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P. medusina, dormancy question

  • #23
I wished I had asked this question before I went ahead with the P. medusina.... *regrets*..

I think P. gypsicola will be a good candidate to 'satisfy' my filiform fever--- if they are easier to grow than, say P. medusina or P. moctezumae...... BUT I do get a sense that no filiform types of Mexican Pinguicula are 'easy' especially for a beginner CP grower like myself.

I wanted to thank everyone for their patience(for asking a lot of silly + immature questions) and sharing their experience and growing tips on this interesting cultivar .
 
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  • #24
Candice324,
When I read your posts, my mental image is of someone who enjoys growing plants.

I've grown most of the known Mexican/tropical American species as well as the semi-tropical S.E. USA species and many other temperate species, as well as hybrids. I consider myself an avid plant lover. I also think you're brave to tackle these somewhat trickier species so early, though perhaps I would have more success with them if I'd begun trying them earlier, too.

kulamauiman has some of the best grown Pinguicula medusina I've ever seen. I'd go with his cultivation guidance for optimal results.
 
  • #25
suite

JOSEPH have you try these 2, P. filiformis and P. calderoniae ?

I have try P. filiformis but very very difficult to keep this plant for a few years.

for me for instant P. calderoniae is too expensive :-O
 
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  • #26
This is what I gleraned about the SE temperates:

Cultivation : Here are the growing tips of Bob McMorris, one of the best grower I know for these species (personnal communication with Bob on September 29th 2001) :

"I would suggest 50% peat, 50% sand for P. lutea, P. caerulea and P. pumila (actually P. pumila occurs all the way south into the Florida Keys and the Bahamas, where they grow in pockets of limestone with perharps a bit of sand and decomposed plant matter; so I suspect this species can grow with a bit of vermiculite and less peat. The last three species); P. planifolia, P. primuliflora, and P. ionantha generally grow in very wet areas, with P. primuliflora having been recorded as growing under water along the edges of streams.

I grow these species with a base of peat and then the upper layer of live Shagnum. The seeds should be started on peat and then when large enough (perhaps the second season) moved into Sphagnum. The first 3 (P. lutea, P. caerulea and P. pumila) are usually found along side the road in low grasses where they get quite a lot of sun. The ground is usually damp not wet. The latter 3 (P. planifolia, P. primuliflora, and P. ionantha) are usually found in much wetter locations, but still receiving quite a lot of sun. I have grown them on the tray system under lights with success, however they do much better outdoors with full sun."
Click to expand...
 
  • #27
Suite

it is a good method

I use for all (except P. ionantha that I do not own) blond peat :30% river sand 70% .

the only parameter that differs, the moisture substrate for-P. caerulea-P. lutea-P. pumila(annual) moist no more ; for the other 3 rather an immersion in spring
the BRIAN method
Hello All! Due to the emails i've received for more info on my famous ;D Pinguicula planifolia submersion technique, I figured here's a wonderful place to share it!
Firstly, NEVER do this technique in the Summer or in VERY hot weather exceeding 95F...you might lose your plants to rot. Cool, fall weather is the best time to begin and experiment with your growing conditions. I prefer to grow my P. planifolia in a mix of 3/4 sand to 1/4 peat, as it mimics the conditions in the wild and as i've seen them many times in this type soil. Slowly fill the container to submerge them completely and leave only the tips of the crown leaves above water. Try not to pour quickly, as this will cover the leaves in peat/sediment. Round tupperware containers with no drainage of course, work best...
Believe it or not, you want STRONG sun while submerged, thats why cooler temps are crucial. Let the container sit for three weeks submerged. During this time is when i experience a "growth explosion" with my Pinguicula planifolia. I theorize that the plant produces larger leaves to make up for lack of sun via UV reduction during submersion. During the fourth week, slowly allow the container to become very wet to the touch and then only moist. Now, here's where you'll "color" your plant by exposing the new jumbo leaves to strong sun, to achieve that lovely red hue!
Keep your plants in this moist-only condition for one month, then submerge again. REMEMBER to discontinue treatment when constantly hot weather conditions return...
This will allow you to grow huge "cabbage head sized" Pinguicula planifolia and you'll be amazed at how it affects flowering with TONS of spikes in Spring!

have successfully maintained the same adult plants for over two years in cultivation, using this technique. Many have divided and now have multiple crowns, a phenomena rarely seen with this species.

for the seeds all must be very very fresh , I started the germination now always on a wet blotting paper ; when they have 2-4 leaves , I plant them in the mixture above.

my filiform species
P. moctezumae
mocte.JPG

P. heterophylla
heterophylla1.JPG

P. gypsicola
gyps6.JPG

gypsi6.JPG

P. medusina
med7.JPG

the flower
medu77.JPG
 
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  • #28
Jeff,
No, I haven't yet, had a chance to try either P. filiformis or P. calderoniae. I hope that someday I can, but it may be awhile yet before they are available to me.
 
  • #29
I shouldn't have the P. lutea moist?
 
  • #30
Several times, while in the field, I found both Pinguicula caerulea and Pinguicula lutea growing in the middle of a densely packed dirt road, though not in the same location, just very similar habitat. The soil was almost entirely sand with a little bit of organic detritis mixed in. There were large pine trees all around and there were pine needles scattered over the soil where they grew. The pines also kept most of the direct sun off of the plants. They had direct competition with Plantain (Plantago sp.), various small grasses and other plants which they were growing amongst. They were not in bloom, but seed pods were ripening on the larger plants. I was astonished at how dry the soil was, yet the plants seemed to be growing just fine. Other places where I've seen these species there was usually much more moisture - roadside ditches, where the Pinguicula were growing amongst tall grasses (which predominated), and among Drosera tracyi and Drosera capillaris which seemed fairly ubiquitous in this habitat. The soils were still composed primarily of very fine sand.
 
  • #31
When were you there, as in what month? Were they in the midst of a Bermuda High? What I'm getting at is that the field trip could have been in a particularly hot and dry spell. Now sand is a different story. That's not going to vary much.
 
  • #32
I believe these visits were in June or July.

Neither of these Pinguicula colonies were very far from colonies of Sarracenia species, and those were growing where it was quite, wet. It even rained, multiple times, during each of my many visits to that part of the country. I can't actually remember any time, even when I was only there for a day or two, that it didn't rain, at least a little (I was probably just lucky).

I do remember being in the field (Florida panhandle), where it was in the 90sF and the humidity was so high, that I would be dripping wet from my own sweat. Then it would begin to rain, so I'd put my rain coat on, I'd soon be so wet from sweat it would likely have been better to just let the rain cool me off and not have the plastic raincoat trap my body heat. Anyway, where these Pinguicula were (in the drier areas), perhaps the trees modified the hydrology of those areas, helping them to remain drier.
 
  • #33
LOL! There was more to the explanation of the whys and wherefores human perspiration than there was to plant cultivation!

I'm trying my hand with 3 of our N.A. temperates... again. I haven't done well with my previous attempts, except for P. primuiflora. Sand seems to be the common denominator and the dominat medium. I'm definitely more at ease with the Mexicans (except for 3 of them).
 
  • #34
Yes, but all that perspiration says a great deal about the environment these plants live in naturally. Usually, when it's cool its very wet, and when it's warmer it is very humid. And it can certainly be wet and humid, but it is usually quite humid even when it is "dry".

The bottom line, for me, is that I've grown all of the S.E. USA Pinguicula in many different media and slightly varied conditions, off and on for several decades. My problem with maintaining them, other than spider mite infestations, has been their sensitivity to environmental fluctuations, too dry, just once and they can quickly perish. None of them could ever have survived the four year artificial drought that all of my current surviving Mexican Pinguicula plants have just endured.

Another environmental factor that seems to happen with plants in pots -> if they're too wet for too long, anaerobic decomp starts and the parts of the plants below-ground, in contact with the anaerobic affected soil quickly rot. I think that if I create an environment, such as my unfinished greenhouse, where I provide watering by overhead mist, automated and frequently enough to prevent drying of the media, I can probably get very long-term survival of these species.
 
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  • #35
Since I will have them on a grow rack, "open tray", watering from overhead looks like the best way to keep them moist.
 
  • #36
suite

see here Pinguicula &Cie , translate with the google module , go to "subtropical US" , see some 'in situ' station to the section "photo'in-ex situ'"

you can see also the 'habitat' section

jeff
 
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