Tropaeolum 2013- 2014

[Maggi Young]

Clayton, I wonder if your plant may have some hybrid blood? 
This site may be of interest to you : http://homepage.ntlworld.com/john.mcfarlane/
It is the website of SRGC member Steven McFarlane - he is also a forum member so may appear to give his opinion too....

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Tropaeolum PENTAPHYLLUM is now blooming at lyon BG.
I took the pictures because of the very particular light and the last pic gives a small idea of the huge dimensions this species can reach within a few weeks.
The plant has been growing in a well exposed glass house for many years. It comes back in growth reliably every year.
JP

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Thanks for the measurement photo, Maggi! I'm glad to have a concrete comparison. My tricolor is blooming now, and the flowers are definitely a bit smaller than that. Interestingly, mine are also much paler, more golden-orange color than the vibrant scarlet-red I've seen in pretty much any picture. I was surprised. Anyone have any clue what would cause that? Or just a natural variation? (I'll try to post a photo later.)

Jean-Patrick, that flower is gorgeous! Such an elegant, pale color--and that faint blush at the edge of the petals really sets them off!

Now that my tricolor is blooming... but none of my other ones are... how do I save pollen to make some experimental crosses when the other ones bloom? I wondered what any of you might have tried in the past. Refrigeration? Freeze? How long does it stay viable? Curious for any suggestions!

Clayton

Clayton, we are longing for your pics!
JP

[Steve Garvie]

How can I separate Tropaeolum hookerianum hookerianum from Tropaeolum brachyceras?
Both, one or the other (?    ?) have escaped into the plunge of my greenhouse and now I don't know which is which. One thing is for certain -all of these scrambling Tropaeolum grow better when they escape into the plunge than when they are grown in pots -I have them coming up in almost every plunge bed.

Any thoughts on which species the image below is?

[Clayton]

Steve, It is my understanding that hookerianum has the purplish markings, and the brachyceras is a brighter yellow, with no markings. (From photos I've seen, it also looks like the brachyceras has wider/rounder leaf lobes than hookerianum). I'm assuming there can probably be some variation among both of these traits, though...

As for my T. tricolor, does this look unusually off-color to anyone else? As I mentioned, all the photos I've seen show tricolor as a very clear scarlet-red...

Clayton

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

How can I separate Tropaeolum hookerianum hookerianum from Tropaeolum brachyceras?
Both, one or the other (?    ?) have escaped into the plunge of my greenhouse and now I don't know which is which. One thing is for certain -all of these scrambling Tropaeolum grow better when they escape into the plunge than when they are grown in pots -I have them coming up in almost every plunge bed.

Any thoughts on which species the image below is?

Hi Steve,
Tr Hookerianum usually has slighter bigger flowers than Tr brachyceras. They are also of a light yellow.
Tr Brachyceras has stronger veinings on the upper petals in comparison with Tr Hookerianum.
There's also a characteristic feature on Tr Hookerianum & Tr Austropurpureum ( and, unfortunately on hybrids in which these 2 species are involved ): There are often several flower pedicels on many nodes ( like in "whorls" ). This is never the case with Tr brachyceras. So please check this particular point on your plant.

On your picture the spur clearly doesn't belong to Tr Brachyceras. But the petals are more likely to match with this species.
I don't pretend to get the truth as there are often hybrids very close to one species.
Your plant is NOT Tr Brachyceras. It may be Tr Hookerianum or a close hybrid ( which doesn't make a huge difference... )

Hope this is of help!
JP

[Steven McFarlane]

Hi

I have attached a few pictures of Trops growing in my greenhouse.  They all clearly have T. tricolor in their parentage and one may even be the true species. One and two are clearly hybrids, three might be true and four is of a rather attractively coloured hybrid.  While the hybrids are pretty I do wish that I could grow more of the species again but I find it increasingly difficult to get these to come true from seed. Sorry I seem to have messed up the attachments. I have not been on the forum for a while.

Steven

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Hi Steven,
 Your plants are really wonderful! Even if they are hybrids... This shows again how difficult it can be to find "true" species. In case we have them ( true to type ) hand pollination must be the rule to harvest seeds. Pollinators in the open air mix everything to their willing...
Here are:
Tr Brachyceras
Tr Hybrid brachyceras
JP

[fermi de Sousa]

Wow, Steven, 
that cyclamen-pink T. tricolor hybrid is amazing! Can it be vegetatively propagated?
cheers
fermi

[Robert]

Steve,

I agree the pink hybrid is stunning! 

[Steven McFarlane]

Hi

I am glad you like the pink hybrid.  Vegetative propogation is very difficult. Cuttings of tropaeolums can sometimes work but getting large enough plants from these to make a tuber has always defeated me.  The only other way is to wait for future years to produce more tubers naturally.  I have never been able to keep hybrid tubers long enough for this to happen.  Perhaps someone else has had more success.  In the meantime here is another picture of the pink hybrid.

Steven

[Clayton]

Steven,

I'm with the others--that pink hybrid is gorgeous! It is such a rich, bright color. Your third photo looks very similar to mine (posted above). I purchased it as a true T. tricolor, but as I mentioned, all the pictures I've seen are always a vivid, solid, scarlet... not splotchy yellow-orange. But again, is this perhaps a natural variation among the species? Not sure that it definitely indicates hybrid lineage.

Clayton

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Hi Steven,
This hybrid is really stunning. Could anyone try to recreate it by crossing Tr Tricolor with tr Austropurpureum? It seems to have something of it in its parentage...
Another way of experimentation would also be to cross Tr tricolor with tr Azureum as they are compatible ( according to J. Watson ). And see what happens...
JP

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Steve, It is my understanding that hookerianum has the purplish markings, and the brachyceras is a brighter yellow, with no markings. (From photos I've seen, it also looks like the brachyceras has wider/rounder leaf lobes than hookerianum). I'm assuming there can probably be some variation among both of these traits, though...

As for my T. tricolor, does this look unusually off-color to anyone else? As I mentioned, all the photos I've seen show tricolor as a very clear scarlet-red...

Clayton

Hi Clayton,
Tr TRICOLOR has some accepted variations in the wild. The spur can be orange-red or even yellow ( this has been recorded by J. WATSON ). So your plant could be within the limits of these variations. The spur can also be quite long and thin. But the yellow petals aren't usually much exserted from the calyx.
Here's a pic which might correspond to Tr x TENUIROSTRE.
JP

[Pete Clarke]

I got this as Tropaeolum hookerianum ssp. austropurpureum form the AGS seed distribution. It doesn't fit any photos on the web of this species. Any views as to its ID?
It has germinated and flowered in the space of 4 months.