D. glanduligera

[SnowyFalcon]

Questions, questions, questions. Basically, all I've been able to find out about this plant is it is a Western Australian Tuberous Drosera. If anybody grows this species, I would like to have some of your valuable growing experience. I have obtained seed of this species. I need to know.

1) Medium of choice? I'm guessing high percentage of sand.

2) Sowing of seeds? Stratification? Is that acid stuff, gibberelic (sp?), or something like that needed?

3) Cultivation techniques?

4) Dormancy? How long? Will the fridge work?

Thanks, Thanks, and Thanks again!

SF

 

[Seandew]

Hi,

Firstly, I can tell you that D. glanduligera is not a WA tuberous species. It is actually an annual plant that grows across the entire southern half of Australia in sandy soils. The plant is an annual that germinates in around July and dies around November here in Australia. So I guess for you guys in the US it would germinate around December and die around May.

I have been growing Drosera for many years and have never been very successful in germinating this species. In fact I don't know of anybody here in Australia that has (not to say that there isn't somebody who has perfected the culture of this plant- I just don't know of anyone).

In nature the plant sets huge quantities of seed that drops to the soil around December. For at least the next 4 months the soil on which the seed has dropped onto becomes bone dry and extremely hot with temps over the 40 deg C mark (over 100 F).

Due to the extremely hot and dry conditions the seed must endure, I believe that if you can replicate such conditions you may have success. Here in OZ the seed germinate after a few months of cooler, wetter weather. It may be that the rains and damp soils remove some type of seed germination inhibitor coating that prevents the seed from germinating in summer when there are occasional thunderstorms which could otherwise trick the seed into germinating in an environment that they would not survive.

If this is the case, the use of gibberalic acid (GA3) could enhance germination by aiding in the removal of the seed coating.

I collected some fresh seed during November which I have sown onto a large pot that has been placed outside in full sun with intense summer temps. I'm hoping to replicate the natural conditions and get an increased germination rate. I'll let everyone knows what happens in around six months.

SF, for your seed I would probably try GA3 if you can find any. If not you will probably just have to sow the seed and hope for the best. I would try a potting mix of around 3:1 sandeat in very bright light with the soil kept quite moist, even wet until the seed germinates. In nature the plant grows in quite damp soils in winter. I doubt whether stratification will do anything to help as the natural environment never gets particularly cold.

I hope some of this info helps. Good luck.

Regards,

Sean.

 

[SnowyFalcon]

That's great! Thanks! So, the Web has given me incorrect information about this "Western Australia" sundew.... again. Thanks for clearing that up and letting me know that it's from the whole south half. I appreciate your help.

SF

 

[CP2k]

Hi Sean,

I have tried sowing seeds of glanduligera outdoors during the spring and leaving the seeds outdoors to endure a long hot mediterranean summer. Even after the winter rains arrived and the temperatures dropped considerably, these seeds still refuse to germinate. I had done the same thing with some freshly collected trinervia seeds and noticed mass germination this winter. Could the seeds just be too old? I have heard that some seeds of the winter growing South African Drosera like cistiflora will not germinate, if they are not fresh, but I am not sure of the Au species.

Michael
CA,US

 

[Seandew]

Hi Michael.

The age of the seed may have a bit to to do with germination problem. Some of the seed I collected back in November have been sown and placed outside so I'll have to wait a few months to see how these fresh seeds go. In the past I have had a very small amount of germination- sometimes 2 or 3 seedlings per pot which never really took off. There must be some method that works, they grow so quickly and in such large populations in nature that there must be something that we are missing.

Sean.