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Stylidium debile pollination? how to get seeds

I have a Stylidium debile flowering and need to know if they are self fertile and how to pollinate it.
Does anyone have experience with producing seed from this plant?
Thanks,
Zero
 
None of mine have ever produced seeds. That's not to say that it can't but it sure isn't like capensis.
 
isn't it a trigger plant? you're supposed to get your pollinating apparatus assaulted by the trigger. furthermore, they are like helis where the anthers mature first before the stigma, preventing self pollination. have fun!
 
How do you get the things to flower?!
 
How do you get the things to flower?!

Lighting seems to be the factor. These are older pics but 2 T8s and 2 T12s 8 inches above does the trick
.
IMG_2067.JPG_595.jpg

IMG_2230.JPG_595.jpg
 
Mine are all flowering now. I have tried pollinating the flowers, but never got any seed.
I took a small brush and got some pollen on it and touched it too many different flowers. Repeated every few days with no success.
 
My colony is right in front of the south-facing glass doors (just like the ones that elgecko has in his kitchen), as well as 3" below a Growlite. What else do they want?!
 
Do they bloom predominantly at one time of the year? i.e. Spring-Summer. I have a nice bunch of them growing outside in my greenhouse and it has gotten tons of light. Just has never flowered last year since I got them. Maybe need to get accustomed to my conditions. And reset its biological clock? Will post pics of my plants later when I get a chance to shoot some. Weather has not been nice outside for me....
 
mine have been in constant flower since i got them a year or so ago...
 
  • #10
My primary pot looks like this:

DSC_00450001-1.jpg


However, it was a bit on the skimpy side until i added a few osmocote pellets. this is a 4 inch pot.
 
  • #11
I got a hint with the ones I got in a trade: Feed, feed, feed!

I will try that. ;)
 
  • #12
I have noticed that after 8 months to a year my plants would start to decline. I contacted Douglas Darnowski about this. He said that this was a normal occurrence in cultivation and after re-potting most should rebound.
Currently my main pot the plants are declining, but some plants I have in other pots are going nuts. Both where planted at the same time.
Trigger.jpg


The ones going nuts, the roots have grown out the bottom of the pots and are growing in some rocks that I have had in my planted fish tanks. These rocks have had Laterite and Floramax added.
I want to do some more experimenting but it looks to me like the plants like the extra minerals which are in the Laterite and Floramax.
 
  • #13
How do you contact Doug Darnowski?
 
  • #15
Thanks!
 
  • #16
Min has finally bloomed. i though the flowers would have been bigger :)
DSC_00060002.jpg

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  • #17
nope the flowers are super tiny rofl xD mine is in constant flower, and i have no idea, nor desire to get seeds from em so i am of no use to really help you with this, my guess is you would need a verrrryyyy tiny sewing pin or something of the sort to actually reach the inside of the flower anyway, these plants reproduce like crazy through roots so, unless your trying to get seed out to other people, i dont see any reason to try and get seed from em xD
 
  • #18
I believe there is some academic literature out there that describes the barriers to self-fertilization in Stylidium. Ah yes, here it is:

Burbidge, AH, and SH James. 1991. Postzygotic Seed Abortion in the Genetic System of Stylidium (Angiospermae: Stylidiaceae). Journal of Heredity 82(4): 319-328.

It appears that in most triggerplants, there are factors that prevent maturation of seed if the plants are self-fertilized. As far as I know, there is only one clone of S. debile in cultivation, so even if you fertilized across different plants of the same clone, you wouldn't get much (if any) seed set. You can always try ordering seed of other species and raising different clones to do breeding experiments.
 
  • #19
Fortunately, they spread like a utric.
 
  • #20
I know this is an older thread / But hey just thought I'd put my 2 cents in anways

I'm NO expert on Trigger Plants
Have only been growing 2 for about 5 months now
http://home-and-garden.webshots.com/album/579187779xMxJip

But from my understanding the flowers all start off as males & after so many "Snaps" of the trigger they turn to female flowers
{If I can remember where I read that I'll post it}
So you would have to get the pollen from new flowers then store it till they turn to female flowers
Or
Maybe you can take pollen from the newer flowers at the top of the stalk & use it to pollinate the older flowers on the bottom of the stalk???
 
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