Wanted: weird or cristate Sempervivum

[KentGardener]

Hi All

Just wondering if anyone has any 'weird or crested' Sempervivum plants they could spare an offset from.  Or perhaps you could suggest to me the names of any 'strange ones' that I can then look out for.

I have 'Oddity' and 'Griggs Surprise' already and would love to add some more unusual looking ones to my little garden.

Many thanks

John   

[maggiepie]

I can't offer you any, John but I would like to see pics of the ones you have.
I'm just starting to get interested in sempervivums.

[angie]

I can't offer you any, John but I would like to see pics of the ones you have.
I'm just starting to get interested in sempervivums.

I was just thinking the same, would like to see some picitures please.
Angie

[maggiepie]

gmta Angie 

[pel1]

I took this photo at Wisley recently, they have some nice semps in and around the alpine house-and a few for sale too (not this one though, unfortunately) good luck wit your search, James

[angie]

James that's a lovely sempervivum wish I lived close to Wisley I would never be away from there. When I went down last year to the Hampton Court Flower show I visited Wisley. I thought it was amazing. The only bad thing was it was really heavy rain, so hopefully will get back this year and maybe it will be a sunny day. We came away with a car load of plants
Angie

[Arie.v]

Interested in semps look at this website www.kket2000.com
and for a Canadian nursery Helen try www.cavendishperennials.com
Jack does mail order he lives close to me, and I have bought lots of semps from him, over 400 named varieties in stock
If you want some I can send some chicks of mine in the spring I have about 50 of his varieties I grow most of them in pots and overwinter them in a greenhouse minimum heat +2c

[Lori S.]

Why do you winter sempervivums indoors, Arie?  Are you growing species/varieties that are tender?  If so, what are they?  

[maggiepie]

Arie, thanks for the links.
Do you know if the cavendish site is going to be putting up any pics in the near future?
Secondly, can you post some pics of some of your plants?

[Kristl Walek]

John,
I might be able to send you some offsets across the ocean....my over 400 species/cultivar collection did accompany me on my move across Canada this summer. I have most of the "official" cristate/weird forms normally available---but more interestingly, have isolated a fair number of my own that began to form cristate offsets over the years. I have never quite understood why this happens---and whether the cristate form actually remains stable over time. I assume it is a genetic process (or is it environmental) or both?

I'll organize and plant all the semps this spring (most plunged for this winter) and see what I can come up with. Would you send me your address by personal email.

Kristl

[Arie.v]

Helen I don't think Cavendish is going to put up pictures I think he is ready to retire soon
And no I don't have any pictures right now I will take some this summer
Lori I have them in Clay pots and don't want to crack the pots in the Winter
I set the pots around the Garden in the summer in groups of three on the bare spots in the garden I also have a wall around the front yard and display them there
We get a lot of comments from people walking  or driving by where otherwise they don't see them

[Kristl Walek]

The interesting thing about reading this topic at this point in time, is that I had just recently been organizing some of my old pictures to move to an external hard drive---and found a series of pictures related to plant festivals I used to host on my property in Ontario for small growers of interesting plants to showcase their wares.

Jack and his wife (Cavendish) attended a couple of these---I am sure this picture of Jack and his booth was at least 10 years ago. I lost track of him the past few years, but was sure he had already retired before now. It was good to hear news that he is still active and out there in the universe.

[KentGardener]

Hi Kristl

Thank you very much for posting - I shall send you a PM.

Angie and Maggie - alas it would not be worth showing a photograph of my single rosettes.  A quick google search for either "sempervivum oddity" (which has little mouths at the end of each leaf  )or 'sempervivum "grigg's surprise"' (each leaf if cylindrical rather than flat) should show the two 'monstrose' forms that I have already.

regards

[cohan]

Interested in semps look at this website www.kket2000.com
and for a Canadian nursery Helen try www.cavendishperennials.com
Jack does mail order he lives close to me, and I have bought lots of semps from him, over 400 named varieties in stock
If you want some I can send some chicks of mine in the spring I have about 50 of his varieties I grow most of them in pots and overwinter them in a greenhouse minimum heat +2c

i was pleased to see cavendish offering more species with locality data in the last catalogue, rather than just the hybrids that most places seem to focus on (of course he still offers far more hybrids/cultivars than species);
i hadn't heard he was about to retire, but had heard that he was going to do only wholesale...

[fermi de Sousa]

i hadn't heard he was about to retire, but had heard that he was going to do only wholesale...

That's a new one, Cohan, "Old Nurserymen never die, they just go Wholesale!" 
cheers
fermi