Howard Snocken Posted March 13, 2008 Report Share Posted March 13, 2008 ...Lots of buds here too and the first pitchers just starting to push up on a S.flava from Virginia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amar Posted March 15, 2008 Report Share Posted March 15, 2008 (edited) Wow, I have a plant, and I really thought it was dead, a D. filiformis var. filiformis. It went dormant pretty early last year, and the black knobs on the surface went all soft and mushy, and were really wobbly on the soil suface. I really thought it had kicked the bucket. Now I look at it, and here is what I find! These are my first clear signs that dormancy is a thing of the past. They're like hatching cocoons! Edited March 19, 2008 by Amar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loakesy Posted March 15, 2008 Report Share Posted March 15, 2008 I'm up to about 30 Sarracenia flower buds now. And all of the dormant Drosera are waking up, except most of the binata! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mick Posted March 15, 2008 Report Share Posted March 15, 2008 Amar, have you seen Alien recently, don't look too closely will you!!! Mick. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amar Posted March 15, 2008 Report Share Posted March 15, 2008 (edited) No worries Mick. All this talk about everyone having flower buds on their Sarras made me do a thorough search, and lo and behold. My S. flava has its first bud. Edited March 15, 2008 by Amar Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
venusflytrapman Posted March 15, 2008 Report Share Posted March 15, 2008 I have only just had my first signs that winter is ending up here, so it is still going to be a while for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny... Posted March 15, 2008 Report Share Posted March 15, 2008 (edited) Amar, Am i seeing thing's..or is that a dead Darlingtonia seedling in the top picture? It sure look's like one..and a shame indeed if it is one.. I'm also puzzeled about the "Blackness" of the "netting" around the Filliformis bud's...i've never seen it this black..it usually stay's rather whiteish? Anyway..good to see they're still alive Edited March 15, 2008 by Danny... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amar Posted March 15, 2008 Report Share Posted March 15, 2008 Amar,Am i seeing thing's..or is that a dead Darlingtonia seedling in the top picture? It sure look's like one..and a shame indeed if it is one.. I'm also puzzeled about the "Blackness" of the "netting" around the Filliformis bud's...i've never seen it this black..it usually stay's rather whiteish? Anyway..good to see they're still alive Nope, not a dead cobra seedling, just some dead filiformis from last year. I also thought my filis were dead, when I saw that black hibernacula, glad I was wrong. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olivier Posted March 16, 2008 Report Share Posted March 16, 2008 mine is just as black, just a shame there's no hope of it ever hatching like an alien still, i think filli is a hard Drosera to keep (certainly indoors if you don't like filthy windows and curtains that are semi-glued together nice pics!! cheers, Olivier Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ilex Posted March 17, 2008 Report Share Posted March 17, 2008 (edited) First flower was open on March 1st. This was taken yesterday: It's one of my alatas, on the upper right there's a flava flower, and in the back, there are some fairly developed alata pitchers (one of them is opening right now). This was exactly one year ago taken from the same spot (more flowers this year): First flava pitcher opened that day, they are slower this year. The green and yellow thing in the background was a tomato plant. All this was thanks to 2 no-winters in a row. This one has been terribly mild (min 6ºC). Cool weather began earlier than usual so I think they got a decent rest, they didn't last year. Edited March 17, 2008 by ilex Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrAlmond Posted March 17, 2008 Report Share Posted March 17, 2008 All my plants are awakening now...35 flower buds (more or less) from my sarras but I expect to get 40 or 45... However...I will cut the most of them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted March 17, 2008 Report Share Posted March 17, 2008 Why? It takes energy to produce the seeds, but the plant gains more from photosynthesis through the actual flower over a season than it loses through growing the structure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LJ Posted March 17, 2008 Report Share Posted March 17, 2008 And not forgetting they look very nice!! I was only growing vfts this time last year so this will be my first time to see a sarra flower in the flesh.......plenty of buds forming and I can hardly wait for them to be open!! Heather Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loakesy Posted March 17, 2008 Report Share Posted March 17, 2008 Nowadays, the only flowers I cut off are capensis. But that's only to avoid the weeds! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrAlmond Posted March 17, 2008 Report Share Posted March 17, 2008 Why?It takes energy to produce the seeds, but the plant gains more from photosynthesis through the actual flower over a season than it loses through growing the structure. Because I always heard that flowers takes a lot of energy from the plant...however this can be wrong... This is my third year with sarras in flower...and this year I've a good number of flowers that will be useful for me to do some experiments about plants growth (with or without flowers). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Jearrard Posted March 18, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 Hi Alexis - I agree with you that the flower can provide a photosynthetic gain by the end of the season, but at the start of the season, the plant is developing its new tissues entirely from stored resources in the rhizome. The more of those it expends producing a flower, the less there is to produce early pitchers. Sarracenia flowers are terminal, new growth points develop from buds on the rhizome behind the flower. If the flower is removed at an early stage, there are enough resources for several new shoots to develop, early in the season. If the resources are used by the flower, then there will be less new shoots, and they won't start to grow pitchers until later in the season, have less time to develop, fatten etc. and store up resources for the following winter. Although the flower stalk may produce a photosynthetic gain over and above the resources needed to produce it, it reduces the potential for photosynthetic gain from the whole plant by reducing and delaying leaf production. The plant prospers, but it does not achieve its full potential. The earlier you can cut them off the better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diva Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 get 2 identical plants let one flower cut the other one and see if you can see the difference, i could but thats only in my opinion not a full blown scientific experiment just a simple observation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amar Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 Hi Alexis - I agree with you that the flower can provide a photosynthetic gain by the end of the season, but at the start of the season, the plant is developing its new tissues entirely from stored resources in the rhizome. The more of those it expends producing a flower, the less there is to produce early pitchers. Sarracenia flowers are terminal, new growth points develop from buds on the rhizome behind the flower. If the flower is removed at an early stage, there are enough resources for several new shoots to develop, early in the season. If the resources are used by the flower, then there will be less new shoots, and they won't start to grow pitchers until later in the season, have less time to develop, fatten etc. and store up resources for the following winter.Although the flower stalk may produce a photosynthetic gain over and above the resources needed to produce it, it reduces the potential for photosynthetic gain from the whole plant by reducing and delaying leaf production. The plant prospers, but it does not achieve its full potential. The earlier you can cut them off the better! Thanks John, interesting point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrAlmond Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 Hi Alexis - I agree with you that the flower can provide a photosynthetic gain by the end of the season, but at the start of the season, the plant is developing its new tissues entirely from stored resources in the rhizome. The more of those it expends producing a flower, the less there is to produce early pitchers. Sarracenia flowers are terminal, new growth points develop from buds on the rhizome behind the flower. If the flower is removed at an early stage, there are enough resources for several new shoots to develop, early in the season. If the resources are used by the flower, then there will be less new shoots, and they won't start to grow pitchers until later in the season, have less time to develop, fatten etc. and store up resources for the following winter.Although the flower stalk may produce a photosynthetic gain over and above the resources needed to produce it, it reduces the potential for photosynthetic gain from the whole plant by reducing and delaying leaf production. The plant prospers, but it does not achieve its full potential. The earlier you can cut them off the better! I agree... :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alexis Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 Hi John Don't you find that you end up with more, but somewhat smaller pitchers by nipping of the buds? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
passievrucht Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 I saw previous week a new pitcher emerging from my Sarracenia Purpurea... it grows veerry slow, but it is the beginning of a new season . and my Dionaea is starting to make some new traps, but so far, no flowers emerging out of the rhizomes. I don't expect very much flowers, at most 2 flowers. the others aren't at flowering size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
passievrucht Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 I checked my plants 10 min. ago, and I saw a flowerspike coming up in my Dionaea . I thought he was dead.... but I think I need a little more experience to say it is dead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny... Posted March 18, 2008 Report Share Posted March 18, 2008 Hi JohnDon't you find that you end up with more, but somewhat smaller pitchers by nipping of the buds? I hope not! I've just clipped out a few..(which i was not originally planning on).. My thought's alway's where, that clipping a flower would result into bigger pitchers! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Jearrard Posted March 19, 2008 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 Yes Alexis - I think you are often right. More pitchers because there are (potentially) more growth points. Also, the growth points start to grow earlier without a flower, so there is time for more pitchers to form. If there are more growth points, there will almost certainly be competition for resources between them, so individual pitchers will probably be smaller.(But the plant will be stronger and store more resources for next year). Danny - the biggest pitchers will come from the full size crowns that do not produce a flower (it may be my imagination, but these also seem to be the ones most prone to rotting in the winter). If the crown produces a flower, the pitchers will benefit if it is removed, but they may not be as large as they would have been if it hadn't happened in the first place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Natale Posted March 19, 2008 Report Share Posted March 19, 2008 Hi at all, Last year I left the flowers to my sarracenie and I noticed that they had a little development, the pitchers were few and small size; It is also true that I have had a mild winter and perhaps plants had already suffered a stress. This year I thought to cut all the flowers to see how they react and not create their stress, I thought to cut the flower in alternate years. C, Natale. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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