I count 6 D.peltata seedlings just sprouting from a pot I sowed last
April. I almost gave up hope for them. I'm harvesting seeds now from
the D. indica I sowed at the same time. When I used to grow D.peltata,
I remember that they flower during the first year, so it's possible to
grow them as annuals if you don't want the hassle of taking care of them
as they go into and out of dormancy. Does anybody know of other
easy-to-grow tuberous Drosera other than auriculata and peltata that
will flower during the first year? I also ordered more Nep seeds from
the seed bank. They should be arriving any day now. Is anyone growing
N. x dyeriana? This seems to be the Nep with the largest pitchers of
the common types that are grown. The species N. rajah is the one that
is most often noted as having the largest pitchers, but I've also read
somewhere that N. merrilliana holds that distinction. Maybe there's a
different criterion (e.g. one is "tallest", the other "contains the
most area in cubic units"). Longwood Gardens, by the way, is supposed
to contain the best Nepenthes collection in the USA, at least according
to an old CPN - March 1979. The best in the world is supposed to be at
Edinburgh's Royal Botanic Gardens. The curator at Longwood is (was) Pat
Nutt. Another CPN said there are private greenhouses at Longwood that
ICPS members can see if they announce their interest. What kind of
species/hybrids of Neps does everyone grow? I might have a few cuttings
of N. x curtisii (?) to trade. This plant was originally labelled as
"N. x superba". The plant doesn't look anything like either of the two
parents listed in the World CP List. This is probably the plant "N.
curtisii" mentioned in CPN 1987-p.69. It has a wide peristome and looks
a little like N. maxima. The true maxima I've read is supposed to have
a glandular crest, but my plant doesn't have one. It may be N. x mixta
"superba" though. It produces rather big pitchers - around 8 inches!
Other Neps I have - N. tobaica, N. anamensis (both are small - about the
size of year old seedlings), N. gracilis, N. khasiana (Michael sent me a
cutting of this), N. ampullaria (green), N. ampullaria (red) (I got the
"red" variety from Barry - both are too small for cuttings), N. x rokko
(I got this from Barry too - still reviving after being slow to root), I
HAD alata (boschiana mimic) from Barry but it croaked before rooting, N.
gracilis x hookeriana (may have enough for a cutting - fast growing -
pitcher not too exciting), N. x hookeriana (?) (got this from Michael,
haven't seen a pitcher yet), N. x boissiense rubra (maybe lecouflei), N.
x wrigleyana (kosobe) - (originally labelled x kosobe, looks like
wrigleyana, nice completely red pitchers, looks like pic on p. 86, Sept
87 CPN - fig 5), N. x balfouriana (doesn't produce a lot of pitchers,
may have enough for a cutting, creamy-colored pitchers w/ not very wide
peristome, sort of ordinary looking). Has anyone germinated the N.
ventricosa hybrids from the seed exchange yet?
Anyone interested in orchids too? I have a duplicate Slc. Empress of Mercury
"Gwo Luen" AM/AOS I can trade.
About D. collinsiae, it may still be a hybrid even if seed is fertile.
If the embryo is an amphiploid (where the two sets of chromosomes from
the two parents don't synapse), the resulting plant may produce viable
seeds. This is according to a CPN from 1990. The article was about
Drosera evolution. I got a couple D. collinsiae from Michael too. My
plants produce leaves at a 45-degree angle, like D. intermedia. The
leaves look like intermedia, but the petioles seem to be a little
longer.
Rob M.: Did Barry say you sent him a message about a CP field trip? Could
you put me in your CP mailing list? I didn't get that message. My address
is "dngess01%vlsi.louisville.edu@ulkyvx.bitnet".
Barry, sorry to hear your D. falconerii died. Did your D. arcturi ever
germinate? What kind of things does Don Schnell grow? There used to be
a big list put out by Bob Ziemer that listed all the different species that
people grew, and noting those species people had to trade. I remember Don was
a big Nepenthes grower; and, of course, being an expert on Sarracenia, had
a ton of these too. It was sort of surprising to see that he didn't have
any tuberous Drosera, not even a peltata or auriculata.