Some comments on recent threads.
Living in the Seattle/Puget Sound region of the Pacific Northwest I have
found Darlingtonia to be very easy in pot or ground culture. The
primary trick is to find an environmentally tolerant clone. One I
received from an Oregon grower is quite tough and aggressive. Actually
becoming a "weed" in one of my raised beds. Life can be so unfair!
Some tricks that I learned from others may be of help. Cool soil
temperatures are a must. Ton Kahl showed me his trick a few years back.
Take 2-liter pop bottles and put in "clean" (read-low mineral content)
water and freeze them. Take off the caps and place them upside down in
the pots of your Darlingtonia so as the heat of the day melts the ice,
cold water will slowly trickle into the pots keeping the soil
temperature down. Also
place the pot inside a larger styrofoam pot (called double potting) to
keep the
sun off the containers. My students didn't believe it when I showed
them a 5 gal black plastic pot with a shrub in it where the soil
temperature had reached 130 deg. F. on the southwest side by mid
afternoon.
Of course a little shade will reduce solar insolation during the hottest
part of the day thus helping to keep soil temperature down. I also
water the plants that are outside every day, usually in late afternoon
which helps to remove the latent heat that has built up in the soil so
the plants go through the evening with relatively cooler soil.
Regarding hybridization and pollen storage. As a newbie to the group I
haven't read all through the archive CP Digests yet so this may have
been covered. Like many genera that I have worked with, most pollen is
amenable to storage, thus the plants don't have to bloom at the same
time. There are books written on the subject but in essence here is
what to do. I admit that I have no data on the longevity of the pollen
of different Cp genera in storage, a research project for someone
perhaps?
Just as the pollen is beginning to be shed from the anthers, collect and
place in a clean uncovered container in the refrigerator. It is best to
have a "Frost-Free" refrigerator/freezer as they tend to desiccate (dry
out) material nicely (which is why apples and such get wrinkly in home
refrigerators.) It can remain there and be used for a week or so. For
longer storage I use gelatin capsules. After the pollen has spent a
week drying in the frig put it in the capsules ( glassine coin/stamp
envelopes are OK) and place in a jar in the freezer and seal the lid.
Some desiccant (or fresh powdered milk wrapped in a napkin) helps to
keep it dry. I have had Rhododendron pollen be still usable after five
years. Just take out what you need and apply directly to the stigmas of
your seed parents. No need to thaw. The rough fuzzy end of a paper
match makes a great substitute for a bee body!
NEVER store moist pollen in plastic bags. You will get a mushy mess in
a very short time.
How about creating a pollen bank as well as our wonderful seed bank.
How many of us have had only female Nepenthes in bloom? I had three
this winter with no males of my own.
Enough for now........
-Scott Gregory Vergara
svergara@pacific.telebyte.com
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Scott Gregory Vergara
Horticultural Consultant
Botanical Resources
P.O. Box 669
Burley, Washington 98322-0669 USA
360.876.4620 voice & fax
svergara@pacific.telebyte.com
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P.O. Box 329
Burley, Washington 98322-0329 USA
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svergara@pacific.telebyte.com
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