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Great white (leuco) attack

There seems to be a lot of talk about "white" leucos on the board lately and thought it would be interesting to get some opinions and thoughts on what's out there. I'm curious to see how many different ones we've got going on these forums. Photos would be appreciated and earn extra credit.
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We see mention of 'Schnell's Ghost', J.H.'s 'Hurricane Creek White', Phil Wilson's "Snow White", Scholl's green (& white) leuco, and few others.

My personal observations of the "current" crop is that Schnell's Ghost is a bit slow, HCW is quite vigorous & robust, "Snow White" may be the same plant as HCW, and that Scholl's plant is also quite nice. Again these are the results I've seen personally.

Let's see some photos and thoughts of and on your "whitest" plants.
 
There seem to be three varieties: green and white forms, the anthocyanin free and the alba (very white top) forms.
 
What's the difference between the anthocyanin-free form and the alba? Aren't they the same plant?
imduff
I'll see if I can find an old photo for you PDX.
 
i hear bugweed's got a nice leuco from citronelle
 
Here's a photo of my Hurricane Creek White which would be considered a green & white plant. I think this is one of the more attractive ones out there currently.

lhcw2.jpg
 
If its okay with bugweed, he said he ad one called citronelle beauty only one in the world
 
Sorry about the image quality but, this is the best that I can do of my brightest white leuco. I too have found the Hurricane Creek leuco to be very vigorous. The pitchers and rhizomes are huge, and the fall pitcher show is second to none.

whiteleuco.jpg


imduff
 
Why did you have to post these pitchers, err pictures? Now I'm lusting for them!
:eek:
 
Kirk, Not quite. The only one like it I have ever seen. I know Joe Mazrimas can't wait for a piece of it. He thought it very unique. But then, we haven't seen all of them either.
 
  • #10
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Bugweed @ Mar. 10 2005,11:23)]Kirk, Not quite. The only one like it I have ever seen. I know Joe Mazrimas can't wait for a piece of it. He thought it very unique. But then, we haven't seen all of them either.
Ahh, Good o'le joe
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  • #11
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]What's the difference between the anthocyanin-free form and the alba? Aren't they the same plant?

The anthocyanin form looks pretty much like a green and white form, except there is no red anywhere on the plant. 'Schnell's Ghost' can have red at the bases and tiny hints of red in the pitcher veins.

Alba is a weird term that doesn't have much scientific weighting for leucos I believe. It is generally applied to plants which have tops which are almost completely white with very fine veins.

I would tag imduff's plant as var. alba.
 
  • #12
That's interesting Alvin. About 8 years ago when the green leuco was first found by Bill Scholl, it was commonly referred as the albino leuco. In a 1998 paper by Sheridan, he described them as simply "green" or "green mutants." Personally, I've always considered the anthocyanin plant pigment as analogous to the melanin animal pigment. This may be an oversimplification but, I've used the term "albino" to describe these plants. Since the Sheridan paper, I've also used the term "all green."
It's interesting that in the UK the plant in my image would be considered "alba." Informally, the UK growers have always been more aggressive about correctly classifying different forms accurately.
Plants like the one in my image, 'Schnell's Ghost,' and others usually originated in an area of Alabama where there is so much intragression of alata and leuco, that hybrids became difficult to distinguish from pure species. I personally believe that plants described as 'Schnell's Ghost' have alata genes that cause the yellow flower color. Personal discussion with Phil Wilson also suggests this may be the case.

imduff
 
  • #13
It's a very odd situation with 'Schnell's Ghost' in that, according to Phil Wilson and the ICPS, any green and white yellow flowered plant can be labelled as this cultivar.

[b said:
Quote[/b] ]Submitted February 4, 2000

One of the peculiarities found in many of the red-flowered species of Sarracenia are the so-called aberrant colour forms. In addition to the range of pink and red colours found in many individuals of these species, plants are occasionally discovered which have pure yellow flowers. The genetics governing this effect are well documented (Sheridan & Scholl, 1996; Sheridan, 1997) and are known to affect red colour production in either the flower or the entire plant.

Of particular merit is the yellow-flowered clone of Sarracenia leucophylla. This plant has, in addition to the pure yellow flower, a complete absence of red colouring in the upper-pitcher tube and lid. The almost pure white lid is innervated with narrow green veins; the white colour includes the inner lid-surface and column, and extends to the upper section of the pitcher tube. The only red colour in the plant is found in the growing points of emerging pitchers and in aging pitchers as they start to senesce. Because of this, the plant cannot be described as an anthocyanin-free plant (or green mutant, as erroneously reported by D’Amato (1998, page 82).

The yellow-flowered Sarracenia leucophylla was originally collected by Donald Schnell during the summer of 1972. At the time of this collection the plant was not in flower; presumably the intense white colouration of the plant’s leaves attracted his attention. Schnell sent a piece of the plant to Steven Clemesha in Australia, who adjusted its growth habit to southern hemisphere seasons, and grew the plant to maturity. It was not until the plant flowered in September 1974 that Clemesha discovered that the plant also produced a pure yellow flower (Clemesha, 1999, personal communication).

Some years later Martin Cheek obtained plants from Clemesha, propagated them, and offered specimens for sale with the unregistered name of “Schnell’s Ghost”. At the time Martin produced a catalogue of plants which contained a full description of the cultivar (Cheek, 1990, page 2).

Although references to this plant’s “very pale ghost-like qualities” were made in private correspondence as early as 1972 (Clemesha, 1999, personal communication), the first printed reference to its “ghost-like” qualities was in Schnell (1989):

“The pitcher top is so pale and the lack of red venation gives the plant an almost ghost-like appearance and it stands out readily in a stand of typical plants, even when not in yellow flower. This plant bore a yellow flower the following spring in cultivation….”

In the early 1990s Alan Hindle, a grower and collector of Sarracenia forms in the UK, began selling a yellow-flowered S. leucophylla. Alan Hindle received his original stock from Bruce Bednar in the USA, so this plant subsequently became known among UK growers as the “Bednar clone”. Bednar reported that he obtained his plant from Clemesha in Australia, so the “Bednar clone” is the same plant as the “Schnell’s Ghost” plant (Bednar, 1999, personal communication). Other unestablished names that have been used to label this S. leucophylla plant include “Alba” and “Yellow Flower”.
Several other distinct clones of the species with yellow flowers have subsequently been found. For instance, there is at least one clone from the Citronelle region in southern Alabama. The plants are again characterised by having predominantly white colouration in the lid and upper pitcher, and a yellow flower. I am registering the cultivar name Sarracenia leucophylla ‘Schnell’s Ghost’, which should be applied to all clones of the species with yellow flowers and predominantly white coloured lids and upper pitchers. Since seed from self-pollinated individuals of this clone breed true (and presumably between different clones of this cultivar), Sarracenia leucophylla ‘Schnell’s Ghost’ may be propagated both asexually from cuttings and sexually from seed, as long as the cultivar characters are maintained.

As mentioned above, Sarracenia leucophylla ‘Schnell’s Ghost’ does have some red pigmentation in the growing points. In contrast, collections of Sarracenia leucophylla plants completely lacking anthocyanin have been reported (Sheridan & Scholl, 1996). The cultivar description of Sarracenia leucophylla ‘Schnell’s Ghost’ does not include these plants. I am happy to report that, despite fears that Sarracenia ‘Schnell’s Ghost’ had become extinct (Rice, 2000), it is quite alive both in England and in the USA.

Phil Wilson

The anthocyanin free plant is a separate entity entirely though and I believe is should be labelled 'anthocyanin free' to differentiate it from the green and white red flowered plants, and 'Schnell's Ghost'.
Leucophylla alba is usually used for those plants which have an almost completely white top, regardless of flower color. It's very subjective though, but calling a very white topped plant alba just seems to make life easier because they do look different from the green and white plants. The article above mentions alba, but in the UK it refers to a specific plant, although I would apply it to any very white example. See .photo
I agree with you that maybe alata introgression has mucked around with the red flower gene.

This is how I read the situation, but this is only my opinion. Someone will probably correct me!

S. leucophylla 'Schnell's Ghost' - a particular white and green plant with red bases, yellow flowers. Can be applied to any yellow flowered green and white leuco though.

S. leucophylla green and white - numerous plants with red flowers.

S. leucophylla anthocyanin free - no red anywhere, yellow flowers.

S. leucophylla var. alba - any plant with a predominantly white top and very fine, or not visible, green or red veins
 
  • #14
[b said:
Quote[/b] (Alvin Meister @ Mar. 11 2005,2:50)]It's a very odd situation with 'Schnell's Ghost' in that, according to Phil Wilson and the ICPS, any green and white yellow flowered plant can be labelled as this cultivar.
This little fact goes without mention for all cultivars. If a plant fits the formal description, even if it comes from a different source, it can be called the mentioned cultivar. This fact emphasizes the importance of naming only something truly unique and providing a thorough description in the registration.

I'm impressed with Phil's mention that yellow flowered leucos are produced by selfing 'Schnell's Ghost.' I would have thought that a certain percentage of red flowered leucos might have been produced.

This reminds me of seedlings from selfing the Hurricane Creek leuco. Most are green and white, like the original plant, but there are also some seedlings with a significant amount of red. I believe I have a photo from last fall, if anyone's interested.

Thanks for your perspective from across the pond, Alvin.
imduff
 
  • #15
I think the white topped ones I get to see in the wild are the best. Since you know there are always about 100 other plants.
 
  • #16
[b said:
Quote[/b] ]This little fact goes without mention for all cultivars. If a plant fits the formal description, even if it comes from a different source, it can be called the mentioned cultivar

Really? I can't think of any other cultivar that can be propogated by selfing, or crossing with something similar.
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  • #17
Are yellow flowered leucos Anthrocynan free or are they not?
 
  • #18
The anthocyanin free plant has yellow flowers. 'Schnell's Ghost' also has yellow flowers. There are a few green and white plants which have red flowers.
 
  • #20
Does the Hurricane Creek white have red pigment in the young pitchers and growth points like Schnell's Ghost? Interesting from Imduff's observation that some of the Hurricane Creek selfing seedlings are coming out normal colored. Almost sounds like whatever causes the lack of anthocyanin in the pitchers is a dominant trait so that only the less common all recessive plants show the anthocyanin. Perhaps the genetic change that causes the Hurricane Creek to have white topped pitchers is different than the change in Schnells' Ghost. Or the Schnells Ghost is homozygous so that a selfing comes out all looking like Schnell's Ghost. Next interesting tidbit.. are all the Hurricane Creek white plants in cultivation the exact same clone or where more than one plant collected? Sounds like all the Schnell's Ghost are from a single plant collected even though the official description allows plants which look like it to be called the same with the same name.

My Schnell's Ghost are in bud now and should be open in a couple weeks or so. Anyone have pollen they want to put on it .. give me a holler. Otherwise I will probably self one and cross with some other S. leucophylla on the others.

Tony
 
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