Bulbs from South Africa - 2010

[Lesley Cox]

While I don't have problems with SA bulbs seed in general, I DO have, with Gladiolus species so I may try this interesting method. You mention sol James. Is it actually SOIL, or a more humusy, gritty mixture such as one might use for potting alpines?

If the window were not needed to put light into a room, one could put two or three strings of pots across the window and save even more bench space. I guess the attachments on the sides would need to be very strong and secure to prevent the whole lot crashing down, likewise the string itself.

[Hristo]

James,
Any info on germination rates?
Cheers
Chris

[Darren]

Angie - those Massonia are about 5 years old. They reach flowering size in only 3 (sometimes 2)!

Seed germination: I usually sow my SA bulb seed in late august (my birthday is my reminder to get the job done). I usually get germination in late september to early october and there is still enough time to get a good amount of growth so the seedlings are not too tiny when winter arrives. James is right - the cool nights are crucial but a significant difference between day and night temperatures is also very beneficial and for this reason I won't sow SA seeds from November onwards as the days are often not warm enough, plus the little seedlings are quite vulnerable once the weather deteriorates. That said - I'm still getting new seedlings from this years (2009) august sowings!

[cohan]

Hi,
Re recent discussions about raising gladioli fromn seeds, here is a photo of the "Bag" method I use for all SA bulb species. It is vital that the soil is sterilised before sowing.
reards, James.

i put most seed pots into ziplock bags--there is little chance i could keep anything moist enough if they werent  enclosed in some way, and this is the easiest; hanging them is a different twist!

[pel1]

Lesley- When I refer to soil I mean my standard John Innes/grit potting mix, but this is my first try with glads so I can't report on their long-term preferences. The seed bags are strung on wire to avoid snapping. If you were to try this method on an indoor window it would need to be in an unheated room to get the all-important day/night temperature difference.

Hirsto-of the three glad species I tried from seed this year, I have had about 50% germination in g. alatus and 80% in hyalanus and arcuatus. As to other genera, massonia depressa 50%, m. pustulata 90%, ornithagalum thrysoides, 70%, lachenalia, mixed results, some species 90%, others still waiting, sparaxis tricolor came up like cress-anyone want to exchange next year?!

Darren- worth knowing about the need for high day temperatures, I probably sowed some seeds too late this year.......

Cohan-yes, zip lock bags everytime!

[angie]

Thanks Darren, that's good news to me I thought your plant would be really old to get to that size. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge and images of your plants. I manged to keep my greenhouse around 5c only went down to 4c once so I thought that's not bad considering the temperatures we have had. When my electric bill comes in I shall just have to remember this is my hobby and if I am going to heat my greenhouse in the winter I better grow as much of these plants as I can and enjoy my greenhouse in the winter.

James,  loved your pots on a washing line thanks for sharing this with us, I take lots of notes and all this is so much help, just wish my brain would keep all this information there but sadly not so, I have to write everything down. It would be nice to see how some more pictures of how the plants develop.

Angie
 

[Darren]

James - your 50% germination of alatus is 100% better than I've ever done.  

Angie - thank you for the update on your greenhouse temperature. I was actually thinking of you last week and was concerned that you had little chance of keeping the temperature up in your area. 4C would be absolutely fine so your plants will be quite happy.  Thanks to the sunshine the temperature in my greenhouse on saturday was around 15C until I opened the doors. I actually used two full watering cans (filled in the bath as the water butts are frozen solid) and had to repot some wilted Ranunculus asiaticus into bigger pots they had dried out so quickly after 3 days of sunshine and very low humidity. As the sun gets stronger it is a real danger period for me . Often I have to leave the greenhouse closed up if still frosty at 6am when I leave for work and if this is followed by a sunny day then temperatures can easily get too high. However - this weekend the sun was very welcome and the greenhouse was warmer than inside our house which is why my "just popping down the greenhouse for half an hour" turned into 3 hours!
 With regard to temperature management: I do use bubble insulation when there is a frost forecast but take it down on the south side once the weather becomes a bit milder, even for just a few days (I will take mine down tonight). The other sides stay bubble-wrapped all year round. In fact the north side is lined with 5cm thick polystyrene sheet up to eaves level and then covered with mirrors. This helps maximise insulation and reflected light from the side which gets no direct sun anyway. If I had a south facing wall I'd just use a lean-to. The south side I keep clear as much as possible to let the light in, and only insulate when absolutely necessary. Whenever external temperatures are above freezing the house is left fully open and the heater switched off.
My current electric fan heater is now powered via an external thermostat from TwoWests (range 0-40C). It is set to come on at approx 1 or 2C. Most winters in our area it barely bothers switching on. This year has been an exception, but I've been pleasantly surprised at how little time it has actually been running.

[angie]

Darren I am always saying to my mum just going to check on my greenhouse and before I know it its nearly lunch time, but my mum knows exactly what I am like and she never worries. I laugh if we are out for the day and the temperature is dropping quickly I am always saying better get back home as I have left my greenhouse open. I think some of my friends think I am a bit daft, but I don't care I get so much enjoyment from my plants and I don't want to kill off what I have took ages to acquire.
I to wasn't sure about the watering I just gave a small amount  but like you the other day I gave most of my plants a water. I have to remember which ones not to water so I have a board up on the greenhouse wall with all my instructions.
Hope to see plenty more pictures of your garden in the spring, the last pictures looked so interesting.
Will your roof top garden be alright.
Angie

[Darren]

I feel the same way as you Angie. My timetable pretty much revolves around my plants and they are my escape from life's little trials. I'm accustomed to people thinking I'm mad (I'm not rich enough to be eccentric), I don't really care either. I've been disappointed by people but rarely by my plants.

Thanks for your kind words, I guess I haven't posted many open garden pics for a while, or even on the new forum at all. I'm certain the roof garden will have survived this OK. I'm equally certain that my Vaccinium nummularium will have popped its clogs (it was badly damaged by last winter), and that the closely related V delavayi next to it will be untouched!

[David Nicholson]

I really do have to think about heating my greenhouse if I want to continue bulb growing and this might well have to be my last year of growing hybrid Primulas. If our winters are going to get colder I don't think I can continue to grow bulbs and Primula together.

What kind of heater do you use please Darren?

[Lesley Cox]

James - your 50% germination of alatus is 100% better than I've ever done.  

Me too, I've never had this species germinate, from several batches. AC has told me that many bulb seeds will have fungus attached to them, killing the embryo, so that storing with a dusting of Captan is a preventative of damping off. Or I may try Susan B's sterilization method with some newly donated seed. How about sowing the seed then simply watering with a can of water with the correct amount of fungicide in it? Then maybe putting into ziplocks or covering with food wrap until germination?

[Darren]

Lesley - thank you for telling me this. G alatus has been a source of much frustration! I will try your idea regarding following Susan B's technique when I get some more seed.

David - my heater is a Hotbox 2.8kw and easily copes with keeping my 7x2.4m greenhouse frost free in our quite mild area so I think it would work for you also. However I cannot really recommend the same model because its internal thermostat only goes down to 6C which is rather warmer than necessary and wasteful. This is why I later bought the separate external thermostat (an extra £50) to over-ride the internal setting and only allow power to the unit once the temp drops below 2C. If you shop around (TwoWests is a good starting point) you can find fan heaters which have thermostats that can be set down to 0C. One where the fan runs constantly and the heater only kicks in when necessary would be good - Mine can no longer do this as it gets no power at all now when the temp is above the set point.

[Paul T]

Well I'm glad that my seeds of alatus never were able to read this topic, they wouldn't have expired immediately in disgust.    I lost my original plants, but was given seed by someone many years ago.  Plenty of them germinated, and knowing me I didn't manage to sow them fresh.  First one flowered this spring, I posted a pic.  Best not to mention how long it has been in the seed pot and how long ago it "should" have flowered. 

[pel1]

Lesley-I have never tried sterilising the actual seed, but I always zap the compost in the microwave for a few minutes prior to planting in pots that have been soaked  in boiling water. The compost is always wet when I zap it to avoid the need to water with unsterilised water, when it cools I sow the seeds and put the pot into a zip-up bag as shown. Then I just keep an eye on them and remove any seed with signs of mould.

[Diane Whitehead]

I just checked my pots of Gladiolus alatus.  I have seedlings
from Silverhill - 3 from 2006, and at least 24 from 2009.  I
did not record how many of the 2006 seeds germinated. Both
lots were sown in summer and took two months to begin
germinating.

I sow almost all seeds in ziplock bags and put them in pots
only when they germinate.