Ariel Rhizomes are Fun!

 Ok this is just too cool not to post! Here is my Seemannia gymnostoma! Look at all the awesomely-awesome arial rhizomes!

It seems that grown under a dome and in high humidity the plant puts out lots and lots of these!

THIS PHOTO IS PROPERTY OF ROB'S VIOLET BARN, and it's not my photo but they have a really nice tutorial of how to plant the arial rhizomes and what to do. Look here: Rob's Tutorial I think you'll find this pretty interesting!







Back to my plant once again... I'm not sure just what to do with it, leave it to see if I can get more rhizomes, or follow the instructions and plant some up. Hmmmm.

Anyway, the plant room is full of interesting things this month! More to follow shortly.

Blogger is having trouble, so some of the look and usual layout will be unavailable till they fix the problem. Sorry.

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Northtown Show!

 Come'on down and see the Northtown display and sale!

The Twin Cities Chapter of the
GESNERIAD SOCIETY
is joining with the AVSM African violet society and displaying some fine flora for you to enjoy!

 Violets, gesneriads... sale plants for you to try...

Information and growing advice..... questions answered.... we have it all for your education and enjoyment!


Please join us!

Northtown mall, Fridley.

10:00 am to 5:00 pm Friday and Saturday.

The Demise of Streptocarpus 'Stroke of Luck'

 

"Our human servant, The One With Thumbs Who Doth Open All Our Cans, aka: "Mom",  didn't put ice in this for me this morning. How many times have I mentioned it... politely even? I went around her ankles five different times and told her... humans, they NEVER listen"

"Ivy, why is she not listening and always so forgetful lately? Do you suppose it's Alzheimer's or that unfortunate incident where we were all asleep on the steps that one night. All we heard for two days was yelling about seeing black cats in pitch darkness... I don't know why they go on and on about everything so much.  It was rather funny, didn't you think so too?"

 "Well if I must.... we all have to tighten our collars and make do with what we have in these economic times. I for one didn't think that some simple ice cubes would really be such a bother... I mean... it's not like I ask for my Fancy Feast to be warmed to 110 deg. F. every day... just on the weekends. And you would think it was the end of the world to want fresh kibble put into the bowl four times a day... sheesh.... It gets stale after an hour or two you know."

"I'm a little hungry, Ivy and it would have been so nice to be served a little snack with my beverage. Is that too much to ask?  But, as usual, I think I hear Mom on the phone with Dad again."

"Walter,  you know since she thinks she threw us out of her precious plant room already, I was just thinking ..."

"Oh Ivy, you always have the best ideas! The wet hairball on the bathroom floor late that one night was hysterical!"

"No, no... not about that, although it was one of my better jokes! I was just thinking that, as usual, you're right! A light snack would tide us over till she gets the next batch of kibbles properly served. I'm certainly not going to go down there begging for just anything and make myself look pathetic. (You didn't hear the treat bag crinkle did you, Walter?) Perhaps there's something up here that will be tasty and not too filling, -  you know, so we don't spoil lunch #3."

"Walter, do you know why Winston thinks that it's cool to sleep in the dirt bucket?"
**ponders**

"Hey, Winston!  Are you starving too? What do you think about a little snack before Mom is back from ratting us out to Dad about that simple misunderstanding about the glasses on the counter this morning?"

**Time passes**

**Whistling casually** "Guys, we are the BEST! There isn't one little thing to make Mom even suspect we got back in her precious plant room! Everything is all just like it was and she'll never even know.  Winston, you were right about not taking the whole thing, just like when we lick the cookies. If you leave most of it they NEVER EVEN SUSPECT! The blue parts aren't as tasty as the sweet, sweet white parts anyway."

 
"Hey, Winston? What do you want to do now? The laundry just came out of the dryer.... I think it's warm.....!"

Violet Show at the Olbrich Conservatory, Madison

 I had the honor of getting to judge the WI grower's African violet show at the Olbrich Conservatory in Madison, WI this past weekend.

Not only was the violet show filled with lovely and interesting things, the conservatory was too!

I want one of these dripping off the trellis at my house.

Along the pathways you might just stumble upon a gesneriad like this nice basket of Kohleria 'Napoleon V' .

 I was pretty taken with the "Lipstick Vine" that gets its own personal waterfall. I can see that if I just have a stream running through the plant room (which of course every husband would endorse) I could also grow one that looks this large and lush!

Just for fun.... I had to include this tiny person for some scale on this rather large 'Angle Trumpet' tree. Again... got to expand the plant room... blow off the roof... build up a story or two.... *dreams on...

 The pathways and garden are a thing of beauty. There are free-roaming quail and canaries, Koi the size of submarines and orchids all over the place. The fragrance is lovely too.

Here's a shot of the show tables. Really top notch plants shown. It was a delight to be asked to come on down to do the judging.

Only a small section of the gesneriad table featuring the (formerly known as) Chiritas and a couple of others.

Got the itch for a day trip? Drive on down to the Madison, WI Olbrich Gardens.... very nice!

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Project plant 'Noreen' Update ... by Patty

 Here are three pictures of Noreen, it has been in bloom for about 3 weeks. Its flowers came out lighter in color than last winter, and I think that shows what I said before, that cooler temperatures bring us dark flowers from the old leaves and even the new ones.

 I've repotted and wicked it about 2 months ago, I kept it at the same 2" size pot, and it is growing on the same shelf as my violets, but for keeping it a little cooler I placed it closer to the fan, and it is doing great now.

The last picture you can see the difference of size and color.






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Thank you Patty for giving us this post!

Part 2 of What's Bloomin' Today, Kohleria 'Ryskan, Cobananthus calochlamys, Gloxinia 'Dragon's Song' and Primulina tabacum

 This is a pretty cool bloom on Kohleria 'Ryskan'. It's' flower is shaped more like a Sinningia and is quite large for a Kohleria.

 It's got nice coloration and the blooms seem to stay fresh for quite a long time.













This is Cobananthus calochlamys. I'm still having trouble getting it to really take off... tried the regular shelf, tried the terrarium... how does anyone else get it to grow well???

 This is pretty cool also.... it's Gloxinia 'Dragon Song' growing in a terrarium. It seems to like the humidity. The flowers are smallish and on the tall spikes which looks sort of striking!

 I was especially taken with the toothed lower lobes of the flower. I'm sure that some hybridization would make for interesting offspring with the right mate for this.

Now I'm thinking of how much fun getting into hybridization would be......

 I don't know why, with all the plants in the world, that they have put the Primulina tabacum in with the gesneriads, but it's a gesneriad and here one is!

The foliage smells like most of the other gesneriads that have fragrant foliage though. I don't personally think the leaves smell anything like tobacco, but they do smell like the Sinningias that are fragrant. Sort of floral/vanilla.

I like the stripes in the flower!


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PS: We are up to 21,400+ views of the blog! Club... help me out here... let's put some really good, informative posts up!!!!

What's Bloomin', xNiphemenes 'Lemonade', Alsobia 'Cygnet', Achimenes 'Grape Wine', S. 'Gabriel's Horn', and Ivy with P. tabacum

 Ok, this is cool.... you have to think this is cool.... it is an intergeneric crossing a Niphea with an Achimenes! You get this cute thing.

I got it as a tiny plant and it obviously needs a couple seasons to grow out and I need to give it more light.

 It's a bit of a string now, but the leaves are very interesting with the dark venation and the bloom couldn't be cuter.

I'm thinking that it has rhizomes??? Haven't looked yet, but soon.... oh soon!

 Here's an old favorite, Alsobia 'Cygnet'. Cool blooms and a nicely compact plant this time.

Sometimes these Alsobias get pretty long and stringy also, but this one is doing pretty well. These would look nice on a natural mount like a cork bark or something similar.

 I've never tried any of the Achimenes prior to this year and I'm hooked.

I've learned some things... squirrels like to dig up the rhizomes and throw them on the ground if you put the pot outdoors.

 You CAN grow them under lights apparently.... I've not yet mastered the lush and full look yet, but the blooms make up for that. This one is 'Grape Wine'.

 Another favorite... one of the sport colors I think. This is Sinningia 'Gabriel's Horn' in the pink.

I like the calyx double thing going on.

This is Ivy looking at the Primulina tabacum. She is quite impressed that they look so lush and full. But... she mentions discretely that they need some grooming to remove spent blossoms... 1/2 point off for each of those!

Stay tuned for the second half of "What's Blooming Today".

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