50 replies to this topic

[AndrewLuton]

I bought 2 bulbs from ebay in the winter and as you can see they are doing rather well (well one was a bugger bulb than the other)
Cannot find a great deal of info out about them and would love to know a bit more about then such as care over the winter and also if it is likely to flower this year. :)

[gardenofeden]

They flower before the leaves come out, so no, they will not flower this year.  

Feed the plant well over summer. When the leaves die down put them in a cool but frost-free place and start watering again when the leaves sprout in spring.  

That said, I have mine outside all year and they can survive being wet and frozen, but they are just a bit later coming up.

Please try and keep your photos at about 750 pixels maximum dimension

[greenBen]

Feed with high nitrogen fertiliser (eg Chempac #2) every two weeks during the season. This way the tuber will swell up to the size of a large orange in a good year! The leaf can get up to 18" across too, and the stem can reach 3ft. Try to give it a bit of a drier winter if possible.

greenBen

[greenBen]

Incidentaly... it's Sauromatum venosum.

The species name 'guttatum' was dropped many years ago.

There is a rumour of a second species, but it is extremely rare in the wild and virtually unknown in cultivation (even in botanic gardens). Needless to say I haven't got one (yet).

greenBen

[AndrewLuton]

greenBen said:

Incidentaly... it's Sauromatum venosum.

The species name 'guttatum' was dropped many years ago.



greenBen

Ahh that explains why I could not find out much on the internet. I wonder why it was dropped.

Apologises also to anyone offended my by spelling of "bigger"

[greenBen]

If you find info on the net you might be quite suprised when you see it's distribution...!

greenBen

[Stephen Crane]

I agree with Fred Andrew. Although I cant think of many opportunities to bugger a bulb...but we do strange things for the love of our plants!!

[AndrewLuton]

Found on some website a picture of it flowering when not planted in a pot. No idea how that works.
:?

[greenBen]

It is not unusual for certain members of the Arum family (Aroids) to grow and flower, and then put out roots.

Sauromatum puts out a flower spike first, then will put out a leaf usually a couple of weeks later, at which point it will also put out roots.

greenBen

[AndrewLuton]

greenBen said:

Feed with high nitrogen fertiliser (eg Chempac #2) every two weeks during the season.

Is liquid horse manure ok? It's a bit more natural and my partner has a horse so there is no shortage of the stuff. (Anyone passing locally is welcome to a ton of it )

[greenBen]

Any fertiliser is fine.

greenBen

[AndrewLuton]

greenBen, on 28th July 2007 - 15:10 PM, said:

Any fertiliser is fine.
greenBen

OK, so my voodoo stem had gone all floppy and the leaves are turning brown . Should I cut the stem off or leave it be? Is it ok to overwinter is a shed (which will drop below freezing) or will more warmth be required?

Cheers

[ada]

Andrew,ijust leave mine to dry up,then cut the dead stuff off.Then i leave it in the greenhouse all winter but leave it bone dry until it starts to grow again.Easy.

[AndrewLuton]

Just dug up the bulb in the pot and found this..........





It has about 5 smaller bulbs growing on it, 1 I knocked off.

Do I need to cut the roots off? It also has a new shoot on the top. Can this be left to dry out until the spring?


Thanks

Edited by AndrewLuton, 16 October 2007 - 16:22 PM.

[AndrewLuton]

This is the bulb after a good clean up. Looks a bit alien to me. Going to pop it away in a cupboard under the stairs till spring. Looking forward to a flower next year........maybe.



By AndrewDF

[wasted]

AndrewLuton, on 27th July 2007 - 20:49 PM, said:

Ahh that explains why I could not find out much on the internet. I wonder why it was dropped.
Apologises also to anyone offended my by spelling of "bigger"

Gotta be one of the best typos this year!

[greenBen]

Wow, good sized tuber you have there. I have three which are about 6" diameter. The bigger the tuber the bigger the inflorescence and leaf!

Sauromatum is every good at producing offsets- you would not believe how many...! Seperate the ones that detatch easily and grow them a little away from the main parent (so they have space to grow!) and enjoy your free clump!

There's no real need to cut the roots off- just let them dry out and then rub the dried roots off in spring.

greenBen

[AndrewLuton]

greenBen, on 22nd October 2007 - 20:31 PM, said:

There's no real need to cut the roots off- just let them dry out and then rub the dried roots off in spring.

greenBen

It already has what appears to be a new shoot on top of it, it was there when I took off the main stem when it wilted.
The way it is going I will have a forest of them next year, watch this space when I want to get rid of them

[AndrewLuton]

The bulb now has a shoot which is getting bigger every day. Should it be doing this already at this time of the year?At the moment it is on a shelf in the kitchen. Should it go somewhere dark and cool to make it go dormant?

Cheers