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Flowering D. capensis!

NeciFiX

Kung Fu Fighting!
Today I strolled over to my fashionable expensive 10$ CP stand in my Lamborghini and looked at my D. capensis, I thought what were flower stalks were traps! It had many developing traps, and the two things I noticed were actually flowers. How do I self them? Do they produce viable seed?

I'll see if I can get a cheap Kodak camera and get some pictures.
 
First off, congrats!

D. capensis flowers will automatically produce viable seed after they close. That's how they become a weed in your collection. :p
 
Well! Do they need stratification, or can I just sow them?

Now, if only all CP's were that way.

I NEVER hear from people taking about Drosera flowers. I think they are very pretty, just one or two grades lower than Ping flowers. The flowers I saw of D. capensis looked even better than my P. primuliflora's flowers.

Funny how the plant can make flower stalks a few inches tall in only a few days yet it doesn't produce dew even though my other Drosera aliciae did even though it was very far down (this thing is like, 1 inch away with one of it's tentacles and the entire plant on the farthest side is only 7 inches! No dew though.) and my D. aliciae was like 6 inches down in a tiny pot, and this one is more hardy and right by it! I got it from Bob Z, and it has 3 growth points, I call it my 'Crazy Capensis', because all of it's tentacles are twisting and winding with red and white hairs (also, to mention, the largest most developed tentacle thus far which is almost done has blood red tentacles and it's the closest to the light, but no dew, urgh.)
 
Just sow them. I suggest you burn them before it's too late.
 
Uhm... burn what? The seeds? The flowers are only half way developed. (They are about 1.5 CM just above the tallest tentacle, they made it out of the jungle, so they're pushing upwards)
 
Yeah, D. capensis are subtropicals - no stratification needed. You'll soon have more D. capensis than you could possibly have imagined.

Cold store the seeds if you're not going to sow them right away.
 
somthing very funny happened to me... the capensis albino that have(killed the main plant a used roots) flowered and the seed pod were developing. i had totally forgotten about the pods and they all burst when i went on vacation. NOTHING has germinated since last june. pretty crazy... the weeds are actualy the only ones i cant yet grow from seed(that i already do have) P. lusitanica, D. capensis, and D. burmanni...ive tried them all and ive only gotten 1 seedling from P. lusitanica which died... and 1 from burmanni which gave me 100s of seeds recently. 4th flower stalk coming up...
NF: dont worry if your plant starts to look like crap while its flowering... its natural.
Alex
 
The main thing with drosera seedlings is that they need A LOT of light, as much as possible, it cannot be stressed enough. I have some D. rotundifolia 'Charles Darwin' seedlings that germinated a couple months ago, they've got this red color going now so I know that I'm doing something right. :D Been meaning to take some pictures of them as well.
 
  • #10
Oh, so I shouldn't let my D. capensis flower? It has no dew, but seems to be fine making tons of new leaves and flowers.

Well, in about 15 days I'll have my plants outside. I doubt I'll have the seed in two weeks! The sun is the best light.
 
  • #11
the reason they are saying to not let it flower is a running joke that some fear they will take over the planet. Go ahead and let it flower. If you don't want capensis all over the place, clip off the flower buds as they close. If you wait until they swell and turn dark you can collect more seeds than you could possibly want...
 
  • #12
I'll take an expedition over to every continent and plant the seeds, that way they CAN take over the world.

Now if only I had the heart to do that, and the money.

Darn. So close.

Thanks!
 
  • #13
They really ARE a very nice, attractive, robust plant. I'd take one over those little south African Drosera that all look the same to me anyway, anyday.

They're just so prolific.
 
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