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Scoropides gemmae?

How can you tell if your pygmy is producing gemmae? My scoropides (actually, 2 out of my 3) has a thick crowding of "green bumps" on top of the crown where leaves usually come out. There seems to be atleast 30. Gemmae? If so, how do you know when they are ready to come out (if that factor applies with gemmae; yea, im new with gemmae production).

And t another thought, does anyone think petiolaris and pygmies are really closly related, other then the fact that they are drosera? Like, if you look at, pygmies like nitidula, etc, have a long petiole with the actually round trap on the end, just like, lets say, D.ordensis or D.petiolaris. Any thoguhts?
 
The 'green bumps' on your D. scorpoides are them gemmae, they are quite unlike the scale-like gemmae of most pygmy sundews. I usually remove them when they are a bit loose, using very fine forceps or a paintbrush. The gemmae are all packed tightly together, but once you get the first few out, the rest are usually much easier to get out. If you have to use a lot of force, it's too early and you should wait a few days. D. scorpoides gemmae start to grow quite rapidly once removed from their parent plant, so they should be planted as soon as possible. If you are sending them to someone else, post them the day you take them off.

I'm not a phylogenist (Phylogeny = study of the history of evolution), and no doubt there are differing views on the evolution of Drosera in Australia. I believe that pygmy sundews and the Petiolaris group are quite closley related in that they shared a common ancestry, but the two groups have evolved in quite different regions and habitats and are quite distinct.

Vic
 
Hi,

I have a little trick that I use to collect only matured gemmae. I use a Bic brand pen, though I suppose any normal pen will do. Then I simply touch each gemmae with the tip of the pen. If the gemmae sticks to the pen, it's ready. If not, I leave it for a while longer.

Take care!

Chris
 
thanks for the information. I will check to see if they are "ready".
 
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