Re: Mail Glitches

Robert Beer (bbeer@u.washington.edu)
Wed, 3 Apr 1996 11:31:01 -0800 (PST)

> What, nobody from Russia is on this list? No wonder it's been so hard
> to find someone who can send me seeds of the newly discovered Giant
> Blue-leaved Butterwort, Pinguicula romanovi, with a diameter of 50cm
> it is quite an impressive plant. Anyone up for a fieldtrip to
> Siberia?
>
>
> Do svidanya,
>
>
> Dimitri Dimitrievich

Hey Dimitri,

This is absolutely wonderful plant; I saw it in habitat in the E. Black
Sea; I didn't know the species. I would say 50 cm is a little large
though, I would say 30 tops. It reminded me of a dwarf sticky mullein
(Verbascum). As in V. wiedemannianum, with the smooth leaves flat to the
ground. The rippled edges also contributed to the effect. I wanted to
get seed but it was way too late for it unfortunately. BTW do you know
what the flowers look like? I actually thought of just scooping up some
of the moss and soil around to see if I could find some errant seeds but
security in Turkey was high at the time because of Armenian terrorism
(pat-downs in airports and you had to claim your luggage on the tarmac
before they would load it in the plane), so I didn't want to risk fate. I
saw this plant up in the non-cultivated areas around Arhavi, and if I can
manage it will try to get out there and collect seed this time; late June
might be good but August was not.

Take care

bob