Massonia echinata

[johnstephen29]

Thanks for that matt I'll take a look. Hi angie I didn't get this from you, I got it from sjw via the cyclamen show in October. I got the haemanthus from you

[angie]

Thanks for that matt I'll take a look. Hi angie I didn't get this from you, I got it from sjw via the cyclamen show in October. I got the haemanthus from you

John don't blame me if the Haemanthus is wrongly named like I have said I am not very good with the labelling, I used to blame my cats, but no more cats now. I blame the birds but really I think its just me. No chance of me ever giving away my Massonia, I just love growing them. My favourite plant in the greenhouse at this time of year.

Angie 

[SJW]

Massonia echinata ?

Michael - looks more like M. pustulata?

[SJW]

Great looking massonia angie, my plant's leaves have lifted up as well. Apparently mine is not Echinata.

Whoops, sorry about that John. Seed was labelled as echinata but Paul C has identified it as M. hirsuta. Though the PBS wiki lists hirsuta as a synonym of echinata. 

[johnstephen29]

Hi steve it's ok mate, I think I remember you saying on another post that this family of plants needed sorting out. I'll redo the label, at the end of the day I still have a cracker of a plant

Hi angie I'm not blaming you for anything, all the labels are fine.

[Paul Cumbleton]

Hi John,
I agree that your plant is probably M. hirsuta.  My personal view is that this is a good species and not a synonym of M. echinata. M. hirsuta is "officially" accepted as a good name in the Kew database. The idea that it is a synonym of M. echinata came from a botanist called Jessop who published a paper in 1976 suggesting this.

This genus still needs a lot of work done on it, but there is group at the University of Graz in Austria who are actively trying to sort out the mess. A DNA paper is expected from them in the not too distant future.

Another point that is well worth mentioning is that Massonia species seem very happy to hybridise with each other and I suspect that many plants in cultivation are hybrids, especially if seed is grown from exchanges and the grower who supplies the seed has not specifically hand-pollinated them and excluded other pollinators. It would be interesting to know if hybridisation also occurs in the wild and whether this adds to the confusion of naming them.

Paul

[angie]

Hi steve it's ok mate, I think I remember you saying on another post that this family of plants needed sorting out. I'll redo the label, at the end of the day I still have a cracker of a plant

Hi angie I'm not blaming you for anything, all the labels are fine.

Hi John
I don't mind being blamed  not that you have  I am hopeless and can't believe how folks on here have the perfect labelling system. I can't remember plant names, I kill more than I wish too( keep that a secret ) but at the end of the day I just love plants and just love the day they flower. Massonia flowers just are so lovely. You enjoy your Massonia bulbs and hopefully you will get more  soon. There are so many generous folks on this forum.

Angie 

[SJW]

Another point that is well worth mentioning is that Massonia species seem very happy to hybridise with each other and I suspect that many plants in cultivation are hybrids, especially if seed is grown from exchanges and the grower who supplies the seed has not specifically hand-pollinated them and excluded other pollinators. It would be interesting to know if hybridisation also occurs in the wild and whether this adds to the confusion of naming them.
Paul

Hi Paul - I think Darren has also raised concerns about hybrid massonias in cultivation (he had some himself!). I suppose it's part of the fun - and occasional frustration - of raising seed-exchange plants. I have a pot of young echinata plants from Gordon Summerfield's seed growing on which should drastically reduce the chance of iffy parentage (unless there's unplanned hybridisation also taking place in his nursery ). Currently impatiently waiting for this year's seed order to arrive although I hear there's a postal strike in South Africa...

[johnstephen29]

Hi Paul thanks for the info, also I have managed to get some seeds of M. Depressa and M. Pustulata, what Is the best way to sow these and what sort of compost? Thanks John. Cheers angie your a star.

[Paul Cumbleton]

Hi John,
Seed of winter-growing South African bulbs is best sown in September, but it should still do Ok if you sow it now, they'll just have a bit of a shorter first season. (In fact I have known people sow as late as January and still have reasonable success).

I use a mix of 1 part loam, 1 part peat, 2 parts grit - the same mix that I use for the adult bulbs. Sow on the surface and cover with a layer of grit. Keep cool and moist. Germination is typically 6 to 8 weeks, but can vary quite a bit from that.

Paul

[johnstephen29]

Cheers Paul, thanks as always for the advice.

[Rimmer de Vries]

no one told me that needed to be started in fall

These Massonia were started in March 2013,
 they have a tiny thing in the center, will they bloom this year ?

[johnstephen29]

Hi rimmer it could be a flower, it is still small, is the grit in the centre? If so you should take it out if you can. They all look great plants, you sure know how to grow these great plants.

[SJW]

These Massonia were started in March 2013, they have a tiny thing in the center, will they bloom this year ?

Rimmer - those nascent flower buds look just a little too underdeveloped to successfully flower this year. They are, afterall, quite young plants. You may be lucky but they'll probably just sit there now and not grow anymore this season. That's been my experience in the past.

[Pete Clarke]

A good flowering year for my Massonia and all have larger leaves than usual;
M. depressa
M. pustulata,
M. echinata
M. jasminiflora x pustulata -  a deliberate cross I made and pleased with it.