Grafting/Flowering Experiment

[EdaxFlamma]

Hey all,

It's been a good long while since I've posted on here. Some may remember me but it seems like we have a whole new generation of CP growers on here!

Curious as to whether or not anyone has tried grafting Nepenthes in an attempt to induce flowering. I know grafting Nepenthes doesn't always provide a great success rate but... Everyone always complains about the lack of seed, seed grown plants or mating pairs. It seems worth a shot.

Some more versed in biochem may shoot me down on this one but as I know it, flower induction can be transfered by grafting. A bunch of people have theorized about "florigen" or a mix of hormones that triggers plants to flower which can be spread from one plant to another via a graft etc. etc. (punch "plant flowering graft" into google scholar for a bit of background) but has anyone tried this with Nepenthes?

I'm sure there are some people who have N. ventrata's or N. ventricosa that are old enough so that they flower with a pretty regular frequency. I know a ton of other plants that have yet to produce even one flower on their own. Could one of these frequent flowerers be grafted to another less frequent flowerer to induce flowering? Maybe it would work even if the graft didn't take but the union was kept for long enough. Unfortunately I would love to run the tests but I would be waiting a few years to get a decent spread of plants to work with.

Something I've been pondering for a while now. I would love for someone to put some closure on this one even if it is to just shoot me down. It's good to be back though! Maybe after I have the time to pull away from my studies I'll jump back into my all-out CP madness but it's been kind of on the back burner for a while.

-J.P.

 

[GrowinOld]

Ah,
Not to shoot you down, but to say...
GLAD to see someone thinking outside the box!

Remember, it was once thought that VFT's didn't need a dormancy period,
and were to be grown indoors year round!
Things that are wrong are taken for fact, until someone questions the obvious,
and proves that which was fact to be false!

The world isn't flat after all!
And if no one else has time to do that which you are thinking, will you?
(Not asked in a negative tone, for I too have many ideas and thoughts, but not enough time or $ to see them all thru. However I am approaching a few, albeit slowly and in a small mode.)
But glad to see you are sharing your thoughts...
even if someone else knows it cannot work for whatever reason.

 

[EdaxFlamma]

Haha if someone with a decent background in plant biochem tells me "Hey, this won't work because of X" I will be inclined to believe them as for me testing this myself? I don't have the resources or $ to obtain the plants with which to take on the task. Just thought I could throw it out there, see if it sounds viable, if yes/no then why, see if anyone has already tried it, or perhaps spur someone with the resources to try it. *shrugs*

 

[seedjar]

It sounds like it could work... if you were fortunate enough to have enough flowering plants to do it. One thing that I could see getting in the way is the slow growth of Neps, and another is their stubborn response to shock. But if you could get the graft to take without dropping the flower I don't see any reason why it wouldn't work the same as in other plants.
~Joe

 

[F R e N c H 3 z]

Hmm if you were lucky enough to get a flower from the opposite sex of the same species (say you have a male truncata and a flowering female truncata) you may be able to get 1 plant with both sexes. Thus you could potentially make your own seeds... Or even a hybrid grafting should take fairly well if done properly. As long as grafting has been around I wonder if it's ever been tried with Nepenthes, sounds like the obvious way to go for desired plants...

 

[EdaxFlamma]

Yay brain wheels turning! haha Now to just grow up that ventrata of mine and give it a try.

 

[kulamauiman]

http://www.carnivorousplants.org/cpn/articles/CPNv19n3_4p103_105.pdf

 

[EdaxFlamma]

This was more or less what I had in mind when I mentioned grafting. That way none of the original plants would be lost. I've gotten some e-mails about full on grafting (separate scion and rootstock) but this photo is more along the lines of where my head was.

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/8406048@N04/5270199722/" title="graft image by literati_sunrise, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5163/5270199722_1404e8a869.jpg" width="500" height="497" alt="graft image" /></a>