Update on CPS

Well i sowed my drosera and nepenthes seeds on the 22nd Oct and yesterday when i went to check on the pots, i noticed that the d.tokaiensis, d.spatulata and d.oblanceolata pots have germinated! d.paradoxa and my nepenthes seeds seems to be still dormant so keeping my fingers crossed! well temperature inside the tank goes up to 29 degrees celsius now. hmm wondering if that is too hot for the droseras…i think should be ok cos temperature in asia can sometimes get up to 30 degrees celsius or more. not so sure about humidity levels since i do not have a hygrometer yet. have to get one soon so i can monitor it.

What i did tho was put the tokaiensis, oblanceolata and paradoxa pots together on one tray and filled the tray with a bit of distilled water. i am experimenting here. hehe hoping that the hormones from the tokaiensis and oblanceolata might leech out onto the tray and seep into the pot of paradoxa seeds. lets see if they germinate eventually. (keeping fingers crossed)

i noticed a flower scape showing on my 3rd d.intermedia so now i have 3 intermedias about to flower! that means more seeds! how exciting! i did trimmed off the dead leaves and had chose the not so dead looking ones and put it into a cup of distilled water, and the ones that looks almost expired i chuck it into another pot of peat, sp moss and perlite mix. lets see if these lots will propagate like the last lot of leaves which i had left in the main pot (those propagated into baby intermedias)

so far so good! i am happy and satisfied for now. will sow the d.indica (green and red form) and byblis liniflora seeds tonight.

at the rate things are going, i think i need to find another table for the other tank so that i can set it up for the new batch of drosera babies coming!

 

 

New Plants

I seriously swear i was going off regular plants for good and just focus on carnivorous plants cos they are somewhat easier in terms of no fertilizer needed etc etc. Carnivorous plants can be somewhat fastidious but i feel it is easier for me since i can more or less contain it within a certain location and control it from attacks from pests, at least so far so good on my few current drosera intermedias.

Anyway I was at the nursery a week ago to get some new pots and I chance upon a pot of chamomile, this flowering succulent, strawberry plants and pimiento seedlings. I got tempted and waivered and finally caved in and bought them all.

Chamomile – well i had germinated them from seeds successfully but they never grow any bigger then 1cm tall for me and would expire. This one does not look fantastically lush but it seems to be more established so decided i would try it this round with a bought plant. Lets hope this time it works for me.

Chamomile Blooms

Chamomile

Strawberry plants – this is my 3rd time trying, i managed to kill them the 1st 2 times.

Strawberry Plants

CU of Strawberry Plant

Doesn’t it look healthy! Let’s hope i get some strawberries from them soon heheh.

Pimiento seedlings – well they are somewhat like capsicum, but the shape is more heart shape, compact and smaller than a red capsicum, they taste better too especially when roasted in the oven with some garlic and oil. The seedlings looks exactly like a chilli or capsicum seedling would look. sorry no pics to show here.

Lewisia Cotyledon, a succulent - just cos they tend to grow better for me and this one has wonderful bright pink blooms. (thanks to a reader, J who identified the genus for me)

Lewisia Cotyledon

ECU of a Lewisia Cotyledon flower

Lewisia Cotyledon

Doesn’t it look pretty?

Spring

Spring was officially here on 21st September. This is my 4th spring in Argentina. I look forward to spring, mainly cos you see a medley of colors coming to life after 3 months of dull grey dreary winter colors (it does not snow here), so you can imagine my excitement when spring approaches. Spring also means its time to go pot up my seedlings that i have planted during fall or winter and kept indoors. Either that or it means a visit to the nursery to get new plants!

Well this spring was a little different. First I was able to witness some wonderful blooms from a friend’s, Norma, garden. In her garden there were numerous rose bushes, an assortment of fruit trees and other foliage plants. What really interested me were the fruit trees really. Now mind you, Norma is no avid gardener, tell her about mealy bugs, thripes and red spider mites and she would go “QUE?”, meaning “What?” in spanish. Norma speaks english and understands it only if i speak slowly, so very often i get excited and start blabbering off she would go “QUE? sorry i do not understand you, pls speak slowly” hehe. Anyway well she has a plum tree, 2 nectarine trees, 1 cherry tree and 2 to 3 grape vines in her garden. For a non avid gardener, how she came into possession of a garden abundant with ornamental and fruit trees is because she rented the house.

And so i was busy pottering round her garden on the 21st checking out the plants and blooms and here are some pictures to share.

Nectarine Bloom

Nectarine Blooms

Nectarine Tree

Plum Blooms

Plum Tree

Cherry Blooms

and an assortment of some spring ornamental blooms

i like this next one

Tristagma Uniflorum

ECU of Tristagma Uniflorum

Underside of Tristagma Uniflorum