rafflesiana rainbow speckle

[NatchGreyes]

Hey Everyone:

From previous forum posts, I've learned that eBay sellers almost never take their own photos and the seeds, if viable, are probably something common, so obviously, when I found the following picture on an eBay sale, I figured that it was from somewhere else. My Google Image search revealed that this image is used almost exclusively on eBay, so I wanted to reach out to the community to ask (1) does anyone know if this plant actually exists, and (2) does anyone have it in his/her growlist? Thanks! - Natch

<a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/28088813@N03/11200158745" title="Rainbow-Speckle by NatchGreyes, on Flickr"><img src="http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2845/11200158745_a568831505.jpg" width="393" height="500" alt="Rainbow-Speckle"></a>

 

[mato]

Yes, it exists. There are an innumerable amount of rafflesiana variants in regards to color, sometimes on the same plant. Although your seeds may not turn out to be this, you would still see a lot of variation among your seedlings.

 

[NatchGreyes]

Oh no, I didn't buy the seeds. eBay seeds are generally terrible, I'm told. It's good to know that it's out there, somewhere.

 

[lance]

These seeds are also quite old--I bought some rainbow speckled about 8 months ago and had about 5 seeds germinate. However, they were very weak and didn't make it past the cotyledon leaf stage.

 

[hcarlton]

The person who sells those seeds is notorious for selling months-old seeds. There are some good sellers, though recently there seems to have been a major slack-off in service. As for the plant, some of these sellers do use their own pictures, from plants they grow or collect from, and rafflesiana comes in every pattern and form imaginable, so it almost certainly exists. Someone on here has one that is bright pink and mottled.

 

[Wire Man]

Is that a miniature form?

 

[Ambanja]

If you ever have some free time on your hands go through the photos from Ellen Kusnadi, you will be amazed:
http://www.facebook.com/ellen.mekarsari.nursery

 

[NatchGreyes]

Oh wow, those are some good photos.

 

[UnstuckinTime]

That is an absolutely amazing pitcher! But you're right, buying seeds of Ebay is never a good idea. Even if they're relatively fresh, I worry about them being wild-collected, nevermind the fact that they are probably from a totally different plant.