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D. whittakeri time...

Totally forgot I had a pot of this stuff hidden in the garden (overgrown by a large shrub!):

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This is about a 25cm shallow pot.  Mostly sand/peat mix (looks like some bird poop as well!).  

To give you an idea of the tuber’s hardiness... I did not water it at ANY stage through the summer. And it was a dry summer!

As my garden is very protected these usually sprout earlier than the wild ones, so this is my indicator to head up to the folks place and see what’s happening out in the fields.

AJ
 
Atsa lotta whittakerii, LOL. You're doing something right!
 
Tamlin,

If neglect is doing something right, then you bet I am
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Seriously though, they are indigenous to this area. I fact there are acres of them on my parents farm. So I figure whatever the weather is doing, so long as they are exposed to it, they should be about right.

I was surprised that they made it though summer though, but yet again, the ground they come from gets bone dry through much of the summer too.

They will colour up better now that they are out from under the shrub!

AJ
 
Very nice pic. The stuff dreams are made of. Thank you for that.

Just in passing, our temperatures here (south Florida) are probably roughly commensurate. But I presume our added rainfall would make it impossible to grow them in the ground here? (high sand with a low watertable, so drainage is not a problem - many popular tropicals require watering to prosper)

setep
 
setep,

Not sure your climate would suit even though the temps may seem similar. Isn't Sth Florida basically tropical? Where my specimines come from is temperate.

These are Melbourne's AVERAGE temps:

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What this misses though is that where the D. whittakeria is growing (in this case at least) winter nights often go below 0c and teh ground freezes. At the other end summer days over 35c.

I did just quickly grab that table off the web so I'm not sure how current those rainfall patterns are, so you can add to this that winter is wet and summer is dry (bone dry!).

Just to make is even trickier, the soil where these come from is primarily a heavy clay loam.  I.e. poor drainiage and NO sand content.

I would certainly not say they are growing any better in my pot with sand/peat.

AJ
 
Probably the hardpan they are growing in insulates them more than a sand peat mix.  All the Aussie natives can really take a summer beating with the heat, otherwise they'd be extinct.  I envy you your closeness to these amazing plants.  Please post photos of your adventures when you visit the populations?  Thanks for sharing!

This would be a difficult species to grow in Florida I think, they need cool to cold conditions for their growing season, and very dry for their summer rest.
 
AJ & Tamlin -
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Wow. I love y'all for trying to keep me from making a fool of myself. (really makes me miss my wife
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)
But, anyway, moving right along: let me start off by admitting that you're *probably* right, and stating that I would never conduct experiments with my *only* plant.
(A quick point of order - we're *sub*-tropical, a subtle but significant difference.)
That said, I've been comparing stats. Average highs in Fort Pierce (here) average 8.7C above Melbourne. (passing bit of trivia - just up the road from me is a town called Melbourne, FL, which was founded by people from *your* Melbourne) Average lows average 6.6C higher. Significant, but, I would guess, not a deal-killer. While we seldom get over 35C, with average highs for some months in the range of 33C, I think we have to concede the possibility. And we *do* get below 0C most years, although not frequently and not for long, and I've never known the ground to freeze. And the high temps would be cancelled partially in the soil by higher rainfall in a fast-draining substrate.
In terms of rainfall, we do get significantly more - but canceling out the averages for hurricane season (which have to be pretty nearly meaningless) the difference averages in the range of about 4-30 mm per month. Again, not a deal-killer. Added to which, we are in a long period of less than average rainfall.
About substrate - I hear you about what it grows in in the wild. But I also note that you grow it in peat/sand. This would indicate a range of acceptable substrates. And, truthfully, this is the least important part - the substrate of a plant I grow is the substrate I build for it. A duplicate of its home conditions would probably be a mistake, given our rain totals, but anything from there to pure sand is possible.
In closing, let me state that I *will* grow this plant. Mostly as a good cp-er, following accepted procedures. But, assuming I ever have several of them, 1 or 2 pots will stay outside as long as possible without incurring terminal damage. If that should chance to be reasonably successful, further steps can be considered.
It probably won't, as y'all have pointed out, and then we'll be right back here where we are now. Except that I will have accumulated data to apply toward the culture of this wonderful plant.
Happy growing,
setep (Ron Ruppel)
 
Tamlin/Ron,

I did have a heap of really good location photos but cannot find them. However I found 2 old ones from 2003 that are a start. I'll be heading up to my folks again in a few weeks and will see if they are up or not. I know these pics were taken in August, which is when they look about their best just before flowering:

D. whittakeri:
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Unknown Drosera (any thoughts?):
UnknownDrosera.jpg


Just for kicks... no idea of the correct name, but I think it’s commonly called a Green-Hood:
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AJ
 
The unknown Drosera is D. peltata var. foliosa and the Greenhood is Pterostylis nutans, the Nodding Greenhood orchid.

They'll be well and truly up at your parents property, I've seen them at a number of locations for the past 6 weeks or so.
 
  • #10
Thanks Sean.

I did not even realise there was another rosette forming Drosera until I saw these old pics.

So that means they have D. whittakeri, D. peltata (common form), and now D. peltata var. foliosa as well.

Will have to get you guys to come up and take a look.  I'm pretty free after the 16th (exams!) for a month or so, if you have the time.

AJ
 
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