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VFT dormancy ?? fridge

uphwiz

uphwiz

jimmy
Im thinking .:-D

Why cant I just put all these traps as is, (just like they are in my mini fridge at say 42 to 46 F till late february), and just pot them back up then ?
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I know others do this , but do I need to do more than just putting another stryo. plate on as a lid, and tape them shut, would I need to add more media? would you ? should it be wet? what would you use ? :blush:
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I will give them a light misting of sulfur fungicide, to help with rot.
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I wont leave them potted as I did in the past, they just dont do well around here in Va.:blush:
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IMG_0793.jpg
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Hey, look I found this while unpotting all the VFT's I acquired this year
(remember I lost all of mine due to not properly protecting them last year).
I think its a seedling from my first cupped trap VFT two years ago. (It was so vigorous , I hated that it didnt make it)
Is that possible ?
It was found right where the cups resided back in 2010.
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IMG_0791.jpg
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You live in Virginia?
just leave them outside 24/7/365..
you have no need to use the fridge method..you are very lucky!
(unless you live in the mountains? where exactly in VA are you?)
Scot
 
lost a dozen or so vft's last year due to deep freezes, however i didnt add any top dressing to them, but even the years i did they seemed to suffer, only some would make it, my clumps dwindled every year till last year , and this spring they all had bit the dust, i started over this year and want to try fridging them.
 
ah..ok..
yes, the fridge can be gentler than outdoors, even in Virginia I suppose!
but you definitely should *not* just apply another styrofoam plate over them! ;)
that's far too "open and airy" and they would definitely dry out..

IMO, keeping them in pots in best, when using the fridge method..just bag them up right in their pots..
but if you have a lot of pots, and limited fridge space, that can be an issue..so bare-rooting is generally fine too..

Take some damp sphagnum moss, squeeze out any excess moisture, (when you squeeze the moss in your hand, you should not get drops of water dripping out..you want it damp, but not soaking wet)..wrap the roots in a ball of the damp sphagnum, then place one or two or three plants in a zip-lock sandwich bag..
close the bag so that only about half an inch is still open, then gently squeeze out the excess air, then close the bag the rest of the way..
the result is an air-tight package, that will not allow moisture to escape over the winter..so the plants wont dry out..
place all the individual bags in a shoe-box or something similar, place the box in the fridge, and they are set for the winter..

again I need to stress..this only works for plants that have *already been outside* all spring, summer and autumn and are
*already dormant* when they go in the fridge! this will not work for plants that have been grown indoors..

(I know your plants (Jimmy) have been outdoors..so they should handle the fridge just fine..I just added that comment for
the group at large!) ;)

Scot
 
Mine go in the fridge and are in there right now with my Sarrs. I just put them in zip lock bags and that's it. Oh, I hit them with some sulfur based Fungicide too. Been doing that for about 5 years now and it works great.
 
thankyou scott
 
Hi Scott

I recall a post with a lot of pictures a few years back but I can't find it now, as if I recall the guy cut all the leafs off, then placed them in a ziplock bag then in the fridge we go.
Is there a reason for plant that have not had a dormancy out side first, what about seeds that have been placed in the fridge? I know not required but I read the success rate is higher. Is it better to remove the leafs so as to prevent rot or mold growth? Or is the only other way sulfur based Fungicide. Since the Spag way makes sense, as this will prevent mold growth. Which sulfur based Fungicide do you advise and which ones to avoid.
 
Noddy said:
Hi Scott

I recall a post with a lot of pictures a few years back but I can't find it now, as if I recall the guy cut all the leafs off, then placed them in a ziplock bag then in the fridge we go.
Is there a reason for plant that have not had a dormancy out side first, what about seeds that have been placed in the fridge? I know not required but I read the success rate is higher. Is it better to remove the leafs so as to prevent rot or mold growth? Or is the only other way sulfur based Fungicide. Since the Spag way makes sense, as this will prevent mold growth. Which sulfur based Fungicide do you advise and which ones to avoid.
Click to expand...

Noddy, that sounds like my webpage! ;)
Fridge method information here:
http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/scottychaos/CP/page2.html

and here:
http://1stclass.mylargescale.com/scottychaos/CP/page5c.html

Sarracenia and VFT seeds need a "cold stratification" for the winter..
In the wild, the seeds drop to the ground in late summer, and dont germinate until the following spring..
(they wouldn't want to germinate in say, September, right after they fell from the flower, then instantly die in the quuickly upcoming winter!)
So they have adapted to "needing" that cold winter season to "trigger" germination the following spring, when its much
safer to begin growing..and they will have the full growing season to get established..
So "cold stratification" happens in the wild..its an evolutionary advantage..
the seeds need the cold in order to germinate. (yes, some seeds might still germinate without it,
but the success rate will be *much* higher if you give them a proper cold stratification..the seeds expect to have it.)

Best way is to sow the seeds in pots, and in your case, just leave them outside all winter..
(In your very mild climate, south-east England, you dont need to use the fridge method at all..)

If someone is using the fridge method for dormancy (no longer talking about seeds)
then IMO its far better to remove all the leaves..its not *required*, but it will prevent a lot of mold growth.
and the plants dont need the leaves in the fridge anyway..

If you live somewhere warm enough where you can leave them outside all winter (Zone 7 and above) then
you dont need to cut off the leaves..just leave them on, and they will provide a "head start" with photosynthesis
in the spring..

Next year will the 20th year in a row I have been growing CP's..and the 20th year I have used "the fridge method"
for winter dormancy..I have never once used fungicide..and I have a 99% survival rate.
Its fine if you want to use it, but it is far from a necessity.

Scot
 
Update to that second webpage, from 2008.
For many years I brought my plants out of dormancy in Mid-February..
because in the mild winters of their native range, they only get about a 3-month winter..
while here in Western NY we have a 5-month winter! (nothing grows outside Nov-Dec-Jan-Feb and March)
So I brought them out in Mid-February, and let them come out of dormancy indoors, until they could go back outside
for the season in April..

But for the past two springs, 2012 and 2013, I left the plants in the cool stairwell until April!
until they could go outside for real..
Its a loooong dormancy for them, 5 months, but they have been handling it fine! :)
So this is going to my new method from now on..

Either way works fine..bringing them out in Mid-February and having them indoors for another month and a half,
or waiting longer..
as long as they get 3 months of dormancy, minimum, that's all that matters..
I was concerned that 5 months might be *too* long! and the plants might try to come out of dormancy
in the cold and dark..but they dont..it works fine!

Scot
 
  • #12
Hi Scot

I understand that you are reading the zones however we are expecting a harsh winter, the worst in a decade that's a 100 yrs I recall my grandfather telling me that he had to heat the fuel tanks on the lorries as they where freezing... so this year could be that bad a waxing occurs at -15 to -22 so may have a problem there.
Source: http://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/43...s-Record-breaking-snow-predicted-for-November

Can you please advise how long seeds need cold for, I have put some in the freezer, as I read that the yields increase by 60%...

Also can you name the brand that you use for spraying I know you don't use it... but it would be nice to know as I know there's difference between provardo types etc

The Sphagnum Moss idea makes sense since it contains iodine which is sterile, thus keeping your rhizome free of moulds etc

Have you been able to identify the moulds, that you have experienced?.

Thanks Noddy
 
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