Pleione 2016

[Johan K.]

Another Pleione 'Sirena'.

[erf]

And..... the flowering season in Denmark starts with Pleione Sirena
Regards Erling

[erf]

Another Pleione 'Sirena'.

Hi Johan
Is this picture true to the color. It seems that yours are more purple compare to mine.
Regards Erling

[Steve Garvie]

Pleione humilis Bigu Gompa

[john hodgson]

At last, pleione parade takes its first step, for me too, in North Yorkshire. This Wharfedale opened 12/2/16 and stayed open for 16 days. What will be next? For me it looks like Riah Shan, any day now...
John.     By the way, I'm not being precious with the watermarked photo - it is because of some bother I've come across regarding photos used without permission on ebay - I know there's an old thread on this subject.

[erf]

Johan - that's a really deep yellow forrestii you have there. Beautiful. Is that a true representation or has the camera or lighting enriched it? My forrestii have always been much paler. Incidentally, I find forrestii to be very difficult to grow from year to year. I have some new stock (again!) - 6 pseudobulbs in all - which I am growing in 6cm depth live moss on a bark/moss/perlite substrate in a 30cm pond basket. The photos elsewhere on SRGC showing forrestii growing wild in China on a rock face in moss has inspired me to try again. The most I ever had was about 8-10 growing and flowering - also in moss. I found that a fluctuation in temperature (warming) seemed to cause - I think - rapid flower wilting and drop. And as I said I couldn't keep the stock going and within 4 years I hadn't one left. I'm aiming for better temperature control this time. Does anyone have any opinions? 

Hello John
I have had the same problems with Pln forrestii. But I have now bought a clone sold as Pln forrestii 'Vietnam'. This one is as beautifull as the ordinary forrestii, but much more tolerant in culture.
Regards Erling

[john hodgson]

Hello John
I have had the same problems with Pln forrestii. But I have now bought a clone sold as Pln forrestii 'Vietnam'. This one is as beautifull as the ordinary forrestii, but much more tolerant in culture.
Regards Erling

Thanks Erling for your advice - I'll look out for 'Vietnam' - I wonder if you know of a supplier who I can contact at the end of 2016?
Regards John
And here is today's reason for me to be cheerful - Riah Shan - which opened this morning.

Riah Shan and Confirmation (from a bloom in December 2015) are the only two hybrids I have with Pln. maculata as a parent.

[karel_t]

Hello John
I have had the same problems with Pln forrestii. But I have now bought a clone sold as Pln forrestii 'Vietnam'. This one is as beautifull as the ordinary forrestii, but much more tolerant in culture.
Regards Erling

Hi John.
The question is, what is P. forrestii var. Vietnam? Firstly, it is NOT a clone! This name appeared in culture for the first time about 10 years ago with plants coming from Chen-Yi. It is a name for plants originating from North Vietnam. I’ve had many opportunities to see and grow these plants and they have all looked different. So P. forrestii ‘Vietnam’ is not a clone - they would have been all the same - eg. P. forrestii 'Buttercup' is a clone. I found, there is not a visible difference between Chinese and Vietnamese plants. The same it is about the cultivation. Habitats of both is same. Interesting is, that the Vietnamese plants often grow on mossy limestone rocks or cliffs. However it doesn’t mean that they require or tolerate calcium. I guess that the cultivation of P. forrestii is different from year to year and very depends from the conditions in a given year. For me work very well to grow them in a pond baskets in a life common moss (Pleurozium schreberi), not in sphagnum. See here: http://pleione.cz/popisy/obrazky/Pln.-forrestii-13.jpg

Nice P. Riah Shan 

K.

[erf]

Hi
@ Karel. Thanks for correecting me. But I do have had problems growing Pleione forrestii during the years, but since I bought this "variant" they have flowered nicely every year from all  bulbs and under the same conditions as the once I had before. But of course it could be a coincidence.

@ John. I bought Pleione forrrestii 'Vietnam' from David at Koolplants. And very nice Riah Shan, mine are late this year.

Actually forrestii is flowering right now, opend yesterday so it will gain a bit more color during the flowering periode. Also flowering yesterday is Pleione humilis.

Regards Erling

[sjusovare]

Oddly, this year they all seem to be early for me, even though they're in the fridge, so I don't see what triggered them (except maybe that they entered dormancy early too because of a cold spell we had in mid september) ..
This morning, it's Pln. Glacier Peak

[Slug Killer]

Hi John.
The question is, what is P. forrestii var. Vietnam? Firstly, it is NOT a clone! This name appeared in culture for the first time about 10 years ago with plants coming from Chen-Yi. It is a name for plants originating from North Vietnam. I’ve had many opportunities to see and grow these plants and they have all looked different. So P. forrestii ‘Vietnam’ is not a clone - they would have been all the same - eg. P. forrestii 'Buttercup' is a complete lone. I found, there is not a visible difference between Chinese and Vietnamese plants. The same it is about the cultivation. Habitats of both is same. Interesting is, that the Vietnamese plants often grow on mossy limestone rocks or cliffs. However it doesn’t mean that they require or tolerate calcium. I guess that the cultivation of P. forrestii is different from year to year and very depends from the conditions in a given year. For me work very well to grow them in a pond baskets in a life common moss (Pleurozium schreberi), not in sphagnum. See here: http://pleione.cz/popisy/obrazky/Pln.-forrestii-13.jpg

Nice P. Riah Shan 

K.

The Pleione forrestii Vietnam originating from myself have been grown from seed. I originally had 20 bulbs. Out of these, about 5 grew very well compared to others that slowly got smaller and smaller until they died. The 5 that grew well were pollinated and all my current forrestii var Vietnam are seed produced by these original plants. So yes they will be different clones as they are grown from seed of the selected strongest plants. 'Vietnam' is a group name not cultivar.

Flowering size bulbs do seem to be smaller in size than Chinese Pln. forrestii but this could just be based on my own experience and bulbs I've had in my collection.

The plants I've grown from seed do grow better but I select the strongest to pollinate and also only keep the strongest bulblets from the flasks. Due to the quantity I grow in flasks and lack of space, smaller weaker bulblets are thrown away when taken out of the flask.

My profile photo is one of the original plants.

Regards

David

[john hodgson]

Interesting is, that the Vietnamese plants often grow on mossy limestone rocks or cliffs. However it doesn’t mean that they require or tolerate calcium. I guess that the cultivation of P. forrestii is different from year to year and very depends from the conditions in a given year. For me work very well to grow them in a pond baskets in a life common moss (Pleurozium schreberi), not in sphagnum. K

Karel - what you say clarifies what 'Vietnam' means and doesn't mean very clearly. My growth method is similar - the picture shows a 25cm pond basket. The roots will grow into an 8cm thick layer of a coarse and robust wood moss (I don't know the species but possibly a Brachythecium). The  walls of the basket are also moss-lined (my hope is that this will help stabilise moisture content and temperature round the roots). The core of the basket is a mix of chopped moss, coarse perlite and potting bark. There are 8 new to me pseudobulbs from 2 sources. This basket was removed from the fridge 4 days ago and is now in a frost-free garage. I will not put it in my shaded greenhouse this time because the temperature fluctuates more greatly, even at this time of the year. When spring arrives it will go on a north facing table which is surfaced with capillary matting.

The Pleione forrestii Vietnam originating from myself have been grown from seed. I originally had 20 bulbs. Out of these, about 5 grew very well compared to others that slowly got smaller and smaller until they died. The 5 that grew well were pollinated and all my current forrestii are seed produced by these original plants - David

However, reading what David says, it seems like the robustness or tolerance inherited through natural variance is just as important as - if not more so than - cultural technique.   I live in hope!  If, David, your little population retains any enhanced robustness into the future, then celebrations! I worry that hard-to-cultivate pleiones may otherwise fuel a demand that might, somewhere in the chain, be supplied by wild stock. (Mine are all - I sincerely hope - raised in Europe, though none of my current batch are the seed raised ones from Kool sadly!)

[Slug Killer]

They look a little lonely in there John. Need another 50 at least :-)
 
Unfortunately many of my bulbs were all over the bench this morning after a rat or two got in over night. No damage as such thankfully. Might have to change my user name to Rat Killer shortly.

[john hodgson]

They look a little lonely in there John. Need another 50 at least :-

David
Yep... so if all goes well, lots of young'uns will quickly crowd up and fill the space! I'm still a basket half full kind of an optimist.
Failing that...
John

[john hodgson]

David
Yep... so if all goes well, lots of young'uns will quickly crowd up and fill the space! I'm still a basket half full kind of an optimist.
Failing that... ... I know a man who can help?

These pleiones are a lot less lonely:
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Unfortunately many of my bulbs were all over the bench this morning after a rat or two got in over night.

Good luck with playing splat the rat. Mice (who had once made a nest in/with one of my boots) turfed some out once or twice, but a rogue blackbird did the biggest randomising mix-up a few years ago in the greenhouse, when it eyed up the most promising pots for worms (yes, my more expensive ones that I had lavished extra potting-up care upon with tempting long strands of live moss). The lesson learned was that I now only ever put my plentiful pleione hybrids (the ones in troughs or large pots) at ground level. The rest go higher.
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I also now have a greenhouse door insert made of a frame of chicken wire so that I can keep it ventilated but keep out larger unwanted guests (bumble bees still get access!)

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