Tropaeolum 2011

[Regelian]

Jean-Patrick,
I have started seedlings of Tr. beuthii, Tr. smithii, SRGC hybrid seed, Tr. sessilifolium and Tr. azureum, all this Spring.  All but the Tr. beuthii and Tr. azureum have sprouted, did well in the cool and them almost wilted off during the heatwave.  I placed them under some sprouting Hemerocalls on the rockery wall and watered well.  They have recovered, but I don't know if there will be bloom or not.  We are currently enjoying a cool spell, but it may be too late. On my balcony they would have fried in the heat.

[west wind]

Jean- Patrick,
Your Trop is just gorgeous!!
My Tropaeolum season is coming to an end.
Today I dag up  the tropaeolum tubers other than Tr.sessilifolium ,Tr.pentaphyllum and Tr.leptophyllum,which are just about to bloom.

This season they are better than before ,thanks to the favourable climate perhaps.

The seeds of Tr.moritzianum you had generouly sent me germinated perfectly !!
Now they are blooming for the second time.
I do appriciate your sharing  excellent seeds.

Other Tropaeolum species I grew this seasons are:
Tr.azureum
Tr.brachyceras
Tr.cilliatum(yet to bloom)
Tr.hokkerianum hokkerianum
Tr.x lepidum
Tr.pentaphyllum
Tr.polyphyllum(yet to bloom)
Tr.smithii
Tr.tenuiostre
Tr.tricolor
Tr.tuberosum(just germinated)

Some images of my Trops this season are shown below.

Tazuko

[Jozef Lemmens]

Jean-Patrick, I have the same troubles. Most of my plants faded away too quickly. They flowered very poor.
After all, I have more and more troubles to keep my plants healthy.
R. Clifton (Geraniaceae Group) wrote me that my plants may suffer from fungal attacks.
I kept Tropaeolum sessilifolium in a sand bed last winter.

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Wow Tazuko!!! extraordinary pictures...Especially the Tr Hookerianum!!! This shows how well your plants are grown. Congratulations! And I think one reason would be to grow the tubers in BIG pots. Which -unfortunately- I'm not able to do on a balcony...Hundreds of flowers on such a plant, I bet this is quite unusual.
I've sown a few Tr Hookerianum seeds but they didn't produce such a display... and failed to produce a tuber...If you gather enough seeds on your plant would you save a few for me?
I have another query about Tr Leptophyllum. What's the origin of your plant? Chile flora?
Best wishes
J-P

[Jupiter]

The photos above are absolutely stunning and inspiring! Tazuko, your smithii is outstanding and that azureum is dripping with flowers. Here in Australia it is almost winter and I'm germinating Trops at the moment. I have good germination already on my peregrinum, one germination so far on azureum seed which I collected myself in 08. I'm sewing all the seed from 09 and earlier because it's probably reaching the limit of its viability. I'm very anxious to see if I get germination of my smithii seed. Last season none germinated at all.

I have an absolute glut of tricolor tubers, so many I considered throwing some away in fact. I more than happy to trade them with members for seed of species I'm seeking.

[west wind]

Jean-Patrick

The tr.hookerianum was grown from some tubers,that's why they bloomed so well,I think.
I'm willing to keep their seeds for you when they 're ripe.

 Last season I bought tr. leptophyllum seeds  from Chile Flora,but they were wrong ones.
Tr. leptophyllum of this season come from  the Seed EX of North American Rock Garden Society.
Two of the four seeds  germinated and are growing now.

Jupiter,

Thank you for your compliments.
My smithii of this season are grown from the seeds sowed Feb.2010.
Best wish for your success.

Tazuko

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Tazuko,
Your Tr TRICOLOR is really a marvel!!! And you grow your plants in very ingenious pot with incorporated wire for them to twine through...
And the Tr X LEPIDUM is a real kaleidoscope!!!
I have another species which bloomed early enough but quickly wilted with the hot weather. Despite hand pollination, no seed produced.

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Hi Jupiter,
Tr SMITHII seems to be a little tricky to germinate. Successful growers might have had germination indoors but it never happened for me. The only seeds of this species which germinated were sown outdoors ( either protected or not from the cold ). I would advise you to try both methods.
Good luck!
J-P

[Jupiter]

Thanks J-P, I have 2 treatments for smithii this year; one lot of seed were stratafied in the refrigerator for a month prior to sowing, the other lot sowed directly. Time will tell.

Lesley, your ciliatum is absolutely stunning - regardless of your harsh criticisms of the plant, I'd love to have one like that in my garden!

[Lesley Cox]

Certainly it's very nice in a swag, it's just all the outliers that go into everything else that are a real nuisance. Perhaps I'm more than ordinarily prejudiced against it as I bought it dormant and so sight unseen, a number of years ago, as T. azureum!

[Jupiter]

Well that goes some way towards explaining it... T. azureum it certainly is not.

I've got a gazebo I'm envisaging it climbing over...

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

Here's one tropaeolum hybrid grown from seed this year. The flowers were quite big and the most interesting was that each one remained open for more than 3 weeks!! This is very unusual.

[Lesley Cox]

The long time each flower was open suggests it will be infertile, do you think?

[Regelian]

The long time each flower was open suggests it will be infertile, do you think?

Lesley,

I was thinking the same.  The plus and minus sides of fertility/infertility.  Could, also, be that there is no other compatible pollen available and it is self-infertile, but I'm not sure this happens in Tropaeolum.  In any case, Jean-Patrick, a beautiful and worthy flower. I ghope it proves winterhardy.  I'm trying my T. sessilifolium outside, as they should handle -15°C in Chile, and we are literally never that cold for more than a night  or two every 5 years.  As I planted the seedlings out this week, they had good-sized tubers already.  I feel like I'm finally having some success with this very special genus.

Jamie

[Jean-Patrick AGIER]

The long time each flower was open suggests it will be infertile, do you think?

Lesley,
I think you're right for I haven't been able to hand pollinate the flowers: no pollen available. This also happens on some flowers of other species. For instance on Tr SMITHII sometimes there are flowers with pollen and sometimes not ( on the same plant ).

J-P