence, and the plant has more of a petiole than I would expect for > brevifolia. I could take measurements if that would help. How do the seeds look like? Do they have the distinct papillae of _D. capillaris_? How do the stipules look like? _D. brevifolia_ does only have two deciduous lateral setae (looking like hairs but distinct from the likewise present, thinner hairs) at the base of the leaf, while _D. capillaris_ has a well developed, clearly visible (lens!) stipule at the upper (adaxial) surface of the petiole base. > Does anyone know whether or not the hybrid for capillaris x brevifolia would > have dew? The leaves should of course have dew (mucilage) on the glands. The scape would probably be glandular as well. Even _D. capillaris_ is not entirely glabrous, it frequently has minute (lens/microscope!) glands on the scape. > Are there other characteristics I could look for that would help > in determining whether or not it's brevifolia or a hybrid? Which plants (particularly, which species of _Drosera_) are growing nearby? How large is the population? How many such populations are known? Fernando: Have you seen such intermediate plants where the two species occur together in Brazil? al.: Has anyone on this list seen other populations of a possible _D. brevifolia * capillaris_ hybrid anywhere? Outside the USA it should also be possible in Mexico, Belize, Cuba, and Brazil (perhaps also elsewhere). Several years ago, I have seen a cultivated plant (not in flower, unfortunately) that was named "Drosera notholeuris" (invalid name). The plant was from the Botanical Gardens of Padova, Italy (I do not know if it was originated there). It could have been an artificial hybrid involving the two parents above. Does anyone know something about these plants? TNX in advance for your help. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 12:18:21 -0500 Subject: Re: N. ampullaria problem ---------- > The two remaining leaves still have some > green in them, and the stem looks relatively healthy, but the > growing point has dried up and is not putting off any new foliage. I > smeared some shoot-ez hormone wax on the stem where the dormant buds > should emerge, but nothing has happened so far. Does anybody have > an idea how I can bring it back to health? N. ampullaria does not like low humidity. I've killed ampullarias by repotting them at the wrong time. I have found (the hard way) that summer, when humidity is high and days are long, is the only time to disturb an ampullaria's root system. My advice is to leave it along. Keep humidity at a constant 80 percent, and avoid temperatures below about 65 degrees F, cross your fingers and it should slowly make a comeback. Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 13:39:59 PST Subject: Neblina Expedition part 2 .......... As we continued up the mountain, through the delicately beautiful and even somewhat mysterious and spooky fairy tale-like cloudforest, with its short trees drapped in dripping mosses which serve as soil for numerous larger epiphytes, we found plenty of U.alpina on tree trunks and even two plants in flower in sunnier spots.The flowers were white, but one was very lightly shaded in lilac. All HUGE!. Higher up along the trail, as the trees became shorter and more sunlight could get through, we came upon a huge bromeliad at ground level. In it, our 2nd CP: U.humboldtii. Only leaves though, no flowers. We began looking around for more, in hopes of seeing the beautiful flowers of this species. Sure enough we found one, but curiously this was inside a large bromeliad stuck up high on a tree, one of many bromeliad-covered trees around us. I don\222t know if this is common, but I don\222t remember ever reading about or hearing of U.humboldtii growing inside bromeliads which in turn were growing on trees. An epiphyte of another epiphyte! Our next discovery was the red jewel, U.campbelliana, with its large orange-red flowers out of proportion with the rest of the small plant. What a beauty! At around 2000m, we reached a hilly plateau with short vegetation. Initially, it seemed like the only species up there was the large bromeliad Brocchinia tatei, a whole \223plantation\224 of it, and absolutely packed with U.humboldtii. We were soon tired of U.humboldtii flowers, believe it or not. The bromeliads thinned out somewhat further along th trail, giving space to other short Bonnetia sp. trees, Stegolepis(?) sp., and plenty of D.roraimae and U.quelchii growing in black and deep muddy-peaty soil. The local D.roraimae was very different from the more commonly know form found in the Venezuelan Gran Sabana, having shorter petioles, wider lamina, and erect (not ascending) flower scapes. U.quelchii on the other hand had bright dark-pink flowers, instead of the usual red color. I think I remember seeing such flowers in photos by Shibata-san taken in the more western tepuys. But where were the Heliamphora?!?!?! I think I heard that question from each and every group member as they arrived at what would be our camp for the following few days at 2000m. We thought we\222d be seeing Helis all over once we reached this open, high altitude vegetation, but there were no signs of any. I was more worried about D.meristocaulis however, of which there was also no sign. Where could they both be? I went for a short hike before sunset around the camp, but found neither species. The following day we woke up to our first view of the actual summit of Neblina, rising dramatically like a giant needle piercing the sky, reminding me of the Matterhorn without any snow. What a view! But how the hell were we supposed to climb that thing, I wondered. It seemed impossible! Well, we had no intention of climbing it that same day, especially because we had no guides. They both left that morning and went down to where we\222d camped the night before to pick up some important things we\222d left behind -- that is, which they\222d refused to carry up the mountain, complaining that they were too heavy! They\222d only be back later the following day. So for two whole days of hiking we were stuck with the 3 Indian porters for guides, and they spoke very little Portuguese. Actually, they understood me well, but were very shy to speak and hardly ever made any sense of themselves. It seemed like they\222d always answer yes to whatever I asked. \223So is the left trail the one that goes up Neblina?\224 \223Yes.\224 \223But isn\222t Neblina over to the right?\224 \223Yes.\224 \223So isn\222t the trail to the right the one that goes to Neblina?\224 \223Yes.\224 AAAARGH!!!! On our first day we concentrated on simply exploring our surroundings, hoping that we\222d find the right habitats for Heliamphora (and D.meristocaulis). We hiked around all day along the muddy trails, including over an hour\222s walk through thick cloudforest when we accidentally strayed off a trail, having to slowly and laboriously open up a new trail with a machete. The vegetation was really beautiful all around and we saw lots of CPs, including a new species of Drosera with small rosettes and large white flowers on long scapes -- somewhat reminiscent of a D.brevifolia X D.montana cross. But no Heliamphora nor D.meristocaulis!!!! That night we all set our alarms to wake up just before midnight, to welcome the new year. Only none of us woke up! We were simply too exausted from all the hiking and from waking up every morning at 6am to the cries of our guide Branco shouting \223Al-voraaaaaaaa-DA!!\224 (= DAWN!!). So the arrival of 1999 was celebrated with a flare in the morning.... and with the magnificent CPs found later that day. On that first day of the new year we hiked for about an hour in a new direction. All of a sudden we finally found Heliamphora! They just popped up in a habitat that seemed no different from dozens of others we\222d seen the previous 2 days. Under the semi-shade of short Bonnetia sp. trees and among bushes and grasses, there were some large green clumps in boggy/peaty black soil. Yet it wasn\222t H.tatei var.neblinae, but a smaller species possibly closer to H.ionasii, according to the German Heli specialists present. The short pitchers up to around 15cm had wide mouths and coarse hairs in the throat. Only one old scape was found, no flowers or seeds. But a bit further ahead along the trail there was another small group of this Heli, this time with green seed pods. We then spent some time exploring different bifurcations of the trail, giving up on any attempts to make sense out of the Indian porter accompanying us. We headed along a new route which seemed to become even boggier than previous trails, if that was at all possible. At least once one of us had to be pulled out of the mud! At one spot we stopped to rest and let the others catch up. As our eyes wandered around in constant search of CPs, but suddenly fixed on a specific spot. \223What is that mound?\224 \223I see a Heli on it!\224 \223I see many Helis on it!\224 It was hard to believe what our eyes were making out and we had to walk up to it before we realized that the whole mound was one mother of a huge Heliamphora clump! It was the same unidentified species -- which we\222re calling H.sp.\224Neblina\224 -- and there were pitchers EVERYWHERE (as well as a few scapes with green seed pods) forming a massive mound up to around 1.75m high and over twice as wide at the base!!! It was simply incredible! Like small trees are often found sticking out through termite mounds constructed around them, a Bonnetia pierced the Heliamphora hill, which was also dotted here and there with D.roraimae and other small herbs growing on the dead organic matter accumulated between and beneath the Heli leaves. There were even some large Brocchinia tatei at the base of the \223Heli hill\224containing U.humboldtii. It was anyone\222s dream CP \223garden\224! How had this previously unrecorded phenomenon come into existence? Could it have originated from a single plant which went wildly crestate in its past? Eventually we were able to drag ourselves away from this heavenly vision. Not much further on, H.sp.\224Neblina\224 was suddenly all over the boggy ground, forming dense mats. And then, as we entered a habitat which I won\222t describe for security reasons, there was H.tatei var.neblinae!!!! We\222d found it at last! An area of approximately 200 X 50m was covered in H.tatei clumps in flower. What fascinated us all, more than the size and beauty of H.tatei var.neblinae, was the incredible variability. Each clump seemed to be a completely different species! There were all sorts of variations from long thin pitchers to short fat pitchers, all green (to spotted) to all red, small lids to big lids, long tongue-like lids to rounded lids, stems invisible underground to visible above ground (either lying over the soil or leaning on surrounding vegetation for support -- reaching 1.5m in height!), throat hairs absent to thin and numerous to coarse and scarce, green tepals or red tepals, and so on. It was just mind-boggling! I had to keep reminding myself that some of the large clones with large lids were *NOT* Sarracenia! To me it all of a sudden seemed like any attempts to understand Heliamphora taxonomy was a useless task. There was obviously some hybridization going on there between H.tatei and H.sp.\224Neblina\224, but it seemed impossible to determine what was \223pure\224 H.tatei -- if any even existed there at all -- and how much influence of each species was in each of the many different clones observed. Taxonomic hell!! At the end of the day we all agreed that it was the best start of a new year we\222d ever had. By the time I was able to drag our German friends -- and their tripods -- away from this site, it was already very late in the afternoon. We only arrived back at camp after dark, exausted, but fulfilled.... except for one detail: WHERE THE HELL WAS D.MERISTOCAULIS?!?!?!?! From the habitat descriptions I had, it was supposed to be common in areas such as where we found H.tatei. I searched all over, while everyone else photographed H.tatei, but found nothing. I couldn\222t believe it! Where were they??? Could it be my partial color blindness which makes it difficult for me to spot those Drosera? No, D.meristocaulis was too big a species to be easily missed. And with its long compact stem it surely isn\222t an annual. So we were either in the wrong place or D.meristocaulis had simply gone extinct there. DAMMIT!!! ............ Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 15:31:22 PST Subject: Sundew Breeding (Capensis + n) I was wondering if anyone has been able to cross capensis with other sundews to create some interesting hybrids. I'm hoping to capture the vigorous weed-like nature of capensis in perhaps some other drosera species. If anyone has done any experimentation with this or could share experiences with me I'd be grateful. ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 18:03:52 -0700 Subject: Re: Sundew Breeding (Capensis + n) On Tue, 23 Feb 1999 "Chris Hind" writes: >I was wondering if anyone has been able to cross capensis with other >sundews to create some interesting hybrids. D. capensis x D. aliciae makes an attractive and vigorous plant. Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ________________________________________________________________ Get secure free e-mail that you don't need Web access to use from Juno, the world's second largest online service. Download your free software at http://www.juno.com/getit.b.html. ################### From: "David Bradley" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 12:26:38 +1100 Subject: Sarracenaia rubra subspecies' status Hello all My interest in the Sarracenia rubra subspecies complex has been growing oner the last few months, and I am wanting to know what the current status of the various subspecies would be at this moment in time? I am aware that Don Schnell is the expert and has undertaken a great deal of research on this group of plants, but has any recent findings or reshufling of the subspecies been made known? The S. rubra ssp that goes by the name 'ancestral form', does anyone know when this was named and exactly why? Furthermore, has the record been set straight with the beautiful S. rubra ssp. alabamensis? What I mean is, has it been given separate species status, or has the firm decision been toward the rubra ssp.? If anything has changed, where does the S. rubra ssp. wherryi fit into the scheme of things? I have seen it touted as the ssp. of S. rubra ssp. alabamensis in a few articles. Any insight into the S. rubra complex would be much appreciated. Nathan J. Clemens sundew@mitmania.net.au ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 17:32:18 PST Subject: Utrics and Halogen lights > > Probably due to low light levels, or simply shock from >movement. > > I'll bet if you leave it for a while, some of the low-light >tolerant > > diatoms will start to grow, although they're not as bothersome as >the > > >No, no, the light level is rather high! I'm using a halogen lamp! >The > >container is completely closed, so it can be the lack of CO2 or > >something... I don't know. What I know is that they've been growing > >for > >more than two months in these conditions, and the Utrics thrive >while > the > >algae don't even appear. > > Yeah i noticed the same thing. I got some unknown aquatic utric at the > lacps meeting in december and it got lots of algae in it when exposed to > daylight but thrived under a halogen reading light i have. If i recall > correctly halogen is rich in red light? Most CPs dont like halogen. > Currently im trying to get the stuff growing in my CP water trays, > it'd be nice to make the most of the space i have. ################### From: "Richard Brown" Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 22:16:44 -0500 Subject: Re: N. merrilliana ---------- Ch'ien, Thanks for your input! What is the medium you use to grow N. merrilliana? Trent Meeks Pompano Beach, Florida > It is thus not suprising that most of the problems people have had with > growing N. merrilliana have been due to rotten roots. Any plant that is > adapted for a dry climate (or season) will obviously have trouble > dealing with excess moisture. It is possible that N. merrilliana is > very sensitive in this manner. My solution for the this has been to > water my plants less frequently than for other Nepenthes (about once a > week), allowing the media to intermittently dry out. I also keep them > in large pots (I have my biggest in a 10-gallon deep terracotta pot). ################### From: "Nigel Hurneyman" Date: 24 Feb 99 11:06:52 +0000 Subject: Miscellaneous (some off-topic) Equal ploidy doesn't guarantee fertility in a hybrid (for the same reason that we should be worried about inadequately tested GM food). Both parents of 'Lake Badgerup' set seed unaided, whereas I have never managed to get seed from the hybrid even with a bit of help. Graham Sadd, of the UK CPS, was going to try one of those chemicals that induce multiple ploidy (sorry, hope I got the right termonology) in an attempt to get seed from 'Lake Badgerup' - does anyone know whether he succeeded. Jan, is Drosera citrina fertile? My plants are on loan to a photographer to have their flowers photographed, but when they come back I will get my paintbrush out . Martin Zevenbergen, did you do a chromosome count on D occidentalis? It wasn't in the list you sent me. Is the USA the only country where it is illegal to walk anywhere? Larry, congratulations on your success with Aldrovanda in the summer of 1999. As happens all too often with British weather, I must have blinked and missed our summer! Regards, NigelH ################### From: "Kitt" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 07:10:38 -0500 Subject: Peat/Sand I excavated a small site for a bog area last fall, but didn't get finished before cold weather hit, so I overwintered some Sarracenia and Dionaea in large rubbermaid containers which were placed in the excavation and surrounded by mulch. I tried to figure out the best sand to use in the recommended 50/peat 50/sand mix, and experimented in the different containers. Filter sand and Play sand from Walmart and a Home Depot product were used. I've still no clue which one is the "sharp" sand all the faqs refer to. It's now time to fill in the 4' x 9' bog area and I'd like to be certain I use the correct sand. Can anyone point me in the right direction please? Thank you kindly. @. .@ kitt@kaboodle.com (\- -/) Scenic Calhoun Georgia..... (.>__<.) .....it's not near anything ^^^ ^^^ He who can laugh at himself has an endless source of amusement ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 07:05:42 -0500 Subject: RE: Miscellaneous (some off-topic) >Is the USA the only country where it is illegal to walk anywhere? great big belly laugh. Depends how you talk. Someone from northern New Jersey would need to keep their mouth shut (for once) were they to walk in some parts of the deep South. David Atlanta, which is no longer the deep South ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 07:28:30 -0500 Subject: RE: Peat/Sand >Can anyone point me in the right direction please? Ron Detterman (and I believe Bob Hanrahan) recommended construction sand but I've yet to make the effort to locate a source in Atlanta. I already have a pile of granite grit in the front yard and another pile might end in divorce. I've used play sand from Home Depot and that seems to work fine. Or rather, I should say, I'm not noticing mass die-off. I checked into filter sand at one time but that was too expensive. David Atlanta ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 14:19:09 Subject: Re: Miscellaneous (none off-topic) Dear Nigel & al., > Equal ploidy doesn't guarantee fertility in a hybrid But if the parents are of equal ploidy, the chances for fertile offspring are greater (at least in _Drosera_). > Both parents of 'Lake Badgerup' set seed unaided, This is no convincing proof for equal ploidy. So far, the numbers 6, 7(!), 8, 10, 12, 14, 18, 28, and 64 (plus "20-22" and "28-34") have been reported for subgen. Bryastrum alone. BTW: If they are able to form a viable hybrid (whether sterile or not but at least existing), I would expect both parents to be rather fertile. > whereas I have > never managed to get seed from the hybrid even with a bit of help. This would not be too surprising if _D. occidentalis_ had a chromosome count different from 28, which is (v.s.) not entirely unlikely. Anyway, we need a count for the _D. occidentalis_ parent (a plant from the type locality of the hybrid!) of _D. *badgerupii_. Otherwise, any discussion of the topic is of limited value. > Martin Zevenbergen, did you do a chromosome count on D occidentalis? > It wasn't in the list you sent me. Is this list available somewhere? Where? > Jan, is Drosera citrina fertile? My plants are on loan to a > photographer to have their flowers photographed, but when they come > back I will get my paintbrush out . I am not sure. There were seeds (unfortunately, I do not recall the source) labeled "D. rechingeri" (the species Allen Lowrie confused with _D. citrina_ before 1992, and the only name under which he and others sold _D. citrina_ until that date; the true _D. rechingeri_ was exclusively available under the bogus name "Coolamon"). I took these for seeds of _D. citrina_ in my description of D. chrysochila (a few-days-later synonym of _D. citrina_). In his discussion of this species in CPN, Martin Cheek (Hi, Martin!) mentioned that _D. citrina_ was sterile. So I am no longer convinced the seeds were identified correctly (they never germinated). Kind regards Jan ################### From: Brewer Charles E PHDN Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 10:01:56 -0500 Subject: RE: Peat/Sand As far as sand goes, try your local pool company. Most of the sand they sell for pool filters is semi course Silica Sand. If this sand is silica, use a mask when dumping it out of the bag or better yet, wet it down to keep the dust from getting into your lungs. Another place to look for sand(silica sand) is your local sand blasting company. They sell different grades of sand for about $6.00 per 100 pound bags. Hope this helps. Charles Brewer, Va. Beach, Va. > I excavated a small site for a bog area last fall, but didn't get finished > before cold weather hit, so I overwintered some Sarracenia and Dionaea > in large rubbermaid containers which were placed in the excavation and > surrounded by mulch. > > I tried to figure out the best sand to use in the recommended > 50/peat 50/sand mix, and experimented in the different containers. > Filter sand and Play sand from Walmart and a Home Depot product were used. > I've still no clue which one is the "sharp" sand all the faqs refer to. > > It's now time to fill in the 4' x 9' bog area and I'd like to be certain I > use the > correct sand. Can anyone point me in the right direction please? > Thank you kindly. > > @. .@ kitt@kaboodle.com > (\- -/) Scenic Calhoun Georgia..... > (.>__<.) .....it's not near anything > ^^^ ^^^ > He who can laugh at himself has an endless source of amusement ################### From: "Nathan A. Goins" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 09:23:17 -0600 Subject: Re: Peat/Sand Kitt wrote: > I tried to figure out the best sand to use in the recommended > 50/peat 50/sand mix, and experimented in the different containers. > Filter sand and Play sand from Walmart and a Home Depot product were used. > I've still no clue which one is the "sharp" sand all the faqs refer to. I belive sharp sand is "chunky" sand. Check your hardware stores for blasting sand. It contains sand that's between 2-4 mm, and that's what you are looking for. Nathan Zone 8b, San Antonio TX ################### From: "Douglas W. Darnowski" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 09:45:09 -0500 Subject: Roridula dentata Question re seedlings: What are the approximate dimensions of the cotyledons and hypocotyl of seedlings of Roridula dentata? Thanks, Doug Darnowski ****************************************************************************** ****************************************************************************** Douglas Darnowski Department of Crop Sciences 384 ERML 1201 West Gregory Drive University of Illinois Urbana IL 61801 work ph: (217) 244-6150 fx: (217) 333-4777 home ph: (217) 356-6606 fx: (217) 356-4454 email: darnowsk@staff.uiuc.edu ################### From: "Semanchuk, Phil J" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 13:25:07 -0500 Subject: RE: Peat/Sand > I tried to figure out the best sand to use in the > recommended 50/peat 50/sand mix, and experimented in > the different containers. I use sandblasting sand that I buy in 50 pound bags at Home Depot. I prefer it to the stuff that comes in bags marked "Play Sand" because the sandblasting sand is much finer (smaller grained) and that seems closer to the sand I've seen in the field. Definitely wear a mask, this stuff is dusty. > I've still no clue which one is the "sharp" sand all > the faqs refer to. Can't help you with that. Good growing, Philip URL du Jour: http://www.turbotax.com/webturbotax/welcome.html ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 10:31:02 -0800 (PST) Subject: Burns Bog update and letters (fwd) Hi all, I'm forwarding the following info which may be of interest to cp'ers and conservationists alike. Sorry for any intrusion. For a bit of history, Burn's Bog is one of western Canada's largest bogs. The majority of it is privately owned, and for years, cranberry farming, peat mining, and refuse dumping has occurred on this site. Only a small portion is preserved, and as usual in a large city like Vancouver, and undeveloped property is in high demand for development. It's developments like this which have led to destruction of cp sites all across the world. While Burn's Bog is not cp rich (Drosera rotundifolia and some Utric species occur here), it does contain numerous other plants and animals, some endangered. So, if you have the time, please write one of the following people (at the bottom of the forwarded message). Maybe if they see some global concern, they'll start to think more of the bog. Thanks, and again, sorry for interrupting! Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Although the proposal by the Provincial government to develop Burns Bog as a new PNE <> site has been scrapped, Delta Fraser Properties is still committed to development. According to Eliza Olson, one of its latest alternative proposals is to mine the sand from underneath the clay bed of the bog, again destroying the site. It seems to me that if ever there was a time to voice one's support for the protection of a natural area, this is it. This place is a gem, right in our own back yard, and left to us only by the good fortune of past history. The bog has tremendous aesthetic, ecological and educational value to the lower mainland, and in fact the world, as it is on of the only estuarine bogs of its kind. So consider writing a letter to the addresses below and show some support. The developers are on their heels and now is the critical time to finally get the Bog protected. Hon. Cathy McGregor BC Minister of the Environment Parliament Buildings Victoria, BC V8V 1X4 Hon. Ian Waddell BC Minister of Small Business Tourism and Culture (same address as above) Gordon Campbell Leader of the Official Opposition (Same address as above) Hon. Christine Stewart Federal Minister of the Environment House of Commons Ottawa ON K1A 0A6 Delta Council and Mayor Beth Johnson Corporation of Delta 4500 Clarence Taylor Crescent Delta BC V4K 3E2 <> Other events to be aware of: 1) the Burns Bog Conservation Society is hosting a benefit banquet with a lecture by internationally renowned British naturalist David Bellamy this coming Saturday, Feb 27th at the Sundance Banquet Hall in Ladner. Tickets are $27 for members and students, $35 for non members. Call 572-0373. 2) There is going to be an outdoor event at the Bog on Sunday the 28th starting at 12:30pm. I'll send more details later. Thanks, Chris ################### From: JDPDX@aol.com Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 13:45:58 EST Subject: Plants for sale For those in the Pacific Northwest, I will have many plants for sale this Saturday and Sunday at the Exotic Animal and Pet Expo at the Washington County Fairgrounds in Hillsboro, Oregon. The Expo is from 10:00-5:00 on February 27th and 28th. Most of the stuff I have is mainstream CP; most Sarracenia, common Drosera, a couple of Nepenthes and a couple Pinguicula species and Flytraps. Hope to see you there! Jeff Dallas Sarracenia Northwest Portland,OR ################### From: "Adao Pereira" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 19:42:10 -0000 Subject: Halogen lamps and CP Hello Chris and all, > > Yeah i noticed the same thing. I got some unknown aquatic utric at the > > lacps meeting in december and it got lots of algae in it when exposed > to > > daylight but thrived under a halogen reading light i have. If i > recall > > correctly halogen is rich in red light? Most CPs dont like halogen. What do you mean? They don't like it? I've had the better success on gerninating CP seeds under halogen lights! I had some Genlisea seeds which were standing for 2 months without any growth. As soon as I placed them under halogen, lots of seeds grew in few days! Then, I tried the same method with Darlingtonia, Sarracenias and VFTs and they germed in one week without stratification! At the moment, they're still under halogen and the strange thing is that Darlingtonia, which hates heat, seems to be thriving although the temperature (due to the halogen) exceeds 30 C !! BTW, thanks, Larry for sharing your Aldrovanda experiences! Good growing to all! Miguel ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 20:58:32 +0000 Subject: Synonyms Probably a question for Jan (Hi Jan! Hope life is good.) but anyone else who knows can answer. It's partly with regard to Jan's electronic World List of CP on the WEB and partly as a general query regarding the rules of naming plants. Question: If a plant name, for instance one with a delightful pseudo-latin name the Victorians were so attracted to, differs (in name only) from the published plant synonyms only by the presence or absence of a final duplicated letter, does this make it a new synonym? For example, would chelsoni (with one i) and chelsonii (with two i's) count as the same or different synonyms? And if they are the same, why? Sorry to ask such a boring question but I really do want to know! And for pineckety readers, yes I know the apostrophe (e.g. i's) is misplaced but try writing the sentence otherwise!!! Regards Paul ################### From: Bruce Salmon Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 09:40:12 +1300 Subject: N. merrilliana It's summer here in NZ and my N. merrilliana is growing strongly and pitchering well and is permanently wet from overhead sprinklers. It's still a seedling approx 8cm across. Temps are... Day 30C Night 20C Humidity... Day 70-80%RH Mix... 5 parts vermiculite, 5 parts pummice sand, 2 parts peat, 1 part fine bark. Hope this helps Bruce ################### From: Bruce Salmon Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 09:50:56 +1300 Subject: D. pygmaea retentive glands Dear All I was playing with my D. pygmaea (NZ green form) under a stereo microscope as I was doing some drawings of it for my upcoming book on NZ CPs. I noticed that when I agitated the tips of the glands with my pencil they would move rapidly (3-4sec) towards the middle of the leaf. They would move through about 130 degrees from their previous horozontal position. The next row of shorter glands also bent when agitated but not as much. I will try this experiment on other native species and let you know if I find any more with this ability Bruce ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 15:55:46 PST Subject: Neblina Expedition part 3 .... We decided to take the following day off to rest and herborize everything we\222d already collected. We needed to gather our energies since the following day would be our last up there, the day we would make the summit attempt, try to reach the 3014m mark on top of Neblina. Although it was probably only around a 6 or 7km hike, we\222d be climbing 1000 vertical meters along a very steep and difficult trail. In fact, I believe it was the most challenging mountain trail I\222ve ever done in nearly 10 years of hiking. Some of us went on short hikes around camp for photography purposes, but two of the group members who hadn\222t joined us the previous day, due to illness, hiked over to see H.tatei with their own eyes, and vainly search for D.meristocaulis again. We set out early at 7am the following morning and after about an hour and a half of nearly horizontal hiking, we were at the base of the peak. >From there, it was straight up the mountain face, with several very tricky spots right in the beginning where a bit of rock climbing skills were necessary. The weather was fortunately rather good and we had some beautiful views of other surrounding highlands (very interesting BTW...) as we climbed higher and higher, huffing and puffing. About 2/3 up the mountain, there was yet another verticle stretch of rock., the most difficult part of the trail according to our guide. Although it was only about 5m high, it was very slippery with water and there were no good hand and footholds. It took us a long pause of careful study before finally going for it. I\222m not afraid of heights, but confess it was hard to avoid it there! Especially because we knew that this and the other vertical rock faces further down would be even more difficult on our way down the mountain, since when you\222re going down, you can\222t see where you\222re putting your feet and it\222s therefore easier to slip. Between noon and 1pm five group members finally reached the summit. Wow, we\222d actually made it! It was hard to believe we\222d climbed the highest mountain in Brazil, the one and only Neblina, just about one of the most isolated and unexplored places you can imagine, a mountain surrounded in mystery, a longtime dream-come-true!! Unfortunately the weather was not too clear while we were at the actual top. Most of the time we were enveloped in clouds and we even got some rain. But a blue sky was sometimes visible above us, a hole in the clouds. On two occasions it opened up towards the east, where Neblina drops dramatically, almost cliff-like, nearly 3000m to the vast rainforest-covered plains of the Amazon Basin. What an amazing view! I guess what I most enjoyed about this view was the feeling that I was on an airplane, looking from the window, with the ground way far below me and those huge cotton clouds at eye-level. We stayed at the top until 2pm, opened a champagne bottle taken up especially for the occasion, and took tons of pictures. In a small crevice, protected by a plastic bag tucked inside a tupperware, was a book for all summit-conquerers to write in. We signed on as the \2231998/99 International Carnivorous Plant Society Expedition\224, I believe, listing all the 8 group members and dedicating it to those who hadn\222t made it to the top. We saw plenty of H.sp.\224Neblina\224 that day. It was extremely common along the trail and we saw countless plants in flower. They were present all the way from the base to the very top of Neblina. And when I say the very top, I mean it! There was a large clump growing on a rock right next to the Brazilian flag stuck on the highest rock. But they were all over the summit, which was not rocky as we imagined, but with plenty of soil. And then it suddenly hit me that, considering that Neblina is the highest mountain of the Guyana Highlands (the second is Mt.Roraima at 2875m), then that was surely the highest Heliamphora population in the world! And that clump on the rock next to the flag represented the only Helis growing above 3000m in the world! Cool! One of the main objectives of our whole Neblina expedition was to find a very rare plant, known only from a small population at the very top of Neblina: Saccifolium banderae, sole member of the Saccifoliaceae family (Gentianales). This mysterious plant was recorded to have leaves with cupped tips, these inverted, facing downwards. It was suspected that maybe the inner surface of the pitcher-like leaves might have glands and that it could thus possibly be a new carnivorous plant. We ended up finding a single plant growing on rocks just below the summit with several compact clumps of light-green leaves and white flowers. The general aspect actually reminded me of a young Cephalotus in tissue culture. It was truly a curious plant, but we could see no signs of glands on the leaves. Oh well, I guess NOT a CP! But what was the fuction of those cupped leaves? The only thing we could come up with was that maybe they served to help accumulate soil and nutrients around the plant, since the constant heavy rains up on Neblina must have a strong leaching and eroding effect on the mountainside. As for real CPs, U.campbelliana was found all along the trail to the very top of Neblina. While at lower altitudes this species grew as an epiphyte on moss-covered tree trunks, towards the top of Neblina its habitat suffered a transition until it was found exclusively on moss-covered rocks. U.quelchii slowly fased out at around halfway up the mountain. Mysteriously, U.humboldtii and the two Drosera species disappeared right at the beginning of the trail, except for a small population of D.sp.\224Neblina\224 further up. I was hoping that the enormous altitude differences on that trail would result in a wide variation of habitats and maybe flush out some new CPs for us, but we saw nothing new. Once again, no D.meristocaulis. As we\222d dreaded, the trek down Neblina was much worse than the hike up. And to make things worse, it began raining. We knew from our previous days there that the whole face of the mountain became covered in waterfalls when it rained and we were now sure that the trail was one of them! We spent maybe 20min at that difficult 5m rock face, before we could all get down. We even had to tie a rope to first get our backpacks down, and then ourselves. Quite scary! Also a bit embarrassing to be helped by our guide Deko, older than any of us (between 35 and 40yrs old), who was easily scampering up and down the rock in his cheap rubber boots as he helped us down. On the way up Neblina, I noticed what could be intertesting habitats for D.meristocaulis, way down in the valley. Could it be growing there? This possibility began nagging me badly while hiking down later that day, especially because I hadn\222t found D.meristocaulis anywhere on the way to the top. Since we were leaving the following day, the climb up Neblina had been my last hope of finding D.meristocaulis. The thought that maybe I\222d missed a good D.meristocaulis habitat kept going through my mind, torturing me, and I finally decided that I would just never forgive myself if I left Neblina without exploring this new spot. I\222d be haunted for the rest of my life with the thought that I\222d gone through all that trouble and wasted all that money to climb that distant mountain, only to barely miss D.meristocaulis because I\222d been too lazy to explore the site after climbing down from Neblina\222s summit. Time was short, but maybe I could get there in time to have about an hour of sunlight to search for it. I asked Gert to lend me his flashlight, since I knew I\222d have to return to camp in the dark. I guess out of solidarity for my color blindness handicap, he was actually crazy enough to offer to join me, although he was also deadly exausted. From the base of the trail, we hiked towards the places I\222d seen, arriving there maybe half an hour later, at around 5:30pm. For about an hour we trudged wearily and silently through the mud and high grasses, zig-zagging from side to side, but in the end it was all for naught. We didn\222t find any D.meristocaulis. And we still had the long hike to camp with only a single flashlight for the two of us. We only arrived back at camp close to 9pm, after nearly 14h of endless hiking that day. What stress! We had to be extremely careful in the darkness, inching along ever so slowly in the flashlight\222s dim light, using our feet like some blind cave insect\222s long antennae, \223feeling\224 our way along the trail. Furthermore, it doesn\222t help when you\222re depressed and in a bad mood, like I was, from having missed possibly my last chance ever to find D.meristocaulis. All I know is that I entered a semi-coma that night, from exaustion, and for the first time didn\222t even feel the hard ground beneath my sleeping bag. It was sure hard getting out of bed the next morning and packing up to begin the long hike down the mountain \226 two more whole days of never ending forest. Looking at my notes and shifting through my memories, these are the approximate altitudes for each species we saw on Neblina: D.roraimae = 1900-2100m; D.sp.\224Neblina\224= 1950-2400m; H.tatei var.neblinae = 1900m; H.sp.\224Neblina\224 = 1900-3010m; U.alpina = 1650-1750m; U.campbelliana = 1850-3000m; U.humboldtii = 1800-2200m; and U.quelchii = 1900-2600m. We also saw U.subulata and purplish U.amesthystina at around 1900-2000m. .... Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Russell Elliott" Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 14:33:29 +0000 Subject: **Important** CITES & seed exports & imports Hi everyone, Russell here from the Australian Carnivorous Plant Society Seed Bank. One of our members here in Australia, Ross Rowe, has just contacted me about changes to the Wildlife Protection (Regulation of Exports and Imports Act) 1982. Currently, all seed (including CP seed) listed in CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered species of Wild Fauna and Flora can be freely traded without having to obtain an import/export permit under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1982. However, this is all about to change. New amendments to the Wildlife Protection Act 1982, will mean that anyone who wishes to import or export seed listed under CITES will have to gain a permit under this Act. These changes will also affect the export of any Australian native seed, which can currently be freely exported. Of course, this includes all native tuberous and non tuberous Drosera, pygmy Drosera, Utricularia, Cephalotus, Byblis and the Australian forms of Nepenthes mirabilis. An export permit (to send seed out of Australia) will cost us $30.00 per shipment, or $150.00 per year for unlimited exports. I'm not sure how this will affect people sending CITES listed and Australian native seed into Australia, only that an import permit will be required. Currently I'm not sure how many CP species are listed , but I am going to obtain a copy of the CITES documents to check. These changes haven't taken place yet, and I'm not exactly sure when they will occur. I'll keep my ear to the ground, and send updates to everyone as more information comes to hand. If anyone has any excess seed, we ask that they please consider sending some to the Australian Carnivorous Plant Society in the near future, so to avoid any trouble that may occur after these amendments are made. If anyone would like me to clarify any points, or discuss anything to do with these changes, please don't hesitate to contact me. Thanks, -Russell Elliott ################### From: "C. J. Mazur" Date: Wed, 24 Feb 1999 22:45:26 -0500 Subject: Re: Sarracenaia rubra subspecies' status Here's a couple of thoughts on the Ancestral Rubra. I first heard the term in 1993 when I visited Phil Sheridan in Viginia. At that time he told me of Sarracenia rubra plants that were growing in Taylor co. in the western central part of the state of Georgia USA. These plants were found in a few counties in the area, Marion, peach, Taylor, Crawford (i think) and some other one. Anyway. The plants look like rubras, have flowers like rubras, the flowers smell like rubras, yet they grow disjunct from all other populations of rubra. They sort of possess all the characteristics of rubra rubra, rubra gulfensis and rubra gulfensis, with little resemblence tor rubra alabamesis and rubra wherryii. To me they look mostly like gulfensis. Anyway, the watersheds that they inhabit, drain to the gulfcost of florida, right into the areas where rubra gulfensis now grow. So its been suggested that these plants may have been the ancestral stock of what are now called rubra gulfensis growing on the gulf coast. One of the particular colonies of these plants are very pubescent. I know Phil Sheridan has done alot of field work with these plants. so Phil, if you're out there listening, maybe you can add your 3 cents worth. Best Regards, Carl Mazur >Hello all > My interest in the Sarracenia rubra subspecies complex has been growing >oner the last few months, and I am wanting to know what the current status >of the various subspecies would be at this moment in time? I am aware that >Don Schnell is the expert and has undertaken a great deal of research on >this group of plants, but has any recent findings or reshufling of the >subspecies been made known? > The S. rubra ssp that goes by the name 'ancestral form', does anyone know >when this was named and exactly why? Furthermore, has the record been set >straight with the beautiful S. rubra ssp. alabamensis? What I mean is, has >it been given separate species status, or has the firm decision been toward >the rubra ssp.? If anything has changed, where does the S. rubra ssp. >wherryi fit into the scheme of things? I have seen it touted as the ssp. >of S. rubra ssp. alabamensis in a few articles. > Any insight into the S. rubra complex would be much appreciated. > > >Nathan J. Clemens > >sundew@mitmania.net.au > ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 09:22:53 Subject: Re: Homonyms Dear Paul & al., > Question: If a plant name, for instance one with a delightful > pseudo-latin name the Victorians were so attracted to, differs (in > name only) from the published plant synonyms only by the presence > or absence of a final duplicated letter, does this make it a new > synonym? No. It is either an orthographical variant (if both versions were legitimate according to the ICBN), i.e. effectively a homonym, or it is an orthographical error to be corrected automatically as specified in Art. 60 ICBN. > For example, would chelsoni (with one i) and chelsonii (with two > i's) count as the same Yes. > or different synonyms? No. > And if they are the same, why? Art. 60.11 ICBN: "The use of a termination (for example -i, -ii, -ae, -iae, -anus, or - ianus) contrary to Rec. 60C.1 (but not 60C.2) is treated as an error to be corrected (see also Art. 32.6)." Art. 32.6 ICBN: "Names published with an incorrect Latin termination but otherwise in accordance with this Code are regarded as validly published; they are to be changed to accord with Art. 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, and 24 without change of the author's name or date of publication (see also Art. 60.11)." Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Malesiana Tropicals" Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 17:46:41 +0800 Subject: Re: N. merrilliana Trent, I previously had the plants in a mixture of sandstone chips, coconut fibre, and charcoal, but have since switched over to the standard media I use for most other Nepenthes which is granite chips, charcoal, and tree-fern fibre in equal parts. Upon repotting I noticed that the roots were quite deep (over 1'), reaching down to the bottom of the pot. Cheers, Ch'ien > Ch'ien, > > Thanks for your input! What is the medium you use to grow N. merrilliana? > > Trent Meeks > Pompano Beach, Florida ################### From: Davidogray@aol.com Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 13:18:54 EST Subject: Last chance to vote on dates of ICPS Conference 2000 This is a last chance reminder to voice your opinion on the dates for the ICPS International Conference 2000. We have the option of holding the conference in May or in June. May is better for the viewing of Darlingtonia and Pinguicula flowers in their native sites. June is better for many people in academia. The conference will be held in San Francisco at the Fort Mason Center on San Francisco Bay. The projected cost for the conference is about $95 US. There are many hotels in that area for between $70 and 90 a night; as well, there is a hostel on the grounds of the Fort. So I am conducting kind of a poll. I need to know how many people definitely will come only if the conference is held June 17,18,19 2000, and how many will come definitely only if the conference is held May 19,20,21 2000. If you definitely plan to come no matter whichever of the two dates respond with " either ". If you're not sure yet if you will be able to come, don't respond yet. Please send your responses as and e-mail to me at Davidogray@aol.com in the subject field put June 19,20,21 2000 or May 17,18,19 2000 or either you don't need to put anything but an x in the body of the message. The results will be tabulated Sat. morning the 27th and to date there have not been many responses . So SEND ME AN E-MAIL ! Iits very helpful to our planning process if everyone who reads this responds RIGHT AWAY if they are planning on attending -- even if you live in the area. Thanks very much, and Cheers, David ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 12:47:16 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Live Sphagnum Where can I find Live sphagnum? Where can I find long fibered sphagnum in bags bigger than 0.0175 cu. ft. (192 cu. inches) I've been trying to get big bags of this stuff for years. Now for some muscipula Q's. Those muscipulas with the purple traps; what are they called? Where can I find some of these? Do they have an official name? Do the all green forms and all yellow forms have official names. Does any one have any of these three forms I could buy from? Robertivore ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 13:01:12 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Pygmies It's me again. Does anyone have any pygmy sundews I could buy or know where I could get any? Robertivore ################### From: Bruce Salmon Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 09:44:07 +1300 Subject: D. spatulata retentive glands I have just tried the same experiment (CP Digest 1734) with D. spatulata NZ alpine form. The glands required more stimulation and a heavier force to effect gland movement. This movement was much slower than in D. pygmaea with the glands moving through 90 degrees in about 10 sec. The glands moved faster and through a larger arc if the whole length of the gland was continuously stroked (heavily). Bruce ################### From: strega@split.it (Tassara) Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 22:18:50 +0100 Subject: D.meristocaulis question Hi Fernando! I'm getting curious: could you please give to me and a few other people who don't know Drosera meristocaulis a brief description of it? Thank you! Filippo Tassara Genoa, Italy (waiting for Neblina Expedition part 4) ################### From: Rand Nicholson Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 17:17:32 -0500 Subject: Re: Live Sphagnum > Where can I find Live sphagnum? Where can I find long fibered >sphagnum in bags bigger than 0.0175 cu. ft. (192 cu. inches) I've been >trying to get big bags of this stuff for years. > Now for some muscipula Q's. Those muscipulas with the purple traps; >what are they called? Where can I find some of these? Do they have an >official name? Do the all green forms and all yellow forms have official >names. Does any one have any of these three forms I could buy from? > >Robertivore Where do you live? Y'know folks, it _is_ a good thing to add to your signature, or otherwise, your nation, state/province and zone. It is hard to help people that won't help themselves. Kind Regards, Rand Rand Nicholson Maritime New Brunswick, Canada, Zone 5, The Great Cold Brown North (no snow cover) ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 17:02:49 PST Subject: Drosera montana tomentosa Hairy Anyone else growing this beautiful plant? Mine were grown from seed planted in the fall and are now a little over an inch and a half in diameter. Their leaves are shaped a little like D.hamiltonii... Many thanks to the people who've introduced this gem into cultivation. Back in the 80's (my 1st life as a CP grower), the only "montanas" around were all spathulatas. Now if only someone would introduce the true D.affinis! Matt NYC ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Thu, 25 Feb 1999 17:08:10 PST Subject: D, helodes = nitidula x pulchella? Ive got plants received as "D.helodes" as well as plants received as "D.nitidula x pulchella". The 2 are currently flowering and look prety identical to me. Is the former a synonym for the later or could this have been the result of a mixup on the senders end (surely wasnt one on my part!) :) Mark P.? You there? Any idea? Anyone? Thanks in advance Matt NYC ################### From: "T. Williams" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 12:22:58 +0900 Subject: Re: Peat / Sand In England "sharp sand" traditionally refers to river sand, and more generally sand of non-seaside origin. Sea sands are both salty and have smoother granules (not "sharp"). Tim Williams. ################### From: schlauer@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 09:23:49 +0000 Subject: Re: D. spatulata retentive glands Dear Bruce & al., > I have just tried the same experiment (CP Digest 1734) with D. spatulata > NZ alpine form. > > The glands required more stimulation and a heavier force to effect gland > movement. This movement was much slower than in D. pygmaea with the > glands moving through 90 degrees in about 10 sec. The glands moved > faster and through a larger arc if the whole length of the gland was > continuously stroked (heavily). Is this now regarded as news in NZ? Please check out Darwin, "The Insectivorous Plants", London, 1875. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Steve Alton" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 11:20:57 +0800 Subject: Re: Germination info Dear All, Apologies if this has all been covered before on the list, and I know the basic information is available in any number of books, but has anybody got any tips on germinating the following, which arrived this morning (joy!): Drosera cistiflora Darlingtonia Byblis liniflora Heliamphora heterodoxa Polypompholix multifida Thanks in advance, Steve Alton UK Co-ordinator - Millennium Seed Bank Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew Wakehurst Place Tel: 01444 894079 Fax: 01444 894069 ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 07:50:14 -0500 Subject: RE: Germination info Hi Steve, I've germinated the following species using a mix of 1:1 (sand/milled sphagnum peat moss), dropping the seeds on top of the mix. D. cistiflora (in my situation) took almost a year to germinate. The others germinated quickly. Pots were placed within a few inches of Excella fluorescent lights. > Drosera cistiflora > Darlingtonia > Byblis liniflora > David ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 07:56:45 -0500 Subject: RE: D. spatulata retentive glands >Is this now regarded as news in NZ? Please check out Darwin, The amazing thing about cp's (and science and life in general) is that we are continuously rediscovering many of the same things. It's one of the things that makes cp's fascinating; it's like being a kid again in elementary school and learning things that many of the big people have known for a long time, but yet it brings awe to the discoverer. I like hearing this awe of discovery; many times it's the first time for me, too David Atlanta ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 14:04:33 Subject: Re: D, helodes = nitidula x pulchella? Dear Matt, > Ive got plants received as "D.helodes" as well as plants received as > "D.nitidula x pulchella". The 2 are currently flowering and look prety > identical to me. Is the former a synonym for the later or could this > have been the result of a mixup on the senders end (surely wasnt one on > my part!) :) Mark P.? You there? Any idea? Anyone? I do not know how the mentioned hybrid looks like, the two parents being quite different from each other. There is a picture of _D. helodes_ in Allen Lowrie's second book. Have you compared your plants with this? _D. pulchella_ has 2n=18 (always?), _D. nitidula_ has 2n=28 chromosomes. Therefore, the 2n=18 of _D. helodes_ do not support its being a hybrid of the two other species. Kind regards Jan ################### From: Alexander Salomon Date: Tue, 23 Feb 1999 21:12:28 -0500 Subject: Looking for Cindi Sarver Sorry for the public posting, but my mail to Cindy has not gotten through and I suppose her address has changed; If anyone knows her current address or if she is out there, please let me know. Thanks Alexander Salomon ################### From: Carl Gustafson Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 09:23:20 -0500 Subject: RE: Peat/Sand >> I've still no clue which one is the "sharp" sand all >> the faqs refer to. My understanding is that this is a trade term meaning "Clean", as in no crud in it, as opposed to what you might fish out of Junior's play box (especially after the neighbor's kitty's been at it). Actually, I swipe sand from my son's box, but it is covered, so the neighbor's (4) cats can't get to it. ################### From: questions@researchtools.com Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 07:15:58 -0500 Subject: Unique Research / Reference Data CensusCD Blocks. Contains a complete set of data and maps, for 7 Million US census blocks. Includes all Census Bureau population and housing data, 100% detailed TIGER block boundaries and many value-added items such as block to ZIP projections. A sophisticated reporting engine with SQL-like filtering, and thematic mapping software are included. http://www.censuscd.com/cdblocks/cdblocks.htm CensusCD 1980. It took until 1999, but finally 1980 Census data is in a format that anyone can use. Time series analysis on areas as small as a Census Tract, can now be done with over 1,500 variables. Mapping software and boundaries for 1980 tracts, counties, states, places, and MCD, are included. http://www.geolytics.com/censuscd1980/censuscd1980.htm CensusCD+Maps 75 CD-ROMs (50 gigabytes) of US demographic data (1790-2002) and geographic boundaries, with estimates, projections, consumer expenditure, time series, historical data, as well as a complete set of 1990 Census data. Library Journal calls it a "MUST BUY". USA Today places it on its reviewers' recommended list of software. And Business Geographics' lists "Weaknesses: None". http://www.geolytics.com/cdmaps/censuscd_maps.htm CensusCD Blocks & CensusCD 1980 are available in national and state versions. Unique compression technology allows all products, to conveniently run from one CD, under Windows 95/98/NT. These products allow all data and boundaries, to be exported to other statistical, and mapping packages. Discounts are available for academic, government, non-profit, student lab, and classroom use. For more information Contact GeoLytics at 800-577-6717, mailto:questions@geolytics.com. or visit http://www.geolytics.com E-mail allows us to keep our research data products priced lower than anyone else. If you are not interested (to remove) Send an email to: mailto:remove@censuscd.com . Thank you. ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 09:36:53 PST Subject: Neblina Expedition part 3 .... We decided to take the following day off to rest and herborize everything we\222d already collected. We needed to gather our energies since the following day would be our last up there, the day we would make the summit attempt, try to reach the 3014m mark on top of Neblina. Although it was probably only around a 6 or 7km hike, we\222d be climbing 1000 vertical meters along a very steep and difficult trail. In fact, I believe it was the most challenging mountain trail I\222ve ever done in nearly 10 years of hiking. Some of us went on short hikes around camp for photography purposes, but two of the group members who hadn\222t joined us the previous day, due to illness, hiked over to see H.tatei with their own eyes, and vainly search for D.meristocaulis again. We set out early at 7am the following morning and after about an hour and a half of nearly horizontal hiking, we were at the base of the peak. >From there, it was straight up the mountain face, with several very tricky spots right in the beginning where a bit of rock climbing skills were necessary. The weather was fortunately rather good and we had some beautiful views of other surrounding highlands (very interesting BTW...) as we climbed higher and higher, huffing and puffing. About 2/3 up the mountain, there was yet another verticle stretch of rock., the most difficult part of the trail according to our guide. Although it was only about 5m high, it was very slippery with water and there were no good hand and footholds. It took us a long pause of careful study before finally going for it. I\222m not afraid of heights, but confess it was hard to avoid it there! Especially because we knew that this and the other vertical rock faces further down would be even more difficult on our way down the mountain, since when you\222re going down, you can\222t see where you\222re putting your feet and it\222s therefore easier to slip. Between noon and 1pm five group members finally reached the summit. Wow, we\222d actually made it! It was hard to believe we\222d climbed the highest mountain in Brazil, the one and only Neblina, just about one of the most isolated and unexplored places you can imagine, a mountain surrounded in mystery, a longtime dream-come-true!! Unfortunately the weather was not too clear while we were at the actual top. Most of the time we were enveloped in clouds and we even got some rain. But a blue sky was sometimes visible above us, a hole in the clouds. On two occasions it opened up towards the east, where Neblina drops dramatically, almost cliff-like, nearly 3000m to the vast rainforest-covered plains of the Amazon Basin. What an amazing view! I guess what I most enjoyed about this view was the feeling that I was on an airplane, looking from the window, with the ground way far below me and those huge cotton clouds at eye-level. We stayed at the top until 2pm, opened a champagne bottle taken up especially for the occasion, and took tons of pictures. In a small crevice, protected by a plastic bag tucked inside a tupperware, was a book for all summit-conquerers to write in. We signed on as the \2231998/99 International Carnivorous Plant Society Expedition\224, I believe, listing all the 8 group members and dedicating it to those who hadn\222t made it to the top. We saw plenty of H.sp.\224Neblina\224 that day. It was extremely common along the trail and we saw countless plants in flower. They were present all the way from the base to the very top of Neblina. And when I say the very top, I mean it! There was a large clump growing on a rock right next to the Brazilian flag stuck on the highest rock. But they were all over the summit, which was not rocky as we imagined, but with plenty of soil. And then it suddenly hit me that, considering that Neblina is the highest mountain of the Guyana Highlands (the second is Mt.Roraima at 2875m), then that was surely the highest Heliamphora population in the world! And that clump on the rock next to the flag represented the only Helis growing above 3000m in the world! Cool! One of the main objectives of our whole Neblina expedition was to find a very rare plant, known only from a small population at the very top of Neblina: Saccifolium banderae, sole member of the Saccifoliaceae family (Gentianales). This mysterious plant was recorded to have leaves with cupped tips, these inverted, facing downwards. It was suspected that maybe the inner surface of the pitcher-like leaves might have glands and that it could thus possibly be a new carnivorous plant. We ended up finding a single plant growing on rocks just below the summit with several compact clumps of light-green leaves and white flowers. The general aspect actually reminded me of a young Cephalotus in tissue culture. It was truly a curious plant, but we could see no signs of glands on the leaves. Oh well, I guess NOT a CP! But what was the fuction of those cupped leaves? The only thing we could come up with was that maybe they served to help accumulate soil and nutrients around the plant, since the constant heavy rains up on Neblina must have a strong leaching and eroding effect on the mountainside. As for real CPs, U.campbelliana was found all along the trail to the very top of Neblina. While at lower altitudes this species grew as an epiphyte on moss-covered tree trunks, towards the top of Neblina its habitat suffered a transition until it was found exclusively on moss-covered rocks. U.quelchii slowly fased out at around halfway up the mountain. Mysteriously, U.humboldtii and the two Drosera species disappeared right at the beginning of the trail, except for a small population of D.sp.\224Neblina\224 further up. I was hoping that the enormous altitude differences on that trail would result in a wide variation of habitats and maybe flush out some new CPs for us, but we saw nothing new. Once again, no D.meristocaulis. As we\222d dreaded, the trek down Neblina was much worse than the hike up. And to make things worse, it began raining. We knew from our previous days there that the whole face of the mountain became covered in waterfalls when it rained and we were now sure that the trail was one of them! We spent maybe 20min at that difficult 5m rock face, before we could all get down. We even had to tie a rope to first get our backpacks down, and then ourselves. Quite scary! Also a bit embarrassing to be helped by our guide Deko, older than any of us (between 35 and 40yrs old), who was easily scampering up and down the rock in his cheap rubber boots as he helped us down. On the way up Neblina, I noticed what could be intertesting habitats for D.meristocaulis, way down in the valley. Could it be growing there? This possibility began nagging me badly while hiking down later that day, especially because I hadn\222t found D.meristocaulis anywhere on the way to the top. Since we were leaving the following day, the climb up Neblina had been my last hope of finding D.meristocaulis. The thought that maybe I\222d missed a good D.meristocaulis habitat kept going through my mind, torturing me, and I finally decided that I would just never forgive myself if I left Neblina without exploring this new spot. I\222d be haunted for the rest of my life with the thought that I\222d gone through all that trouble and wasted all that money to climb that distant mountain, only to barely miss D.meristocaulis because I\222d been too lazy to explore the site after climbing down from Neblina\222s summit. Time was short, but maybe I could get there in time to have about an hour of sunlight to search for it. I asked Gert to lend me his flashlight, since I knew I\222d have to return to camp in the dark. I guess out of solidarity for my color blindness handicap, he was actually crazy enough to offer to join me, although he was also deadly exausted. From the base of the trail, we hiked towards the places I\222d seen, arriving there maybe half an hour later, at around 5:30pm. For about an hour we trudged wearily and silently through the mud and high grasses, zig-zagging from side to side, but in the end it was all for naught. We didn\222t find any D.meristocaulis. And we still had the long hike to camp with only a single flashlight for the two of us. We only arrived back at camp close to 9pm, after nearly 14h of endless hiking that day. What stress! We had to be extremely careful in the darkness, inching along ever so slowly in the flashlight\222s dim light, using our feet like some blind cave insect\222s long antennae, \223feeling\224 our way along the trail. Furthermore, it doesn\222t help when you\222re depressed and in a bad mood, like I was, from having missed possibly my last chance ever to find D.meristocaulis. All I know is that I entered a semi-coma that night, from exaustion, and for the first time didn\222t even feel the hard ground beneath my sleeping bag. It was sure hard getting out of bed the next morning and packing up to begin the long hike down the mountain \226 two more whole days of never ending forest. Looking at my notes and shifting through my memories, these are the approximate altitudes for each species we saw on Neblina: D.roraimae = 1900-2100m; D.sp.\224Neblina\224= 1950-2400m; H.tatei var.neblinae = 1900m; H.sp.\224Neblina\224 = 1900-3010m; U.alpina = 1650-1750m; U.campbelliana = 1850-3000m; U.humboldtii = 1800-2200m; and U.quelchii = 1900-2600m. We also saw U.subulata and purplish U.amesthystina at around 1900-2000m. ..... Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 10:39:23 PST Subject: Re: Drosera hybrid Jan and all, >Fernando: Have you seen such intermediate plants where the two >species occur together in Brazil? I have not been to the coastal habitats in southern Brazil where D.brevifolia and D.capillaris occur together, but in the mixed herbarium sheets I've seen, there were never any intermediate plants. Both species were always very distinct. Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Cristiano Perrucci" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 22:13:07 +0100 Subject: New italian site Hi you all, there is a new site in Italy on "Carnivorous Plants Terrarium". To be more flexible it's in English. http://space.tin.it/scienza/crperruc/CP-Terrarium/ ciao, Cristiano - Italy - [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 12:06:31 -0500 Subject: Steve's Seeds Steve Alton wrote: Apologies if this has all been covered before on the list, and I know the basic information is available in any number of books, but has anybody got any tips on germinating the following, which arrived this morning (joy!): Drosera cistiflora Darlingtonia Byblis liniflora Heliamphora heterodoxa Polypompholix multifida My past experience with D. cistiflora is this. After receiving some packs from SilverHill seeds I scattered the lot on the surface of 60/40 sand-peat. This was around the first of May. The pot was left outdoors exposed to the elements. While day temps were in the 10-20c range several consecutive nights produced frost ( -2 to +2 c). I noticed massive germination (90-100%) within a month. I've read quite a bit on the difficulty germinating this species, along with WA Drosera. I guess this ONE TIME I got lucky! I still have pots of year-old tuberous species that utterly refuse to germinate, even when pretreated with smoke or gibb acid. Go figure! Maybe the AGE of the seed has something to do with it. B. liniflora should germinate within a month if put in a warm, humid, and well lit location. This one is quite easy, unlike B. gigantea that has a nasty habit of damping off when sown on peat. I can't comment on the others as I haven't tried 'em yet. Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: JWi5770869@aol.com Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 21:59:37 EST Subject: UK CPS AGM???? Dear All, Does anyone know when/where the Uk CPS agm will be held this year? Hoping to make it there this year John Wilden Southport Lancs UK ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Fri, 26 Feb 1999 19:58:32 PST Subject: Neblina Expedition part 4 .... Once down from Neblina and back on the river, we stopped at the Ianomami Indian village where our three porters lived. There were between 50 and 100 people in the village, half of which were small children. No old people. They were dressed in shorts and T-shirts and living in mud-walled houses with thatch roofs. The houses were arranged in a loose circle. We hung around for a while taking pictures and enjoying the commotion we were causing. Or more specifically, which Ed was causing, with his 1.9m of the fairest skin they\222d ever seen and his flaming red hair. They couldn\222t stop staring at him and when we were finally about to push off with some bananas and oranges we\222d bought from them, they began asking us to leave Ed behind. The chief of the tribe even made some jokes with very explicit sexual nuances about what the village women wanted to do with him! I told him we\222d \223sell\224 Ed for two bananas. We\222d already met a few natives along the way and bought touristy things from them, especially at a house maintained by FUNAI. We camped at this house on our way to and from Neblina. There was a generator to feed a TV, a fridge, a few light bulbs, and a radio. The radio was used to communicate with other FUNAI outposts and Indian viallges. Most of it sounded like gibberish to me, like a soprano Darth Vader was on the other side. I got a blast at one point from hearing Morse code over the radio! I couldn\222t believe it. Here we are, last year of the 20th century, communication technologies evolving faster than ever, with those new Iridium cell phones already on sale, and there are still people using Morse code somewhere in the world!! Anyways, after two days hiking down Neblina, one and a half day on a boat, and an hour by pickup truck -- some of us bouncing dangerously on the back as the car sped its way along the dirt road \226 we were finally back in S.Gabriel. CIVILIZATION!!! Well, not quite, but after so many days in the forest it sure seemed like it! It was hard to believe we\222d all made it back in one piece with only mosquito bites, scratches, bruises, and leg aches. Fortunately nobody got seriously sick either, only minor things like the flu and the shits -- which led us to a small toilet paper shortage crisis at one point. That night we gorged ourselves in our first real meal in 2 weeks, stuffing our bellies with a big barbecued meal. We invited our 2 guides for dinner, hoping that this would make it easier when it came down to paying them the second half of their salaries. But as I expected, a huge discussion ensued between us and the guides (in relation to how much the guides thought they deserved for the extra day spent at the top and for having carried \223so much\224 of our weight) and between ourselves (about how much we should tip the guides). The morning after we arrived, it was time to begin with the farewells. Our group began breaking up after nearly a month together, as the Neblina expedition members started their long trip home. First Andreas and Christoph caught their plane back to Manaus and then Joachim, Katrin, and Mauricio did the same the following day. But Gert, Ed, and I caught a boat down the Rio Negro: we still had a bit more CP hunting ahead of us. Numerous ships navigate the large rivers of the Amazon, carrying cargo and people all around, acting as trucks and busses in that vast rainforest where roads are simply unfeasible. Meals on the boat were self service, layed out on a long table next to the kitchen at the back of the bottom deck, and typically Brazilian. Breakfast was a very light snack, with bread and coldcuts washed down with milk and very sweet coffee. Lunch and dinner were hot and heavy meals, consisting of rice, beans, beef, chicken, pasta, salad, and \223farinha\224 (roasted manioc flour). We spent two days and one night on that boat, stopping at the town of Santa Isabel on the first night. We sat around writing in our journals, talking, drinking, playing dominos, talking to a few people, and watching TV. The scenery was really beautiful, but boring after a while: a thick wall of forest along the distant riverbanks, occasional small villages, Indian or not, and lots of islands -- the two largest river archipelagos in the world are on the Rio Negro. Just before the first sunset, we had a brief glimpse of Neblina and surrounding highlands far away in the distance. The only animals we saw were river dolphins, which we\222d already seen plenty of around S.Gabriel and during the boat ride to and from Neblina. I\222m sure we saw the black dolphin, but not so sure we saw the larger pink dolphin since these animals only surface briefly and quickly to breathe. Our boat, although large, was really crowded with people. The two bottom decks were colorfully packed with hammocks. The top deck was roofless, with a bar, chairs, and even a satelite dish for the TV. But a guy had to stand by the TV all day, to continually adjust the antenna as the boat zig-zagged downriver and lost its tracking on the satelite transmission every few minutes (or less) \226 turning every TV program into a frustrating game of connect the dots, as we tried to guess what had happened or been said during each session of pure static, each of which lasted a few or more seconds. But there wasn\222t much else to do on that boat anyways and most people didn\222t seem bothered by the gaps in the TV programs. I\222ve noticed, while travelling around outback areas in Brazil and other countries that TV seems to have a special hipnotic effect on rural and small town people. They just sit in front of the TV, staring wide-eyed as if in a trance. I often doubt they understand any of what is being said, especially when the news is on, with all that political/economic talk and all those names of countries and places which they have absolutely no idea where or how far they are. And I notice they often don\222t understand simple plots of movies, especially sci-fi. Or what about those huge cities they\222ll never see, machines they\222ll never use, and other modern things which they have no inkling about their functions? What do they think of when they see something completely out of their reality, like snow? In fact I\222ll never forget one guy who called the polar bears in the Coca-Cola ads \223cute white dogs\224. What these people see on TV often has absolutely no relation to their day-to-day routines and I\222m sure the Amazonians on our boat hought all those fair-skinned TV people had very strange accents as well \226 and let\222s not even get into what the Ianomi Indians we met at the FUNAI house on the way to Neblina were thinking while sitting in front of TV! What keeps their eyes glued to TV, I kept asking myself, when it\222s something so alien to them? So I tried putting myself in their shoes and suddenly realised that I would probably also gawk stupidly for hours or days if placed in front of a weird electronic gadget which showed life on another planet, even though I wouldn\222t be understanding a bleep of what those little green men were uttering. Anyways, back to my adventures, when Gert and I had arrived in Manaus at the beginning of the expedition, nearly a month before, we had the chance to take a quick look at a large herbarium. We saw several interesting specimens of Drosera, including a few unidentified ones from a place called Serra do Araca. When we asked where this was, we were shown a picture of a beautiful tepui and told that it was north of a town called Barcelos on the Rio Negro. So that\222s why we were on that boat from S.Gabriel, going downriver to Barcelos, where we hoped it would be possible to organize na expedition to the Serra do Araca. Time was short but we were miraculously already on a boat heading N out of Barcelos less than 24h later. The trip to Araca was quite expensive because of all the fuel used by the powerful speedboat we took and because of the distance involved -- we went further north than Neblina, near the border between the Brazilian states of Amazonas and Roraima with Venezuela, crossing the Equator once again. As usual, things didn't work out exactly as promised to us. What was supposed to be a 10h boat ride to Araca became 18h -- with rain and cold weather during one full day on the boat -- and our 2 guides became too lazy to climb the mountain once we were there. Luckily we got another guide with a family living out there by the river. The Serra do Araca was a perfect tepuy, with the plateau at about 1100m and a few higher peaks up to around 1500m, but unfortunately too far for us to hike to in our limited time. Because of the delay in reaching the mountain, we were only able to spend one day at the top, although in the end we felt it was enough since the CP variety up there was rather low. We found only two specis of Drosera: D.roraimae and what may be a new species which was especially common and variable, in some places nearly indistinguishable from D.roraimae. Only a few Utrics were found, the most interesting of which was U.longeciliata, with compact rosettes of thick narrow leaves, but no flowers, only old scapes. There was also an unidentified affixed aquatic species with yellow flowers, U.subulata, U.amethystina, U.pubescens, and possibly one more species growing with the latter. Reading Taylor\222s, I realize we may have missed at least one Utric on Araca: U.alpina. We didn\222t see any cloud forest there, but maybe it occured on the higher peaks mentioned. Yet considering how much confusion sometimes surrounds the names of faraway places like Araca, the plants mentioned by Taylor may actually have been collected on some other nearby highland. Like on Neblina, we saw no Genlisea on Araca, which was very strange and unfortunate. Sadly, no Heliamphora either, although there were some very good habitats for it. Not enough altitude I guess. BUT.... over to the NW of Araca, we could see several high tepuys, reaching maybe 2000m, which would be VERY interesting to explore for Helis and other CPs in the future. We slept at a very nice and large wooden garimpeiro house on top of the S.do Araca. The miners were there in search of a mineral called tantalite (from which the metal tantalum is extracted) and the operation was rather well organized. There was even a lady who was the cook, maid, and who knows what else... Anyways, they invited us to have dinner with them, which we gladyly accepted, to escape from our usual drab camp meals. As we sat down and began enjoying the rice, beans, and "beef", one guy casually mentioned how good the tapir tasted. "TAPIR?!?!" I asked in disbelief and surprise, thinking he was just pulling the legs of the stupid tourists. I didn't believe him until he pointed over to the tapir head lying next to the stove. Wow, we were actually eating a Tapirus terrestris they'd hunted right on Araca!! For those of you not familiar, the tapir is the largest mammal of S.America, a very shy creature about the size of a large pig and with a long snout. I've never been lucky enough to see one in the wild, although they're widespread in Brazil. And there I was eating one! Luckily the ride back to Barcelos was ONLY 12h long, although again we got lots of rain which lasted a whole day. It sure made us quite sick of riding boats! We became literally sick on the boat we took from Barcelos to Manaus. Everything was fine while we floated downriver past countless islands of the Anavilhanas Archipelago, which divided the Rio Negro into numerous narrow channels. But once past the islands, we reached an open stretch of river where the margins were amazingly distant from each other and where water extended all the way to the horizons both upriver and downriver. And that's when the storm hit us! The chilly wind roared past us, the boat was suddenly going up and down large waves like on a roaller-coaster, the hammocks all swung back and forth together like huge pendulums. As a result, our stomachs turned inside out, wanting to return all our lunch. Aargh! I never knew "riversickness" could be as bad as seasickness! Luckily it only lasted an hour or two and our lunches stayed in place, although I at least was still feeling sick when I went to bed that night. In the morning Gert and I said a quick goodbye to Ed at the Manaus airport, since he was returning home, while Gert and I had to dash off to Venezuela in hopes that we'd have time to climb Mt.Roraima. We first flew to Boa Vista, capital of the state of Roraima, and from there caught a bus to the town of Santa Elena de Uairen, just over the border inside Venezuela. These few hours on the bus were tremendous torture for us, seeing tons of good CP habitats in the beautiful savanas north of Boa Vista but not being able to stop and explore. Actually, there was a single stop at a roadside bar, where the bus driver shouted out "10 minutes". Those were the shortest 10 minutes of my life! I ran straight out into the bush, heading for a small river surrounded by the typical buriti palms always found along waterways in savanna areas of Brazil. The grassy fields bordering the buritis are always a great place for CPs, and sure enough we found plenty of U.simulans and a tiny reddish Drosera, which may be D.biflora, with spatulate leaves in small, loose rosettes and very short, delicate flower scapes with usually only a single flower, none of which were open. The bus driver almost left without me, although Gert was doing his best to hold him up while I clumsily dashed back across the plains and through the tall grasses in my flip-flops. ...... Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Adao Pereira" Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 14:48:59 -0000 Subject: One last question concerning Aldrovanda cultutre... Hello, all! I was preparing the aquarium to receive this plant, then one question came up: what about light? Can I use two ordinary cool-white fluorescent lamps? Or should it be grow lights or full spectrum lights? In a site about aquariums, they say that cool-white bulbs don't make it, they slow the growth. However, in another site about CPs, they say that cool-white bulbs are OK, and there's no need to buy expensive full spectrum lights. Now, Aldrovanda is included in both the categories, it's a CP and it's aquatic, so I don't know what to do! Anyone please help? Thanks, Miguel ################### From: Gallep@aol.com Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 15:30:18 EST Subject: GFP: Annual Meeting The next annual meeting of the Carnivorous Plant Society for the German- speaking Area will take place in Dortmund, Germany, on Saturday, May 15th, 1999. The address is: Botanischer Garten Dortmund, Am Rombergpark 49b, 44225 Dortmund. The event will be organized by Georg Benda. We will have a large plant exchange (beginning at 11 am), the official part will begin at 2 pm (including board elections; we need a new president and a new vice-treasurer). After this there will be different slide shows. You can find the latest news concerning the annual meeting and its program on our homepage (http://www.gfp.org) or on the homepage of Georg Benda: http://www.orch.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/~georg/aktuell.htm EVERYBODY WHO IS INTERESTED IS INVITED TO COME! Frank Gallep President GFP ################### From: Dave Evans Date: Sat, 27 Feb 99 16:41 EST Subject: Re: One last question concerning Aldrovanda cultutre... Dear Migel, > what about light? Can I use two ordinary cool-white fluorescent lamps? Or > should it be grow lights or full spectrum lights? > In a site about aquariums, they say that cool-white bulbs don't make it, > they slow the growth. However, in another site about CPs, they say that > cool-white bulbs are OK, and there's no need to buy expensive full spectrum > lights. > Now, Aldrovanda is included in both the categories, it's a CP and it's > aquatic, so I don't know what to do! In this case, you should think about it's environment. Aldrovanda lives in and under water so you should use the type of light that people who grow plants under water use. The CP part of the equation is more related to the type of chemicals it likes in it's environment. Nearly all plants growing indoors, in pots, in soil, will enjoy the same type of lighting (that being cool white). It doesn't have to do with them being CP's. Some plants are more specific too large for tubes. I personally don't use just cool-white tubes, but mix grow lights and cool white. I feel that I get better results, even if the plants don't feel anything, since the grow bulbs have a more red and blue while the cool-whites are more yellow. I like the way my plants look in this mixed light much better than in yellowish light (which looks rather dull to me no matter how tubes I use). BTW, I don't grow any plants in water so I can't recommend a specific type of bulb for your needs, but this should help you decide what is important for your plants. Dave Evans ################### From: TEETH32@aol.com Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 16:58:43 EST Subject: Cobra Lilly (Darilingtonia CA) I have had no success in cultivating Darilingtonia. I have tried watering everyday with refrigerated purified water, using a pump to circulate water to the root, but they always end up dead. I live in CA in the Napa/Solano region. I use the recommended soil composite (lava rock/perilite) very open mix. I once read about a fellow CPer using an ice cooler to grow hers in. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks for any input. Darren ################### From: "It's me again!!! (Tomasz Kowalski)" Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 17:34:54 +0100 Subject: Devil's Claw Hello, Could anyone tell me what are the conditions for Aristolchia grandiflora (Devil's claw) to germinate? Thank you kowal Please send your replies under kowal@starogard.com My ICQ 2452546 please add me. [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 15:22:09 PST Subject: What's so special about D.meristocaulis??? To Fillippo and all who might be wondering, So what the hell is so special about D.meristocaulis??? Why do I blab on and on about it in my Neblina Expedition accounts? Why did I waste so much money and risk my life because of a single Drosera species? OK, forgetting the fact that I'm already somewhat crazy, I'm also nuts about Drosera in general, especially when it comes to searching for rare and exotic ones in the wild. And D.meristocaulis is just about as rare and and exotic as you can get in the Drosera world. Why? First of all, it is endemic to a single mountain. And not just any mountain: Mt.Neblina! This is simply one of the most isolated and difficult to reach places on this planet. Second, it has what all cool Drosera have: a long stem! And not just any stem, but one that may divide a few times along its more or less 40cm length. Third, it's one of those living fossils or relic species: it has three undivided styles! Whoopee, I'm sure all you non-taxonomists out there are screaming with excitement! So who cares if it has 3, 30, or 300 styles and if they're divided or not?? Well, for those of us interested in the evolution of the genus Drosera, the three undivided styles of D.meristocaulis suggest that it may actually be more closely related to the Australian pygmy Drosera than to any other New World, African, European, or Asian Drosera species. This hypothesis is furthermore supported by the large silvery stipules and small leaves of D.meristocaulis. So what?!?!? OK, I know this taxonomic stuff can be terribly unexciting to some, although I find it hard to understand, but if the two other points in favor of D.meristocaulis above don't make sense to you, or even excite you just a little, then I suggest you change hobbies!! :):):) Anyways, I'm sure many of you understand perferctly how addictive this stuff is, and how frustrating it is to go through so much expectation. money, and risk only not to find the damn plant -- and I didn't find D.meristocaulis!!!! AAAAARRRGH!! Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 15:25:41 PST Subject: Neblina Expedition part 5 .... As soon as we arrived in Sta Elena, Gert and I began asking around for info on how to reach Mt.Roraima. We tried everything, even helicopter and plane alternatives, but soon realized in mutual despair that we simply wouldn\222t have the time to climb Mt.Roraima. It would just have to wait for a future trip. So we decided to explore the Gran Sabana, which should have its share of interesting CPs and fantastic views. In the end the CPs we found surpassed our wildest expectations, but the views were unfortunately not so good because it was the rainy season and therefore always very cloudy. It was very frustrating for me to not even be able to glimpse Mt.Roraima, but Gert on the other hand was happy with this since it was the 2nd time he\222d missed the chance to climb Mt.Roraima and thus prefered not to see it at all and therefore hopefully not think about it too much. We 1st took a car from Sta Elena for a morning drive for around 45km N along the road to Caracas. We stopped at the Quebrada de Jaspe waterfall where we found lots of nice D.roraimae (uninterestingly green plants, but w/flowers), G.repens, U.amethystina (with tiny white flowers), U.pusilla, and U.subulata. On the way back to Sta Elena we stopped at a buriti bog and found the beautiful and rare aquatic U.cucullata with its striking purple-pink flowers, U.hispida, and an unidentified affixed aquatic Utric with yellow flowers. At noon we took a 45 min flight to a town called Kavanayen, just S of Ptari Tepuy. It was the smallest plane I'd ever been on, with seats for only 6 people, and it landed on a short dirt track -- a bit scary I'll admit! The views were great, but could've been better if it weren't for all the clouds. Kavanayen is a cute Indian village where all the houses are built from stone, an influence of the Spanish missionaries living there, who also built their mission of stone. Except for the missionaries, the locals were all surprisingly friendly, always greeting us with "Buenos dias", "Buenas tardes", and "Buenas noches", and the children were always happy and smiling. It was my first time back in Venezuela since I lived there as 15 years ago, so I had a great time eating and drinking things I remembered from my childhood. We saw a few Utrics as we walked from the airstrip into Kavanayen, but decided to first drop off our heavy bags at the mission (the only hotel) before stopping to look for plants. That done, we headed in the direction of an interesting area we'd seen from the plane, but we weren't even out of the village yet when we began finding CPs by the boatload. We 1st stumbled on a grassy/boggy area full of B.reducta, B.hectioides, D.roraimae, D.kaieteurensis, U.simulans, U.longeciliata, U.juncea, U.amethystina \223white fl.\224, and U.adpressa(?). We spent a long time at this spot before we finally moved on, then walked only around 200m before we found another new CP: D.arenicola var.arenicola. We hiked around until the end of the afternoon, but I think the only other CP we found was G.filiformis. No Heliamphora. The next day we got a car to take us to a waterfall called Aponwao around 45km away, at a place called Liworiwo. Our first stop just outside Kavanayen, at a grassy/boggy area by a river turned up D.communis, U.triloba, U.pusilla, U.trichophylla(?), U.hispida, and the large affixed aquatic U.erectiflora, each of its long scapes covered with numerous calyx lobes of spent flowers. The second stop, a seepage with lots of Stegolepis sp., turned up plenty of deep-red D.roraimae and D.kaieteurensis, U.cucullata, U.nana w/the largest flowers I've ever seen, and just as we were leaving we found what may be D.cayenensis. I was surprised at how similar this species was to D.kaieteurensis. Both had about the same shape and size of leaves and flowering parts. The difference was that D.cayenensis was more pinkish (D.kaieteurensis deep wine-red), prefered shadier habitats (D.k. under full sun), and the scapes were hairy (D.k. glabrous). They even shared a common and unusual characteristic I'd never seen before: the fruit, when dry, opens wide while still remaining attached at the base. The seeds are clearly visible sitting inside the wide-open carpel walls, resembling a nest full of eggs. This might be an adaptation for seed dispersal by the impact of rain drops and not by the wind as seems to be the case with other Drosera spp. The next stop turned up a few CPs by a river, but only U.pubescens was new. We saw plenty of this species in flower at the following stop, the shady Quebrada Perupo waterfall. The flowers were a delicate purple-lilac. Also plentiful at this waterfall was U.calycifida with dark-green leaves and red veins, but no flowers. Driving on, we spotted not far from the road a group of short tree ferns in a low area of a large grassy and decided to explore. Just behind the ferns it became boggy and we immediately found lots of large D.roraimae in flower and loaded with seeds. There was also plenty of G.repens and a few common Utrics. All of a sudden, we stumbled on a large submerged rosette with giant wine-red leaves. G.guianensis! The leaves were HUGE, several cm long, wavy like seaweed. I couldn't believe it but the traps were also huge, as big as -- if not bigger than -- those of the giant G.uncinata! Amazing! We began finding more G.guianensis as we moved around, but only with dead scapes, no flowers. Heading towards wetter ground, we found some with young scapes, then some with seed pods (SEEDS!!!), then a detached flower floating in the water, then a semi-open flower, and finally fully open flowers. BEAUTIFUL! They were a dark purple-blue with a tiny dull-yellow bit on the lower lip. We also found some D.intermedia growing in the wettest spots, some plants enormous, with really long stems. After a long stretch of road without stops, while passing by a village, I caught a yellow glimpse out of the corner of my eye. CATOPSIS! It was on a dead tree branch, apparently garbage left over from firewood. A little further along the road we saw another one, this time on a small tree, and stopped to photograph it. But soon we were caught up with all the Utrics growing around there: U.simulans, U.longeciliata, U.amethystina \223white fl.\224, U.adpressa(?), U.lloydii(?), as well as G.filiformis and D.kaieteurensis. There was also what seemed to be a pygmy form of U.tricolor, but which might've been a small purplish form of U.amethystina. I have quite a bit of experience with these two species and although I\222ve never seen such small U.tricolor nor does Taylor mention this species for the state of Bolivar in Venezuela. Around Liworiwo we found a few Catopsis berteroniana and were even able to collect some seeds. That day we stopped so much along the way to the waterfall that it was already nearly 5pm by the time we finally arrived there. And they were charging too much for the short boat ride downriver to the falls so we didn't even go see it. We thought of walking there, but to simply cross the river to the trail, the boat fee was exorbitant. So we got back in the car and stopped by a few more places to see plants on the way back, arriving in Kavanayen after sunset. .... Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Diane charette" Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 18:29:02 -0400 Subject: Nepenthes seeds Hi list! I'm looking for nep. seeds , easy to grow under fluo if possible or cutting of them ( in canada for cutting). E-mail me please, i'm ready to pay for them. Thanx everyone! :) Tom ################### From: "It's me again!!! (Tomasz Kowalski)" Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 02:07:28 +0100 Subject: Devil's claw Sorry I was thinking of Aristolchia grandiflora (Dutchman's pipe) not Devil's claw sorry for mistake kowal My ICQ 2452546 please add me. [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: JDPDX@aol.com Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 21:03:16 EST Subject: Re: D. cistiflora In a message dated 2/27/99 12:24:26 PM Pacific Standard Time, Mark Pogney writes: << My past experience with D. cistiflora is this. After receiving some packs from SilverHill seeds I scattered the lot on the surface of 60/40 sand-peat. This was around the first of May. The pot was left outdoors exposed to the elements. While day temps were in the 10-20c range several consecutive nights produced frost ( -2 to +2 c). I noticed massive germination (90-100%) >> Mark, How long did it take for them to reach maturity? What have you done to grow them long term? Jeff ################### From: "William M. Gorum, Jr." Date: Sat, 27 Feb 1999 22:43:17 -0600 Subject: repotting Drosera Sorry if I'm asking a previously asked question, but here goes.... :) I have some Drosera that I want to repot in a larger container. Right now, they're planted in pure sphagnum peat moss, but I think it would be better for the plant to pot it in a peat/sand mix, approx. 50% of each. Suggestions? I'm not sure what kind of Drosera it is. I bought it at Lowe's, and I'm assuming it is tropical, b/c the growing instructions said nothing about dormancy. It's about three inches tall (7.5 cm), and the leaves are about an inch (2.5 cm) long and about 1/4 of an inch wide. Any ideas on identification? It was propagated thru TC. BTW, got my copy of _The Savage Garden_. Wonderful book! Thanks, Will wgorum@softdisk.com ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 15:37:07 -0500 Subject: Darlingtonia Darren wrote: I have had no success in cultivating Darilingtonia. I have tried watering everyday with refrigerated purified water, using a pump to circulate water to the root, but they always end up dead. I live in CA in the Napa/Solano region. I use the recommended soil composite (lava rock/perilite) very open mix. I once read about a fellow CPer using an ice cooler to grow hers in. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks for any input. The most crucial part in successfully cultivating Darlingtonia is root temperatures. I know this from killing scores of plants in the past few years. I've tried everything as well and came to the conclusion that there is no getting around the dilemma of cool roots. I've had plants that started out fine in spring but died when the ambient temperatures and humidity started to rise come June. Anything above 62f-64f in the root zone will lead to root rot. I have read of growers rigging up airhoses and below ground water tanks, watering the pots with ice water 3 times a day, modified refrigerators with holes in the top, etc... Simply growing Darlingtonia in large clay pots and live sphagnum/perlite doesn't work for many of us east of the Mississippi. The genus has evolved in its natural habitat over millions of years. Cool seeping water from the melting snowpack has significantly figured into Darlingtonias well being, just as photoperiods for temperate CPs and wet/dry conditions experienced by tuberous/pygmy drosera. If anyone has come up with a simple and cheap system to provide cool root temperatures please post it! 5 seasons of experimentation and failure has not discouraged me yet. Maybe there are synthetic materials ( fashioned into containers) out there that can function as radiators, wicking away the heat and leaving the medium cool. Many growers would benefit from this one! Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 21:58:26 +0000 Subject: Re: Germination info Steve, >Dear All, > >Apologies if this has all been covered before on the list, and I know >the basic information is available in any number of books, but has >anybody got any tips on germinating the following, which arrived >this morning (joy!): > >Drosera cistiflora Sow them in the autumn/winter and keep them cool. If the seed is fresh they come up like cress! >Darlingtonia Sow them in late summer as they ripen. No need to stratify. If acquired later in the year sow in the spring. Seeds tend to lose viability quickly although I'm sure you can overcome this (hope so anyway!). >Byblis liniflora Sow as fresh as possible. Give very high temperatures and humidity. 35 - 40C is about right with 100% humidity. Seedlings very susceptible to burn and humidity drops but as they increase in size they become substantially more forgiving and with some weaning can be grown in a regular greenhouse. You need to start these seeds very early here due to the relatively short summer we get in the UK. >Heliamphora heterodoxa Never managed to get these to grow! >Polypompholix multifida Ditto. > Hope this helps. Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 22:18:32 +0000 Subject: Re: UK CPS AGM???? In message <2bf328b1.36d75f99@aol.com>, JWi5770869@aol.com writes >Dear All, >Does anyone know when/where the Uk CPS agm will be held this year? >Hoping to make it there this year > This years AGM will be on 1st May and will be held at the RHS gardens at Wisley again. Look forward to seeing you there! Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: L235@aol.com Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 18:24:11 EST Subject: Chicago area CPers? Last minute trip to Chicago for work. Anyone within easy driving distance who wants to meet an out-of-towner and talk plants? Jay Lechtman (L235@aol.com) ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 20:42:28 -0500 Subject: D. cistiflora reply Jeff wrote (in response to my observations): << My past experience with D. cistiflora is this. After receiving some packs from SilverHill seeds I scattered the lot on the surface of 60/40 sand-peat. This was around the first of May. The pot was left outdoors exposed to the elements. While day temps were in the 10-20c range several consecutive nights produced frost ( -2 to +2 c). I noticed massive germination (90-100%) >> Mark, How long did it take for them to reach maturity? What have you done to grow them long term? Actually they are not mature plants yet. The D. cistifloras that I have are only small ground rosettes about an inch across, 8 months old. I keep them in a sandy 60/40 mix under lights in my basement, where ambient temperatures are cooler year-round. Right now they are starting to die down for their proper dormancy so I plan on keeping the medium just moist. From what I've read D. cistiflora needs around three months. Hopefully when they come back the fabled "aerial" growth will commence. For me this species is VERY slow growing, unlike its cousin the dreaded "capensis"! An interesting observation- a couple months back I transplanted a few of these. When I washed the soil away I discovered that the lower portion of the root was quite swollen. I presume that this acts as a sort of "tuber" to keep the plant going from year to year. Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: Nile Smith Date: Mon, 01 Mar 1999 02:54:13 +0000 Subject: Heliamphora leaf cuttings Hi List, I just read on somebody's webpage that the most reliable way to propagate Heliamphora is by leaf cuttings. If this is true, what is the best way to go about it? Thanks, Nile Smith nxs@postmark.net ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 19:44:45 PST Subject: Neblina Expedition part 6 .... The following day we took a car to Luepa, a military putpost about 200km N of Sta Elena, a place suggested to us by Andreas as one of the lowland sites for Heliamphora, more specifically H.heterodoxa. The only problem is that Andreas had last been there 12 years ago and his instructions on how to reach the site seemed to be a bit outdated. So we just left our big backpacks with the army men and headed out into the field, hoping we\222d stumble into the plants sooner or later. The first place we explored was a giant seepage on a hillside extending all the way down into a boggy valley. We found LOTS of CPs, including many large yellow B.reducta, flowering D.kaieteurensis, D.roraimae, and D.intermedia, numerous Utrics, and G.repens -- but no Helis. One of the Utrics we found had long obovate dar-green leaves and fantastic flowers: one dark pink and another dark-purple with a dark-pink patch at the base of the lower lip. At first I thought it was U.schultesii, which I\222d seen a few pictures of in the past. But now I\222m reading in Taylor that this species has not been recorded from that area and that the leaves are much smaller. The only name it seems to fit under is U.hispida, which I\222m very familiar with from southern Brazil, where it\222s always yellowish or greyish-white in color and with long filiform leaves. Yet Taylor actually mentions that the flowers of this species are usually \223shades of violet or lavender\224. Maybe this is more common in the northern part of its range, although we saw plenty of the yellowish-whitish U.hispida in the Gran Sabana. We soon gave up on this area and decided to head in the opposite direction, in hopes of finding H.heterodoxa, and after a long walk stumbled on an interesting area full of large Stegolepis. Squinting because of the sun, holding my hand above my eyes for protection, I scanned my surroundings like a radar, swiveling from side to side, searching for Heli flower scapes, which would be much easier to spot than the leaves because of the waist-deep vegetation. There was one! A 30m hurdle dash over Stegolepis \223bushes\224 quickly brought me to a beautiful H.heterodoxa clump with fantastic large red lids! Searching around, I soon picked out a few more scapes sticking above the vegetation and while walking between these, I found a few more clumps of Heliamphora. It was a small population with less than 10 clumps spread around a small area. Some clumps were very large, but with many dead leaves and few live ones -- these looking ugly, green, often without lids. The few flower scapes found had no seeds and the flowers were all semi-devoured by insects. We also found plenty of D.cayenensis(?) in the semi-shade of Stegolepis all around H.heterodoxa as well as several other large CP populations nearby. There was lots to see, but the clouds of tiny mosquitoes known as \223la plaga\224 or \223puri-puri\224 have a cumulative effect and we just ahd to get out of there. All of a sudden you just can\222t take one more second of those millions of itsy-bitsy bugs buzzing around your head while you\222re trying to take pictures, forcing you to move your body and head around constantly to keep them out of your ears. So we finally gave up and surrendered, heading back to Luepa to catch a ride to Sta Elena. We had to wait there for 3h... We saw so many CPs during those 3 days on the Gran Sabana that we didn't have time to concentrate on Utrics as much, especially all the yellow-flowered species, unless they were very bizarre. I'm sure we missed a few, even though many of the species were familiar to me from S Brazil. For people not familiar with plants like U.triloba, U.pusilla, U.trichophylla, and U.subulata, I'm sure they all look the same. I\222m very used to dealing with those small, dificult to diferentiate, rosetted Drosera in S Brazil and I don\222t think I missed any species at the Gran Sabana, especially because I had the help of Gert, who compensated for my partial colorblindness which often makes it a bit difficult for me to spot small red rosettes. Yet one species may have escaped us: D.felix. We might have confused it with D.kaieteurensis, but I actually believe that it\222s more likely we either didn\222t see it or that D.felix was in fact described from single-flowered specimens of D.kaieteurensis -- which were very common in the sites we visited \226 and therefore should be a synonym of the latter. BTW, the D.roraimae from the Gran Sabana were slightly different from the ones we saw at Araca, and both of these were in turn VERY different from the ones on Neblina. The latter probably deserves to be separated as a new subspecies. .... Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 20:17:24 PST Subject: Drosera glanduligera Anyone growing this 1? Could someone please tell me its cultural requirements? I've got some seed (thanks joe!) and wonder if it would enjoy HOT summers or if I should hold off till the fall.... Matt NYC ################### From: "Joseph Kinyon" Date: Sun, 28 Feb 1999 22:18:31 -0800 Subject: Is aldrovanda available for sale? After reading a few messages about aldrovanda, I'm interested in the challenge to raise some. I'm looking for sources of live plants which can be shipped to California. Does anyone have some to spare for sale? P.S. Fernando Lopes, I love the enthusiasm you display for your drosera meristocaulis. Thanks for the extra plant lore on why its important. Joseph Joseph ################### From: =?ISO-8859-1?Q?Seos_mac_C=E1rthaigh?= Date: Mon, 01 Mar 1999 12:41:09 +0000 (GMT) Subject: Espania CPers, I'll be in Spain from the 4th-18 May. I am going to be heading south from Madrid (itinary to be decided) and then up to Cantabria/Picos de Europa staying close to Santander. I hope it'll be a good time to see pings flowering, would anyone recommend any places in particular to visit? In the south I would love to see Drosophyllum. regards Seosamh Seos mac Carthaigh +353 (0)91 524411 x3316 Ollscoil na hEireann Gaillimh Eire ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Mon, 1 Mar 1999 08:57:02 -0800 (PST) Subject: Rebecca's garden Hi all, Not sure how many people watch this show, I've been looking out for the upcoming interview with Peter D'Amato. Anyways, they committed a big no-no this last Sunday with regards to cp. They were covering old chairs with moss and then decorating with lichens and cut 'flowers', and yes, the cut 'flowers' were actually S.leuco pitchers, and the real ones (not the silk kind, since they showed a chair after a year outside and the pitchers had browned). So, it was a little sad seeing a national show promoting this, even though I'm sure it was an honest mistake. Just thought I'd share that. Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: L235@aol.com Date: Mon, 1 Mar 1999 18:14:49 EST Subject: re: D. cistiflora reply My D. cistiflora are in their third year of growth from seeds (germinated 12/96). They grew without dormancy for the first two years, reaching rosettes perhaps 1/2 inch across before dying back. I let them go completely dry (perhaps a mistake?). They were kept in a plastic bag to retain humidity, however. They were dormant for perhaps four months when I began to water this past fall. Soon after, a few plants began to grow, with the largest of them sending up aerial stems for the first time this year. Of the three varieties of seedlings I successfully germinated, two came back from dormancy ('pink 49 cm', 'red') .... designations are Eric Green's, the generous source of my seeds. << Mark, How long did it take for them to reach maturity? What have you done to grow them long term? Actually they are not mature plants yet. The D. cistifloras that I have are only small ground rosettes about an inch across, 8 months old. I keep them in a sandy 60/40 mix under lights in my basement, where ambient temperatures are cooler year-round. Right now they are starting to die down for their proper dormancy so I plan on keeping the medium just moist. From what I've read D. cistiflora needs around three months. Hopefully when they come back the fabled "aerial" growth will commence. For me this species is VERY slow growing, unlike its cousin the dreaded "capensis"! An interesting observation- a couple months back I transplanted a few of these. When I washed the soil away I discovered that the lower portion of the root was quite swollen. I presume that this acts as a sort of "tuber" to keep the plant going from year to year. >> ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Mon, 01 Mar 1999 18:06:58 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Darlingtonia Oh Maaannnn! I live in East Texas and just planted several hundred Darlingtonia seed, because I read in some CP books that all you have to do is water Darlingtonias with cold water twice a day to keep the roots cool if you live in hot climates. Now I read that if the root temp reaches 64F or abouve they will die. I'm thinking maybe I should pack the pots in ice for the summer as well as watering twice a day with cold water and repacking the pots in ice every morning and afternoon. I am requiring massive amounts of detailed information on this matter. *help* Robertivore ################### From: "Gilles LARDY" Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 09:55:17 +0800 Subject: Fernando and Mt Kinabalu Hi all, First I would like to thank Fernando for such a detailed and entertaining description of his trip to the Amazon. I think when you look at the material he's sent to us through the mailist during the past few years, his work should diserve to be gathered and made available on the net...with maybe some pictures if this is not asking too much (I would so much like to know what G.uncinata or lobata look like....). For my part, I have had the chance to go for a few days to the nep lovers paradise, i.e. Sabah province in Borneo. This is on of the few advantages of living in Hongkong, it is very easy to go to the Philippines, Indonesia or Malaysia for a few days, and particularly tempting during the Chinese New Year, since the town goes dead during a couple of days... So I made up my mind for a first trial in Borneo, for a 4 days trip. Of course I did not have time to see much, but managed to spend at least one day in Mt Kinabalu reserve. I must admit that I've been quite suprised by how well it's organised, and how helpful the staff is. The Gardens are very nice and it's really moving to get into eye contact with such mythic species. Unfortunately this time we did not have enough time to climb all the trail to the summit of Mt Kinabalu, and so we stopped at the 4th km, but for a first time that was fantastic to see neps (tentaculata) in the wild. No doubt this short trip will be followed by a much longer one soon. Bye Gilles ################### From: Dave Evans Date: Mon, 01 Mar 99 22:02 EST Subject: Re: D. cistiflora reply Dear Mark, > proper dormancy so I plan on keeping the medium just moist. > From what I've read D. cistiflora needs around three months. > Hopefully when they come back the fabled "aerial" growth will > commence. For me this species is VERY slow growing, unlike its > cousin the dreaded "capensis"! D.cistiflora needs to be kept drier than VFT or D.capensis like for their dormancies. The upright growth of this species is truely amazing! Once they start growing upright, the pace picks up a lot. Also, I believe D.cistiflora has about a month more, something like four months for dormancy... > An interesting observation- a couple months back I transplanted a few of > these. When I washed the soil away I discovered that the lower portion of > the root was quite swollen. I presume that this acts as a sort of "tuber" to > keep the plant going from year to year. It does the same job as a tuber. BTW, what is the difference between a corm and a tuber? In this case, D. cistiflora has roots similar to carrot or radish. In the second year, carrot and radish die after flowering, but D.cistiflora can live on year after year. I wonder though if the roots live longer than a year, or do they have to grow anew each season? Dave Evans ################### From: Dave Evans Date: Mon, 01 Mar 99 22:09 EST Subject: Re: Drosera glanduligera Matt, > Anyone growing this 1? Could someone please tell me its cultural > requirements? I've got some seed (thanks joe!) and wonder if it would > enjoy HOT summers or if I should hold off till the fall.... I do believe I have this one growing, finally!!! I just kept sowing small amounts of seed in many different pots--trying to find conditions that it likes. Well, unless D.rotundifolia seed found it's way into this pot (not likely and the plant doesn't quite like D.r.), it is D.g.. I'm just waiting for it to flower to IT the plant for certain. Dave Evans ################### From: "Rogan Roth" Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 08:33:33 +0200 Subject: Darlingtonia cultivation Dear Darren and others with Darlingtonia problems, I have had success (so far!) with Darlingtonia against all the odds in South Africa. Several years ago (three I think) I sowed approximately 30 seeds (thanks Clarke!) on a 50/50 mixture of sphagnum peat and sand - they have done well since then with some of the larger plants reaching nearly 100mm (4") in diameter. Some are still growing in the peat/sand mixture and others are growing in pure living shagnum moss - the plants in the moss are definitely stronger than the others. The secret of my success seems to be cultivating them beside a wet wall (evaporative cooling) in a greenhouse with high light levels (no shading except in the afternoon). I water them once every two days with distilled/rain water cooled in a domestic refrigerator. Our summertime temperatures can climb above 35 C (106 F) coupled with high relative humidity. The temperature inside the greenhouse is on average 5-10 C or so lower than the ambient temperature. So why do I have success? I have no idea! Perhaps the answer is to erect a small greenhouse with an extractor fan one end and a wet wall the other. Evaporative cooling pads can be bought from many sources as well as a suitable water pump to circulate water over the pad/s... it all depends on how seriously you want to cultivate Darlingtonia! Of course many other plants will also benefit from the constant movement of cool moist air - Utricularia reniformis just loves these conditions and flowers most profusely. A system such as this should work very well in California where the relative humidity is not too high. Best regards Rogan. ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 07:47:18 -0500 Subject: RE: Darlingtonia >I'm thinking maybe I should pack the pots in ice >for the summer as well as watering twice a day with cold water and >repacking the pots in ice every morning and afternoon. I am requiring >massive amounts of detailed information on this matter. *help* Hi Robert I bring my Darlingtonia inside once the weather warms up, putting them under fluorescent lights in the basement. They do fine. David Atlanta ################### From: Loyd Wix Date: 02 Mar 1999 13:54:58 Z Subject: Spring and travelling Dear All, finally spent an extended weekend with the plants after taking off last Friday in lieu of travelling to France on business the previous weekend. It appears we have another early spring in the UK! Many of the European Pinguicula are already in growth with flower buds on some such as P.longifolia ssp caussensis. Even P.vallisneriifolia is showing signs of growth - this is usually the last to break dormancy for me in late March early April. Many Mexican species are also in flower and I spent some time potting up a large number of P.laueana plants (amongst others) I raised from leaf cutting last year. These have developed remarkably well many being what I consider to be fully grown. On a slight departure to how I've raised these leaf cutting before, I used equal parts of sharp sand perlite and vermiculite with propagator covers to maintain high humidity. Once the cuttings had formed small plants I sprayed them every 2 weeks with a folia feed of Miracle Grow (a widely available product in the UK being a water soluble concentrated fertiliser with NPK 15 30 15 with the inclusion of trace elements). Aldrovandra is creating allot of interests in the recent digests, and this year I have started to grow this species for the first time. A couple of weeks ago I was sent a small polythene bag containing several plants by a good friend on main land Europe. I placed the plants in a suitable container which is occupied by U.inflata and so far the plants are growing well with the traps very obvious. Great to read Fernando's exploits! Imagine getting bored of U.humboldtii flowers - and here I am keeping an eye on my one developing flower scape to ensure slugs don't get it. Keep up the good work Fernando - BTW it looks like I shall get to Kibon in SP August /September time if I'm lucky. Like last year it appears I will be travelling allot so please be patient regarding my response to E-mail. Chris in Canada - will send your seeds this weekend. Gordon Wells in Spain - send me your postal address and I will send those seeds you were after in the autumn. Kind regards Loyd ################### From: "M.G.A. van Vliet" Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 15:14:32 +0100 (MET) Subject: Silica sand Hi all, I'd like to know what is so special about silica sand, I'm trying to get it, but it's kida hard where I live (I've tried several stores etc in or near The Hague in the Netherlands). So if anybody has some info on this stuff, I'll appreciate it very much Good growing, Mark ################### From: Nicholas Plummer Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 09:51:24 -0500 Subject: T.C. Nepenthes growth rate Last autumn, I obtained some small tissue cultured Nepenthes plantlets, and I'm wondering how long I can expect to wait for mature pitchers. The plants are in a warm terrarium with fluorescent lighting. I give them dilute orchid fertilizer which I have found enhances the growth of seedling Sarracenias and Cephalotus when they are too small to consume insects. It's already obvious that the little Neps grow at different rates; Nepenthes albomarginata (red form) is a weed, Nepenthes veitchii (lowland) is slower, and talangensis x hamata is positively glacial. Nick ------------------------ Nicholas Plummer nplummer@duke.edu http://www.duke.edu/~nplummer/ ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 12:52:13 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Silica sand Sand is Sand is Sand . . . The only thing you need to be concerned about is whether the sand gives a pH other than neutral (pH 7) when you add it to water. Coarse grained or fine grained - it doesn't matter. Sand is sand. Any ground up rock that does not dissolve in water and doesn't change the pH is OK to grow plants in. - Carl On Tue, 2 Mar 1999, someone wrote: > > I'd like to know what is so special about silica sand, I'm trying to get > it, but it's kida hard where I live (I've tried several stores etc in or ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 13:48:48 +0000 Subject: Darlingtonia Cool cells in a greenhouse would certainly help to keep Darlingtonia alive in a hot climate (though they are less effective if the environment is very humid). Bringing them into the air conditioning under lights is also a good suggestion. If you want ANOTHER suggestion, I keep mine alive in hot and humid St. Louis by putting a pot in the lid of a styrofoam box, so that the top of the pot is level with the top of the box. The roots of the plant are therefore inside the box, while the plant itself is out in the air and light. I used to be faithful about putting a cold pack in there every morning, and have since discovered that I can be lazy and only change it every few days or so. The box alone and some water in the bottom (below the level of the pot, so the pot isn't sitting in water) keeps the pot much cooler than the outside air. Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden susan.farrington@mobot.org (314)577-9402 ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 12:09:30 PST Subject: Thanks to Gilles and Loyd, article for CP societies, and CP want list Gilles, Loyd, and all, Thanks tons to Gilles, Loyd, and others who have written to me privately, for the kind words. I'm glad people are enjoying the Neblina account, a nice reward for the effort put into writing it all. Gilles, I'm also dying of envy of your proximity to places like Kinabalu and hope I can one day visit this "sacred" Nep mountain too. Maybe we can plan a future trip together, that is, once I get a job and some money together.... Loyd, I'll really be looking forward to your possible visit in August/September. Be sure to leave some extra time for me to take you to see some CPs, OK? And about U.humboldtii, one of the things that most gives me pleasure when I'm out CP-hunting is to come across a very rare or exotic species, and suddenly realize that it's all around me, growing in vast numbers, like a true weed. I feel like I'm inside a huge bank's vault, and I can roll around in the money, throw it up in the air, dive into it, bathe in it -- although I don't do anything similar to the CPs of course!! :):) As for Gille's wish to see G.uncinata and G.lobata, I've practically finished writing arcticles on these and other species (U.nelumbifolia, G.aurea) which I will soon send out to CPN and any other societies interested in articles on Brazilian CPs for their newsletters. A few had contacted me about this while I was in Japan, but I just didn't have the time back then. So if any of you out there, presidents, secretaries, etc., of CP societies are interested, please contact me privately. Other articles include trip accounts, G.repens, G.filiformis, U.geminiloba, U.nephrophylla, and more. Last of all, I wish to put out a WANT LIST for CPs. In return, I am willing to offer rare seeds of S.American CPs, including stuff collected on Mt.Neblina and southern Venezuela. Please contact me privately ONLY if you can get me one of the following below. The plants are for research only, I do not cultivate CPs any more. A second list WANT LIST may be out soon. ----------------------------------------------------------------- WANT LIST 1.) If anyone has D.banksii or D.subtilis in cultivation, or access to plants in teh wild, PLEASE contact me! I'm interested in herborized specimens, but even a few leaves detached from a live plant and dried in silica gel would be of great importance. 2.) 2 or 3 mature flowering specimens of D.linearis in a vial with 70%alcohol (30% water) and 2 herborized specimens. 3.) Same as above for D.esmeraldae, and any other rare Venezuelan species (except D.roraimae, D.kaieteurensis, and D.arenicola var.arenicola). ----------------------------------------------------------------- Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 12:15:58 PST Subject: Neblina Expedition part 7 -- THE END .... The next day, Friday morning, we returned to Boa Vista, hoping to have some time in the afternoon to explore around for CPs before catching the bus to Manaus where we had to catch a flight to S.Paulo on Saturday the 24th. Once past the border and customs -- relieved we'd gotten out of Venezuela without being bothered because of the plants we\222d collected -- it all of a sudden struck us that we'd gotten the dates mixed up. The 24th was a Sunday, not Saturday as we'd thought, meaning we actually had one more day left. It also meant that we could've climbed Mt.Roraima!! AAAAARRGH!! We couldn't believe it! We almost turned around and headed back to Venezuela to explore the Gran Sabana a bit more, but decided to use this time to explore the B.Vista area. We were sad we hadn't climbed Mt.Roraima, but if we had made it up there, maybe we wouldn't have seen as many CP species as we did during the 3 days we ran all around the Gran Sabana. We would\222ve had to rush up and down Mt.Roraima to make it on time, having little time left to enjoy the views, not to mention explore for CPs. I guess it was better this way, leaving Mt.Roraima for a future trip, when not every CP we see will be new, allowing us to enjoy the views more, and plan to spend several days going up and down the mountain. All this we spewed out as we headed south to B.Vista. Once again we stopped at the same roadside bar where we'd found D.biflora(?) and U.simulans a few days before on our way up to Sta Elena. After eating and drinking something, I calmly went to see if I could find any more CPs, but without much hope. What I really wanted to see was D.sessilifolia, which I knew from herbaria was more or less common in the lowland savannas around B.Vista. I checked a few different habitats around the river, but only saw the same D.biflora(?) and U.simulans. Then I went to take a leak by a tree which I\222d passed by a few times while zig-zagging along the grassy areas between the river and the buriti palm-lined river. And that\222s when I spotted it: D.sessilifolia! I only found a few plants, the yellowish rosettes hidden under the semi-shade of grasses, nearly invisible. Although D.sessilifolia is one of the most widespread Drosera spp. in S.America, it\222s frustratingly rare, occurring in very specific and restricted habitats. It\222s also an annual and extremely difficult to catch during its brief flowering period. As with most Drosera spp., D.sessilifolia will only open its flowers for a few hours in the morning, but like its close cousin D.burmannii, it\222s exasperatingly shy to flower, hardly opening up its petals completely. If a single cloud wandering accross a bright blue sky crosses paths briefly with the sun, it can result in closure of all the D.sessilifolia flowers. I was very fortunate to witness an open flower of D.sessilifolia the very first time I saw this species in the wild, in July 1992 when visiting a vast floodplain in western Brazil called the Pantanal. Unfortunately that had not only been the first time I saw an open flower of D.sessilifolia, but also the last. Over several years I was only able to find about five very distant D.sessilifolia populations in the wild \226 all between 1000-1500km away. On several occasions I made careful plans to travel all the way to one of these sites at the right time of year with the intent of catching open flowers of D.sessilifolia, only to find that the rains had arrived too late or too early that year, shifting the short flowering period backwards or forwards in the calendar. I was even kept from seeing flowers on a few occasions due to cloudy weather or unpredictable situations which caused me to arrive at the sites too late in the afternoon, only to find all flowers had already closed. All these difficulties over the years turned D.sessilifolia flowers into an obsession for me. Although it appeared to be the wet season on the Gran Sabana, it was seemingly early to mid dry season in the grasslands around B.Vista, which is odd since these are right next to each other, separated only by about 1000-1500m altitude. Anyways, early to mid dry season is a good time to search for D.sessilifolia flowers, so I had my fingers crossed -- for the \223Nth\224 time. And this time it seemed like luck was on our side: almost all the D.sessilifolia Gert and I found by the road to B.Vista had flower scapes. Too bad it was already early afternoon, so there was no chance of catching any open flowers of D.sessilifolia that day. Maybe tomorrow? Although no open flowers were found, it was still great to find this rare species again, to have another chance to study it in the wild and understand better what makes it tick. I noticed that most D.sessilifolia had very short stems 1-2cm high covered in old leaves. Some plants had already even dried out completely while the ones that were still alive often only had a few very small, nearly glandless live leaves left. The dead leaves underneath the live ones showed that the plants had been previously larger and were already shrinking, dying. We soon headed back to B.Vista, checked into a hotel, changed our bus tickets to Manaus for the following day, and then decided to hang around the hotel, resting all afternoon. Every night for the previous week or two we\222d been getting 6h or less of sleep. The hikes around the Gran Sabana were all relatively short, yet we\222d quickly become exausted and our legs ached badly \226 mine still ached over 2 weeks after returning! We were simply feeling physically wasted from the highly strenuous hikes at Neblina and Araca. So I took the opportunity that the B.Vista area is blistering hot (I don't know how D.sessilifolia and others survive there!!) to finally take a fantastically delicious cold shower, long and thorough, to remove all the grime I hadn't been able to remove over the 2 previous weeks, when either the streams were too icy or the weather just too cold for a long cold shower. The next day we had to be back at B.Vista to catch the 4pm bus to Manaus. That left us little time to explore in the morning. We ended up going back to the same roadside bar, knowing that it would at the least be a good place to hitch a ride back as it seemed to be popular with the drivers, and at the most present us with open D.sessilifolia flowers. It was another hot sunny day on the vast grassy plains and we had all our fingers crossed. Would I finally see those damn flowers open that day, for only the second time in my life? After some careful searching around the thick grasses where we\222d seen the yellow rosettes the day before, to my relief we finally uncovered a single, tiny, wide-open, pink-lilac D.sessilifolia flower! What joy!! I was finally \223face-to-flower\224 again with this rare gift of nature! I just hope it doesn\222t take me yet another 8 \275 years before once again catching wild D.sessilifolia in flower! I began clicking away with my camera, happy that I would finally obtain some clear shots of those curious multifid stigmata. It took us a while before we moved on again to look around for more plants, but once we did we quickly found a larger D.sessilifolia population right nearby. Unfortunately a cloud had been obstructing the sun for the past 15 minutes or so and although it was only about 9:30am, the 2 or 3 D.sessilifolia flowers I found had obviously just closed. No more open flowers left. Still, I was more than happy to have been lucky enough to see one at all. We explored further dowriver for a km or so, on both margins, but found nothing interesting except a large terrestrial turtle. I checked again before we left and could find no open flowers of D.biflora(?) either. The closed ones seemed to be a light pink-lilac. Curiously, this Drosera seemed to occur only around D.sessilifolia, in slightly more humid soil. It took us quite a while to get a ride back to B.Vista, like when we were hitching from Luepa to Sta Elena. There just aren\222t that many cars passing by either road \226 actually the same road. The guy who finally gave us a ride was kind enough to stop for us at a buriti stand and a quick look turned up U.simulans as well as more D.biflora(?), but no D.sessilifolia. These were the last CPs we saw on that trip. Gert and I caught the bus to Manaus that afternoon, arrived there 12h later, then caught our plane to S.Paulo, where I stayed while Gert continued his long trip home. I\222ve now developed my 20 rolls of 36-film and have obtained some great shots of CPs. Hopefully I\222ll soon be sending out some articles on this expedition to different newsletters, with photos. Almost all the CP species collected fortunately made it safely back to cultivation. I also heard the good news that Joachim\222s extra week in southern Brazil was very successful. I\222d suggested he try to visit at least one of the 3 best CP areas in Minas Gerais (if not Brazil): Itacambira, Diamantina, and Serra do Cipo. I gave him all the tips, directions, and even drew maps. He decided to run a marathon and went to all 3 places, but nonetheless found almost all the more interesting species as well as some species which not even I had ever seen! Shows how much there still is to be explored! And he still had time to visit a nice road I suggested to him on the Serra dos Orgaos near Rio de Janeiro, which has some nice D.villosa and Utrics, including the one and only U.nelumbifolia \226 which he found. What luck, huh? It\222ll take a while before I can stop daydreaming about this fantastic expedition 24h a day. I keep sifting all those wonderful experiences and plants through my memory. The taxonomical, ecological, and other questions raised are like glue to my brain. So as a closing paragraph or a post script, I\222ll philosophy a bit on D.sessilifolia. I just can\222t stop thinking about how restricted D.sessilifolia and even D.biflora(?) seemed to be in the wild and I keep wondering why. I was remembering how in cultivation D.sessilifolia is always a glimmer of what it is in the wild, always remaining tiny in all aspects. The only thing that occurs to me is that maybe D.sessilifolia needs fertilization. At the place where we found them near B.Vista, they grew only in 2 populations not too far from the road and the roadside bar, where there were even some cows and horses. Why didn\222t we see any further away along the river? Maybe D.sessilifolia is dependent on more fertile soils, which may explain why it\222s so rare. Well, even if this is all wrong, it\222s still valid as a tip for those of you trying to cultivate D.sessilifolia. FERTILIZE IT!! THE END ------------------------------------------------------------- Hope you all enjoyed it, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: DroseraMAN@aol.com Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 16:30:02 EST Subject: Importing CP and Cites Hello fellow CP enthusiasts, I could really use some advice from anyone who is familiar with moving In Vitro CP between countries. I'm Joseph (DroseraMAN@aol.com). I was thinking or importing some CP here to the USA via In Vitro cultures. Thanks, Joseph (DroseraMAN@aol.com) ################### From: "Mark Pogany" Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 00:16:00 -0500 Subject: re: Darlingtonia Robertivore wrote: Oh Maaannnn! I live in East Texas and just planted several hundred Darlingtonia seed, because I read in some CP books that all you have to do is water Darlingtonias with cold water twice a day to keep the roots cool if you live in hot climates. Now I read that if the root temp reaches 64F or abouve they will die. I'm thinking maybe I should pack the pots in ice for the summer as well as watering twice a day with cold water and repacking the pots in ice every morning and afternoon. I am requiring massive amounts of detailed information on this matter. *help* Before I began "trying" to cultivate Darlingtonia I read up on its cultural requirements. This was from the standard reference books and old CPN's. One article told of the difficulty experienced by growers in the Southeastern US. One thing that I remember it saying was "100% mortality after prolonged root temps above 64f". I acquired some plants, 2 years old on up to large mature specimens, from other growers. These were potted in large ( 12" to 14" clay) pots, kept in a shady spot, and flushed with large amounts of cool water in the growing season. I supplemented this with a few "blue" ice picnic packs around the base of the pots. I stuck a darkroom thermometer into one of the pots to monitor the root temps. This setup of mine was done during the 1997 and 1998 growing season ( March thru October). The first 6 to 8 weeks saw new growth and even a few small plants budding off side shoots. Once the weather started to get warm and muggy I kept up with the waterings and noted the root temperatures. On a cool day the reading would come in around 55f or so. On hot and muggy days the probe shot up to 65-68f. Cold water was immediately passed through the pots. Not being able to water them twice or three times a day, the pots had to wait for their owners return from work in the evening. I noticed no new growth once I had 65f temperature readings. These occurred on a daily basis, only cooling down in the evenings after a good dousing. Gradually my once robust Darlingtonias faded away, one by one. When I continue with Darlingtonias the pots will go into basement this time, as per David's method. I unfortunately found out that there is no getting around root temperatures with this genus. Maybe plants raised from seed would adapt better to my growing conditions. Mark Pogany Cleveland, Ohio markp@en.com ################### From: Davidogray@aol.com Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 21:00:17 EST Subject: All sand is not silica sand I beg to differ with Carl Strohmenger with regards to one's choice of sand. He hints at the source of my concern when he states : >"Any ground up rock that does not dissolve in water and doesn't change the pH is OK to grow plants in." Beach sand and river sands are composed of particles of the weathered parent rocks upstream and nearby. Drag a magnet through some beach sand and you'll likely find a good number of metal particles stuck to it. Similarly, there are likely to be any number of soluble mineral elements, salt, and organic matter present that may or may not harm the growth of CP. Silica is preferred because it is nearly inert and very chemically stable; as well, its cheap and abundant here in the US where its used for sand blasting ( try looking for it at a supplier for masonry needs ). Also, its easy to buy a coarser grade than typical beach sand thereby giving your media sharper drainage. You may not encounter any problems with the beach sand from your area but that doesn't mean that will be the case everywhere in the world. I can't believe we've spent so many bits on sand. Cheers, David O. Gray PS the silcon chip your computer relies on - was once silica sand. ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Tue, 02 Mar 1999 20:42:03 -0500 (CDT) Subject: More~ SCARE~ ~~stories I'm now just getting into Nepenthes cultivation since I built my greenhouse, but keep hearing all these scare stories that if you do this or that your plant will die. N. bicalcarata is said to be very easy to grow and is a good beginner Nepenthes... BUT: "Do NOT touch or move the pot or your plant will die." BOB's comment: If this is the case; how do people ship live Nepenthes successfully? Then again maybe they don't. Their plants must die after they recieve them. "Do NOT disturb the roots or your plant will die." BOB's comment: Well that little N. bicalcarata I'm going to get is going to have to stay in that 4" pot forever, cause repotting it will kill it. "If the temp changes 15F or more your plants will die." BOB's comment: You mean the temp stays with in +/- 10F difference all year round in their natural habitat? "Any humidity shifts and your plant will die." BOB's comment: ??? "If you don't prune your Nepenthes your plant will die." BOB's comment: So who or what prunes them in nature? "Nepenthes need 12-14 hrs of light per day or your plant will die." BOB's comment: It's getting harder by the minute! "N. bicalcarata and N. ampullaria are easy to grow." BOB's comment: If these are the easy ones what is required of the others? Robertivore ################### From: Dave Evans Date: Tue, 02 Mar 99 22:18 EST Subject: Re: More~ SCARE~ ~~stories Dear Bobavore, > I'm now just getting into Nepenthes cultivation since I built my > greenhouse, but keep hearing all these scare stories that if you do this > or that your plant will die. N. bicalcarata is said to be very easy to > grow and is a good beginner Nepenthes... BUT: Guess what? All of these statements are true! How can this be? Well, I'll tell you. Firstly, N.b. is easy: you get the conditions it likes, place the plant in these conditions and keep the conditions the same for a about a decade and you will have no trouble at all. In that time your plant will get huge, not very tall for a Nepenthes but the leaves can reach four or five feet long. If you live in a temperate climate with strong winters the heating bill will kill you, N.b. just loves the heat. Most of the species of Nepenthes are somewhat intermediate in their needs, some are not. _N.ampullaria_, _N.bicalcarata_ and (less so, but not by much) _N.rafflesiana_ need warm conditions all the time. I've shocked my N.rafflesiana by running with it from my house with it to the preheated car, inclosed in plastic, when the weather was in the forties (F). It dropped all it pitchers and turned pale. Took months to fully recover. Still, I think it is one of the easiest species, but you will not see me try that one (taking it out in the cold) again. BTW, there was probably something wrong with the plants that died from repotting, or they were mishandled. Any changes can shock Nepenthes, it's not something you change, but you can do lots of little things to help your plants become or stay strong so any shocks are just that, shocks - not dead plants. Dave Evans ################### From: aquilla2@juno.com Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 23:03:41 -0800 Subject: Re:Sand is Sand is Sand is Sand I guess that the main property of silica sand is that, it is the main ingredient of glass, Glass will not react with any chemicals. Sand, defined as crushed rock may contain limestone as well as silicates. The way that I test to see if my sand is acceptable, is to drop a few drops of muriatic acid (HCL) on the sand and look for a fizzing, bubbling, or some type of chemical reaction. If no reaction is observed then the sand (whatever it's ilk) should be acceptable. I have personally carted buckets of east coast (U.S.) coastal plane sand, shoveled from the middle of the road (off road areas) to mix with peat for some of my plantings. On another note I have used Pine Bark Nuggets (mulch) as a soil amender, buffer and top dressing, for many of my CP pottings. Michael A Sankovich > >Topic No. 11 > >Date: Tue, 2 Mar 1999 12:52:13 -0500 (EST) >From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" >To: Multiple recipients of list >Subject: Re: Silica sand >Message-ID: > >Sand is Sand is Sand . . . > >The only thing you need to be concerned about is whether the sand >gives a >pH other than neutral (pH 7) when you add it to water. Coarse grained >or >fine grained - it doesn't matter. Sand is sand. Any ground up rock >that >does not dissolve in water and doesn't change the pH is OK to grow >plants >in. > >- Carl > >On Tue, 2 Mar 1999, someone wrote: >> >> I'd like to know what is so special about silica sand, I'm trying to >get >> it, but it's kida hard where I live (I've tried several stores etc >in or > > >------------------------------ > >End of CP Digest 1739 >********************* > ################### From: joel asquier Date: Mon, 1 Mar 1999 19:02:36 +-100 XSubject: Re:Sand is Sand is Sand is Sand Dear Miss, Mister I would like to know if a Carnivorous Plants Brazilian Association is existing and if there is somebody interested to exchange Seeds with me living in France (I am in the French Dion\351e Association). Don't hesitate to answer in Portuguese langage because I can read it. Mais esto com muito vergonha para escriver. Abra\347o, Jo\353l joel.asquier@ixi.fr ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Wed, 03 Mar 1999 08:03:10 -0500 Subject: Re: Importing CP and Cites At 02:15 PM 3/2/99 -0800, you wrote: >Hello fellow CP enthusiasts, > >I could really use some advice from anyone who is familiar with moving In >Vitro CP between countries. > >I'm Joseph (DroseraMAN@aol.com). I was thinking or importing some CP here to >the USA via In Vitro cultures. > >Thanks, >Joseph (DroseraMAN@aol.com) Dear Joseph, I have successfully imported plants and flasks from multiple countries with no import permit, and sometimes with no phytosanitary paperwork, (again just last week from Australia).....please be more specific regarding what kind of information you need and I will be glad to answer...... Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Wed, 03 Mar 1999 08:16:02 -0500 Subject: Re: More~ SCARE~ ~~stories At 07:37 PM 3/2/99 -0800, you wrote: >Dear Bobavore, > >> I'm now just getting into Nepenthes cultivation since I built my >> greenhouse, but keep hearing all these scare stories that if you do this >> or that your plant will die. N. bicalcarata is said to be very easy to >> grow and is a good beginner Nepenthes... BUT: > > Guess what? All of these statements are true! How can this be? >Well, I'll tell you. Firstly, N.b. is easy: you get the conditions >it likes, place the plant in these conditions and keep the conditions >the same for a about a decade and you will have no trouble at all. >In that time your plant will get huge, not very tall for a Nepenthes >but the leaves can reach four or five feet long. If you live in a >temperate climate with strong winters the heating bill will kill you, >N.b. just loves the heat. Most of the species of Nepenthes are somewhat >intermediate in their needs, some are not. _N.ampullaria_, _N.bicalcarata_ >and (less so, but not by much) _N.rafflesiana_ need warm conditions all >the time. I've shocked my N.rafflesiana by running with it from my >house with it to the preheated car, inclosed in plastic, when the weather >was in the forties (F). It dropped all it pitchers and turned pale. >Took months to fully recover. Still, I think it is one of the easiest >species, but you will not see me try that one (taking it out in the >cold) again. > > BTW, there was probably something wrong with the plants that died >from repotting, or they were mishandled. Any changes can shock Nepenthes, >it's not something you change, but you can do lots of little things to >help your plants become or stay strong so any shocks are just that, >shocks - not dead plants. > >Dave Evans Well I have not gotten in a good argument in a while and I know Dave Evans just loves it when I pipe in. I really don't know what people are talking about with all of this Nepenthes stuff. I recently had N. bicalc, N. raffl, and 40 others outside in 45 degree (F) weather for 3 days! and guess what.......surprise, they didn't die....not even close...as a matter of fact the raffs all brushed it off like nothing. The bicalc showed some cold damage, but has been trucking on ever since. My truncata species plants started to grow faster..... As far as root disturbance...come on folks...lets get real....Nepenthes roots are like metal cable. I once took a plant out of a pot and tried to pull on the roots....they were as tough as any plant roots. As well as the fact that I personally grow a N. hookeriana plant that the original owner seriously ripped out of a pot and handed to me (the plant didn't miss a beat). Moreover this past summer I was rooting a raff cutting in a glass of water outdoors, and after a wind came through the glass fell over....the semi-rooted cutting sat on 90 degree concrete in the sunlight for close to 36 hours before I realized what happened.....hey guess what , it is now 2 feet taller and has 6 traps on it.....what a surprise! Bobavore....just try and ignore all of the general cp scare talk....its just talk. (P.S. I also grow Heliamphora plants in a terrarium that never gets under 75 degrees.....I remember everyone saying that couldn't be done....) Honestly Dave, why do you pass on information that is plainly inaccurate? Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: "Malouf, Perry" Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 08:49:24 -0500 Subject: RE: More~ SCARE~ ~~stories Hey Marc Burak, I envy the success you've reported about growing Nepenthes that have been "mistreated". My experience has not mirrored your reports, and I would love to pay you a visit to see how it's done. I haven't found Nepenthes roots to be like metal cable. Sure, some of my larger plants do have strong primary roots. It's the very fine roots that I'm more worried about when I repot the plants. These black roots resemble darning thread and are very delicate on my plants. They can be pulled gently (though I try to not do that) without breaking--if they do break from a gentle tug then they're probably rotten anyway and not functional. I haven't killed a plant yet by damaging those fine roots. But I have noticed that the plants are set back for a little while when the roots are damaged. They usually recover in a few weeks--the time of recovery depends on the species/hybrid. As regards the temperature fluctuations, I've read reports of people subjecting N. khasiana and a few others to slightly sub- freezing temperatures where the vegetative portion of the plant turned black and rotted away after a few days. The plants came back after some time. One possible explanation is that the plants were large, the root ball was massive, and the temperatures didn't stay very low for very long to freeze the root ball. I don't think any Nepenthes would come back after the root ball has been frozen. If my plants experience temperatures outside of their preferred range, they slow down. In the Winter, my highlanders grow faster and my lowlanders stop; vice versa in Summer. Even salt buildup in the potting media affects the growth rate of my plants. Recently I measured the conductivity of the runoff from my Nepenthes pots and found it to be much higher than normal. The problem was traced to a few months of poor watering practices, and has now been corrected. Those affected plants are much happier now. Is it absolutely necessary to pay attention to salt buildup, temperature range, humidity, etc. in order to keep a Nepenthes alive? No, not if you're reasonable. It can take a long time to kill a Nepenthes with improper conditions. But if you do pay attention to these things, trying to keep them right for the plants you're growing, I think the plants will grow faster, look much better, and give you more satisfaction. That's my experience, anyway. >...Dave, why do you pass on information that is ... inaccurate? Well, he was reporting his observations of his plants (I think). Certainly I have just reported my observations of my plants. Why do our observations differ from yours, and somewhat from each other's? One explanation is that we provide different growing conditions for our plants--perhaps different potting media, lighting, humidity, water, etc. And that's why I'd love to pay you a visit sometime to see how you get your Nepenthes to produce "metal cable" roots. :-) Regards, Perry Malouf ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 10:03:17 -0500 Subject: seeds and cp societies > Last of all, I wish to put out a WANT LIST for CPs. In return, I >am willing to offer rare seeds of S.American CPs, including stuff >collected on Mt.Neblina and southern Venezuela. Please contact me >privately ONLY if you can get me one of the following below. The plants >are for research only, I do not cultivate CPs any more. A second list >WANT LIST may be out soon. Hi Fernando, I read your wish list praying that I had something that you wanted. Didn't happen. This leads to the following request. Please consider donating collected seed to some of the cp seed banks so that we can cultivate some of these exotic (to me) cp's. Since I'm a visual learner, I'm having much fun trying different Drosera just to learn Drosera taxonomy. And to the managers of cp seed banks, I'd like to request that if Fernando donates seed that you mark those seeds as coming from him. I have D. kaieteurensis in cultivation but am uncertain that the seeds were labeled correctly. I know that would not be the case with seeds coming from Fernando. I have a specific request to ICPS officers that this policy be instituted in the ICPS seed bank. A year or so ago, I received S. purpurea NC mountain form from the ICPS seed bank. When I asked the seed bank manager who donated the seed so I could confirm that the seeds were S. purpurea venosa v. montane, the manager could not do so because a record of who donated the seed was not available. This is a perfect example of why such records should be maintained. Hoping you'll say yes. David Atlanta ################### From: j.dewitte@t-online.de (Jean-Pierre De Witte) Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 18:40:11 +0100 Subject: HELP Jean-Pierre De Witte mailto:j.dewitte@t-online.de http://home.t-online.de/home/j.dewitte ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 19:12:44 Subject: Re: seeds and cp societies Dear David, > I have D. > kaieteurensis in cultivation but am uncertain that the seeds were labeled > correctly. How did the seeds look like? If they were fusiform, you can be sure it was *not* _D. kaieteurensis_. If your plants are still alive, they will perhaps flower some nice day, and you can obtain an unambiguous identification without having to rely on accurate collection data. > I have a specific request to ICPS officers that this policy be > instituted in the ICPS seed bank. I would endorse this proposal (it does not cost me anything to do so; well, perhaps Tom Johnson, our seed bank manager is now no longer my friend...). > A year or so ago, I received S. purpurea > NC mountain form from the ICPS seed bank. When I asked the seed bank > manager who donated the seed so I could confirm that the seeds were S. > purpurea venosa v. montane, the manager could not do so because a record of > who donated the seed was not available. This is a perfect example of why > such records should be maintained. Yes, but locality data would be nice as well. > Hoping you'll say yes. Yes. Tom can, however, only keep and communicate the data he receives from the donators. If the sender's address was not evident from a submission, he would quite certainly not discard the seeds. Kind regards Jan ################### From: Steve Bange Date: Wed, 03 Mar 1999 14:10:44 -0400 Subject: email address change I need to change my email to another address. How do I do it? Thanks ################### From: Vitor Fernandes Oliveira de Miranda Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 13:59:32 -0300 (GRNLNDST) Subject: Looking for pygmy sundews seeds Dear all, Firstly my greettings. My name is Vitor Miranda and I\264m looking for seeds of pygmy sundews. I know is not so easy to find them (it\264s a little hard this species produce seeds), but I need them to my reseach about cladistics. If somebody could help me, please contact me because I can pay by the seeds. Best redards, Vitor Miranda Rio Claro-SP, Brazil ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Wed, 03 Mar 1999 13:57:02 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Nepenthes~ ~ ~SCARE ~ ~Stories~~ I think my Q's have been answered for the most part. "Don't Shock the Nepenthes!" BUT! Wouldn't pruning the plant be a shock? Why would not pruning it kill it? Robertivore ################### From: j.dewitte@t-online.de (Jean-Pierre De Witte) Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 20:55:12 +0100 Subject: hybrids Hi People, Last year I got some seed labelled "bicalcarata". After germination and couple of months growing the plants looked like ampullaria, so goodbye bicalcs (I reckon I am not the only one...). Nevertheless, the plants looked nice, so I kept growing them. Now, after two years the plants are large, and I would bet they are hybrids ampullaria*rafflesiana. I posted a picture of the pitchers on my web-page for comments . I must have around 30 of the plants, so yes, trade or sell. I still have the pics from the Sulawesi Drosera and have put them on my webpage. Anybody makiing a guess as to their identification? I am also getting pictures of the "new" species from the Phillipines. The plants are now large enough so that the pitchers are worth looking at. Take about two weeks for a new posting. (I will also do my best and re-vamp the site. It is a disgrace that I haven't done anything for two years. Must get some new Harley pictures as a minimum......) Take care, Jean-Pierre De Witte mailto:j.dewitte@t-online.de http://home.t-online.de/home/j.dewitte ################### From: "Malouf, Perry" Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 15:25:43 -0500 Subject: RE: Nepenthes~ ~ ~SCARE ~ ~Stories~~ Hey Robertivore, > "Don't Shock the Nepenthes!" > BUT! Wouldn't pruning the plant be a shock? Listen, these plants grow in the wild. Various elements of nature can break a nepenthes vine and the plant can survive nonetheless. Use some common sense when pruning. The less you prune off, the better for the mother plant. Removing 50% of the vegetative growth is more detrimental than removing 10%. If your plants are small, why prune them at all? Are you really pushing to propagate them? Nepenthes look their best (my opinion) when you let them grow as they would in nature. I prune my plants only when they become inconveniently large, or when side shoots start growing and the main vine starts looking less than optimal. The smaller plants are left alone. Regards, Perry Malouf ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 13:50:25 -0500 Subject: RE: seeds and cp societies >How did the seeds look like? If they were fusiform, you can be sure > it was *not* _D. kaieteurensis_. > There's has to be a website somewhere that has the definition for fusiform >If your plants are still alive, they will perhaps flower some nice day, and you can obtain an unambiguous >identification without having to rely on accurate collection data. I take it you're volunteering to ID an alcohol-preserved, or pressed flower that I will send to you . >Yes, but locality data would be nice as well. I agree. David Atlanta ################### From: CALIFCARN@aol.com Date: Wed, 3 Mar 1999 18:33:10 EST Subject: Re: Rebecca's Garden and white trumpets Greetings folks, Peter here at California Carnivores: Someone mentioned they saw dried white trumpets on a recent episode of Rebecca's Garden. Ironically, I recall when they were out here filming last year, she mentioned something about having used them (perhaps for that episode) and Marilee gave Rebecca quite a lecture about it, which Rebecca was happy to receive and vowed to change her ways. By the way, the producer called last week and said the episode on California Carnivores was to air in April or May and hopefully they'll let us know the exact date before it happens. The producer mentioned she was pulling her hair out because she had hours of tape to condense into one of those miniscule 6 minute segments. Oh well....... On March 20 (Saturday) I'll be giving a little slide show and talk at 6 pm at the San Francisco Garden Show at the Cow Palace. We use to display and sell plants there but no longer do that since the show is now too early in the season for us. The show use to be in late April. I've also been asked to give a chit chat to the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which is having a mega meeting in San Francisco this summer. They want a "fun" talk to take the scientists minds off of all the heavy duty stuff they usually have at this meeting, and apparently The Savage Garden was passed around last year when they were organizing this event, and they decided to ask me. Ironically, I've had philosophical differences with the AAAS in the past (I am not a member nor have any association with them, but do try and follow what they do, having a general interest in science) but I am certainly flattered, and in fact flabbergasted, that they have asked me to speak to them. Should be fun. Th-th-th-th-that's all folks! Peter ################### From: Dave Evans Date: Wed, 03 Mar 99 21:46 EST Subject: Re: Re: More~ SCARE~ ~~stories Dear Marc, > >N.b. just loves the heat. Most of the species of Nepenthes are somewhat > >intermediate in their needs, some are not. _N.ampullaria_, _N.bicalcarata_ > >and (less so, but not by much) _N.rafflesiana_ need warm conditions all > >the time. I've shocked my N.rafflesiana by running with it from my > >house with it to the preheated car, inclosed in plastic, when the weather > >was in the forties (F). It dropped all it pitchers and turned pale. > > Any changes can shock Nepenthes, Perhaps, your plants do better because they are outside all the time and adapted to a much more dynamic environment??? What do you think? I mean, I have seen Nepenthes that were growing in those little Pot 'O Horrors just shrivel and die in a couple hours even when the humidity level was to higher than normal humidity levels (about 80%). I now believe that the more "soft" a Nepenthes conditions are, the easier it is to cause the plant harm by changing it's conditions. You think temperature change tolerance can be affected by soft conditions too? Or maybe it's the humidity change that comes with temperature changes? Most people have to grow their plants in at least somewhat soft conditions. Do you? Do you have any high altitude high-land Neps growing out there with the plants you listed? Please let us know what other plants can grow like this. > Well I have not gotten in a good argument in a while and I know Dave > Evans just loves it when I pipe in. > > > I really don't know what people are talking about with all of this > Nepenthes stuff. I recently had N. bicalc, N. raffl, and 40 others > outside in 45 degree (F) weather for 3 days! and guess > what.......surprise, they didn't die....not even close...as a matter > of fact the raffs all brushed it off like nothing. The bicalc showed > some cold damage, but has been trucking on ever since. My truncata > species plants started to grow faster..... > > > As far as root disturbance...come on folks...lets get > real....Nepenthes roots are like metal cable. I once took a plant out > of a pot and tried to pull on the roots....they were as tough as any > plant roots. I can't wait to move to your town, Marc. Sounds like CP heaven!!! > As well as the fact that I personally grow a N. hookeriana > plant that the original owner seriously ripped out of a pot > and handed to me (the plant didn't miss a beat). Well, that's no suprise, low-land hybrids are very easy to grow. I think you have very good conditions naturally and don't have to work to supply them for your plants. However Marc, given the temps you listed, I have to say you're giving these plants attributes I haven't seen before. > ...this past summer I was rooting a raff cutting in a glass of > water outdoors, and after a wind came through the glass fell > over....the semi-rooted cutting sat on 90 degree concrete in > the sunlight for close to 36 hours before I realized what > happened.....hey guess what, it is now 2 feet taller and has 6 > traps on it.....what a surprise! Yes, and I have also heard of other stories of that are quite amazing. One is of a clone of N.albo that came into cultivation as a cut piece that had been pressed as a herbarium specimum. It was pressed for quite sometime, more than a couple days. One fellow noticed that it still looked alive and stuck it in a glass of water and it rooted. Now, you know I call these plants? Lucky. Dave E ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Wed, 03 Mar 1999 21:18:23 PST Subject: Seeds, Lowrie, & S.American Drosera taxonomy (a bit heavy!) To David, Jan, and all, >I read your wish list praying that I had something that you wanted. Didn't >happen. Sorry Dave!!! >This leads to the following request. Please consider donating >collected seed to some of the cp seed banks so that we can cultivate some of >these exotic (to me) cp's. In the first place, please remember that there were seven other CPers along with me on this expedition and their names were all printed out by Andreas and I in our respective accounts on the listserv. All seeds collected were shared among us, and most took with them live plants as well to be cultivated. I'm sure some of their seeds must already be germinating in tissue culture in Europe and the USA and will hopefully soon be widely available. This was after all one of the main reasons for this whole expedition: introduce new species into cultivation, especially through the "democraticness" of tissue culture. Second, I have a long standing agreement with Allen Lowrie. I send him all my seeds and he sends me whatever I want that he can get his hands on. For my master project with molecular phylogeny of Drosera, he was the single most important donator of material, sending me a wide variety of specimens of the rarest Australian Drosera. Without him, I don't know what I would've done. So my seeds will go to Allen's seed bank, allowing you all to acquire them soon for a small price. It might not be as cheap as tissue culture or other seed banks, but Allen is nonetheless helping to introduce and distribute rare species around the world, making them (hopefully) eventually widely available, as now seems to be the case with many Brazilian Drosera, Genlisea and Utricularia species which were unheard of in cultivation around 10 years ago when I first started studying CPs in the wild in Brazil, and which Allen was at least partically responsible for helping to spread through my seed donations. Although I'm not getting any money out of this and am purely interested in further research into CPs, don't forget that the money Allen gets from selling seeds and other CPs helps support all his expeditions to discover new species around Australia and introduce these into cultivation as well (maybe I should sell seeds too...). Therefore your money will be very well spent on Allen, you can be sure, more so than with any other CP nursery. >And to the managers of cp seed banks, I'd like to request that if Fernando >donates seed that you mark those seeds as coming from him. I have D. >kaieteurensis in cultivation but am uncertain that the seeds were labeled >correctly. I know that would not be the case with seeds coming from >Fernando. Thanks Dave, but I wouldn\222t be so sure of that! I\222m still trying to figure out the identity of some of the stuff I collected on this last trip. Although many of the species were similar to or the same as some found in S Brazilian, it is nonetheless a new area for me, a new frontier. I promise at least to keep the listserv tuned in to any and all recent developments regarding any and all S.American CPs I come across (see below!). Having said this, I better continue where I left off in my taxonomic discussion of Venezuelan Drosera with Jan, now that my things have arrived from Japan, including all my Drosera literature. Jan, I noticed that Duno de Stefano and Culham in their recent key to Droseraceae (Flora of the Venezuelan Guayana Vol.4, 1998?) synonymized D.arenicola var.occidentalis to type plants, in agreement with the opinions I expressed to you when I arrived back from Venezuela: > First of all, the division of D.arenicola into 2 varieties is worthless > if you ask me! Remember I said I\222d collected a specimen which had 14 flowers near Kavanayen? Well I just realised that the TYPE location for D.arenicola is precisely Kavanayen! So the separation of this species into two varieties based on a supposed difference in flower scape length and flower number seems to have no solid support at all. As for the D.felix/kaieteurensis/cayenensis confusion, I think I\222ve solved it, after quite a bit of taxonomic sleuthing! It\222s a bit confusing, but here goes: We found what I at first thought was D.felix, but when I realized that single flowers on short scapes were just as common as longer scapes with 2, 3 or even more flowers, I thought that maybe this was actually D.kaieteurensis and that D.felix was just a stupid synonym based on single-flowered specimens of D.kaieteurensis. After \223D.felix/kaiteurensis\224, we found what I had seen in photos and in cultivation labelled as D.cayennensis, and innocently assumed it was truly this species \226 should\222ve known better than to trust this informal ID. These plants were growing in shadier habitat than D.\224felix/kait.\224, were more eglandular-pubescent, with slightly longer scapes, and overall pinkish in color. The only problem is that in the same paper as mentioned above, it says that D.cayennensis occurs only from 100-500m in altitude, while we were always between 1000 and 1500m in altitude, not to mention that it has glndular-pubescent inflorescences. So now I believe we never even saw D.cayennensis at all. The pinkish plants are actually the true D.kaieteurensis while the D.\224felix/kait.\224 (which I initially thought was D.felix, then believed was D.kait., including D.felix as its synonym) is the true D.felix! Got it?? Only D.felix is not as exclusively single-flowered as previously believed. This sure seems to make more sense, agrees better with Duno de Stefano & Culham\222s key (and drawings), and might even explain their recent attempts to synonymize D.panamensis and D.colombiana under D.cayennensis. These might be after all at least part of the same complex, I would just have to see real D.cayennensis to be sure. UFA! I\222m glad I haven\222t sent out any seeds of these plants yet! And I gotta rewrite a few articles I was preparing for CPN and others. See Dave? It\222s all confusing for me as well!! So if D.kait. and D.felix. are truly what I now believe they are, they are really very close taxa. The only difference was habitat, color of the plants, more numerous flowers in the former, and more heavily eglandular-pubescent scapes in the former too. Now let\222s put the final pieces of this puzzle together! Remember my description of the unique seed dispersal mechanism in these two species?? Remember how I described that the seeds remain inside the open, undetached carpel walls like in a bird\222s nest, to be probably dispersed by rain drops? Well now I realise that D.felix and D.kait. are the only two species in Duno & Culham\222s key which are said to have \223sepals reflexed when mature\224. Plus, they write that the petals are \223deciduous\224 in D.kait, and not marcescent like almost all the Drosera I can think of out of the top of my head, remaining attached above the fruit, although dried up and shrivelled. They don\222t say it is or isn\222t so in D.felix, but I noticed they were truly deciduous. Isn\222t this all INTERESTING????? I know, I know, all you non-taxonomists out there must be falling asleep. ZZZZZ! I doubt many people made it this far, but for me this is one of the most rewarding moments, when I begin fitting in the pieces of the puzzle into something that actually makes sense. It\222s very thrilling, believe it or not! Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Wed, 03 Mar 1999 23:54:35 PST Subject: Dutch CPers: Gert Hoojenstrijd and D.sessilifolia To all Dutch CPers, I'd like to send a message to my friend Gert Hoogenstrijd, do any of you know him? Can you call him and pass my message? He told me he would be without e-mail once returning to Holland from our Neblina adventures. Anyways, I seem to have lost my D.sessilifolia seeds that we collected together at Boa Vista. IF he hasn't sown all his yet, I would DESPERATELY like to ask him for a small amount from his share. I need only a few seeds for a friend who is making a botanical drawing of the flowering specimen we collected. It wouldn't be complete without the seeds. Furthermore, I had in mind to send some to Dr.Kondo in JApan, who recently published a chromosome number of 2n=80 for this species, I believe equivocal, based on those DAMNED D.aliciae going around under the name of D.sessilifolia. So I wanted him to have the real stuff to analyze. If any one else has seeds of the REAL D.sessilifolia available (the one that looks like D.burmannii), I would be interested in some. ED?? Thanks tons! Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: Edwin Spector Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 09:00:39 +0000 Subject: What's Killing My Drosera This Time? A while back, I almost killed my D. Binata, by using untreated water from a well (too limey round here). I went back to pure rain water and the plants quickly recovered. Now, they're dying again. As each new leaf reaches 10 to 15mm, it turns black and shrivels. My plants have no leaves - just shrivelled, black threads. I gave them a shot of fungicide, but with no effect. Any ideas? They look so sad. Edwin Spector Bath, UK. ################### From: adamec@butbn.cas.cz Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 13:40:46 +0100 Subject: Aldrovanda vesiculosa and Utricularia for sale ALDROVANDA VESICULOSA AND EUROPEAN AQUATIC UTRICULARIA SPECIES FOR SALE Institute of Botany in Trebon, Czech Republic, offers for sale: A) Aldrovanda vesiculosa turions for CP growers, scientific or Nature Conservation organizations, for cultivation or (re)introduction activities. The plants from East Poland are cultivated outdoors. They will be sent by post mail, as turions enclosed in a tiny PE tube, from November to May. Price: 5 USD (or 8 DM)/turion + postage 6 USD (or 10 DM); minimum order: 10 turions; any order over 50 turions: price 3 USD/turion (or 5 DM). For the cultivation instructions see the paper by L. Adamec (1997): "How to grow Aldrovanda vesiculosa outdoors" in the special issue of CPN 26: 85-88. The instructions may be sent on request. B) Australian (sub)tropical Aldrovanda vesiculosa plants for indoor cultivation. As dependent on light conditions these plants can be red. Plants from an indoor culture of two Australian populations are available (they are probably the same): a) Subtropical: East-coast Australia, S. of Sydney, NSW; b) Tropical: S. of Darwin, NT. The Australian plants grow over the whole year at temperatures above 18 oC and do not form turions. In temperate regions, they may also be grown outdoors over summer season. Apical segments ca. 4 cm long are sent by post mail in plastic vials or tubes, from March to November, when outdoor temperature is above 5 oC. Price: 8 USD (or 13 DM)/plant + postage 6 USD (or 10 DM); minimum order (regardless of the populations): 4 plants. C) Turions of European temperate aquatic Utricularia species for outdoor cultivation: U. australis, U. bremii, U. intermedia. Turions are sent by post mail in tiny PE tubes, from November to June. Price: 2 USD (or 3 DM)/turion + postage 6 USD (or 10 DM); minimum order (regardless of the species): 10 turions. Invoice can be sent by the Institute of Botany. Payment should be realised as personal postal money order or direct sending the due sum in cash, in registered letter to the below address. Checks or cards are not acceptable. Payment in advance prior to sending the plants is welcome. Contact address: Lubomir ADAMEC Institute of Botany, Dukelska 145, CZ-379 82 TREBON, Czech Republic tel.+420-333-721156; fax -721136; E-mail adamec@butbn.cas.cz ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 08:19:35 -0500 Subject: RE: More~ SCARE~ ~~stories Dear Perry & Dave, You guys are certainly getting more tolerant of my "opinion" problem :-) In response to Perry's email, I am in total agreement with you on something you said....my plants also slow down terribly when it gets cold ...and certainly repotting has the ability to set plants back...but my point was that they come back to speed when temperatures return to normal and after they acclimate to a new pot they begin growing again (usually 2-4 weeks). I am not saying that plants don't suffer in these conditions, but they have never died on me. Even a bicalc that lost over 70% of its leaf mass due to a 45 degree night has put out tremendous new growth since. Also I agree with what Dave mentioned on outdoor grown plants. I am convinced that the plants probably acclimate to more severe environmental conditions being outside. Here in South Florida, plants are subjected to absolutely outrageous heat conditions in the spring, summer and fall, and in the winter things become milder (but leaning to they cold side at night). Plants are thrashed around by powerful thunderstorms throughout the year and high winds during tropical storms and hurricanes. I believe this environment is similar to what occurs in the wild. The only things that I do with Nepenthes plants that I believe gives them and edge on growing capacity is...I am very conscientious about watering, the plants are fed in BULK, I fertilize every thirty days (with the exception of Dec-March), and I use the dreaded Nitrozyme hormonal spray every 60-90 days. Who knows...maybe they just like palm trees? ################### From: Loyd Wix Date: 04 Mar 1999 13:29:19 Z Subject: Pings in Spain Hey Seos, >I'll be in Spain from the 4th-18 May. I am going to be >heading south from Madrid (itinary to be decided) and then >up to Cantabria/Picos de Europa staying close to Santander. >I hope it'll be a good time to see pings flowering, would >anyone recommend any places in particular to visit? In the >south I would love to see Drosophyllum. In the Cantabrican mountains you will find P.grandiflora and P.vulgaris though you've got plenty of these growing on your own door step! You will notice that the Cantabrican P.grandiflora are probably a darker coloured flower than you're used to. If you can head East to the Pyrennees and to the Ordessa National Park you will find P.longifolia ssp longifolia - there is also the peculiar Rio Ara plants (possible P.l.ssp.l/P.g. interograde). Heading South depends on your itinerary but there are plenty more Pings to see, the recently described P.mundi, P.l.dertosensis/P.dertosensis the 'Hoz de Beteta' Pinguicula not forgetting the giant P.vallisneriifolia and if you go to the very far south - P.nevardensis. The long leafed Pinguicula are cliff or gorge dwelling so inhabiting a quite different environments to your native Irish species. Gordon Wells in Madrid is probably a good contact for Drosophyllum - I seem to remember him visiting sights for this species some years ago. (Gordon send me your address and those seed will be in the post.) Let me know if you need further info. Kind regards Loyd ################### From: Loyd Wix Date: 04 Mar 1999 13:30:41 Z Subject: Brasil Hey Fernando, >Loyd, I'll really be looking forward to your possible visit >in August/September. Be sure to leave some extra time for >me to take you to see some CPs, OK? I have already started negotiations with my wife! After your postings over the past couple of years and your slides at Reading, I don't intend to fly all the way to Sao Paulo and only see yet another airport and ice cream factory! Even your stories of fly larvae which love to bore into legs/testicles etc hasn't put me off. I will however bring the strongest insect repellent I can find, always wear long trousers with a pair of bicycle clips for added security. Ouch! Regards Loyd ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 16:02:47 Subject: RE: seeds and cp societies Dear David, > >How did the seeds look like? If they were fusiform, you can be > >sure it was *not* _D. kaieteurensis_. > > > There's has to be a website somewhere that has the definition for fusiform > If the testa (seed coat) does have two tail-like appendages above and below the embryo, the seeds are called fusiform. If these appendages are missing or small, the seeds are ovoid or ellipsoid. > >If your plants are still alive, they will perhaps flower some nice day, and > you can obtain an unambiguous > >identification without having to rely on accurate collection data. > > I take it you're volunteering to ID an alcohol-preserved, or pressed flower > that I will send to you . I would prefer alcohol-preserved material (preferably with a whole scape, showing the curvature and possible hairs at its base, open flowers, ripe fruits, and at least one whole leaf with stipule). Flower colours are washed out by alcohol. Please note the colour on the vial. If you know where the plants were collected (in the field), please note that, too. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 08:04:38 -0500 Subject: RE: Seeds, Lowrie, & S.American Drosera taxonomy (a bit heavy!) Hi Fernando, > Sorry Dave!!! me, too. Muito obrigado for the explanation. It's certainly understandable why you're sending your seeds to Allen. >I know that would not be the case with seeds coming from Fernando. >Thanks Dave, but I wouldn\222t be so sure of that! I have you on a taxonomic pedestal and darnit, you're going to stay there > See Dave? It\222s all confusing for me as well!! Get back up on that pedestal. > Isn\222t this all INTERESTING????? I know, I know, all you non-taxonomists >out there must be falling asleep. ZZZZZ! I doubt many people made it >this far, but for me this is one of the most rewarding moments, when I >begin fitting in the pieces of the puzzle into something that actually >makes sense. It\222s very thrilling, believe it or not! I made it this far. I understand the feeling. I get the same feeling when I'm out cp'ing and trying to gather as much information about habitat as I can so I can improve cultivation. David Atlanta ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 17:41:31 +0000 Subject: Re: Nebinising Fernando (et al) >..rural and small town people ...just sit in front of the TV, staring >wide-eyed as if in a >trance. I often doubt they understand any of what is being said, >(political/economic talk, >names of countries and places which they have absolutely no idea where >or how far they >are.). Just ask any city dweller to watch a film of a real jungle. Ask any European or North American (etc.) to watch real tropical rain or film of a true cloud forest. Ask any person born and bred in a so called developed nation what they would do with a whole mature calabash. > ...they often don't understand simple plots of movies, especially > sci-fi, and other >modern things which they have no inkling about their functions? How many city dwellers really understand that plants and animals and land shouldn't belong to anyone? Ask North Americans what is the simple plot that makes it inappropritae to heat the outdoors(!) so people can sit outside of restaurants and eat without wearing a sweater (!!!). >In fact I'll never forget one guy who called the polar bears in the >Coca-Cola ads cute >white dogs. Yes. It's a bit like Europeans and non-native North americans calling Mahogony trees toilet seats or furniture, or calling crocodiles purses or shoes!!!! We all see the world from our own perspective and sometimes it takes seeing other people's perspectives before we realise just how culturally biased our own point of view is. Another lovely tale Fernando. You must stop publishing or I'm gonna get itchy feet again!!! Chau Paul ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 17:47:26 +0000 Subject: Re: What's so special about Drosera Fernando >Anyways, I'm sure many of you understand perferctly how addictive this stuff is, and >how frustrating it is to go through so much expectation. money, and risk only not to find >the damn plant - No we don't. As I told you in Germany we are amazed at your fascination with small rare rosettes that are all very much alike unless armed with hand lense and colour chart. We are far more able to understand an affinity with Pinguicula which are, errr, small rare rosettes that are easily told aparat from each other with use of othing more than, errr, hand lens and colour chart. >- and I didn't find D.meristocaulis!!!! AAAAARRRGH!! My sympathies. I empathise fully. Chau Paul ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 14:02:01 -0500 Subject: RE: seeds and cp societies Hi Jan, You're on. Things are starting bloom now so sometime this spring or early summer, I should have what you need. Now for you snail address. Many thanks, David > -----Original Message----- > From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de > [SMTP:SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de] > Sent: Thursday, March 04, 1999 10:31 AM > To: Multiple recipients of list > Subject: RE: seeds and cp societies > > Dear David, > > > >How did the seeds look like? If they were fusiform, you can be > > >sure it was *not* _D. kaieteurensis_. > > > > > There's has to be a website somewhere that has the definition for > fusiform > > > > If the testa (seed coat) does have two tail-like appendages above and > below the embryo, the seeds are called fusiform. If these appendages > are missing or small, the seeds are ovoid or ellipsoid. > > > >If your plants are still alive, they will perhaps flower some nice day, > and > > you can obtain an unambiguous > > >identification without having to rely on accurate collection data. > > > > I take it you're volunteering to ID an alcohol-preserved, or pressed > flower > > that I will send to you . > > I would prefer alcohol-preserved material (preferably with a whole > scape, showing the curvature and possible hairs at its base, open > flowers, ripe fruits, and at least one whole leaf with stipule). > > Flower colours are washed out by alcohol. Please note the colour on > the vial. If you know where the plants were collected (in the field), > please note that, too. > > Kind regards > Jan ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 20:32:05 Subject: RE: seeds and cp societies Dear David, > I should have what you need. Fine. > Now for you snail address. Zwischenstr. 11 60594 Frankfurt/Main Germany Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Sundew Sundew" Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 11:52:18 PST Subject: D.sessilifolia and more Hi Fernando and list... I'm going to have to check the fridge as there is a small chance I have some sessilifolia seed left. Too bad you dont need a small plant as Ive got a couple extras. The ones I moved to a brighter location look absolutely beautiful - its a real pleasure having something that looks a hell of a lot like burmanii but with red tentacles :) Actually, I'm still looking for the red burmanii if anyone who didn't catch my million previous requests has any seed to spare! As for David M's "D. kaieteurensis", he sent me one and it seems to me to be "D.venusta" or whatever name that plant is currently going by. :( Mine did flower though... Thanks again, David. Is this Culham you speak of Alastair? I corresponded with him way back in the 80's and believe he was just getting into serious work with Drosera shortly before we lost touch. If you're listening, drop me a line. Finally, does anyone in the New York area (or anywhere else) have the ability and desire to tissue culture a few Drosera? I'd love to donate some material to a suitable experienced non-profit party :) Thanks in advance Matt NYC ################### From: j.dewitte@t-online.de (Jean-Pierre De Witte) Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 20:34:43 +0100 Subject: HELP2 Hi guys, Sorry about the HELP-confusion. I hit the wrong button to fast, and the message was gone when at the same time I realised it should go to the server (I wanted a copy of the instrucions) and not to the list. On the other hand, thanks to the ones who were worried or curious enough to inquire. Jean-Pierre De Witte mailto:j.dewitte@t-online.de http://home.t-online.de/home/j.dewitte ################### From: Dionaea@aol.com Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 15:06:54 EST Subject: Sand I use the same method as Michael but I use white vinegar instead of muriatic acid (HCL). It pretty much produces the same results. Michael A Sankovich wrote: <> ################### From: Vitor Fernandes Oliveira de Miranda Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 17:57:18 -0300 (GRNLNDST) XSubject: Sand > Dear Miss, Mister I would like to know if a Carnivorous Plants > Brazilian Association is existing and if there is somebody > interested to exchange Seeds with me living in France (I am in the > French Dion\351e Association). Don't hesitate to answer in > Portuguese langage because I can read it. > Mais esto com muito vergonha para escriver. Abra\347o, Jo\353l > joel.asquier@ixi.fr Joel, Como eh que vai voce? Nao precisa ter vergonha para escrever em portugues. Porem, se voce preferir, posso escrever em ingles, eh so dizer. Por gentileza, diga-me quais sementes disponiveis voce tem para troca pois eu verei quais eu tenho. Estou mais especificamente interessado em sementes de qualquer Droseraceae. Um grande abraco, Vitor Miranda ################### From: Vitor Fernandes Oliveira de Miranda Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 18:03:41 -0300 (GRNLNDST) Subject: Re: pygmy drosera seed On Thu, 4 Mar 1999, Sundew Sundew wrote: > Hi Vitor, > Do you have any South American Drosera for trade? > Thanks! > Matt > NYC > > ______________________________________________________ > Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com > Yes Matt, I have some seeds of South American sundews, but I have to verify. Soon I said to you wich species. Do you have any seeds of sundew? Thanks, Vitor Miranda Rio Claro-SP, Brazil ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 17:05:35 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Growing media Another difficulty. I'm having trouble getting the following: 1) Long fiber sphagnum moss 2) Lava rock 3) Vermiculite 4) Perlite 5) Charcoal I tried ordering from bmi, but I have to be a business to become a customer. Is there any other place I could order these media from? I'm looking for 3-4 cu. ft. bags of the stuff. I could get it at the nurseries here, but they only sell these little quart size bags costing between $5-$10 a bag. Litterally quart size! Robertivore ################### From: VFTMaxwell@aol.com Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 18:39:16 EST Subject: Es Spanol In a message dated 2/12/99 2:44:54 AM Eastern Standard Time, cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: > Hola, yo soy Martin y les escribo porque yo tambi'en cultivo plantas > carnivoras, lo que me gustaria seria conseguir nuevas especies, si > ustedes saben de alguien que venda plantas o semillas, me podrian > mandar la direccion, si quieren les puedo contar todo lo que se. > Estoy estudiando biologia, con especializacion en botanica, en la > universidad UHABI Huh? Engles please! ################### From: VFTMaxwell@aol.com Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 18:44:59 EST Subject: Es Spanol In a message dated 2/13/99 2:51:44 AM Eastern Standard Time, cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: > Hola Martin, mi nombre es Chris. El dont I sabe mucho espa\361ol tan si mi > escritura mira su divertido porque el software l\363gica de la traducci\363n > que > usaba im encontr\363 en altavista.digital.com. Usted puede desear intentar > la > bater\355a del germen de ICPS para los g\351rmenes baratos en > http://www.primenet.com/~tjjohns/seed.htm o comprar las plantas en el sitio > de Tom Hayes en http://www.tcscs.com/~thayes / m\355 tambi\351n un > comandante de > la biolog\355a pero especializaci\363n en gen\351tica m\341s bien que la bot\ > 341nica. Engles once agin! ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 16:03:50 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Growing media Robert, > Another difficulty. > > I'm having trouble getting the following: > > 1) Long fiber sphagnum moss > 2) Lava rock > 3) Vermiculite > 4) Perlite > 5) Charcoal > > I tried ordering from bmi, but I have to be a business to become a > customer. Is there any other place I could order these media from? > I'm looking for 3-4 cu. ft. bags of the stuff. I could get it at the > nurseries here, but they only sell these little quart size bags costing > between $5-$10 a bag. Litterally quart size! > > Robertivore > Where do you live?! This stuff is readily available in large quantities in North America at most nurseries, except for the long-fibred sphagnum and possibly lava rock. Check out places like Wal-Mart (if you're near one). They may not have huge bags of it, but they do sell cheap. Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: "~`~ TomrarePlants ~`~" Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 20:04:34 -0000 Subject: Looking to buy or trade for Utricularia Hello, We have Utric gibba aquatic & Utric floridana aquatic plants ,we would like trade or buy utricularia plants. Looking for U. inflata., Aldrovanda , ect. Thanks nepenthes@ka.net Tom fritts www.ka.net/nepenthes ################### From: Alexander Salomon Date: Thu, 04 Mar 1999 21:36:45 -0500 Subject: CP Books Hello everyone. I have accumulated several new titles through some of my bookdealer friends and their networks which I am now offering. Darwin, Charles- Insectivorous Plants, Appleton 1897, cloth bound(scarce) Lowrie, Allen Carnivorous Plants of Australia-hardcover (I believe it is out of print in the hardcover edition) Slack, Adrian- Carnivorous Plants- MIT Press-hardcover with dustcover, very nice copy, hard to find in hardcover Lloyd, Francis The Carnivorous Plants- 1942 Chronica Botanica-hardcover, blue cloth, fine condition-extremely rare Lloyd, Francis The Carnivorous Plants-1942 hardcover-very good condition-slight wear to spine-still a hard to find title For more details, please directly email me at asalomon@cfw.com Thanks Alexander Salomon ################### From: The Dickersons Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1999 16:53:19 -0800 Subject: Looking for Andrew Marshall Would someone send me Andrew Marshall's new email address, or Andrew if you're listening please contact me. Thanks. -Ryan- randls@juno.com ################### From: "Gilles LARDY" Date: Fri, 5 Mar 1999 16:10:55 +0800 Subject: Lost ping hybrids ? Hello all, While browsing the excellent archives of the bulletin of the French carnivorous plant growers association Dionee, I've found this article describing the germination of a P.caudata x P. grandiflora and a P. caudata x P.vulgaris... Since I had never heard or seen any picture of an hybrid between a tropical and a temperate ping, I would like to know if such hybrids are easy to obtain or was it luck, and are they still in cultivation ? For reference, the article (in French...) can be found at http://freeflight.cockpit.be/dionee/bulletin/d_26_f.txt Cheers, Gilles ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Fri, 5 Mar 1999 09:51:16 Subject: _P. macroceras subsp. nortensis_ Dear all, A while ago, I answered a request by A. Ceska on this list concerning the validity of _Pinguicula macroceras subsp. nortensis_. I wrote that the name was illegitimate because of a missing type in the protologue ("Carnivorous Plants of the West" Vol. 2, p. 19. by H. Rondeau, 1995). However, at that time I was unaware of a publication in "International Pinguicula Study Group Newsletter" Vol. 8, pp. 3-8 (1997), which contains a latin description and a type reference. The protologue of _P. m. n._ is, therefore, not the 1995 publication but the 1997 publication, which alone contains the required type data. The name is legitimate and valid since 1997. The respective entry in the cp database will be changed accordingly in the next update. Thanks to Juerg Steiger, who provided the missing information. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Michael Hunt" Date: Fri, 5 Mar 1999 08:06:20 -0500 Subject: Nepenthes - kekei paste Hi, Has anyone tried kekei paste (sp?) on the nodes of a growing Nepenthes stem to promote new growth? I work at a Orchid nursery and we use this on orchids to promote branching by gently pulling the hard coat off the node and exposing the soft green part then applying the paste. This aids in stem branching and flowering. I'm not sure about this with woody parts of the stem, but maybe on the herbaceous parts of the stem? ~Mike St. Petersburg Fl ################### From: "NEIL ARMSTRONG" Date: Fri, 5 Mar 1999 16:24:25 -0000 Subject: Ping Disappearance Hi all! When I first started collecting CP's about 9 years ago, I first tried to read up on the subject. The first book I found was "Carnivorous Plants" A Wisley Handbook, by the R.H.S. This showed me the wonders of the many species and variety's of CP's there were, not just the humble VFT. Anyway, to my point, on page 46, there is a mysterious pinguicula called Alfredae, a very odd plant that has tubular leaves that are shaped like erect noodles! The thing is I have never seen a picture off this plant again, anywhere, also as far as everyones lists in all the books, there is no P. Alfredae, it does'nt seem to exist. At the time I bought it, the author's name meant nothing to me, but now I know who Paul Temple is.. I was wondering if he can explain himself! Cheers anyway for any contribution anyone has on this mindless meandering, oh yeah, I hope everone (Well not everyone, obviously) who can make it will visit our little old stand (British CPS) at the Chelsea Flower Show in May, I hope to make lots of maillist contacts in person. Cheers, Neil Chilly Northumberland, England. ################### From: Madeleine Groves Date: Fri, 05 Mar 1999 14:03:43 -0500 Subject: Permits, CITES, etc Dear All, I have been reading the few discussions about in vitro imports of cps and the necessity for permits. Please check with your CITES scientific authority (US Fish and Wildlife Service in US and Dept of Environment in UK for example) before you import in vitro cps without phytosanitary permits or CITES permits. For example, I think in vitro Nepenthes being imported into the UK are on Annex A (includes CITES Appendix I plants) and Annex B (includes CITES Appendix II plants) and are NOT exempt from permits. ONLY when there is an annotation attached to the Appendices, as in the case of in vitro orchids, can you export/import free of permits. The orchid annotation reads 'seedling or tissue cultures obtained in vitro, in solid or liquid media, transported in sterile containers are not controlled until removed from such containers'. Check with the appropriate authorities. Laws change, CITES members may have stricter laws (e.g. the European Union) and info on this listserve is not always correct. So that we finally get this settled once and for all, I am writing an article for CPN on CITES and other legislation relevant to cpers. I would like to know your experiences of such legislation and what sort of info is useful to you, where you have found problems, or your ideas on how to work towards updating the appendices and making trade easier for the legal transactions. Please, no moan-fest. The CITES Plants Committee meets this year (approx. 9-10 months prior to the next CITES Conference of the Parties (COP) scheduled for Nairobi, 2000). Your comments will be forwarded to the relevant committee members attending that meeting. They may well be discussing updating the Appendices with respect to cps so be constructive. I know all the stories about how CITES inhibits conservation, how it makes collecting a pain and how 'other' countries are impossible to work with - I'm looking for any ideas on how to amend the Appendices, etc. It's not going to happen overnight. Bit by bit. Many thanks. Mad xx ________________________________________________________ Madeleine Groves Conservation Programme Coordinator Atlanta Botanical Garden P.O. Box 77246 Atlanta Georgia 30357 Tel:(404) 876 5859 (voicemail 503) Fax:(404) 876 7472 E-mail: m.groves@mindspring.com ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Fri, 05 Mar 1999 11:51:32 PST Subject: To anyone who has D.indica in flower: question To all, I have noticed in Allen Lowrie's recently published volume 3 that his drawings of D.indica flowers show five styles, istead of three divided at the base as was previously believed. This may seem trivial to most of you, but it is a fundamental taxonomic and phylogenetic question. So I would like to ask any and all of you out there who are cultivating D.indica forms to PLEASE check the flowers on your plants when these open, or even old pictures you may have of D.indica flowers. Please tell me if you see five styles with no divisions, or if you see three styles divided at the base (looking like six). I would really appreciate the help!!! Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Andreas Wistuba" Date: Fri, 5 Mar 1999 20:37:41 +0100 Subject: Heliamphora neblinae pictures Hi all, I just uploaded a bunch of pictures showing Heliamphora neblinae to my web-page. This are just the first out of many pictures taken during our expedition which will be added to my page in the near future. Further I added a picture of a nice cultivated plant of Nepenthes cipeata grown from tissue culture. Bye Andreas THE NEPENTHES NURSERY http://www.wistuba.com Mudauer Ring 227; 68259 Mannheim; Germany Fax: +49 621 7152028 nepenthes@wistuba.com ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Fri, 5 Mar 1999 14:58:54 -0500 Subject: RE: To anyone who has D.indica in flower: question What does a style look like David ################### From: Craig Gardner Date: Fri, 05 Mar 1999 12:30:15 -0800 Subject: Re: Looking for Andrew Marshall Andrew has moved and is not yet back on the net. I talked to him last night and he hopes to be back on soon you can write him at. Anderw Marshall P.O. Box 20 Tenino Washington 98589 > From: The Dickersons > To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com > Subject: Looking for Andrew Marshall > Message-ID: <19990304.184105.-135367.5.randls@juno.com> > > Would someone send me Andrew Marshall's new email address, or Andrew > if you're listening please contact me. Thanks. > > -Ryan- > randls@juno.com -- Craig S. Gardner 9525 West Rd. Redwood Valley, Ca. 95470 Shipping address: 130 Cherry St. Ukiah Ca. 95482 (707)485-1276 http://www.jps.net/cgardner/index.html ################### From: "John Green" Date: Fri, 05 Mar 1999 13:39:36 -0700 Subject: English only?!? (was Es Spanol) >>Huh? Engles please! >>Engles once agin! Let's remember that this discussion group is international and not all participants speak english. Please don't intimidate others because they don't speak english or make them feel unwelcome here. It may be their best chance to contact other CP growers who speak their language. We should all be grateful that Jan doesn't decide to communicate with us only in German, or Fernando only in Portuguese! ################### From: "Andreas Wistuba" Date: Fri, 5 Mar 1999 21:52:47 +0100 Subject: Re: To anyone who has D.indica in flower: question Hi Fernando (and other Drosera-taxonomists), I just scanned you a slide of D. indica I took in irian jaya. The flower has 3 styles devided at their base. I hope that saves Drosera- taxonomy;-) You (and other Drosera-enthusiasts) can have a look at the flower at: http://www.wistuba.com/d_indica_irian_jaya_flower_for_fernando.htm :-) Bye Andreas On 5 Mar 99, at 11:56, Fernando Rivadavia Lopes wrote: > > To all, > > > I have noticed in Allen Lowrie's recently published volume 3 that > his drawings of D.indica flowers show five styles, istead of three divided > at the base as was previously believed. This may seem trivial to most of > you, but it is a fundamental taxonomic and phylogenetic question. > > So I would like to ask any and all of you out there who are > cultivating D.indica forms to PLEASE check the flowers on your plants when > these open, or even old pictures you may have of D.indica flowers. > > Please tell me if you see five styles with no divisions, or if you > see three styles divided at the base (looking like six). I would really > appreciate the help!!! > > > Best Wishes, > > Fernando Rivadavia > Sao Paulo, Brazil > > > > Andreas Wistuba; Mudauer Ring 227; 68259 Mannheim; Germany Phone: +49-621-705471 Fax: +49-621-7152028 E-Mail: andreas@wistuba.com ################### From: "R. Beer" Date: Fri, 5 Mar 1999 14:01:36 -0800 (PST) Subject: Espanol - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > In a message dated 2/12/99 2:44:54 AM Eastern Standard Time, > cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: > > > Hola, yo soy Martin y les escribo porque yo tambi'en cultivo plantas > > carnivoras, lo que me gustaria seria conseguir nuevas especies, si > > ustedes saben de alguien que venda plantas o semillas, me podrian > > mandar la direccion, si quieren les puedo contar todo lo que se. > > Estoy estudiando biologia, con especializacion en botanica, en la > > universidad UHABI > Huh? Engles please! He says: "Hi, I'm Martin and I'm writing to you because I also cultivate carnivous plants. What I'd like is to acquire new species; if you know of people who sell plants or seeds, could you send me the address, and if you want I'll tell you anything I know. I'm studying biology with a specialization in botany, in the University UHABI." Unfortunately I don't have the original mail or I'd write him and send him the address of the web pages. Maybe someone has already done so? Bob ------- End of Forwarded Message ################### From: andrew@astilla.demon.co.uk (Andrew Bate) Date: Fri, 05 Mar 1999 22:33:13 GMT Subject: Re: English only?!? (was Es Spanol) On Fri, 5 Mar 1999 12:43:33 -0800, "John Green" wrote: >Let's remember that this discussion group is international and not all >participants speak english... Agreed. I don't understand most of the postings in here when they get into deep taxonomy stuff anyway so a different language makes no difference to me! :-) Andrew -- Andrew Bate | Email: andrew@astilla.demon.co.uk Worcester, UK | Web: http://www.astilla.demon.co.uk | ICQ: 11894304 ################### From: "tierney wayne" Date: Fri, 05 Mar 1999 15:50:34 PST Subject: Re: shriveling D. binata Edwin Spector wrote: >A while back, I almost killed my D. Binata, by using untreated water >from a well (too limey round here). I went back to pure rain water and >the plants quickly recovered. Now, they're dying again. As each new leaf >reaches 10 to 15mm, it turns black and shrivels. My plants have no >leaves - just shrivelled, black threads. Something similar is happening to my D. 'Marston Dragon'. It isn't quite so drastic though- it's just the tips of each fork which turn black and shrivel up. Some of the time I can see it happening before the leaf even fully unrolls. I've been very careful about keeping it wet, and then I thought it might want more humidity so I started misting it daily- no change. I was going to post this question anyhow so I thought I'd include it with Edwin's and hopefully someone can answer both since they sound similar! Good luck Edwin, let me know if anything works! -Tierney ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Sat, 06 Mar 1999 13:58:42 +0000 Subject: Re: I was wondering if he can explain himself! Neil >but now I know who Paul Temple is.. And you still asked me to explain myself? Oh foolish (brave) you! :-} But what is it you wish explained? Me, the plant, other? P. alfredae, as Jan or I will quickly tell you, is an illegitimate name. I was foolish enough (never again) to publish the name as a reference to a "new" species as listed by a favourite supplier of CP's , long since out of business and lost in deepest Africa. This supplier was Harald Weiner and he listed P. alfredae based on his decision to name the plant after his friend, Alfred Lau, a well know Pinguicula and Succulent man who worked mostly in Mexico. However, P. alfredae is in fact P. heterophylla. Now, of P. heterophyyla, there are no legtimate sub-taxa (varieties, formns, subspecies, etc.). However, within the natural wild population, some plants differ from others. Most P. heterophylla grow the classic serpentine leaves as seen in my picture (carnivorous Plants - A Wisley Handbook - Out of Print but still available from some CP sellers or bookshops). These classic leaves produce no baby plants at their leaf ends. 10% of the wild population spontaneously produce baby plantlets at leaf ends. These rarely root into the soil successfully explaing why the far faster asexual reproduction method does not cause these plants to become the majority. These plants are probablyr a result of a combination of recessive genes. P. heterophylla is generally available. Most plants sold have been of the type that does not produce plantlets at leaf ends. In fact, i know of no-one who specifically states that they have plants for sale that are of the plantlet producing type but I am sure suppliers reading this will respond if they have such plants. Cultivation is easy. New plantlets do require assistance with rooting or they will almost always fail to root and die. This is obviously dependent on the medium used for the parent plant which, if very soft and damp, will allow rooting. Of course, if you meant I should explain me, well I am just a freak of nature as all who know me can testify. Regards Paul ################### From: Gallep@aol.com Date: Sat, 6 Mar 1999 09:51:50 EST Subject: CPs in Southern Florida Hi everybody! For April / May I am planing a trip to Southern Florida. I will go to Fort Lauderdale and from there to Key West, Naples and St. Petersburg. I would be very thankful for all hints concerning CPs in this area. Yours Frank Gallep (President of GFP, Germany) ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Sat, 06 Mar 1999 14:47:53 +0000 Subject: Request for info. (UK, Europe, USA) Looking for information regarding suppliers (not plants) in UK, Europe or USA. I need to buy some refelectors. These are to supply lighting, using the modern low evergy bulbs that people use in the house or often outside the front door (the sort that take a few minutes to achieve full brilliance but then are cheaper to run and longer lasting). Most plug into standard bayonet fittings. (I am not buying refectors for halogen, fluorescent tube or special giant grow bulbs.) If anyone knows a cheap supplier of such reflectors (metal), please advise, stating as much as possible of supplier name, address, tel/fax, email, website. Please don't bother telling me about Two Wests and Elliot or Simply control as I know both well. Regards Paul ################### From: "Jens Rotthauwe" Date: Sat, 6 Mar 1999 15:58:44 +0100 Subject: Roridula - Ibicella/Proboscidea - Byblis gigantea Hello list ! I have just lost a Roridula for the second time. Last winter it was a R. dentata - this year it was R. gorgonias. It always happens the same way: During mid-winter little brown spots appear on the leafs that spread and finally the whole branchs wilts and dies. I have tried different fungicides with no effect. The soil is a mix of peat, sand and expanded hydroponics clay. Any ideas what I might be doing wrong ? I am still looking for fresh seeds of any kind of Ibicella and Proboscidea. Does anybody have any for sale or trade or know where to find them ??? I can offer Drosophyllum, VFT, Darlingtonia and some Drosera and Sarr seeds for trade. I am planning to sow some Byblis gigantea seeds in vitro (worked fine for B. liniflora) and looking for very fresh viable seeds for sale or trade. Does anybody know if Byblis rorida seeds are available anywhere ? Thanks a lot for your help ! Kind regards and happy cping Jens ________________________________ Jens Rotthauwe uzsb09@uni-bonn.de Im Jagdfeld 61 53125 Bonn GERMANY ################### From: Enio Lima Date: Sat, 06 Mar 1999 19:10:48 -0300 Subject: broadcast How can I send a broadcast message, without subscribing, since I have no daily access to the net, and many messages could be lost. I mean, I am looking for seeds of Drosera, and would like people to tell me how can they send me those seeds, how do I send this message. Thanks. Enio. ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Sat, 6 Mar 1999 18:30:24 EST Subject: Thomas Carrow CP calendars Hi, To those of you in the USA who ordered calendars from DANGEROUS PLANTS, they all went out today. You really should have seen the face on the postal clerk when I brought the pile in and placed in on the counter! Plus I also mailed 6 orders, so they really had fun. I guess people usually don't mail so many things at once :) Take care & keep on growing, -Tom DANGEROUS PLANTS www.tcscs.com/~thayes ################### From: DroseraMAN@aol.com Date: Sat, 6 Mar 1999 19:05:17 EST Subject: Germination of Byblis seed In Vitro I am Joseph Clemens: I would like to share an observation I made in the summer of 1988 while experimenting with micropropagation and aseptic germination of various CP. I had presoaked Byblis liniflora seed in a Tween 20 nonionic surfactant solution (2 drops in 4 oz. of DD water) for about 30 minutes. After this presoak I began surface sterilization of the seed in preparation for In Vitro germination. I decanted the seed onto filter paper in a funnel and rinsed them first with a bleach solution (1 part Clorox / 9 part water). I noticed that a dark purple pigment was being leached out of the seed and into the filter paper. I next rinsed the seed with 90% ETOH and noticed that the leaching of pigment was accelerated. Soon (within 5 minutes) the seed coat had become transparent and the seed appeared milky white (visible now through the seed coat). Finally, just before sowing I rinsed the seed thoroughly with sterilized distilled water. Understanding that germination of some seed is controlled by substances contained in the seed coats I decided to plant one half of the treated seed in the conventional manner (on the surface of a moistened sphagnum peat moss, in a small pot). I then sowed approximately 30 of the seed, each In Vitro and 30 on the peat. This was completed and left in the lab at approximately 8 PM, by 8 AM the next morning the seed on both media showed 100% germination and all plants developed normally to maturity. I was wondering if anyone else had experienced this? Thanks, Joseph (DroseraMAN@aol.com) ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Sat, 6 Mar 1999 19:07:13 -0700 Subject: Re: shriveling D. binata "tierney wayne" writes: >. . . the tips of each fork which turn black and >shrivel up. Some of the time I can see it happening before the leaf even >fully unrolls. I've been very careful about keeping it wet, and then I >thought it might want more humidity so I started misting it daily- no >change. I used to have this problem when I grew D. binata indoors. The problem went away when I put it outside. Unfortunately, all the pertinent variables (except perhaps soil) change when doing that so I'm not certain what the cause was. I attributed it to increased light levels and air circulation however. Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: Stanman15@aol.com Date: Sun, 7 Mar 1999 00:01:12 EST Subject: Mite problem...HELP!!! Hello fellow CPers! I am having a small problem with mites in my collection and was wondering if anyone who has experience with this might offer sugestions on how to eliminate this problem. The mites tend to make small cottony webs around the base of plants. Does anyone know what they are? What to do about them? Thanks for any help you MITE (haha) offer! ~Alisa Stanley ################### From: Sharoni Feldman Date: Sun, 7 Mar 1999 09:02:49 +0200 Subject: Nepenthes and pitchers - two questions Hello, I have few Nepenthes plants. Some of them grow in the shade and produce pitchers. The other that gets every day 3-4 hours of direct sun does not have pitchers. Is my observation correct ? How come Nepenthes which is 1.5 meter doesn't have pitches on its higher parts. What can I do in order to help it develop pitchers? Sharoni Sharoni Feldman Office Tel: +972-4-8133328 Secretary : +972-4-8133333 Office Fax: +972-4-8133300 e-mail : sharonif@amdocs.com Home Tel: +972-4-8360612 Address : Amdocs, Advanced Technology Center Bldg. 23, Haifa, 31905 Israel ################### From: Harwoodpa@aol.com Date: Sun, 7 Mar 1999 05:56:47 EST Subject: Re: An introduction and help please!!! Hi all I've been "listening in" for quite a while now and I think an introduction is in order: I'm Paul Harwood ,I live in Nottingham in the U.K.,I've been on the committee of the "Carnivorous plant Society" (British C.P.S.) for quite a few years now.My post on the committee is information officer, this involves helping our members with various aspects of C.Ps. I hold a varied library belonging to the C.P.S. which of course assists with members problems...etc. Our society is seeking to actively build an alliance with other C.P. Societies of the world in the name of C.P.Culture and most importantly CONSERVATION. This feeling was reflected strongly at the Bonn meeting by other societies too and by the friendship exhibited in this list it is obvious that such an alliance is already taking place. We,as a society, were very happy to be able to assist Atlanta Botanical gardens by helping to fund their methods of "hands-on" conservation techniques to various threatened Sarracenia sites in the U.S.This is only to "pave the way"for future help that we are intending to give to conservation projects. You know that feeling of helping to give something back can be so fulfilling!!! My personal favorite genus is Nepenthes and I've visited the island of Sumatra in Indonesia twice on two very memerable and successful expeditions. This list will prove to be better than any library for my work within the Society.Having a "gateway" to all that knowledge out there is nothing short of mindblowing!!!!!!! If I May? I would like to put this into practice straight away....A member is taking a holiday in the U.S.A. He will be staying around the Orlando and then the Fort Myers/Naples areas in Florida.He wants to know if there are any nice C.P. habitats nearby these areas???...could anybody help?? Signing off for now Best Wishes Paul ################### From: "Kenneth Low" Date: Sun, 7 Mar 1999 21:26:33 +0800 Subject: Trade and question Dear everyone, Hi!! I am Clayton here from Singapore. Well, i was wondering if anyone has some D. regia or D. cuneiflora to trade or to be sold? I am looking for these plants eversince i got Peter D'amato's book. It's really good book! I got a question about Nepenthes. Normally what affects the growth of the pitcher? N. trichocarpa that i am having don't seem to pitcher after i cut the shoots about 5 months ago. Did i give it a huge shock that i needs much time to recupperate? Hope someone will really give an advice on this! I need help! Regards, Clayton ################### From: "Mark and Karen" Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 11:03:36 +0000 Subject: Mite problem Greetings from down under > I am having a small problem with mites in my collection and was > wondering if anyone who has experience with this might offer > sugestions on how to eliminate this problem. A chemical which 'MITE' help is TEDION V-18 in the form of a wettable powder spray. It is formulated in many countries under licence to N.V. Phillips - Dunphar BV, in Holland It is an interesting chemical in that it doesn't kill the mites, instead it sterilizes them so they are unable to breed and they die off from old age (not long). A second spray application has to be made after 10 days to sterilize the offspring from the eggs laid before the initial spray. It is very effective yet safe to use as it has been around for many years without revealing any side effects to humans. It is also very safe on the plants! Depending on what plants you're spraying most modern Rose sprays now have a miticide incorporated into them and are suitable for Sarras and possibly Neps? Also remember mites hate high humidity and they can be encouraged to move on by regularly misting them... depending on the plants affected. > The mites tend to make small cottony webs around the base of plants. Does > anyone know what they are? They sound like the two-spotted mite we have here in New Zealand? Yours carnivorously Mark ----------------------------------------- Mark and Karen (marked@xtra.co.nz) 8 Rugby Street, Levin, New Zealand ----------------------------------------- ################### From: Brian Cochran Date: Sun, 07 Mar 1999 16:06:23 -0700 Subject: Byblis gigantea in vitro I saw a posting about starting Byblis gigantea in vitro and wanted to add this note that might be of interest. I tried for at least three years to get Byblis g. that were started in vitro out into normal soil and hardened off. At the time, I lived near Ron Gagliardo back when he ran Hungry Plants. He supplied me with numerous viles and flasks with which to experiment. I failed with all of them. Later, Ron told me that he really didn't know of anyone who had been successful in moving Byblis giganteas from the flasks to normal growing conditions. He suspected that the plants weren't forming a cuticle layer (I believe that's correct) which would allow them to harden in the air. This species is also extremely suseptible to fungus which probably didn't help matters. To this day, I don't know if anyone has been successful. I would be curious to hear. This is why, with Ron's and Allen Lowrie's help, I came upon a reliable way to start them from gibb-treated seed in milled sphagnum. It is the only way I recommend. Anyone starting them in vitro may want to hold back a few seeds just in case they have the same problems I did. Brian Cochran ################### From: "steve" Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 09:25:52 +1000 Subject: HELP: rot on my VFT`s hi guys, can u offer some advice, i recently divided a clump of VFT`s and a coupla weeks later they started going black annd dying from the traps into the centre. this is also happening with the undivided clumps, which are in the same bog but about a foot away. i have tried a systemic funguside to no avail? also, when people say 50/50 sand/peat, is that by volume, and is the peat wet or dry? thanks in advance guys. ################### From: "Chris Hind" Date: Sun, 07 Mar 1999 18:54:57 PST Subject: Re: English only?!? (was Es Spanol) >>Huh? Engles please! >>Engles once agin! >Let's remember that this discussion group is international and not >all participants speak english. Please don't intimidate others >because they don't speak english or make them feel unwelcome here. >It may be their best chance to contact other CP growers who speak >their language. We should all be grateful that Jan doesn't decide >to communicate with us only in German, or Fernando only in >Portuguese! I completely agree, the internet is all about cross-culture collaboration. Imagine how many breakthroughs are done in third world countries but never see the light of day in a journal expressly because of this discrimination. It's truely a shame but fortunetly it doesnt have to be that way anymore thanks to the net. For those interested in the conversations going on, you dont have to miss out because if you try babelfish translation services on http://altavista.digital.com and paste the text into the box and select portuguese to english translation. You can pretty much understand the general flavor of the conversation. In fact I've been toying with the idea of creating a news service that would automatically translate into different languages for the different CP societies using the altavista babelfish engine. Imagine the implications! ################### From: "Marin Martiskovich" Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 01:05:22 -0500 Subject: Sterilization of explants. Help Hello all. I am having problems with sterilization of explants from Venus Fly Traps, that I am trying to tissue culture. From what I have read on the subject most people seem to recommend first alcohol dipping for a minute or two and then a 10% bleach solution for ten minutes. When I attempt to do this I notice a purplish pigment leeching out of the explant much like someone else experienced with seeds, except that I do not have any luck. The explants look slightly limp, like steamed greens, but lighter in colour and then they turn black on the medium within a day or so. Should I attempt to reduce time in bleach solution or is 10 minutes at 10% basically essential to sterilize plant material. Also has anyone attempted to use anything else to sterilize explants with success? Possibly Dettol, triclosan, or any other antibacterial compound. ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Mon, 08 Mar 1999 08:01:07 -0500 Subject: Re: Nepenthes - kekei paste At 05:14 AM 3/5/99 -0800, you wrote: >Hi, > > Has anyone tried kekei paste (sp?) on the nodes of a growing Nepenthes >stem to promote new growth? > I work at a Orchid nursery and we use this on orchids to promote >branching by gently pulling the hard coat off the node and exposing the soft >green part then applying the paste. This aids in stem branching and >flowering. >I'm not sure about this with woody parts of the stem, but maybe on the >herbaceous parts of the stem? > >~Mike >St. Petersburg Fl Dear Mike, There is very little I have not tried on Nepenthes plants and of course I have used Keiki paste. The answer is that it does work, but you need to be careful in scoring the stem and not create too much damage. Also it tends to take a while and it generally needs repeat applications. As far as the woody part of the stem, it also works but you need to use extra care considering exposing the underlying tissue under the woody stem can be a trick....usually the result is beating the plant up. Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Mon, 08 Mar 1999 08:05:06 -0500 Subject: Re: CPs in Southern Florida At 07:01 AM 3/6/99 -0800, you wrote: >Hi everybody! > >For April / May I am planing a trip to Southern Florida. >I will go to Fort Lauderdale and from there to Key West, Naples and St. >Petersburg. >I would be very thankful for all hints concerning CPs in this area. > >Yours >Frank Gallep >(President of GFP, Germany) Dear Frank, As a South Florida resident, I must tell you that the places you mention in your email are generally too far south to find any cp's. I live in Ft. Lauderdale, and from here south to the Keys, you are not going to find much at all. I believe at the Northern most point in West Palm Beach county, I have heard of a few straggling Drosera plants. To see true cp's you really need to be in Northern Florida, this is where plants like Sarracenia, Pings and Drosera plants can be found. We are talking about a 6-8 hour car drive from Ft. Lauderdale. Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 09:13:32 -0500 Subject: RE: CPs in Southern Florida >For April / May I am planing a trip to Southern Florida. >I will go to Fort Lauderdale and from there to Key West, Naples and St. >Petersburg. I would be very thankful for all hints concerning CPs in this area. Hi Frank, Outside of Naples I visited a native plant nursery that had Drosera growing wild on the grounds. Jan (who bills herself as the Under Gardener because Jean is the Head Gardener) showed me a small field and said that during the rainy season, the field is covered in red. All the Drosera in the field were dead (or had died back) because of dry weather, but Jan said they come back during the rainy season. I found some live Drosera on the edge of a small pond on the grounds, and Jan let me take a few. At the time I thought it was Drosera capillaris, but they no longer look like capillaris. They're intermedia. If you wish to talk to them, they can be reached at tech@thatnativeplantplace.com. if that doesn't work, try There web address is http://ww.thatnativeplantplace.com . Their address is 1112 Sanctuary Road. It's 15 miles East of I-75 on Immokalee Road to Sanctuary Road. David Atlanta ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Mon, 08 Mar 1999 09:19:46 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Re: MITES Cottony webs huh. Sounds like you have Spider Mites. They are tiny red mites that make cottony nests on plants in dry contitions. The easiest way to get rid of them, and poison free, is to raise the humidity really high. Spider Mites hate wet living arrangments. Using a spray bottle wash off as many as you can and keep the plant as wet as you can constanly misting it. If your plants can handle it you can submerge them for about an hour an drown the little buggers. Ooo! Was that a pun? Be sure to pick off the cottany nests too as they will contain eggs that won't drown. If you keep the your plant in a highly humid environment then you shouldn't see any reinfestations. Eventhough I have never see a reinfestation using this method on my Philodendrons and Solandras, I say shouldn't because you never know when the stupid impossible will happen and you suddenly see spider mites forming colonies all over your Aldrovandas. But that's an unlikely story. Robertivore ################### From: "LaPedis, Ron" Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 09:08:25 -0800 Subject: RE: D Binata black tips >A while back, I almost killed my D. Binata, by using untreated water >from a well (too limey round here). I went back to pure rain water and >the plants quickly recovered. Now, they're dying again. As each new leaf >reaches 10 to 15mm, it turns black and shrivels. My plants have no >leaves - just shrivelled, black threads. >Something similar is happening to my D. 'Marston Dragon'. It isn't quite >so drastic though- it's just the tips of each fork which turn black and >shrivel up. Some of the time I can see it happening before the leaf even >fully unrolls. I've been very careful about keeping it wet, and then I >thought it might want more humidity so I started misting it daily- no >change. >I was going to post this question anyhow so I thought I'd include it >with Edwin's and hopefully someone can answer both since they sound >similar! >Good luck Edwin, let me know if anything works! >-Tierney I was seeing the same in my cool house (60-80 degrees + 60% H) for D. Binata and D. Multifida. Once moved into a terrarium with 80 degrees F and 80%+ humidity, the new stalks were much thicker and no black tips. Ron LaPedis San Francisco, CA ################### From: Chris Teichreb Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 09:21:55 -0800 (PST) Subject: Re: Sterilization of explants. Help Hi Marin, First, you may want to subscribe to the cp tissue culture listserv, where there's more people who could answer your questions. If you go to Craig Gardner's web-site, you can follow the link to subscribe to it. > Hello all. I am having problems with sterilization of explants from > Venus Fly Traps, that I am trying to tissue culture. From what I have read > on the subject most people seem to recommend first alcohol dipping for a > minute or two and then a 10% bleach solution for ten minutes. When I attempt > to do this I notice a purplish pigment leeching out of the explant much like > someone else experienced with seeds, except that I do not have any luck. The > explants look slightly limp, like steamed greens, but lighter in colour and > then they turn black on the medium within a day or so. Should I attempt to > reduce time in bleach solution or is 10 minutes at 10% basically essential > to sterilize plant material. Also has anyone attempted to use anything else > to sterilize explants with success? Possibly Dettol, triclosan, or any other > antibacterial compound. From the literature, the bleaching process does often kill the explant, and is definitely harder to start in vitro than seeds. Most of what I've read recommends a 5 minute wash of 10% bleach, then three 5 minute washes of distilled deionized water. You want to make sure to get rid of any residual bleach. The alcohol is usually used as a rapid dip, if at all, but no soaking! Finally, you should try PPM, a anti-bacterial/anti-fungal chemical which many home tissue culturists have been using with great success (including myself). You still need to do a bleach dip, but it can be much shorter and at a weaker concentration. Happy growing, Chris ********************************** Chris Teichreb Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University Burnaby, B.C. cjteichr@sfu.ca ********************************** ################### From: "Michael Hunt" Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 19:46:56 -0500 Subject: Re: CPs in Southern Florida Hello, First, thankyou Marc for your comments on the use of keikei paste. I have to agree that cp populations are sparse in much of central and southern Fl. However, on the southwest coast three species of Drosera can be found (intermedia, capillaris, and brevifolia) as well as some strange (hybrid?) Drosera that most likely is just a D. capillaris. All of these are common to abundant during wet times. I have found two species of Pingucula, lutea and pumila. Again both common during wet seasons and absent this time of year. Various species of Utricularia are common as well. Around Seabring a couple rare colonies of Sarracenia minor exist. On the west coast Sarracenia minor occur from Sarasota north and then northeast towards south of Orlando. East and north of Orlando Fl S. minor becomes common. As far south as the Ocala National forest S. flava can be found, but this is north Fl at this point. Pennisular Florida is very dry during the spring, and its a severe drought currently. The rainy season starts in June. Areas that boast high populations of cp during wet times, most likely will have none now. Last year this time it was very wet and while visiting a site in northern Pinellas county with a recent wildfire the ground was covered with Drosera and Pingucula for many acres, they were the only plants growing under the burnt pines. More as a annual than a perennial. Take care, ~Mike -----Original Message----- To: Multiple recipients of list >At 07:01 AM 3/6/99 -0800, you wrote: >>Hi everybody! >> >>For April / May I am planing a trip to Southern Florida. >>I will go to Fort Lauderdale and from there to Key West, Naples and St. >>Petersburg. >>I would be very thankful for all hints concerning CPs in this area. >> >>Yours >>Frank Gallep >>(President of GFP, Germany) > >Dear Frank, > >As a South Florida resident, I must tell you that the places you mention in >your email are generally too far south to find any cp's. I live in Ft. >Lauderdale, and from here south to the Keys, you are not going to find much >at all. > >I believe at the Northern most point in West Palm Beach county, I have >heard of a few straggling Drosera plants. To see true cp's you really need >to be in Northern Florida, this is where plants like Sarracenia, Pings and >Drosera plants can be found. > >We are talking about a 6-8 hour car drive from Ft. Lauderdale. > > > >Marc I. Burack >marcb@companionfinancial.com > > ################### From: "Paul V. McCullough" Date: Mon, 08 Mar 1999 23:17:00 -0500 Subject: Philadelphia Flower Show Well, I'm just back from the Philly Flower show, and while it wasn't a great show, there were some CP surprises- for the first time ever, a CP was used in an ornamental garden exhibit- and used well! A sarracenia flava- one of the most beautiful I've ever seen- was sitting in a small fish pond and was surrounded by azalias and other gardeny types of plants. It was a focal point! I guess the introduction of flava into florist collections has inspired some to the use of these plants in regular gardens. There was also the typical woodland NJ scene with tons of dying sarracenia purpurea at another exhibit- sadly most of these were sending up flower scapes at the time of their transplantation to the exhibit. Purpurea doesn't weather such transplantings at normal times, but when flowering? So much for horticulture! The rest of the show, which is usually outstanding, was only okay- worth going on a weeknight when it's cheaper to get in. ($16/person) Now for some cool news: My favorite part of any Flower Show is the sales room- Klimagro was there with GREAT deals on their indoor greenhouses. I can vouch for the fact that CP love these Greenhouses. Ask for Tom Davidson (and tell him I sent you) if you go to the show. There were plenty of CP for sale, too- VFTs were everywhere (some were huge, too). I bought (at the Desertlands booth) six CPs- two nepenthes (labeled as Nep. Madagascariensis) which had inch high pitchers- a new mutt pinguicula- a new sundew I haven't been able to ID yet- looks like capillaris but hairy- and two sarrs that are either rubra or minor- their only two inches tall so it's hard to tell. At any rate, the CP were two for $7!!! That cost me a mere $21 for all six!!! I think the supplier was the same one Home Depot uses- they're all labeled as tissue culture plants... and I think the woman said they came from Angel Nurseries. This booth specializes in Cactus, but they're selling CP at the show only. Cheers, Paul -- Paul V. McCullough Webpage: http://www.voicenet.com/~pvmcull ################### From: Sundew1802@aol.com Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 23:47:56 EST Subject: capillaris vs intermedia In a message dated 3/8/99 2:18:18 PM Eastern Standard Time, cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: << Outside of Naples I visited a native plant nursery that had Drosera growing wild on the grounds. Jan (who bills herself as the Under Gardener because Jean is the Head Gardener) showed me a small field and said that during the rainy season, the field is covered in red. All the Drosera in the field were dead (or had died back) because of dry weather, but Jan said they come back during the rainy season. I found some live Drosera on the edge of a small pond on the grounds, and Jan let me take a few. At the time I thought it was Drosera capillaris, but they no longer look like capillaris. They're intermedia. >> David, I have been looking a capillaris in cent/south Fla for a few years now and can tell you that what you have is the southern form, which is a winter/cold weather grower and can have long petioles like in intermedia. In my area there is I uspect a large swarm of hybrids between the two species and possibly crossed back onto capillaris. The southern form can turn a scarlet to marron red in color; and grow to about 3-4inches across(I've seen larger). The plants die out once the dry spring weather kicks in and the temps go up. I have killed my share trying to keep them in a tray of water along with the northen form, which is a warm weather grower; does not seem to grow as large; and usually doesn't get a red-often the very center of the plant will show some green' with the petiole and trap being red. BTW I was not aware of a population of capillaris as far south as Naples. I know they have been noted from a site just north of the Lake. A while back someone was asking about hybrids between capillaris and brevifolia. I have a site here in Pasco Co and have seen them also in the Appalachicola area as well. Locally, they seem to be annuals as they also don't survive the dry , warm Spring weather. Bob Hudson Fl ################### From: "Guy Van der Kinderen" Date: Tue, 9 Mar 1999 09:12:25 +0100 Subject: Re: Byblis gigantea in vitro Dear Brian, Two years ago we (me and another member of vzw. Drosera) did manage to transplant B. gigantea from vitro to normal substrate. The vitro plants originated from Reginald Deroose, a commercial vitro-cultivator, so I don't know anything about composition of medium or treatment during cultivation. Of coarse, planlets were hardened in the normal way, but no other special treatment was applied. We transplanted three young plants which are still living and growing at the moment. So, there might be another reason why your plants always failed to grow out of vitro. Kind regards, Guy Van der Kinderen vzw. Drosera, Belgium > I saw a posting about starting Byblis gigantea in vitro and wanted > to add this note that might be of interest. > > I tried for at least three years to get Byblis g. that were started > in vitro out into normal soil and hardened off. At the time, I > lived near Ron Gagliardo back when he ran Hungry Plants. He supplied > me with numerous viles and flasks with which to experiment. I > failed with all of them. > > Later, Ron told me that he really didn't know of anyone who had been > successful in moving Byblis giganteas from the flasks to normal > growing conditions. He suspected that the plants weren't forming a > cuticle layer (I believe that's correct) which would allow them to > harden in the air. This species is also extremely suseptible to > fungus which probably didn't help matters. To this day, I don't know > if anyone has been successful. I would be curious to hear. > > This is why, with Ron's and Allen Lowrie's help, I came upon a > reliable way to start them from gibb-treated seed in milled > sphagnum. It is the only way I recommend. Anyone starting them in > vitro may want to hold back a few seeds just in case they have the > same problems I did. > > Brian Cochran ################### From: poh Date: Tue, 09 Mar 1999 16:03:50 +0800 Subject: Hi!! Singaporean Hobbist!!!! Hi, I'm Jonathan Poh from Singapore and have been on this list for quite a while. I have got a lots of hints and knowledge to learn from some of the fellow Cpers snice I got to this list. I have also manage to make a trade with some of the fellow Cps hobbist in America.:D Just wanting to thank this list for giving me such good knowledge about this unique and beautiful plants. I will also like to trade some seeds from other Cps hobbist around the world. Here are the seeds which I will like to trade for: Byblis gigantae D. regia And that's all! :D Hope to hear frm u soon! Lots of love Jonathan Poh Peace I give unto u, my peace I give unto u, not as the world give, give i unto u. Let not your heart be troubled or neither let it be afraid. John 14:27 ################### From: "Fred C. Heller" Date: Tue, 09 Mar 99 11:41:22 PST Subject: New guy on list /Nepenthes Hi ! I 've been reading this list for a few days now and I've decided to introduce myself. I'm Fred Heller, i'm an archaeologist in Belgium and very much interrested in CPs. I 've had a few when I was a kid, which I did throw away when they "died", actually when they went dormant.... I have just a few plants for now but I plan to have more in the future. I am the proud owner of a Drosera Capensis Alba, still quite small, two kinds of Sarracenia : Purpurea and a tall hybrid, and two Nepenthes. The Nepenthes I have has two stems very near to one another and about 40 cm tall, it looks like it's got a couple smaller ones as well : are these offsprings and do I need to separate them, or just put the plant in a bigger pot (the current one is 10 cm wide) ? The top of most "flasks" was already dried up and brown when I got the plant, do I need to cut them off or wit till they get completely brown ? Do you trim the plant (remove leaves that hide flasks) ? I'd like to start growing CPs from seeds but don't know where to order in europe (I've seen the Cambrian Carnivores web site but isn't there anything closer to home ?). My latest acquisition is a baby dionaea, only two traps and not even fully devellopped ! I look forward to seeing it opened :-) Thanks to all Fred To :Guy Van der Kinderen (vzw. Drosera, Belgium) Dear Guy, Could you please send me infos about the CP society in Belgium ? address, cost of membership etc.. thanks in advance, Fred ################### From: "PHILL MANN" Date: Mon, 8 Mar 1999 22:18:23 +0800 Subject: Pollen Does anyone have any pollen they would like to pass on. I have an exceptional N. maxima female about to flower and would like to make some interesting crosses. Species only please. I can also offer pollen of a nice large form N. fusca about to open soon. Phill Mann P.O. Box 193 Harvey 6220 Western Australia philmann@altu.net.au http://altu.net.au/~philmann SPECIALISING IN NEPENTHES ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Tue, 9 Mar 1999 06:43:23 +0000 Subject: St Louis Chapter meeting We are holding a meeting of the St. Louis chapter of ICPS this Thursday, March 11 at 6pm at my house. All are welcome, beginnners or experienced growers alike. We'll be continuing a discussion of basic care and cultivation of cp's. Anyone interested in attending should contact me for directions. Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden susan.farrington@mobot.org (314)577-9402 ################### From: Edwin Spector Date: Tue, 09 Mar 1999 12:59:58 +0000 Subject: RE: D Binata black tips << I was seeing the same in my cool house (60-80 degrees + 60% H) for D. Binata and D. Multifida. Once moved into a terrarium with 80 degrees F and 80%+ humidity, the new stalks were much thicker and no black tips. >> Now that's interesting. My plants are in the house, which is unheated during the day, (I'm at work) and most of the night. The temperature is probably around 15 degrees C or less (around 60 F). Maybe I need to bring these plants into the office, for all-day heat. Edwin. ################### From: Maxflapjax@aol.com Date: Tue, 9 Mar 1999 12:19:27 EST Subject: Introduction Greetings; My name is Joseph, I am 21 years old and live in south eastern Pennsylvania. I have been working with plants for about 2 years (carnivorous plants for 2 months). Fernando, I enjoyed the Neblina expedition and appreciate the time you put into writing it. Also, there was talk about black tips on D. binata. That could have been caused by high light level (causing the plants to wilt or burn at the tips). Perhaps moving it to a shadier position, or under lights would fix the problem. Joseph ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Tue, 9 Mar 1999 09:25:46 -0800 (PST) Subject: CPN 28:1 Greetings all! I am happy to announce that the March issue of Carnivorous Plant Newsletter has been shipped. I got my copy in the mail yesterday. This is a nice issue. If you haven't sent your membership dues to the ICPS yet (or sent them in too close to the deadline for inclusion with the March mailing), you will have to get your issue as a back order! But even so, better late than never! Renew your tardy membership! (Membership forms are available at www.carnivorousplants.org) Highlights from the issue: 1)An article on David Moore, Sarracenia hybridizer. (Nelson) 2)A detailed article on Triphyophyllum peltatum. I am not being hyperbolic when I note this article is a historic "first," as it describes and illustrates *in color* this elusive carnivore for the first time. (Bringmann, Schlauer, et al.) 3)A new species, N. angasanensis, is described. A nice new species! (Salmon & Maulder) 4)The ways turions survive frigid winters is discussed. It is fascinating how some turions sink to the bottom of lakes, then magically rise to the surface in the spring. Utricularia bremii and U. minor have a special trick to help them survive (Adamec, illustrations by Salvia). 5)A plant found in the wild may be N. mollis. Is it the genuine article? (Salmon) 6)CPN 25 years ago: stories of Drosera x nagamotoi 7)Lit Reviews: Pinguicula orchidioides and Venus Flytrap papers. 8)News and Views: Conservation of plants in California, North Carolina, and Oregon is all described in an oddly thematic News and Views, and David Gray tells us about the meeting in 2000. 9)Cephalotus is described as it occurs in the wild. (Gibson) plus much much more!!!!! The Front Cover is of Triphyophyllum, and the Back Cover is a real show stopper of Cephalotus, by Ron Parsons. Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: "Mark T. Bachelor" Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 08:52:13 +1000 Subject: RE: D Binata black tips >I was seeing the same in my cool house (60-80 degrees + 60% H) for D. Binata >and D. Multifida. Once moved into a terrarium with 80 degrees F and 80%+ >humidity, the new stalks were much thicker and no black tips. >>> >Now that's interesting. My plants are in the house, which is unheated >during the day, (I'm at work) and most of the night. The temperature >is probably around 15 degrees C or less (around 60 F). Maybe I need to >bring these plants into the office, for all-day heat. > The main reason the D. binata gets black leaf tips is a lack of humidity and warmth. The southern sub-species such as D. binata binata only grow during the warmer part of the year (mid-spring to mid-autumn) and often get black dried out leaf tips when the humidity drops due to a hot north wind. Plants growing in sheltered areas avoid this problem and can maintain their leaves even when the spagnum that they grow in starts to dry out on top. Being kept at 15 C or less the plants are probably wanting to go into resting mode during which they should be given less water (as in not sat in a water tray). If you want them to grow at their best they require temps of 25-35 C and to be sat in water deep water trays. During the summer I can have plants upto their crowns in water. This helps them to cope with temps above 35 C. Tropical plants such as D. binata multifida are better kept in a hot house with nepenthes. High humidity, constant temperatures and bright light produce a pink tinged plant with a tangle of long sticky leaves all year round. Once again they like their roots wet as they grow beside water. The only problem that I have with this set up is the fact that they spread like weeds. Given plenty of direct sun D. binata multifidia produces masses of pink flowers on 30-40 cm long stems. Oh, one other problem, when the long leaves hit the walls or roof of the hot house they can go black due to being cooked on the hot plastic, which is why I hang mine in the middle. Regards Mark T Bachelor Biology Technican Melbourne Girls Grammar School Voice: +61 (03) 9866 1676 South Yarra, Victoria, Fax: +61 (O3) 9866 5768 Australia 3141 National Science Week, STAV Family Day Co-ordinator Lab Techs' Branch of STAV, South Yarra & Moorabbin Regional Rep. ################### From: "Nita Stull" Date: Tue, 09 Mar 1999 14:08:23 -0800 Subject: Nepenthes culture question Good day, I'm new to this subscriber list and am anxious to learn from all you. I have two pitcher plants, as well as a Nepenthes hybrid. My question relates to the Nepenthes.... For the most part it's okay, but it has started to lose its lower leaves. A little rusting (which I've read is okay...) but also yellowing, then blackening. I've checked the soil and discovered these wormy looking things. About 1 to 2 cm long, wiggling about. A local nursury suggested that they're gnat larvae, but I don't think so. Nematodes? They're not on the surface, but within the soil. I think my cultivation techniques are okay. The plant is located near a humidifier and receives plenty of light. I might miss a watering, and I have left it sitting in water a couple of times--not too often, and I use distilled water. Any information would be great! Nita Stull Nstull@pcninc.com Junglehouse@msn.com ################### From: Dave Evans Date: Tue, 09 Mar 99 18:29 EST Subject: Re: Dutch CPers: Gert Hoojenstrijd and D.sessilifolia Dear Fernando, > Furthermore, I had in mind to send some to Dr.Kondo in JApan, > who recently published a chromosome number of 2n=80 for this species, I > believe equivocal, based on those DAMNED D.aliciae going around under > the name of D.sessilifolia. So I wanted him to have the real stuff to > analyze. If any one else has seeds of the REAL D.sessilifolia available > (the one that looks like D.burmannii), I would be interested in some. > ED?? I got some seed of this one. It looks like D.burmannii, but is smaller. Write back so I can send you some. It is growing next to D.alciae, but they look nothing alike! Dave Evans ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Tue, 9 Mar 1999 17:17:18 -0700 Subject: Re: Nepenthes culture question "Nita Stull" writes: >..... I've checked the soil and discovered >these wormy looking things. About 1 to 2 cm long, wiggling about. >A local nursury suggested that they're gnat larvae, but I don't >think so. Nematodes? They're not on the surface, but within the >soil. If they are 1-2 cm long they certainly aren't gnat larvae. There are a lot of things they could be, many of which are in the nematode family (order?). I have had problems in the past with small worms that seem to like to eat CP roots which I believe have come from my peat moss. If anyone knows how to eliminate these things I love to hear about it as well. Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: "David K. Purks" Date: Tue, 09 Mar 1999 23:12:55 -0500 Subject: March Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Barry Meyers-Rice wrote: > Barry Meyers-Rice > > I am happy to announce that the March issue of Carnivorous Plant > Newsletter has been shipped. I got my copy in the mail yesterday. > > This is a nice issue. I got mine today and I agree it's a nice issue....and the insert was GREAT! The miniguide from Wistuba Exotic Plants has some wonderful pictures. I haven't seen so many color pictures of Nepthenes in one place. Thanks for including it in the issue. ------- End of Forwarded Message ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Tue, 09 Mar 1999 22:04:56 PST Subject: Update on S.American Drosera Taxonomy To all, I've got some more news on the Drosera species collected on this last trip of mine. Careful drawings of each have been made by a friend of mine, making comparisons much easier. So here goes: 1.) That small Drosera we found on Neblina is surely a new one. I was suspecting it was the recently described D.hirticalyx. Although it didn't have the characteristic stem, I read that it had been recorded for the Neblina highlands and the leaf shape and size was similar. But the sepals of the one we found turned out to be glandular-pubescent, and not covered in simple hairs as D.hirticalyx. The only problem is that we were not able to get any seeds. So hopefully we'll be able to get the delicate plants to flower in cultivation (if they're still alive) and set seeds. 2.) One of the first Drosera GErt and I found at the GRan Sabana was a small species which I though was D.felix at first, but then when I realized it often had several flowers, and not only one as described, I thought it was maybe D.kaieteurensis and that D.felix was an invalid name based on single-flowered D.kaieteurensis specimens. Well, it turns out that this is the real D.felix and that D.kaieteurensis is something else... 3.) The pinkish plants Gert and I found at the Gran Sabana, growing near D.felix but in shadier habitats, VERY similar to D.felix, with pinkish flowers, and which I thought were D.cayennensis (because I'd seen plants and photos thus identified previously) are actually the true D.kaieteurensis. So D.felix and D.kaieteurensis are very similar, but the former is a bit more glabrous, a darker red overall color, grows in sunnier habitats, and has white flowers which are almost just as often solitary as they are present in numbers of twos or threes on each scape. 4.) The small reddish rosetted species we found with D.sessilifolia is D.biflora (ex-D.pusilla). D.cayennensis was not found on this trip, so I can not discuss the recent attempts to include D.panamensis and D.colombiana as its synonyms. 5.) The small rosetted plants Gert, Ed, and I found on the Serra do Araca, which we initially thought was D.kaieteurensis, seems to be D.esmeraldae. 6.) The larger species from Araca with long stem which we thought was D.roraimae, actually seems to be D.esmeraldae as well, simply growing longer and larger when in wetter habitats. The seeds seem to be the same as the rosetted plants present on the same mountain, as do other characteristics. Incredibly variable taxon, at least on Araca! 7.) The D.roraimae from Neblina were not as different as I expected. The seeds were more rectangular (versus triangular), the scape erect (versus ascending), and with more glandular hairs near the apex of the inflorescence (versus nearly glabrous to a few glands on sepals). It was only slightly hairier. 8.) D.roraimae from the G.Sabana were somewhat variable. All plants had erect scapes with a few glandular hairs on the sepals or simply sessile glands. But at one site, the scape was erect and with many glandualr hairs near the apex, like the Neblina specimens. Messy, huh?? Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: CMcdon0923@aol.com Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 05:55:33 EST Subject: CPN Surprise I received my March CPN issue today. I was delighted to receive the full- color "mini-guide" from Wistuba Exotic Plants, displaying 72 different species of...what else....Nepenthes. Even though my involvement with Nepenthes is currently restricted to a small assortment of the common "mass produced" hybrids, I still find the almost endless variety of pitchers, etc., fascinating. This insert will certainly serve as a reference tool in the future. Excellent job!!!! Hmmmmm.......any volunteers to do something similar for Sarracenia, Drosera, Pings, etc....? ################### From: Kevin Snively Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 09:55:16 -0800 Subject: Re: Update on S.American Drosera Taxonomy On Tue, 09 Mar 1999, you wrote: >To all, > > I've got some more news on the Drosera species collected on this >last trip of mine. Careful drawings of each have been made by a friend >of mine, making comparisons much easier. Will you be making these images available on the web any time soon so we may see??? krs ################### From: "Mellard, David" Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 09:32:43 -0500 Subject: RE: capillaris vs intermedia >David, I have been looking a capillaris in cent/south Fla for a few years now >and can tell you that what you have is the southern form, which is a >winter/cold weather grower and can have long petioles like in intermedia. I think you're right, Bob. I should have added that mine don't really look like the intermedia I've seen growing wild in South Carolina, yet the petiole is definitely long and holds the leaf tip at about a 45 degree angle. I was fooled. Well, this certainly is a surprise (for me). I've collected seed and will trade such seed for very rare drosera Just kidding. David ################### From: "tierney wayne" Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 15:26:17 PST Subject: Black tips on D. binata forms Thanks to everyone who responded about the black tips on the D. binata! I've decided that (since I don't have a terrarium at this time to try it out in) I'll stick it outside and see if that helps. Also, I got my calendar and I wanted to say thanks to everyone who was involved in making it- it is really spectacular!! And thanks Thomas for shipping them. I know this info was already passed around, but could someone remind me what time the BACPS meeting starts? And is it at the Berkeley botanic gardens? Thanks in advance, Tierney ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 15:47:13 -0800 (PST) Subject: CPN 28:1 Hey all, I am glad to hear that the March CPN is getting to people (early in the month!) and is generally well received. We put a lot of effort into it. If you liked this one, wait 'til you see CPN 28:2 (already in the works)! There has been a really positive reception to Andreas Wistuba's "Miniguide" that was shipped along with CPN 28:1. I'm very happy about this. Andreas did a great job of formatting this advertising supplement. I wish we could have taken more credit for it, but all we did was instruct our printer to distribute the supplement with CPN! It's always a good situation when the goals of CPN, the ICPS Membership, and CPN advertisers all coincide like this! I noticed with a wince that some text was dropped from the editorial note on page 26. The final sentence should have read, "These latter have previously been attributed to N. veitchii or a hybrid involving this species." Sorry for any confusion. Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: Joe Cumbee Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 19:16:08 -0500 Subject: Re: Sterilization of explants. Help I use a 35ml/ per liter PPM solution to soak seeds and explants in with good results. visit http://www.home.turbonet.com/kitchenculture/ to find out about PPM. Eric Cumbee http://www.mktechnology.com/ericnews.htm Marin Martiskovich wrote: > Hello all. I am having problems with sterilization of explants from > Venus Fly Traps, that I am trying to tissue culture. From what I have read > on the subject most people seem to recommend first alcohol dipping for a > minute or two and then a 10% bleach solution for ten minutes. When I attempt > to do this I notice a purplish pigment leeching out of the explant much like > someone else experienced with seeds, except that I do not have any luck. The > explants look slightly limp, like steamed greens, but lighter in colour and > then they turn black on the medium within a day or so. Should I attempt to > reduce time in bleach solution or is 10 minutes at 10% basically essential > to sterilize plant material. Also has anyone attempted to use anything else > to sterilize explants with success? Possibly Dettol, triclosan, or any other > antibacterial compound. ################### From: "Mark T. Bachelor" Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 12:15:21 +1000 Subject: Looking for Erik van Zuilekom Erik, if you are still online, I cannot get through on the last address that you sent me (it is nolonger valid). It did not appear different from your old address so you may need to send again. Regards Mark T Bachelor Biology Technican Melbourne Girls Grammar School Voice: +61 (03) 9866 1676 South Yarra, Victoria, Fax: +61 (O3) 9866 5768 Australia 3141 National Science Week, STAV Family Day Co-ordinator Lab Techs' Branch of STAV, South Yarra & Moorabbin Regional Rep. ################### From: CMDodd@aol.com Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 22:57:58 EST Subject: Re: Nepenthes pitchering In a message dated 99-03-07 14:37:42 EST, you write: << Hello, I have few Nepenthes plants. Some of them grow in the shade and produce pitchers. The other that gets every day 3-4 hours of direct sun does not have pitchers. Is my observation correct ? How come Nepenthes which is 1.5 meter doesn't have pitches on its higher parts. What can I do in order to help it develop pitchers? Sharoni >> Dear Sharoni, There are many factors that can determine pitchering (or the lack thereof). One is humidity, which may be higher around the more shaded plant than the plant in sun. Another may be the species you have, i.e.: Nepenthes ampullaria almost never produced upper pitchers, they are all formed either at ground level, or in clusters on old woody climbing stems, which I have not observed that often in cultivated plants. In any case if the plant in shade is producing pitchers and the plant in sun is not, move it over by the one in shade and see if too will start to pitcher. Cliff ################### From: CMDodd@aol.com Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 23:22:36 EST Subject: Re: Nepenthes soil pests In a message dated 99-03-10 14:45:38 EST, you write: << Good day, I'm new to this subscriber list and am anxious to learn from all you. I have two pitcher plants, as well as a Nepenthes hybrid. My question relates to the Nepenthes.... For the most part it's okay, but it has started to lose its lower leaves. A little rusting (which I've read is okay...) but also yellowing, then blackening. I've checked the soil and discovered these wormy looking things. About 1 to 2 cm long, wiggling about. A local nursury suggested that they're gnat larvae, but I don't think so. Nematodes? They're not on the surface, but within the soil. I think my cultivation techniques are okay. The plant is located near a humidifier and receives plenty of light. I might miss a watering, and I have left it sitting in water a couple of times--not too often, and I use distilled water. Any information would be great! Nita Stull Nstull@pcninc.com Junglehouse@msn.com >> Dear Nita, I have seen a similar 'worm' in my plants on occasion and they may be Crane Fly larva. The adults can be 1/2 to 4" in diameter, most of which is legs (they are very long-legged), they have two obvious wings normally held flat against the surface they are resting on. At night one of the two sexes (not sure which) can be seen hanging below a Nepenthes basket swinging back and forth, wings beating, presumably to attract a mate. It is my understanding the eggs are laid in the media and the larva then damage the roots. The adults are harmless but look like giant mosquitos. Because of this look I have heard them refered to here in the south as 'Gallanippers' (Gallon- nippers) because it was thought that a 'mosquito' that big must take out a gallon or so. We also have 'lightnin' bugs' = fireflies, 'mosquito hawks' = dragonflies, and 'scorpions' = any skink supposedly possesing a poisonous bite. I once saw this last creature, a harmless 5" lizard, chase a 250 lb man out of garage! Anyway back to subject, Probably any good soil drench insecticide that is safe for Nepenthes will kill them off, if they are indeed insects. Wettable Malithion is a relatively harmless one, or you can use a systemic like Cygon 2E, BUT follow the instrunctions as this is relatively toxic. It does have the added benefit of destroying scale, mites, thrips, and these larva all at once. I use this with caution, and work upwind, wear gloves, etc. Cliff ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Wed, 10 Mar 1999 22:25:26 PST Subject: Re: Update on S.American Drosera Taxonomy and NEW WANT LIST Hi Kevin, >>I've got some more news on the Drosera species collected on this >>last trip of mine. Careful drawings of each have been made by a >>friend of mine, making comparisons much easier. >Will you be making these images available on the web any time soon >so we may see???krs The plan is to draw all the New World Drosera spp. and put them all into a book with accompanying pictures. In some cases, several drawings of each species will be included to show the known variation. We've got over 150 drawings already, most still incomplete though, missing details like seeds or styles. THIS IS WHY I NEED A D.LINEARIS SPECIMEN IN FLOWER IN ALCOHOL!!! Doesn't anybody out there live close to where this species grows in the wild???? All I need are two or three plants in flower in 70% alcohol. I'll repeat once again: I'm willing to trade seeds of rare Brazilian CPs for this material. If anybody can do the same for D.intermedia, D.anglica, D.rotundifolia, D.capillaris, and D.brevifolia from N and/or C America, I'm also interested. Although we already have these species, we want more specimens from different locations. Furthermore, we'd like specimens of any Drosera species from nrothern S.America (Venezuela, Colombia, Guyana, etc.), like D.esmeraldae, D.tenella, D.kaiteurensis, D.arenicola, etc. to compare with what we have. Always in alcohol, of course. So if any of you out there grow any of these species, have location data for them, can get them to flower next spring/summer, and is willing to bottle up a few flowering plants for me in exchange for Brazilian CP seeds, what are you waiting for? WRITE TO ME! (Personally please, not to the listserv) If you live close to where you could collect some specimens of the above species directly from the wild (Florida, California, Great Lakes region, etc.) for me in the spring/summer, even better. Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia ################### From: "Susan Farrington" Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 06:57:27 +0000 Subject: Drosera hamiltonii In looking through in Index Semminum (seeds offered by botanical gardens to other botanical gardens), I found Drosera hamiltonii listed. Since I only have a little familiarity with the plant, I looked it up in Peter D'Amato's book to determine if I could grow it in the conditions here at the garden. He states that it rarely flowers (which I'd heard) and that it does not produce any seed, propagating from roots and stems. Is this really true? If so, the seed I'm being offered couldn't be D. hamiltonii. Can anyone out there enlighten me? Thanks! Susan Farrington Missouri Botanical Garden susan.farrington@mobot.org (314)577-9402 ################### From: poh Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 21:55:06 +0800 Subject: Hi! ( My plants are dying ) Hi Everybody, Is there anyone out there who have problem by over fertilizing your plants.? Most of my sarracenia are killed because of the over dose of fertilizers on them. My U. tricolour have been having a problem. The leaves seems to be rotting and to be easily pick out from the tank.:( Do anyone have a reason + a cure for it. :D Thanks hope to hear frm u soon! Lots of love Jonathan Poh Peace I give unto u, my peace I give unto u, not as the world give, give i unto u. Let not your heart be troubled or neither let it be afraid. John 14:27 ################### From: John Brittnacher Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 09:43:19 -0800 Subject: Re: Drosera hamiltonii >In looking through in Index Semminum (seeds offered by >botanical gardens to other botanical gardens), I found Drosera >hamiltonii listed. Since I only have a little familiarity with the >plant, I looked it up in Peter D'Amato's book to determine if I could >grow it in the conditions here at the garden. He states that it >rarely flowers (which I'd heard) and that it does not produce any >seed, propagating from roots and stems. Is this really true? If so, >the seed I'm being offered couldn't be D. hamiltonii. Can anyone out >there enlighten me? You might want to check out this paper (I have only seen this abstract). If D. hamiltonii is self-incompatible then you would be able to get seed by crossing non-related individuals. It would also explain why seed is not recovered from other cultivated Australian Drosera. I don't think even Peter has 2 unrelated Australian Drosera plants of the same species--well not many anyway. Self-incompatibility, seed abortion and clonality in the breeding systems of several Western Australian Drosera species (Droseraceae) Chen L, James SH, Stace HM AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY 45: (1) 191-201 1997 Abstract: Western Australian Drosera L. species include one annual and many tuberous and pygmy perennials. In 20 species or subspecies, 17 taxa were self-incompatible (SI) and three were self-compatible (SC), as assessed by patterns of seed set and pollen tube growth. All SI species were clonal (tubers or gemmae), but two SC species were clonal (gemmae) and one was annual. Self-pollen tube inhibition confirmed that SI species were pre-zygotically self-sterile. The sites of SI pollen tube inhibition varied from early (stigmatic) to fate (stylar, placental, ovular), which suggests continuing evolution in the expression of the SI response. Self-compatible species showed little inbreeding depression, but SI species showed considerable inbreeding depression as measured by seed abortion. In the three species tested, open-pollinated capsules were typically more fecund than hand-pollinated capsules. In D. glanduligera Lehm., this might represent position effects in an inflorescence that were reflected in the sampling method. In other species, however, this might also reflect biparental inbreeding depression in the glasshouse plants. Interspecific crosses between D. tubaestylis N.Marchant & A.Lowrie (n = 14) and D. rosulata Lehm. (n = 13) were slightly successful, with no pollen-pistil incompatibility interaction, but with extensive seed abortion. This is the first report of SI in Droseraceae. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- John Brittnacher Phone: (530) 752-8055 Information Systems Manager FAX: (530) 752-3239 Epidemiology & Preventive Medicine jgbrittnacher@ucdavis.edu University of California mailto:britt@epm.ucdavis.edu Davis, California 95616 http://www-epm.ucdavis.edu/~britt/ "The human mind is a fantasy land operating to delude itself by assuming whatever point of view is easiest to live with." -- Jack L. Chalker in "The Return of Nathan Brazil" ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 19:39:26 Subject: Re: Drosera hamiltonii Dear John, > You might want to check out this paper (I have only seen this abstract). (...) > Self-incompatibility, seed abortion and clonality in the breeding systems > of several Western Australian Drosera species (Droseraceae) > > Chen L, James SH, Stace HM > AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF BOTANY > 45: (1) 191-201 1997 The paper (cf. review in CPN 26:121, 1997) does not deal with _D. hamiltonii_ if I remember well. Kind regards Jan ################### From: "Christensen" Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 00:21:11 -0700 Subject: Re: Nepenthes culture question >I've checked the soil and discovered these wormy looking things. >About 1 to 2 cm long, wiggling about. A local nursury suggested >that they're gnat larvae, but I don't think so. Nematodes? >They're not on the surface, but within the soil. Nita Stull, Get rid of the wigglers. I agree with Cliff, use insecticides. I've seen something similar in the soil of my Stapeliad varigata. At first, it wasn't growing and I didn't understand why. When I watered it, several small white worms with black heads wriggled to the soil surface because of the water. After watering, they quickly hid in the soil. In my experience, every time I found those worms I also had fungus gnats flying around my plants. After I treated the S. varigata with pyrethrin, and a systemic insecticide, the plant started growing very well and still is, and the fungus gnats disappeared. Warning- If you find wigglers in one pot, then there may be wigglers in your other pots, too. I had to treat all of my plants to finally get rid of the fungus gnats and wigglers. Let us assume the wigglers are a kind of larvae. If a few mature and find a mate, then your problems may start over. I don't know if your worms are larvae of fungus gnats or larvae of crane flys but insecticides will kill them anyway. Chad. ################### From: CMcdon0923@aol.com Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 22:23:38 EST Subject: Re: Death by Fertilization - Huh? In a message dated 03/11/99 1:38:06 PM Central Standard Time, cp@opus.hpl.hp.com writes: << Is there anyone out there who have problem by over fertilizing your plants.? Most of my sarracenia are killed because of the over dose of fertilizers on them. >> So why are you fertilizing them AT ALL if you feel that's what's killing them? Patient: "Doctor, doctor...it's hurts when I do this." Doctor: "Then don't do that." -- Henny Youngman (paraphrased) ################### From: "Marin Martiskovich" Date: Thu, 11 Mar 1999 22:22:41 -0500 Subject: Hard to find CP seed mail order? Hi everyone. I noticed some of you are looking for specific plants or seeds that are hard to find. So, I just thought I'd let you know of a mail order seed supplier that I have come across. You may find what you are looking for here. the site is cyberseeds.com They seem to sell the largest variety I have ever seen, though they all say special order on the listing. I did a search for sarracenia on their site and it came up with about 100 varieties including hybrids. They have tones of drosera varieties also. The prices are about $5 U.S. a packet but they also sell them by the thousand. I would like to know if anyone has ordered anything from cyberseeds.com and what their track record is like. Were the seeds viable and of the correct type etc. ################### From: "steve" Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 14:10:04 +1000 Subject: black vft`s hello people, i`m having trouble with my vft`s going black from the trap inwards and then dying. this started to happen after division, but on undivided clusters too. i do not force feed them and the water is good. i have tried a systemic fungicide to no great success. can u guys offer any suggestions? thanks heaps, steve. :-) ################### From: "Marc I. Burack" Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 08:22:30 -0500 Subject: Re: black vft`s At 08:12 PM 3/11/99 -0800, you wrote: >hello people, i`m having trouble with my vft`s going black from the trap >inwards and then dying. >this started to happen after division, but on undivided clusters too. >i do not force feed them and the water is good. >i have tried a systemic fungicide to no great success. > >can u guys offer any suggestions? > >thanks heaps, steve. :-) I regularly see this kind of question about Dionea (VFT) plants. Are people aware that the normal progression of "VFT"'s are that traps regularly blacken, die off, and new leaves are formed? This is the cycle of the plant......???? (In other words, healthy VFT plants, make leaves and traps.....they last for a while (weeks, months, etc...), then the trap turns black, the leaf dies, and the plant produces new leaves... I tend to see similar questions with Nepenthes....Q- My Nep. plant made a pitcher, and now it is dying....whats wrong?.....The answer...nothing is wrong, plant leaves, carnivorous or otherwise are not eternal...."cp traps" all die sooner or later and the plant goes on to create new ones.... You can blame nature on this one. Marc I. Burack marcb@companionfinancial.com ################### From: Harwoodpa@aol.com Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 11:08:04 EST Subject: Re: Nepenthes aristolocioides in culture !! Hi gang I'm finding the t/c clones of N.aristolocioides that are generally avaliable quite vigorous growers. My plants have doubled in size over a period of about 7/8 months. This is unusual over a rather dull British winter. Anybody else having the same nice experiance??? Paul ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 12:36:00 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Re: Hi (Your plants are dieing) Dear Poh, The only thing you can do is leach out the fertilizer and hope for the best by watering continuously with distiled or purified to get as much of the salts out of the soil as possible. A better method would be to unpot all the plants, remove the soil and rinse the root system several times in pure water. Then repot in fresh media and do NOT fertilize. Hope they live, Robertivore ################### From: z_simkunasra@TITAN.SFASU.EDU Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 12:47:07 -0500 (CDT) Subject: Dangerous Plants Robertivore here, I've E-mailed Dangerous Plants several times now on what I wanted to order an I don't get any response. Has anyone else had a similar problem with them? ################### From: "Diane charette" Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 15:44:55 -0400 Subject: Heliamphora seeds germination Hi list! I want some tips on growing heliamphora from seeds because all my tentatives had failed.... Please help me to save the last seeds that it rest to me:P. Thanx Tom ################### From: Hayes7@aol.com Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 18:10:46 EST Subject: Re: Dangerous Plants Robertivore and list, I have nothing in my inbox from Please send your request again, directly to the following: thanks, -Tom DANGEROUS PLANTS www.tcscs.com/~thayes ################### From: steven c bange Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 18:55:24 -0500 Subject: subscribe Please subscribe ################### From: "steve" Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 12:35:44 +1000 Subject: RE:re black vft`s >------------------------------ > >Topic No. 5 > >Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 08:22:30 -0500 >From: "Marc I. Burack" >To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com >Subject: Re: black vft`s >Message-ID: <4.1.19990312081536.00930720@pop.mindspring.com> > >At 08:12 PM 3/11/99 -0800, you wrote: >>hello people, i`m having trouble with my vft`s going black from the trap >>inwards and then dying. >>this started to happen after division, but on undivided clusters too. >>i do not force feed them and the water is good. >>i have tried a systemic fungicide to no great success. >> >>can u guys offer any suggestions? >> >>thanks heaps, steve. :-) > >I regularly see this kind of question about Dionea (VFT) plants. Are >people aware that the normal progression of "VFT"'s are that traps >regularly blacken, die off, and new leaves are formed? This is the cycle >of the plant......???? (In other words, healthy VFT plants, make leaves and >traps.....they last for a while (weeks, months, etc...), then the trap >turns black, the leaf dies, and the plant produces new leaves... > >I tend to see similar questions with Nepenthes....Q- My Nep. plant made a >pitcher, and now it is dying....whats wrong?.....The answer...nothing is >wrong, plant leaves, carnivorous or otherwise are not eternal...."cp traps" >all die sooner or later and the plant goes on to create new ones.... > >You can blame nature on this one. > > >Marc I. Burack >marcb@companionfinancial.com > >------------------------------ > this is not a natural occurence, it is not dieback, it is a genuine problem, the vft`s go black on quite a few leaves annd quickly die or nnearly die. Steve :-) ################### From: shafer@sammy.Colorado.EDU Date: Fri, 12 Mar 1999 20:15:35 -0700 Subject: Re: Nepenthes aristolocioides in culture !! Hi- Yes, I've observed a similar rate of growth in my plants, which are actually grown from seed. They've gone from about 3cm to 8 cm since early July of last year. Jeff Shafer Hi gang I'm finding the t/c clones of N.aristolocioides that are generally avaliable quite vigorous growers. My plants have doubled in size over a period of about 7/8 months. This is unusual over a rather dull British winter. Anybody else having the same nice experiance??? Paul ################### From: poh Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 11:31:40 +0800 Subject: Hi! Hi, My friend told me that he have extra byblis liniflora seeds and would like to give or trade. Please write to me, if u want some from him :D Hope to hear frm u soon! Lots of love Jonathan Poh Peace I give unto u, my peace I give unto u, not as the world give, give i unto u. Let not your heart be troubled or neither let it be afraid. John 14:27 ################### From: "Gareth Williams" Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 16:17:12 +1100 Subject: N. aristolocioides cultivation Paul, Can you give us all an idea of the conditions that you are growing your N. aristolocioides in. ie. Temps, night and day, light and soil make up. Many thanks Gareth Williams williams@goulburn.net.au > I'm finding the t/c clones of N.aristolocioides that are generally >avaliable quite vigorous growers. >My plants have doubled in size over a period of about 7/8 months. >This is unusual over a rather dull British winter. > Paul ################### From: didier.roustide@francemel.com Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 08:32:33 +0100 Subject: Re: New guy on list /Nepenthes Salut Fred, > I'd like to start growing CPs from seeds but don't know where to > order in europe (I've seen the Cambrian Carnivores web site but > isn't there anything closer to home ?). On the CP server you can get a file about societies. Simply send a mail to : listproc@opus.hpl.hp.com with an empty subject an with the following command in the body of the message : GET CP cp.societies (if you want information on existing books : GET CP cp.books) In the "societies" file you will get you can find a French society : "Association Francaise D'Amateurs De Plantes Carnivores Publication: Dion\351e (French, 3/year, 90 pages annually) Meetings: Annual meeting Other Benefits: Seedbank, plant exchanges, information exchange Profile: A group dedicated to enhancing the knowledge of carnivores and their preservation. Subscription: 100 French Francs domestic/100 French Francs foreign Address: Association Dione'e C.D.M 55 Rue Louis Ricard 76000 Rouen France Revised: February 1994" What is not written in the file is that this society has now its own web site : http://www.multimania.com/dionaea/dionee.htm Best Regards. Didier Roustide. ################### From: Tommy Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 22:36:20 +0800 Subject: introduce my-self Dear all, I am a new subscriber(a biotechnology student) from China. When I search infomation of tissue culture a few month ago, I discovered the informatiom of CPs is also avaliable on the net, I found that CP are fascinating plants and the growing them is very interesting. It is also very unbelievable that there are so many growers in different parts of the world. Unfortunately, there are no specific nurseries or shops for the source of CP in here, I remember there are only a few common CP is avaliable(like VFTs, D.cap, D.spul,Sarracenia purpure etc.). They are sold in a small pots and very expensive. I have bought one VFT and one Sarracenia purpure(about $10 each) in the past, however i throw the VFT away because I don't know it has gone dormancy and kill the Sarracenia purpure by repotting in a wrong soil mix. I even don't know it is my fault before I search for the growing tips on the net. >From now, I have ordered some seeds of several Drosera species on the net and want to start a small collection of CP, I have just begin to germinate them and I hope I will have a happy and success cultivation in the future. Tommy ################### From: "David E. Heule" Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 14:43:53 -0500 Subject: NJ Pine Barrens Hello to All, Could anyone tell me when the best spring time viewing of CP in the NJ Pine Barrens will occur. Thanks for your help. Dave Heule [HTML file part2 deleted by listprocessor] ################### From: "TED HADLEY" Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 13:07:57 -0800 Subject: VFT native to Vietnam? Hi All, especially the taxonomists on the list, I was talking with a colleague from Vietnam about carnivorous plants and he said that there is a CP he was very familiar with when he was growing up. What he went on to describe was a Venus Flytrap, but with the following differences: 1. The petiole was a very slender thread, sort of like a blade of grass. 2. The traps were more oval shaped. 3. The plant was tropical or subtropical. There was no dormant season. In all other respects, it was a VFT, exactly, in size, behavoir, etc. He described it as fairly common in the fields and other open areas and swampy areas, but never in the forest/jungle. Is this a known plant? What is it called? Thanks, Ted Hadley ################### From: Mike Vogl Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 14:54:58 -0700 Subject: "Ott Light" experience? Hello all- I need to replace the fluorescent lights in my plants' terrarium, but discovered that the stores in my area no longer carry the brand of bulb that I have previously used. In its place they have "Ott Light". These bulbs come in a large display expounding the many spectacular benefits that Ott Light will provide to plants (not unlike SuperThrive:). Anyway, I was wondering if anyone has successfully used this brand or knows anything about it, or if I should pass these up and continue my search for the brand I have used in the past. Thanks in advance- -Jonathan Mitchell ################### From: Mike Vogl Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 15:06:55 -0700 Subject: Genlisea seed germination Hello again- I have a wonderful plant of G. hispidula that recently sent up a huge (more than a foot tall, compared to the plant which is only an inch across) flower spike with three lovely little flowers on it. They all quickly fell off and the ovaries are rapidly swelling with seed. Now, how should I deal with this? Will the plant produce viable seed at all? If so, would it help if I removed the upermost pods and left only one in which the plant had to invest energy? And finally, how should I harvest and sow the seed? Thanks in advance for any help- -Jonathan Mitchell ################### From: drury6@juno.com Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 15:50:03 -0600 Subject: Nepenthes Question I have really enjoyed the past series of posting describing the trip to Mt. neblina, it was really amazing! The habitat seemed like it could support Nepenthes. The soil was nepenthes soil, and the climate was similar too. Why do nepenthes not live there? Have the seed not traveled there for it to get started? Could it be succesfully naturalized there? -Don ################### From: "Marin Martiskovich" Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 18:55:50 -0500 Subject: RE: black vft`s I think humidity or lack of it may be a problem. I am having similar experience with some of my plants that have been divided. Although still looking strong shortly after division they start to blacken within days. I think it might be due to shocking the roots and they don't uptake water well so the humidity must be kept high. The plants that I have put into a terrarium seem to be doing fine, but the ones in clay pots sitting in a tray of water are blackening. I am guessing the humidity is not high enough, so they are going into a terrarium for a while. Maybe bag up your plants in those ziplock bags that breath that are meant for storing greens such as lettuce. Hope this helps ################### From: ricell@juno.com Date: Sat, 13 Mar 1999 18:27:15 -0700 Subject: Re: Nepenthes Question On Sat, 13 Mar 1999 drury6@juno.com writes: Referring to Neblina . . . . > Why do nepenthes not live there? Have the seed not traveled >there for it to get started? Could it be successfully naturalized there? The plants and animal species of Asia (old world) and South America (new world) are frequently different and this is used as evidence that these areas separated very early in time (before the evolution of many modern species). I think it would be extremely difficult for Nepenthes seed to successfully cross the ocean unaided. Couldn't comment on the possibility of naturalizing Nepenthes to South America but I would not encourage it. Rich Ellis, Boulder, CO "ricell@juno.com" http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Vines/8564/ ################### From: Suzanne@mace.demon.co.uk (Suzanne Mace) Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 01:54:22 GMT Subject: Introduction I have just joined the list. Our main interest in plants is Cacti and Succulents but I have had some of these plants for a couple of years and it is quite surprising how well they do in a cactus and succulent greenhouse and how many cactus and succulent growers have a few. While we have extensive knowledge of cacti and succulents we are very much novices with these plants. Apart from learning a bit more about them, we need to find out more about the best internet resources for them, suppliers in different countries, and who to direct queries to, because from time to time we get questions on them on the Cactus Mall. We are based in Ansty in West Sussex fairly close to Gatwick Airport. -- Suzanne Mace http://www.cactus-mall.com The Cactus and Succulent Plant Mall ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 14:05:07 +0000 Subject: Seed source (world) Further to the excellent announcement on the listserver for Cyberseeds.com (full adress is http\\cyberseeds.com), i thought I'd add this. Cyberseeds is an excellent site. The people there are truly service driven, i.e. they respect the customers expectation of service excellence and excellence is what they give. (No I don't have shares in Cyberseeds). However, they do not ship to Europe or to some other regions. For those in Europe, Cyberseeds is a company that acts as a USA based outlet for B&T World seeds, originally a British company and now fully European (based in france i think). You can access the B&T site home page at: B&T World seeds Home Page http://b-and-t-world-seeds.com/catalogs.htm You can get plant lists from B&T at: Complete set of lists of seeds to download to your PC: http://b-and-t-world-seeds.com/sublists.htm The Cyberseeds site is fantastic - you can search and order on-line with noi need to maintain a list of seeds on your PC. The B&T home site is less helpful but you can still get all the details you need on which to place an order. B&T World seeds (and Cyberseeds) are not CP specialists so the lists they have are limited. However, they do list seeds which may be difficult to get locally from other sources so are worty adding to your list of where to shop, especially if you do not yet have an advanced CP colletion. Regards Paul (PS I don't have shares in B&T Word seeds either!!!) ################### From: "David Bradley" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 07:45:48 +1100 Subject: Sarracenia flava complex Dear all I am wondering if it is true that the Sarracenia flava f. 'red tube/green lid' takes a growing season or two until it takes on its characteristic markings, that is after one has repotted or disturbed the plant. I currently have some seeds germinating of the following crosses: S. flava cv 'Burgandy' X S. flava 'giant red tube', appalachicola & S. flava 'purple tube', Milton X S. flava 'giant red tube', Appalachicola. Will they take a few years until they attain their colour markings? Lastly does the cultural variety that Adrian Slack described as S. flava cv 'Maxima' in his Insect Eating Plants & How to Grow them, really exist? That is a clone that shows the blue gey tint at the pitcher & phyllode bases & the stately pitchers? It certainly sounded great at the time of reading! Thanks in advance, as well as thaks for the advice regarding my Thrip troubles & the S. rubra status queries. Yours sarracenely Nathan J. Clemens Bowral NSW Australia Sundew@mitmania.net.au ################### From: Harwoodpa@aol.com Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 16:06:12 EST Subject: Re: N.aristolocioides in culture !! Hi Gareth Here is the method that I have used so far: I have three plants of N.aristolocioides,all three are potted in a mix of equal parts; seramis (this is a trade name,I'm not sure if it is the same world-wide) pearlite peat/sand (50/50 mix) In my greenhouse I have a large shelf,that is segregated from the rest of the greenhouse with bubble plastic sheeting.On the base of the shelf I have wet sand, covered by about 1" of gravel.Buried in the sand is a warming cable(2 metre length),this is left on all the time. The greenhouse is heated by an electric tubular -type heater throughout the winter. Winter temps. on the shelf are around: Daytime....anything from 6oC-16oC Nightime..... " " 4oC-10oC The greenhouse is sheltered from full sun (by it's position ..not by choice!), but the plants are exposed to sun from the south and the east. It will be interesting to see how this species progresses through the summer, if we get one !!! Regards Paul Harwood Harwoodpa@a ol.com ################### From: Phil Wilson Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 21:51:31 +0000 Subject: Re: Sarracenia flava complex Dear Nathan, > I am wondering if it is true that the Sarracenia flava f. 'red >tube/green >lid' takes a growing season or two until it takes on its characteristic >markings, that is after one has repotted or disturbed the plant. I >currently have some seeds germinating of the following crosses: > In general most Sarracenias with red colouring take some time to get the colouring back after repotting. I reckon that most red tube plants (or S. flava var. rubricorpa as they are officially know as now) suffer after a repot. >S. flava cv 'Burgandy' X S. flava 'giant red tube', appalachicola & >S. flava 'purple tube', Milton X S. flava 'giant red tube', Appalachicola. > >Will they take a few years until they attain their colour markings? In general most Sarracenia seedlings take 2-3 years before they begin to display their adult characteristics i.e. pitcher shape and colour although in some species (e.g. S. purpurea ssps and S. psittacina) can be quicker. > Lastly does the cultural variety that Adrian Slack described as S. flava >cv 'Maxima' in his Insect Eating Plants & How to Grow them, really exist? >That is a clone that shows the blue gey tint at the pitcher & phyllode >bases & the stately pitchers? It certainly sounded great at the time of >reading! Very definitely! Its a pretty common plants here in the UK though with trade restrictions to other parts of the world is likely to remain difficult to get there. Unfortunately the plant cannot be propagated by seed since it is a cultivar and anyway, AFAIK does not breed true from seed. Regards, Phil Wilson Email: cp@pwilson.demon.co.uk Web Site: www.pwilson.demon.co.uk ################### From: EdwardK674@aol.com Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 17:29:42 EST Subject: Re: Pine Barrens Hi all, It depends on what type of cp's your looking for, purple pitcher plants are visable although not in flower right now. To see them in flower I've always had good luck around May and June, sometimes even a little later. To see D. rotundafolia and D. filiformis (please excuse any typos I'm very tired right now) the plants are usually up and lookin nice by the end of April, rotundafolia is usually out of dormancy earlier than filiformis. I've found various bladderworts in bloom from July through Sept. If your there in the fall, various wild orchids can frequently be found with or near the sundews. The best way to find some good spots is to get some maps of the state lands and explore around a little. Most of the heavily traveled sections have been stripped of pitcher plants. I found a couple of out of the way spots that had patches of rotundafolias about 1-2 ft in diameter. I've hiked through some areas in the fall and had to clean some seed pods out of the laces of my boots (Drosera sp.). Good luck and good viewing. Ed Kowalski edwardk674@aol.com ################### From: "Charles Redding" Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 17:28:17 PST Subject: Stratification Hello everyone! I will soon be getting about 150-180 sarracenia purpurea seeds and they will need stratification. The person I am getting them from has told me that I might try a quick stratification technique He said to put the seeds in Ice trays and freeze them for 36 hours. They let them thaw and put on seed starting media. Has anyone tried this? what are your results? Also what would be the best way to stratify a large number of these seeds and what is the smallest amount of time they need to be subjected to cold? I would appriciate any and all help/suggestions Thanks Charles Redding Florida ################### From: JDPDX@aol.com Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 20:33:16 EST Subject: Re: Ott Light << These bulbs come in a large display expounding the many spectacular benefits that Ott Light will provide to plants (not unlike SuperThrive:). >> Jonathan, I've used several different types of full-spectrum fluorescent light; Vita- Light, Gro-Lux, Agro-Grow, Verilux etc... My experience has been that they only give a little better results than using ordinary cool-white tubes. The one thing they have going for them is they bring out more colors in the plants if you're displaying them in the middle of your home. Otherwise, the $0.99 cool-white tubes will work fine, unless you want to pay $9.00+ per tube for full spectrum lights. Make sure, however, that the tubes are 40 watt. The energy saver types are not as bright. Jeff ################### From: "Paul V. McCullough" Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 22:52:30 -0500 Subject: RE: NJ Pine Barrens Best viewing times are mid May when the Sarr Purps are in bloom... this is also before the ticks come into full bloom. From June on, you'll be covered in ticks (of all types including the ones responsible for Lyme disease) after just an hour in the Pine Barrens. Cheers, Paul -- Paul V. McCullough Webpage: http://www.voicenet.com/~pvmcull ################### From: "T. Williams" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 12:48:12 +0900 Subject: Re: Fungus gnats Regarding extermination of fungus gnats, it's not necessary to resort to chemical warfare. The adults flying around in the greenhouse / terrarium are best killed with domestic fly-spray, but the larvae and eggs can be controlled by drowning. Just immerse the entire pot in a bucket of water overnight. Repeat the process a week later and this is usually quite effective. It works for houseplants too. Letting the medium dry out more between waterings will probably help some. Tim Williams. ################### From: "Paul V. McCullough" Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 23:05:45 -0500 Subject: RE: Ott Light I'm using one now in my Klima-gro. Although this light is not actually designed for the Klimagro, I decided to give it a shot and see what kind of effect it produced on my CP. (One of the KG's original tubes finally gave up the ghost after it's two year life span...) So far, none of the plants has shown any sign of negative effects from the OTT lamp, and a few seem to be emerging (perhaps coincidently) from their dormancy. It has a bluish-white color unlike the KG's GE F30 bulb's peach hue. Klimagro insists that buying the expensive ($12 for the 24") Ott lamp isn't necessary since the better suited F30 tubes give off a higher spectrum/luminosity quotient... also the F30 tubes only run about $8. Klimagro's upgrading my lamp assembly for free! They told me at the Philly flower show that the assembly I had has been surpassed in their new models of the Discovery and that they want to bring mine up to the new spec! Since the new design provides even more light while running even cooler, my CP (which have been THRIVING) ought to love the new assembly. This offer to upgrade came from Klimagro- now that's customer service... I bought my KG-1000 two years ago and they're still supporting it! Cheers, Paul -- Paul V. McCullough Webpage: http://www.voicenet.com/~pvmcull ################### From: "Paul V. McCullough" Date: Sun, 14 Mar 1999 23:07:45 -0500 Subject: Nepenthes inquiry... Having recently purchased two nepenthes, and having never grown one before- I was wondering if it's possible to grow these as a "ground" level plant or do they always need to be in hanging baskets? Will in stay as a rosetted plant or is it more like a climbing vine? Cheers, Paul -- Paul V. McCullough Webpage: http://www.voicenet.com/~pvmcull ################### From: Tony Camilleri Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 15:58:41 +0930 Subject: Peter Taylor book I was wondering if anybody knew how to obtain the book by Peter Taylor named 'the genus Utricularia ? If anybody has any useful information could they email me privately. Regards, Tony Camilleri tona@topend.com.au ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 09:17:25 Subject: Re: Nepenthes Question Dear Rich & al., > > Why do nepenthes not live there? Have the seed not traveled > >there for it to get started? Could it be successfully naturalized there? > > The plants and animal species of Asia (old world) and South America (new > world) are frequently different and this is used as evidence that these > areas separated very early in time (before the evolution of many modern > species). I think it would be extremely difficult for Nepenthes seed to > successfully cross the ocean unaided. Yes, but cf. _Mitrastema_ (Rafflesiac.; E Asia + Mexico), _Langsdorffia_ (Balanophorac. Madagascar + SE Asia + S America), Tetrameristac. (SE Asia + Guayana Highland), _Drosera_ subgen. Thelocalyx (SE Asia + Australia + S America), etc. These (comparatively rare and rather exceptional) disjunct amphi-Pacific distribution patterns are usually explained by long distance dispersal. Kind regards Jan ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 09:35:33 Subject: Re: VFT native to Vietnam? Dear Ted, > Is this a known plant? Probably yes, if it is a common plant. > What is it called? This is difficult to tell from your description. How did your colleague call it (if necessary in Vietnamese)? Does your colleague have a specimen? How exactly does the plant look like (leaf surface, margin, stem, inflorescence, flower structure)? Is he sure the plant captured insects with fast closing spring-trap like leaves (and not on a sticky surface)? Was the plant aquatic (capturing aquatic prey) or terrestrial (capturing terrestrial or flying prey)? It is most probably *not* a VFT (if it was native in Vietnam). Kind regards Jan ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 09:57:34 Subject: Re: Sarracenia flava complex Dear Phil, > > Lastly does the cultural variety that Adrian Slack described > > as S. flava > >cv 'Maxima' in his Insect Eating Plants & How to Grow them, really > >exist? That is a clone that shows the blue gey tint at the pitcher & > >phyllode bases & the stately pitchers? It certainly sounded great at > >the time of reading! > > > Very definitely! Its a pretty common plants here in the UK though > with trade restrictions to other parts of the world is likely to > remain difficult to get there. Unfortunately the plant cannot be > propagated by seed since it is a cultivar and anyway, AFAIK does not > breed true from seed. _S. flava var. maxima_ is a botanical taxon. It was described first after cultivated specimens (by Masters in 1881; not by Slack, whose version of the name is simply an orthographical mistake, unfortunately not a rare one) but it is *not* a cultivar. It does occur in the wild (N & S Carolina, less frequent in Florida). After Don Schnell's clarification of the _S. flava_ varieties (CPN 27:116- 120, 1998), I regard it as an accepted taxon in the cp database (not updated on the web yet!). It is distinguished by its green pitchers with no red venation or red coloration of throat (the bases of pitchers and cladophylls do have some red pigment, however). The plant with the mentioned blue-grey tint at the pitcher base may be described as a new cultivar, but it should in any event *NOT* be called "Maxima" (cultivar epithets should *not* be Latin, a Latin epithet can *only* be taken for a cultivar if it is coextensive with a previously described taxon bearing this Latin epithet, which is obviously *not* the case in our example: green-pitchered plants without blue-green tint at the base would belong to _var.maxima_ but not to the cultivar). Kind regards Jan ################### From: Denis Daly Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 14:27:13 -0800 Subject: Change of snail mail address for Carnivorous Plant Society of NSW Dear list. I wish to notify a Change of Postal address of the Carnivorous Plant Society of New South Wales Effective immediately the new Mail address of the CPS of NSW is:- P.O. Box 9 Kingsway West NSW 2208 Australia The old address at Burwood will cease on and from 30th March 1999. Due to the exorbitant post office costs no redirection from the old address at Burwood Post Office to the new Post Office address at Kingsway West will be effected. Regards Denis Daly dalymob@bigpond.com The above email address remains active. ################### From: Dionaea@aol.com Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 08:17:41 EST Subject: NJ Pine Barrens Dave, Having lived in the Pine Barrens, I would recommend going to your favorite CP spot in late June/early July. D. intermedia and D. rotundifolia will be at their best, U. juncea and U. amethystina will be flowering, as will D. filiformis ssp. filiformis. If your lucky you may see a number of orchids as well. Christoph > Hello to All, Could anyone tell me when the best spring time > viewing of CP in the NJ Pine Barrens will occur. Thanks for your > help. Dave Heule ################### From: Nicholas Plummer Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 08:19:44 -0500 Subject: Nepenthes maxima Two quick questions about Nepenthes maxima: First, In _The Savage Garden_, Peter D'Amato says that N. maxima has a "tooth" that protrudes from the front of the lid. Is this a variable characteristic or perhaps restricted to upper pitchers? I have a plant labeled Nepenthes maxima that originally came from Cal State Fullerton, and at least on its lower pitchers, it lacks this extension. The photos of N. maxima in the CP-database also lack the "tooth," but assuming I am looking at the right part, N. eymae seems to possess it. The N. maxima photos are lowers, while the N. eymae is an upper. Second, I was recently given a cutting of "Nepenthes curtisii" from Atlanta Botanic Garden. Am I correct in thinking N. curtisii a synonym of N. maxima? Is there any reason why A.B.G. might have retained the "N. curtisii" label? cheers, Nick (rainy and cool in Durham, N.C. The first buds are visible on the outdoor Sarracenias) ------------------------------ Nicholas Plummer nplummer@duke.edu http://www.duke.edu/~nplummer/ ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 09:11:20 PST Subject: Looking for Kamil Pasek To Kamil, Sorry to post this here, but I need to contact Kamil Pasek. If you're out there, please send me your snail-mail address. Best Wishes, Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brasil ################### From: Barry Meyers-Rice Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 09:48:02 -0800 (PST) Subject: Genlisea seed > I have a wonderful plant of G. hispidula that recently sent up a huge > across) flower spike with three lovely little flowers on it. They all > quickly fell off and the ovaries are rapidly swelling with seed. > Now, how should I deal with this? Will the plant produce viable seed at Hi Jonathan, Good on you! Watch the fruit, and when it breaks open (the top pops off like a valve on a submarine), sow the seed immediately on the soil surface and treat as a mature plant. If it is anything like my G. hispidula clones, you'll get viable seed. If the humidity is too high/air too stagnant, you might get moulding fruit, so good luck. I've never gotten seed from G. violacea, although perhaps for the first time I may be getting seed from G. pygmaea. At least the ovaries are swelling. Cheers Barry ------------------------ Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice Carnivorous Plant Newsletter Conservation Coeditor barry@carnivorousplants.org http://www.carnivorousplants.org ################### From: CMDodd@aol.com Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 15:54:54 EST Subject: Re: Nepenthes distribution << I have really enjoyed the past series of posting describing the trip to Mt. neblina, it was really amazing! The habitat seemed like it could support Nepenthes. The soil was nepenthes soil, and the climate was similar too. Why do nepenthes not live there? Have the seed not traveled there for it to get started? Could it be succesfully naturalized there? -Don >> Dear Don, From what I understand, the tepuis are islands of highland plants surrounded by areas of lowland forests. Because of their isolation they are relatively unique in modern ecosystems in that 99% of the life found atop the tepuis are non-introduced species. Few other tropical/sub-tropical areas can claim that anymore. This is largely due to the few human visitors they have received. Introducing any non-native plant is probably not a good idea. We now have Australian and Brasilian pest plants here in Florida, S. American (and many other) pest plants in Hawaii, etc, etc. Now I disagree that every non-native plant is an ecological disaster. Dionaea has been introduced into areas of the Florida panhandle and is probably harmless, as is the occasional Citrus seedling that may germinate in our woods. I think the problem is one of uncertainty, you never know what will happen or what may be displaced when you introduce an alien species. (See: Cudzu). It is sad that Nepenthes never made it naturally to Africa or to Hawaii, both of which have other plant genera native to Nepenthes habitat. That could have potentially doubled the known species! Cliff ################### From: "Nita Stull" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 13:02:41 -0800 Subject: blooming pitchers After winter dormancy, I cut back all the pitchers on one plant (in a 3" pot, 2-3 yrs old?) and it's now putting out a flower. I understand that the incoming pitchers won't open until the flower has been pollinated or has withered away. I have another pitcher plant, younger, and it is putting out new pitchers, some of which are opening, and no flower of any kind. Does age determine flowering? or does dormancy? Both plants enjoyed the same dormancy period, but I did not cut back the younger plant (as it did not have many pitchers to begin with). Thank you in advance for an answer. Also, thanks for all the informative responses about the Nepenthes soil/fungus gnats. Nita Stull Professional Consulting Network, Inc. San Francisco NStull@pcninc.com http://www.PCNinc.com 415.777.4321 Nita Stull Professional Consulting Network, Inc. San Francisco NStull@pcninc.com http://www.PCNinc.com 415.777.4321 ################### From: cp@astilla.demon.co.uk (Andrew Bate) Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 21:31:40 GMT Subject: Heliamphora problem Hi, I've only recently been trying to grow Heliamphora and until now have not had a problem with them. My main terrarium is in my garage and gets no natural light at all - I can control light and temperature myself and the plants in there are thriving. The problem is that I have now set up a terrarium in the house and the plants are not doing as well. The terrarium in the house is on a 14 hour light photoperiod and only the heat from the light keeps the day temperature at around 22C - night temperature drops to about 16C. Since replanting some of my Heliamphora and placing in this new terrarium some of the new growth is starting to wither and look perished as if they have dried up. The plants are sprayed daily with water and the humidity of the terrarium is constantly around 85%. As far as I can tell conditions look pretty good so I am confused why this is happening. Can anyone give any advice on what may be going on here? Temperature problem, repotting problem? If the degradation continues I am going to have to move them to the cramped terrarium in the garage but I don't think my Nepenthes would like that very much! :-) Any comments would be appreciated. Andrew -- Andrew Bate | Email: andrew@astilla.demon.co.uk Worcester, UK | Web: http://www.astilla.demon.co.uk | ICQ: 11894304 ################### From: "Michael Hunt" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 17:30:56 -0500 Subject: Re: Nepenthes distribution... Invasive citrus too Oh no Cliff! Off the subject, but citrus is a huge problem as a invasive in Florida. Why its not posted along with Punk Trees, Brazillian Pepper, Australian Pine, etc can only be guessed at. Most likely because of the importance to the states economy. But make no doubts about it. Citrus is a invasive plant, that stangles the wetlands and dry uplands through out central and south Florida. Its sad to see China Citrus smothering out a slow growing Cypress dome, yet common. Even freezes don't kill the roots and they rebound at a good clip. The freezes just kill the marketable portions to the farmer to make it unprofitable to wait for the tree to rebound, if it ever would as a fruit producer. Maybe its a good thing Nepenthes never mingled with the native species of South America or Haw. They then might be considered a invasive and kill out native rare species of plants unique to certain habitats. Another maybe, Dionaea could have spread through the eons of time to the north some and towards the south had man never shown up? But while I'm happy that Dionaea survives in panhandle Florida, and most likely not a threat to native species I don't think in anyway its a good idea for this sort of introduction. Many others as well as myself know of areas in North Carolina that used to have transplanted populations of Sarracenia from the gulf coast. They did well, and I would bet they still exist if not paved over. While excellent to see, maybe not best for the order of things. These plants are not rapid growing and very specific in habitat requirements unlike common pest invasives -----Original Message----- To: Multiple recipients of list > ################### From: "Kitt" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 17:37:15 -0500 Subject: Bog Construction My 9' x 3' bog is nearing completion. It's lined with Firestone 40 pond liner, and nearly filled with 50% peat and 50% silicone pool filter sand. It's taken 3 days to carefully combine the two for even distribution. Seemed like the only way to totally crumble the peat and mix it well with the sand was little by little...by hand. Thankfully, we've had heavy rains so everythings getting nicely saturated. I wanted to check a few things with you experienced bogsters: 1. It seemed that the mix "felt right" when I used 4 50# bags of sand to each 3.8 cu ft of peat. Does this sound about right? 2. The mix is beautifully uhm...fluffy. Do I want it this way or do I want to firm it down before planting? 3. I'd planned on putting 2" of dried sphagnum moss on top. Is that correct? At this point, the only things going in are: Dionaea muscipula \240 Dionaea muscipula \240'Red Dragon' Dionaea muscipula \240'Green Dragon' Sarracenia leucophylla S. 'Dixie Lace' S. alata S. flava Thanks in advance for any/all input. @. .@ kitt@kaboodle.com (\- -/) Scenic Calhoun Georgia..... (.>__<.) .....it's not near anything ^^^ ^^^ He who can laugh at himself has an endless source of amusement ################### From: Wilson Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 14:41:17 -0800 (PST) Subject: Hello! I joined the listserve My name is Wilson. I just started growing CP about a year ago. I live in Antioch, California, and successfully keep some pitcher plants and sundews alive. I wonder if it's possible for me to grow nepenthes outdoor in my area without any complicated set up. In my area, the summer is very dry and hot (above 100F in the hottest summer days). And in winter, it's rainy and can drop down to 20-30 F. Any suggestion? Wilson:) ################### From: Paul Temple Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 22:59:14 +0000 Subject: More on seed source At present, the Cyberseed's site is the only means of searching the B&T World Seeds catalogue by Species name on-line. They are not resellers for us; they provide B&T and customers with their on-line ordering service. Orders can be placed either by using theCyberseeds.com Shopping Cart (European users , sorry - I mean non-USA based customers - can use this too!!!) or via B&T's own Secure E-Mail Server at - http://b-and-t-world-seeds.com/o-form.htm the only difference for customers being that the Cyberseeds site makes it a good deal easier to find and order the species. The prices are the same and orders placed through Cyberseeds are passed to B&T in Europe instantly, so the effect for Clients is the same. Lists can be downloaded in ASCII text format from B&T at: http://b-and-t-world-seeds.com/Download/index.htm - which could then be text-searched on your own computer to find the species sought. This is a complicated way of going about it, the majority of list downloads are made by people wanting to work with the information rather than simply to order seeds. Seen in this light, Cyberseeds are the best thing since sliced bread, perhaps, as stated by B&T. Cyberseeds are happy to state that they believe B&T will care about germination rates and respond appropriately if seeds fail to germinate. however, be fair - seeds are sent out in good faith (I've known B&T for about 4 years) and germination may be poor as a result of poor seeds sent by suppliers to B&T or as a result of poor practice by us - the growers!!! Hope this helps. When I get my seeds I'll sow them and report germination success (if I remember!!!). Chau Paul ################### From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 15:08:36 PST Subject: RE: Genlisea seed & hand pollination Jon and Barry, As far as I know, there is no problem in letting al the capsules develop on your G.hispidula. Good luck. If I remember well, this species will self pollinate easily. BUT.... G.violacea and others of sect.Tayloria (G.uncinata, G.lobata) have to be HAND POLLINATED. What I used to do is roll a piece of string into a stiff little "rope". This I would stick in and out of each open flower with a tweezer. I call it the "Artificial Flower Fornication Method"! :):) Good luck! Fernando Rivadavia Sao Paulo, Brazil ################### From: "Michael Hunt" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 19:53:27 -0500 Subject: Re: Heliamphora problem Hi Andrew, I have only had long term success with H. minor and H. heterodoxa. Only under fluorescent lights. I use 18 hr light cycles to develop the red spoons. I keep them about 5 to 6 cm away from the tubes. They do very well in winter outdoors on the porch with nightime lows 11c. to 15c. and daytime highs near 26c. By early spring they have to come inside due to increases in daytime temps. The best I can do during summer without a special cooling system is maintain the plants, very little if any growth. People on this list have stated that Heliamphora can grow in much warmer temp ranges. I have not seen this. I use pure living sphagnum mixed with pumice and allow complete drainage. I have found that Heliamphora do very well next to the wet pads in the greenhouse where alittle mist drizzles down 24hr aday and the temps may be even somewhat cooler. Heliamphora do not like to be transplanted and they take awhile to recover, they are also suspect to disease in this state. Your temps seem desireable during the pm and maybe just a tad low for the days. Humidity is ok, higher is hard to get but better. It just sounds like transplant shock, and hopefully the crowns will regain pushing new leaves out. ~Mike St. Petersburg Fl zone 10a -----Original Message----- To: Multiple recipients of list >Hi, > >I've only recently been trying to grow Heliamphora and until now >have not had a problem with them. My main terrarium is in my garage >and gets no natural light at all - I can control light and >temperature myself and the plants in there are thriving. The >problem is that I have now set up a terrarium in the house and the >plants are not doing as well. > >The terrarium in the house is on a 14 hour light photoperiod and >only the heat from the light keeps the day temperature at around 22C >- night temperature drops to about 16C. Since replanting some of my >Heliamphora and placing in this new terrarium some of the new growth >is starting to wither and look perished as if they have dried up. >The plants are sprayed daily with water and the humidity of the >terrarium is constantly around 85%. As far as I can tell conditions >look pretty good so I am confused why this is happening. > >Can anyone give any advice on what may be going on here? >Temperature problem, repotting problem? > >If the degradation continues I am going to have to move them to the >cramped terrarium in the garage but I don't think my Nepenthes would >like that very much! :-) > >Any comments would be appreciated. > >Andrew -- Andrew Bate | Email: andrew@astilla.demon.co.uk >Worcester, UK | Web: http://www.astilla.demon.co.uk | ICQ: >11894304 > ################### From: bd670@scn.org (Michael Feddersen) Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 17:19:58 -0800 (PST) Subject: Nepenthes cutting sale Hello, I'll be having alot of extra highland Nepenthes cuttings available this spring for sale. Varieties from Indonesia,Philippines,Malaysia and Borneo. If you are interested e-mail me at bb626@scn.org. Sorry US only. I'll run this on the plant trader and from time to time until April 15 for shipment in early May of this year. Alot of these clones have never been in circulation before. Truly, TomKahl/NepenthesClub ################### From: "Marin Martiskovich" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 23:16:22 -0500 XSubject: Nepenthes cutting sale Does anyone have any images of a VFT that has been successfully pollinated. Do they produce a pod of some kind? I have hand pollinated a couple of plants with a small sable paint brush. The flowers have closed within a couple of days and have dried up, but I do not see any obvious seed pod forming. Should there be? ################### From: "Zachary Kaufman" Date: Mon, 15 Mar 1999 21:47:17 PST Subject: International Specialized Books/CARNIVOROUS PLANTS OF AUSTRALIA, Vol. #3 Three years ago, I ordered a copy of CARNIVOROUS PLANTS OF AUSTRALIA, Vol #3, from International Specialized Books [It was originally suposed to have been published in 1996.]. Wondering why I hadn't received the book yet, I phoned them. It seems my order was canceled on March 6th. The credit card expiration date on file, had gone of date. Anyone who hasn't recieved their back- ordered copy of CARNIVOROUS PLANTS OF AUSTRALIA, Vol. #3, may wish to check they haven't suffered from a similar fate. --Zachary-- ################### From: SCHLAUER@chemie.uni-wuerzburg.de Date: Tue, 16 Mar 1999 08:41:51 Subject: Genlisea & political correctness Dear Fernando, For the sake of maintenance of our minor listeners' mental/emotional equilibrium, I herewith propose a nomen novum instead of your nomen obscoenum: > "Artificial Flower (...text deleted...) Method" nom. nov. propos.: "Artificial Flower Fernandification Method" (Fernando) Jan. Kind regards Jan ################### From: poh Date: Tue, 16 Mar 1999 18:22:38 +0800 Subject: Byblis Liniflora spp liniflora Hello, Is there anyone out there, who knows the difference between Byblis liniflora ssp liniflora and byblis liniflora? I will also like to obtain this plant, to give or to trade : Byblis liniflora ssp liniflora. Thanks !!:D Hope to hear frm ya soon! :D Lots of love Jonathan Poh Peace I give unto u, my peace I give unto u, not as the world give, give i unto u. Let not your heart be troubled or neither let it be afraid. John 14:27 ################### From: "Carl Strohmenger (HSC)" Date: Tue, 16 Mar 1999 06:18:18 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: International Specialized Books/CARNIVOROUS PLANTS OF I ordered it a few days ago and received it yesterday. Try Amazon.com on the net. They have it and sent it fast. - Carl On Mon, 15 Mar 1999, Zachary Kaufman wrote: > Three years ago, I ordered a copy of CARNIVOROUS PLANTS OF AUSTRALIA, > Vol #3, from International Specialized Books [It was originally > suposed to have been published in 1996.]. Wondering why I hadn't > received the book yet, I phoned them. It seems my order was > canceled on March 6th. The credit card expiration date > on file, had gone of date. Anyone who hasn't recieved their back- > ordered copy of CARNIVOROUS PLANTS OF AUSTRALIA, Vol. #3, may wish to > check they haven't suffered from a similar fate. > > --Zachary-- > > > ################### From: andrew@astilla.demon.co.uk (Andrew Bate) Date: Tue, 16 Mar 1999 11:32:43 GMT Subject: Re: Heliamphora problem On Mon, 15 Mar 1999 17:01:23 -0800, "Michael Hunt" wrote: Michael, >Heliamphora do not like to be transplanted and they take awhile to recover, >they are also suspect to disease in this state. Your temps seem desireable >during the pm and maybe just a tad low for the days. Humidity is ok, higher >is hard to get but better. It just sounds like transplant shock, and >hopefully the crowns will regain pushing new leaves out. Thanks for the feedback. I think it must be transplant shock as my original H. Heterodoxa x Ionasii was doing really well in the garage terrarium until I brought it into the house to split it and put it in the new terrarium. I also had a couple of small H.Nutans sent to me in the post and these are exhibiting the same problem. The only plant which hasn't really been affected that much is one that has remained in its