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Post by cpgeek on May 7, 2015 17:02:03 GMT -5
Hi Everyone, I thought I'd start a thread on my Great White North growing experience with Drosophyllum lusitanicum, the Portuguese sundew or dewy pine. I scarified about 4 seeds in Nov 2013 and placed them on a peat sand mix (~1:4) in a water tray with no baggie enclosure. I was thrilled to see a seedling a month later! The seedling grew well by a window with SW exposure, despite the dark cold conditions of winter in Toronto. Last spring, I placed the seedling outside for the whole summer where it flourished in direct sun for most of the day & lots of food. After transferring to a larger pot, I brought the plant inside by the window for the winter. About 2 months ago, it put up a flower spike & as you can see from the pics, the rest is history About a month ago. There's a very noticable, sweet honey smell from the plant which as you can imagine acts as a food magnet! The plant now. Seems that the plant redirects energy away from foliage growth to bloom those amazing flowers. But new basal growth will soon replace the sad-looking foliage. Bottom line, this genus is relatively easy to grow from seed and is well worth the effort to try. Thanks for checking out the photos. Great grwoing, cpgeek
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Post by lloyd on May 7, 2015 17:04:23 GMT -5
Beautiful plant. Good to know you don't need a giant pot. What are the dimensions of the pot?
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Post by H2O on May 7, 2015 17:13:13 GMT -5
Beautiful, I'm going to be planting some seeds in the greenhouse this week. Any tips on germination or media?
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Post by cpgeek on May 7, 2015 18:06:12 GMT -5
Thanks guys.
Llyod: I think it is a typical 5" square pot.
Justin: It's probably not too late in the season to give it a try. Media is mainly washed silica sand mainly coarse & medium grit with about 20% peat. For each seed, I shaved off a thin slice to just expose the white endosperm. Frequent misting should help as well as good air circulation to prevent damping off. I think cool/cold nights also helped to trigger germination - if not, dry out the pot during the summer and put it back in the water tray in fall. I didn't bury the seed. Good luck!
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Post by shoggoths on May 7, 2015 20:08:58 GMT -5
Nice flowers CPGeek !
Good to know the plant can fade away because of it.
Justin, with fresh seeds, you can sandpaper a spot until you see a small white dot. Then, put the seeds 24 in water and sow them over your mix (mine is 1|1|1 peat|perlite|turface). I choose to sow the seeds in 2 inches peat pot so when the seeds sprout, I only put the peatpot in a bigger one. No need to transplant. I keep the seeds under 100% humidity. I tried to treat some seeds with alcohol and acid (as can be read on the net) and it didn't work for me.
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Post by WillyCKH on May 8, 2015 12:50:58 GMT -5
Nice plant! I am tempted to get some seeds to start one in the future
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Post by Apoplast on May 9, 2015 9:00:54 GMT -5
Hi CPGeek - Very nicely grown! I haven't had these guys for years, but I've got to start them again. They are wonderful plants and have such a unique trapping mechanism. It looks like a sundew, but it doesn't act like one. It's just a great species, and yours looks fantastic. Thanks for sharing!
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Post by Maiden on May 9, 2015 13:15:19 GMT -5
Yes thanks for sharing, great plants
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Post by cpgeek on May 9, 2015 20:30:51 GMT -5
I appreciate all your feedback guys :-) I have had seed over 10 years old germinate so they don't seem to go out of style. I've selfed the flowers but not sure if they will self-seed. Hopefully, I'll have success to report soon! A large housefly is an easy snack as this pic taken last August shows.
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Post by Apoplast on May 14, 2015 21:43:02 GMT -5
Hi CPGeek - What a great shot of the trapping on that plant! No dew takes down such disproportionately sized prey like that. In my opinion, for sticky trap plants, only Roridula has Drosophyllum beat in the size of prey it can grab and kill. But dewy pines have that great smell!
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Post by shoggoths on May 15, 2015 7:29:10 GMT -5
You're right Apoplast, Roridula dew is heavy stuff. My cloth or even the watering can get caught on it.
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Post by Apoplast on May 15, 2015 20:38:41 GMT -5
Hi Shogg - Yes, mine is a mess too! But I love the little sticky critter.
The thing I love about Drosophyllum is that the "glue" is not really a glue at all; it's more of almost an oil. The drops come off easily, and attach to hapless insect. As they accumulate, the insect can't get away and slowly it suffocates, and succumbs to the dewy pine. Fantastic trick!
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Post by cpgeek on May 16, 2015 12:52:33 GMT -5
That's been my experience as well Apoplast. I've read that prey actually drown in that copious "glue" :-O
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