a tear in my eye

[sarracenia]

I was sitting on the back deck this evening, grilling some steaks, looking at all the plants, when I noticed a flower bud. that alone isn't much to get excited about, as I always get a few flowers in the fall, and have cut off about half a dozen already this month, but this one made me do a double take. it is the first flower i've ever seen from a plant I raised from seed! and only 30 months since the seed germinated. now, hopefully it'll bloom in the spring so I can actually cross it with something, as it is one of nicest seed-grown plants I have, an open-pollinated alata x flava that is completely dark red from base to lid.
here's the flower:

here's a pic of the pitchers i took a week or so ago, i think i may have posted this on here earlier:

 

[pappydew]

congrats!!!

 

[Clue]

Wow! That's a great looking plant! Congrats.

 

[kgrudz]

wow that is nice and dark ! i like it.

 

[x916krew]

Grats and that is one beautiful plant.

 

[cpman]

Very beautiful plants. Once you raise some seedlings, keep me in mind for a trade or something. I hopefully will be having some seed from a oreaphila x leuco cross.

 

[Adam]

OMG That is the black one? Cross it with something like 'Black Widow'(if you can get your hands on pollen).

 

[UnstuckinTime]

Depending on your location, though, could you even harvest seeds if you make a successful pollination this late in the season? I know way up north where I am, it would get hit by frost. When would you harvest seeds should you make a cross so late? And, do you think it would effect the vitality of the seeds?

 

[sarracenia]

Depending on your location, though, could you even harvest seeds if you make a successful pollination this late in the season? I know way up north where I am, it would get hit by frost. When would you harvest seeds should you make a cross so late? And, do you think it would effect the vitality of the seeds?

i couldn't get seeds at this point, as I am in WI. i will cut it off after it opens. I wouldn't have anything to cross it with anyway, except itself, which wouldn't be that bad of an idea.

 

[Adam]

It wouldn't... you never know, it could result in an offspring that has the same color but a lower light tolerance... or even a deeper color.

 

[sarracenia]

the flower hasn't opened yet, but the petals are starting to show. it kind of looks like they are yellow with some orange flush to them. that is interesting, considering the mother plant (alata x flava). i kind of assumed it was self-pollinated, but with this orange showing up, perhaps it did get crossed by the bees.

 

[Adam]

Cool!

 

[sarracenia]

Well, the flower has finally opened. After appearing yellow, with pink flush before it opened, the petals turned pure pinkish-red. It actually looks like a purp flower to me, which makes me wonder what the father could possibly be.