Date: Mon, 02 Oct 2000 20:34:22 -0700 From: Joe Martinez <joe@jmmsoftware.com> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg2921$foo@default> Subject: Re: Ibicella lutea seed
Barry,
Thanks for the article! A few questions, though:
1) Do you take any steps to "help" germination, as suggested in The Savage
Garden?
2) What time of year do you sow the seeds? Should I do it now, or wait until
Spring?
3) If I should wait, should I keep the seeds in the refrigerator until
then?
4) Is any stratification necessary?
5) You say "rich sandy soil". Would a mix of 1/2 standard potting soil
from the local nursery, and 1/2 sand be good? Anything better?
Thanks,
Joe
Barry Meyers-Rice wrote:
> >I just received a packet of Devil's Claw (Ibicella lutea) seeds from the
> >ICPS seed bank. I read in The Savage Garden several ways to get the
> >seeds to germinate. Does anyone have any experiences to share, as far
> >as successful methods? Also, how long did germination take? The Savage
> >Garden says up to a year.
>
> >Also, what time of year is best to sow the seeds? I can't find any info
> >on this in the book.
>
> Hey Joe,
>
> It is quite possible that those seeds were donated by me.
>
> The following is text I wrote for an article that appeared in CPN 28:2
> (1997):
>
> --------------------
> Seed should be sown 1 cm deep in a rich, sandy soil. High soil
> temperatures trigger germination, so keep your pots in a sunny
> spot. Immediately upon germination transplant the seedlings into the pots
> that will house the plants through maturity. The larger the pot, the
> larger your plant will be. I use pails at least 40 cm (15 inches) tall
> (Figure 1). Give the plants full sun and water daily but do not keep the
> soil sopping wet! Fertilizers are not required, but probably would
> encourage vigorous growth. I grow this plant outdoors and it is usually
> beset by white flies and caterpillars. The white flies do not cause too
> much damage and the caterpillars can be removed manually.
>
> I have noticed Ibicella has two flowering phases during its long growing
> season. The first phase occurs when the plants are just a few months
> old. (This is a good time to make sure you have Ibicella and not some
> related plant--see my notes on identification, below.) The fruit from this
> first phase of flowering mature in only a month or so. After these first
> few flowers, the plant stops flowering and concentrates upon growing
> larger. The second phase of flowering starts when the first crop of seeds
> are nearly mature. In my cultivation this phase continues until the plants
> are killed by frost--I am not sure what happens where it is native in
> South America. These fruit take up to three months to mature and may be
> larger than the earlier fruit (16 cm or longer). Pollinate flowers from
> the first phase (cross-pollination yields the most seed) because you may
> not have the long growing season required to get seed from later
> flowers. Incidentally, Ibicella has sensitive stigmatic lobes that quickly
> flex out of the way when touched and enclose the applied pollen. This is
> obviously an adaptation to avoid self-pollination by pollen-coated insects
> backing out of the flower.
>
> -------------------
>
> ------------------------
> Dr. Barry A. Meyers-Rice
> Carnivorous Plant Newsletter
> Conservation Coeditor
> barry@carnivorousplants.org
> http://www.carnivorousplants.org
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