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Gemmae Questions:

jimscott

Tropical Fish Enthusiast
1) How tall / deep are your pots?
2) Do you cover the gemmae?
3) How long do you have them covered?
4) How high is the water table?
5) How far above the gemmae is your lighting?
 
In my experience they do fine being treated the same as other subtropical sundews. I haven't tried covering gemmae but I suspect that they may germinate better and root a bit faster if you do.
 
I've received pygmy Drosera in various conditions.

The pygmies I sent you recently are being grown a bit unconventionally. They're in 2" tall pot that's almost entirely peat/perlite, which seems a bit wet/short for most people's recommendations. However, this is how I recieved them and haven't had any issues!

The gemmae I plant, I put into 3.5" tall pots, uncovered with sand or a bag, water is usually about 1/2 an inch up the pot, lights are 4-tube T5's about 1.5' above the pots.
 
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Hey Jim, pygmy sundews have one long root that they use to find water deep in the ground during the summer, so a 4 inch to 6 inch pot would be perfect because repotting pygmy sundews is NOT recommended due to their one root being very fragile, and they usually die if it breaks at all. I have heard of some people covering the gemmae they get with a very thin layer of fine sand, but you dont have to (I dont). They do like humidity while they are first growing, so you can put the top of the pot in a clear bag and keep them under a light until they get a couple of carnivorous leaves out (again, I dont). I keep mine in a water tray with about 2 inches of water and I do not let it to dry out. I dont have a great lighting system yet, so I will have to get back to you on how far away my lights are from the gemmae! Hope this helped! What kind of pygmy is your gemmae from?

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I suppose I should clarify...when I read "cover" I think humidity dome, not covering the gemmae with soil - they need light. The only CP-propagant I would ever bury is a root cutting.
 
1. 18cm (7") Long roots = deep pots
2. No, Why would you cover a green plant? Remember they are plants not seed.
3 N/A
4. 0 to 205 cm (0 - 2")
5. 92,955,807 Miles (AV) ( 149.6 Million Kilometers)
 
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1. 18cm (7") Long roots = deep pots
2. No, Why would you cover a green plant? Remember they are plants not seed.
3 N/A
4. 0 to 205 cm (0 - 2")
5. 92,955,807 Miles (AV) ( 149.6 Million Kilometers
Im pretty sure the sun is farther away than that [emoji14]

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Do you have a tape?
 
Hey Jim, pygmy sundews have one long root that they use to find water deep in the ground during the summer, so a 4 inch to 6 inch pot would be perfect because repotting pygmy sundews is NOT recommended due to their one root being very fragile, and they usually die if it breaks at all. I have heard of some people covering the gemmae they get with a very thin layer of fine sand, but you dont have to (I dont). They do like humidity while they are first growing, so you can put the top of the pot in a clear bag and keep them under a light until they get a couple of carnivorous leaves out (again, I dont). I keep mine in a water tray with about 2 inches of water and I do not let it to dry out. I dont have a great lighting system yet, so I will have to get back to you on how far away my lights are from the gemmae! Hope this helped! What kind of pygmy is your gemmae from?

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I'm getting gemmae from a variety of hobbyists:

Drosera x "Dork's Pink"
Drosera occidentalis ssp. australis "Warriup"
Drosera mannii x callistos gemmae
bindoon
grievi
x legrandii
silvicola
leucoblasta
brookton form
x (pedicellaris x callisos)
scorpiodes (pink)
dichrosepala giant form
x (lasiantha x omissa)
x dork's pink gibsonii
Lasiantha
Drosera omissa x pulchella
Occidelalis x pulchella
D. patens
D. pulchella (Orange Flower)
D. helodes
D. sargenti
D. roseana

From my observation, I get better sprouting if they are covered. Last year I had several post in a 10 gallon fish tank, with a high water table. I had Saran Wrap over the top. i had little sprouting. I could see the gemmae laying on top, doing nothing. At the same time, I had gemmae in the basement, with covers over them. I had much better sprouting from that approach.

I'm used to transitioning plants / seedlings / new arrivals, etc... It just really ticked me off to see the gemmae laying there, unsprouted, even with a high water table and Saran Wrap over the top of the tank. In contrast, covering got them sprouted and I didn't have a problem with the transition. It was putting the pots outside that killed them! The frustrating thing about putting them outside is that I HAVE done this before, successfully. There were a few losses, a bit of 'get tough or die', but for the most part, they did well

The ones in the fish tank mostly did not sprout. When I finally put covers on them, some of the previously unsprouted D. scorpioides did sprout. It is also possible that maybe it was the luck of the draw as well. Maybe some of the different types of gemmae weren't fresh enough.
 
  • #10
I'm getting gemmae from a variety of hobbyists:

Drosera x "Dork's Pink"
Drosera occidentalis ssp. australis "Warriup"
Drosera mannii x callistos gemmae
bindoon
grievi
x legrandii
silvicola
leucoblasta
brookton form
x (pedicellaris x callisos)
scorpiodes (pink)
dichrosepala giant form
x (lasiantha x omissa)
x dork's pink gibsonii
Lasiantha
Drosera omissa x pulchella
Occidelalis x pulchella
D. patens
D. pulchella (Orange Flower)
D. helodes
D. sargenti
D. roseana

From my observation, I get better sprouting if they are covered. Last year I had several post in a 10 gallon fish tank, with a high water table. I had Saran Wrap over the top. i had little sprouting. I could see the gemmae laying on top, doing nothing. At the same time, I had gemmae in the basement, with covers over them. I had much better sprouting from that approach.

I'm used to transitioning plants / seedlings / new arrivals, etc... It just really ticked me off to see the gemmae laying there, unsprouted, even with a high water table and Saran Wrap over the top of the tank. In contrast, covering got them sprouted and I didn't have a problem with the transition. It was putting the pots outside that killed them! The frustrating thing about putting them outside is that I HAVE done this before, successfully. There were a few losses, a bit of 'get tough or die', but for the most part, they did well

The ones in the fish tank mostly did not sprout. When I finally put covers on them, some of the previously unsprouted D. scorpioides did sprout. It is also possible that maybe it was the luck of the draw as well. Maybe some of the different types of gemmae weren't fresh enough.
Thats a lot of gemmae! Hope they all grow!

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  • #11
They seem to grow on anything in my experience. I haven't noticed a difference in plant growth in pot size/depth (though I had a bunch of die-off of D. pulchella, but that is probably due more to over-crowding or that I just didn't water them enough, as they are in a very sandy mix and they grew in an out-of-the-way area). I notice they "germinate" better and much faster with raised humidity.
 
  • #12
They seem to grow on anything in my experience. I haven't noticed a difference in plant growth in pot size/depth (though I had a bunch of die-off of D. pulchella, but that is probably due more to over-crowding or that I just didn't water them enough, as they are in a very sandy mix and they grew in an out-of-the-way area). I notice they "germinate" better and much faster with raised humidity.

But how is the higher humidity achieved? Is it through being covered or through higher water table or general high humidity in the surrounding environment?
 
  • #13
I just put a plastic bag over them until they all have grown a bit.
 
  • #14
For now, they all have plastic covers.
 
  • #15
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  • #16
Sometimes gemmae arrive with roots embedded in the moistened paper towel. How do you handle them?
 
  • #17
Sometimes gemmae arrive with roots embedded in the moistened paper towel. How do you handle them?
Since the paper towel is moist, I just take off the ones that dont have roots imbeded in the paper towel, then if the gemmae are far enough apart, I tear the paper towel around the gemmae, and plant that.

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Wishlist:
Pygmy Sundews!!!
N. Jacquelineae
Byblis Aquatica
D. Fulva
D. coccicaulis
D. Ramentacea
N. Argentii
D. Ascendens
N. Ventricosa
 
  • #18
When gemmae are in the crown, they are dry. Why are most people shipping them in moist paper towels? I have one friend who ships them dry, in squares of thin aluminum foil. They are much easier to extricate and sow. They sprout just fine. I think someone else uses waxed paper.
 
  • #19
When gemmae are in the crown, they are dry. Why are most people shipping them in moist paper towels? I have one friend who ships them dry, in squares of thin aluminum foil. They are much easier to extricate and sow. They sprout just fine. I think someone else uses waxed paper.
Moist paper towels keep them alive longer, from what I have read.

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Wishlist- pm me if you really want to know it.
 
  • #20
I've definitely noticed that for a humidity dome works to expedite root development, and, if used, this dome should be kept on until the plants have been established, then gradually removed so the plants can form their wax cuticles.

Usually the species that need the dome are not common in cultivation, i.e. D. gibsonii reportedly needs it. But in general I think you could get away with not using domes at all and simply keeping the medium very moist.
 
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