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Post by ellen687 on Dec 21, 2005 8:12:18 GMT -5
Hello, everyone! New to the forum - it's good to have place for exchanging information for Canadian CP hobbyists. I have had big clump of unknown sundews from one of the big hardware stores (1" diameter each, round to slightly elongated leaves, pure green) and coudn't keep it alive, as well as VFT, when Sarracenias and Nepenthes are growing without problems. Are there some basic differences in growing conditions? Like higher humidity or drier substrate? They were static, without visible growth indoors, and died after few months outdoors (not cold, part sun, gradual adaptation to outdoor conditions, just without rain protection, same as Sarracenias and Phal orchid). What I could think of is parallel with African violets under rain - may be Sundews should be protected from water on the leaves? Also was unlucky with germination of tropical droseras seeds, these that require hot stratification, how are you stratifying them? I haven't steam radiators, but tried previous summer heat for the first batch and heating mat this autumn for the next batch of seeds. Thank you.
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Post by Syble on Dec 21, 2005 11:08:45 GMT -5
Welcome! Welcome! Did you by chance buy them from a home depot? Colisanties tends to supply alot of the home depot stores in southern ontario atleast. They had poorly grown clumps of I think it was spatulata. I have talked with them several times, the biggest problem is that they fertilize, the sundews hated that the most, so they had a leg in the compost heap before any one brought them home. I assume you didn't fertilize? Sundews like higher humidity, but I don't find that a necessity. Mine are all grown in my house on shelves. Alot of people use the trey method(pots sit in about 1" of water all the time), I don't, I water all pots, there may be a bit of water left over in the trey, but it's always gone before I water again. As for why your VFT died, you'll have to give us somemore information on how you grew it. Might want to even start a new thread in the VFT forum so that others can read it easier. I have alot of seed sown right now. I use the 2" pots, sow my seeds, then put them in a container or bag, seal it, and place them close to the lights. I'm just begining to get germination now, but I just started sowing in the beginning of december, and have been sowing at least once a week since then, so hopefully come spring I will have a nice host of plants! Did you say you were going to use the heating mat or you laready have? That should work quite nicely! Sib
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Post by bubblebrain00 on Dec 21, 2005 11:16:39 GMT -5
Welcome to the forums! ;D
The Vft most likey dead or almost dead when you brought it. Usally the hardware store water the plants plain tap water which slowly kills them. I first bought one and within a 1 week it died, after i changed the media and washed it out with rain water. It still died. Most likey its not ur fault
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Post by ellen687 on Dec 22, 2005 10:06:30 GMT -5
Thank you for the replies! These were sundews from HD, I checked supplier on the Web, souds similar. I worried because they died in summer ouside, watered by distilled water, side by side with VFT and VFT seedlings (also died, black rot) and S. leucophyllas from another HD - they are doing fine, replanted in sphagnum. Heating mat from hydroponic store went dead after one month of use. Now seeds are in zipped indoor greenhouse with orchids, fluorescent lights, at 30C. But after lights are off for the night, temperature drops to 20C. I started heat stratification in the end of October (just placed over the heat mat, 30C), may be they need more time. Seeds are in 2 oz clear wide plastic cups, covered by plastic wrap, in the damp sphagnum peat. Nepenthes seeds side by side with them started germinate after 3 weeks, in vermiculite though. I'm still wondering - from the readings common droseras should be easy to germinate and grow. I'm trying to germinate seeds of D. dichrocephala, D. sessifolia and D. admirabilis. Droseras seeds that not require hot stratification germinated and grow well.
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Post by Syble on Dec 22, 2005 11:58:17 GMT -5
I sowed about 10 D. admirabilis seeds on the 1st of december and just saw my first seedling on tuesday. Sib
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Post by zac on Dec 22, 2005 15:36:03 GMT -5
Congrats Sib,
That's such a good feeling and nice to have it happen that fast.
Zac
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Post by ellen687 on Dec 23, 2005 8:18:55 GMT -5
Congratulations from me too! Did you do some stratification, additional heating? If no, what are day/night temperatures in your grow area? Are you using own fresh seeds, or bought ones? Is it just my luck or other factors are involved...
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Post by Syble on Dec 23, 2005 10:00:21 GMT -5
Fresh seed is likely key. Although I have no idea how fresh they were, as I got them for a trade. I just checked and I now have 4. My house tends to be 65-70 degrees during the day and drops to 63 at night. I'm not quite sure what the temps are at my stand, but that will give you an idea as it is in my room. All I did was sow them, and put them in my covered trey that I use to germinate things. I have 2 regia seedlings growing in another container. Hope this helps some, Sib
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Post by ellen687 on Dec 26, 2005 8:55:31 GMT -5
Without hot stratification, eh? Yesterday I noticed that my Dros seeds partially germinated and are already about 2 mm high - I just didn't notice them, tiny pale things at the edge of the pot. They germinated on damp coffee filter over vermiculite (paper only dries too fast) at 32C days/20C nigts. May be there is germination in other 2 pots with chopped sphagnum covered with some green algae - I can't see, sphag is much bigger than seedlings...
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