Pleione 2012

[Torsten Junker]

The first pleione of the year for me, apologies for the picture quality, they were taken just now in artificial lighting.
Picture 'a' shows the colour more accurately, I'll take some better photos when the flower opens up fully.

[KBruyninckx]

let us start the season with a Pleione humilis series

clone 'A'


clone 'B' with no yellow on the lip:


clone [AO-08119] more brick red in colour as opposed to the previous two:


clone [AO-08681], a recent addition to the collection which Paul should recognize, this is his medal winner


clone 'Bigu Gomba' [AO-08684], a recent addition to the collection for which I can take no credit on getting it to flower

[KBruyninckx]

next Pleione Kituro 'Sulphur' [AO-08251]

[KBruyninckx]

and the last one for 'today', Pleione Lhasa 'Blushes' [AO-08575]:

[Tony Garthwaite]

I like your Humilis AO-08119! Not so sure about the yellow creeping into the previous photo which is similar to one seen earlier this month.

[Maren]

Nice pleiones, Kenneth, mine are a few days behind.

[Darren]

Nice pleiones, Kenneth, mine are a few days behind.

Glad you said that Maren - I was worried my humilis and forrestii were being unusually late. I estimate at least another week to 10 days before humilis flowers.

[ronm]

Well worth waiting for though, . Once here they'll be gone soon enough, anticipation is part of the excitement,

[Maren]

Hi Darren,
you're doing it the proper way. I am trying to coax them along a bit with higher temperatures so that they flower by the 14th March. It's not an easy thing to do, especially when one hasn't got proper facilities. Calorgas have been especially unhelpful by not delivering gas when promised, just when we had the recent cold spell. My fingernails are worn down to nothing.

As a result of my cranking up the heat (10degrees C minimum), strange things have happened. The P. Zeus Weinstein have been and gone, the first batch didn't like it one bit, but there is another one coming in a cooler place. The P. formosana are in full bud and looking really nice - drat and double drat; they'll be over by the required date. I have taken one batch and put it with some cypripediums in a cold frame. This is probably asking for trouble, but it'll be interesting to see what happens.

I call it lifelong education. Win a few, loose a few

[Sarmienta]

Very nice Pleiones and wonderfull pictures Kenneth,especially the medal winner  . I just have to start with  P formosana. Normely i keep them in the garden,but these bulbs i got from the local gardencentre.........

[Torsten Junker]

Lovely photos of some fantastic humilis, my clone from Paul (clone [AO-08681]) are still another 10-14 days off opening as well.

Don't know why my camera is struggling so much with getting a half decent picture of this but Pleione forrestii:

[Paul Cumbleton]

Nothing wrong with P. formosana, though I find it not easy to grow (contrary to the usual view). It is - so far - the only Pleione produced in large numbers for the general horticultural market. One Dutch company produced 20,000 P. formosana last year for supply to garden centres. Typically for the Dutch nurseries still, they grow them in pure peat.

Paul

[karel_t]

The first for me are traditionally P. humilis. The plants safely survived a temperature -2°C a couple weeks ago with flower buds without any damage.
K.

[Maren]

Nice flower, Karel.

Here is a very pale form of Pleione Piton. I rather like it and can't wait for it to multiply into a bowlful.

And another P. Piton, in the more usual colours.

[ronm]

Both delightful Maren, but love that 50a.