Date: Thu, 03 Dec 1998 11:42:01 PST From: "Fernando Rivadavia Lopes" <fe_rivadavia@hotmail.com> To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com Message-Id: <aabcdefg3824$foo@default> Subject: Easy Genlisea to grow
To all,
It's me again, still cleaning up my mail box. I saw some mails
discussing which Genlisea are easiest to cultivate. In my experience,
G.hispidula is by far the easiest. Too bad none of the other African
species seem to be in cultivation yet. Some of them surely seem a lot
more interesting than G.hispidula.
As for the New World species, the purple or white-fld species,
such as G.violacea, seem to be the easiest. These all belong to
sect.Tayloria (except G.guianensis). Even easier than G.violacea seems
to be the giant G.uncinata, since the former is often annual in the
wild. I don't know of anyone who has had success with G.guianensis, but
it sure seems like an interesting species, with its long leaves up to
around 10cm, if I remember well.
The yellow-fld species of sect.Genlisea from the New World seem
to be more difficult to cultivate and almost impossible to germinate
from seeds. Although it does seem like a few lucky CPers are having
success with the fantastic G.aurea, G.repens (perennials), and even the
annual G.filiformis and the possibly annual G.pygmaea. I've only heard a
few odd reports though.
G.aurea was being successfully cultivated at the Bonn Bot.Garden
at the time of the ICPS meeting, but unfortunately they had the small
form from Diamantina (a small town in central Minas Gerais state, SE
Brazil). most other places I've seen them in Brazil they were much
larger.
As for other unnamed or mystrious species listed in Allen
Lowrie's seed list or elsewhere, G.sp."Furnas" is a smaller form of
G.violacea with delicately colored flowers growing at the western
extreme of the G.violacea range.
Another plant found not too far away, G.sp."Serra da Canastra" is
a pygmy form which may be a new species or even a strange form of
G.lobata, although they occur at opposite ends of Minas Gerais state,
with G.violacea occupying the central parts of the state mostly.
G.sp."Chapada Diamantina" (or "Fumaca") is close to G.violacea,
but certainly a new species. I've only seen small numbers at 2 locations
at teh Chapada Diamantina. It seems to be very rare.
Then there is G.sp."giant' Itacambira. This is a new speceis too,
similar to G.violacea but over all larger, differently shaped flowers,
and mostly perennial.
There is also G.sp."Cipo" which is similar to teh giant
G.uncinata, but different in several ways and probably deserves to be
separated as a new species or subspecies.
Last of all, G.sp."giant" Itambe Peak is still a bit of a mystery
to me. Years ago, I saw herbarium of this huge plant from this mountain
in central Minas Gerais and decided to go there. But unfortunately I
seem to have gone at teh wrong time of year and saw nothing. But a
friend of mine from Diamantina collected it while I was living in Japan
and sent seeds to my friend Fabio in Sao Paulo. I saw the plants in
Fabio's collection last week and surprisingly, they looked no different
from other G.violaceae from central Minas Gerais. So apparently it has
some genetic potential which makes it very big in the wild, but which
was not expressed in cultivation in Sao Paulo.
Hope this helps!
Best Wishes,
Fernando Rivadavia
Sao Paulo, Brazil
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