Jump to content

FlytrapRanch

Full Members
  • Posts

    277
  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    3

Everything posted by FlytrapRanch

  1. Update, November, 2016-- SD Kronos is now in the EU. A couple natural divisions of the SD Kronos Venus Flytrap are now in the care of an experienced grower, tissue-culturer and distributor in the EU for further growth, propagation and eventual distribution and sale.
  2. I usually don't like "freak" Venus Flytraps and prefer those that look (and function) more like the Flytraps in nature, but I like this particular variation. Very nice!
  3. Regarding Venus Flytrap trap size, these are just a few notes from my own experience growing and breeding Venus Flytraps for quite a few years. Most regular Venus Flytraps (those that are in nature or most like those in nature, not the unusually-shaped or "deformed" varieties), will occasionally produce a trap that is 1.5 inches (38 millimeters) or more, perhaps one or two during the year. Some plants do tend to have larger traps than others on average, although the trap size on them usually varies by quite a lot from leaf to leaf and at different times of the season. In my own experience, and this is simply and purely a personal opinion, the clone SD Kronos (disclaimer: I'm the breeder and original grower of SD Kronos) has produced the largest traps on average, during the entire year, of all the Venus Flytraps I've ever grown, including DC XL, B52, Ginormous, Big Mouth, Low Giant (the original Low Giant, not the fakes that were later distributed) and other so-called "giant" Venus Flytraps. A mature SD Kronos often produces traps that are 1.5 inches or larger (38 millimeters or larger); that is not just a rare or occasional occurrence, and in addition has several other characteristics that I personally like: low, prostrate growth, wide petioles and, once it becomes comfortable, very vigorous growth both above ground and (unlike B52) below ground level as well. Other than SD Kronos, my personal favorite large-trapped clones are Low Giant (again, the original Low Giant, not the later fakes that have only average and unimpressive growth and size), and Big Mouth. SD Kronos is slowly becoming a little more widely distributed in the United States (dozens of natural divisions and tissue-cultured clones of SD Kronos now exist in several locations in the U.S.), and I'm sure will be available in Europe and other areas at some time. I just hope that when a person acquires an SD Kronos Venus Flytrap, it will be an authentic SD Kronos and not a different clone or plant that someone is merely trading or selling as an "SD Kronos," as people have done with several other high-demand Venus Flytrap clones in the past including Low Giant and Dracula. These are merely personal opinions and notes.
  4. --- Distribution of SD Kronos to Date, October 10, 2016 As the original breeder and grower of the SD Kronos Venus Flytrap (Stephen Doonan, Flytrap Ranch, New Mexico, US), I still have the original parent plant and several of its largest (now mature) divisions, as well as several smaller, newer, younger divisions. The only plants of SD Kronos distributed as of now, that I am aware of, is as follows-- Several divisions to my friend in Texas, US, Mike DeFord (mdeford09 here at CPUKforum). Those plants have grown well, have produced some natural divisions, and Mike has tissue-cultured some of SD Kronos. One or two older plants and some young SD Kronos from Mike DeFord to Matt Miller in Oregon, US (FlytrapStore.com) A healthy young division sent to an experienced private grower in Hawaii, US Several young divisions recently sent to a CP grower friend in North Carolina, US An SD Kronos listed at Ebay (U.S., as of October 10, 2016) The above list represents the full extent of the distribution so far of the SD Kronos Venus Flytrap that I am aware of. --- Attached: Photo of young SD Kronos division.
  5. SD Kronos and other Venus Flytraps emerging from dormancy, March 28, 2016. These mature Venus Flytraps were grown side-by-side in identical conditions throughout dormancy. Front: SD Kronos; Back: MAD Snappy at left (a nice Venus Flytrap bred by friend Mike Deford in Texas), Jaws (Leo Song's original Jaws, not any of the several more recent impostors). :) Closeup--
  6. I now have three mother pots (larger, deeper pots that usually contain more than one plant) of SD Kronos, and I plan to begin to offer, in several months, a few single plants of SD Kronos to various growers in the United States that I know are experienced, conscientious and knowledgeable about Venus Flytraps, so that this clone can begin to have wider distribution. However, I don't do tissue culture, so my own distribution of SD Kronos will be limited to the U.S. Mike Deford (mdeford09 here at CPUKforum) does tissue culture plants and has sucessfully tissue cultured several jars of SD Kronos so far. He will also be distributing and selling SD Kronos. Hopefully, some SD Kronos will be available in the EU and UK sometime in 2016. However, please inquire about the sources of any "SD Kronos" being sold or traded, because as many of us know from past experience, various Venus Flytrap clones have been sold and traded that were not clones of the original plant of the same name (including Vigorous, Low Giant, and Fused Tooth, to name a few).
  7. It looks like a "cross teeth" version of Bristle Tooth with a few backwards-pointing teeth (marginal spines) like Coquillage. Very interesting plant.
  8. Although it's a little hard to tell for sure, from looking at the photo, it looks like there might be a few spider mites on one of the traps of the plant (the trap touching the ground at mid right looks like it may have a little spider mite damage). So you might want to check it with a magnifying loupe to know for sure. The plant is interesting. Fused Tooth often has the recurved trap margins, but I've rarely seen it on another Venus Flytrap.
  9. SD Kronos was one of a batch of several hundred seedlings grown from Flytrap Ranch seed germinated in late 2011. Within several months it had already outgrown all of the other Venus Flytraps in that group in terms of plant size, trap size and density of the rosette (number of leaves on the plant). SD Kronos is a prostrate plant (the leaves grow low to the soil surface all year, never upright), with short, wide leaves and large traps. Here is a baby picture--
  10. It is my hope that SD Kronos can and will be available to and enjoyed by whomever would like to grow it anywhere in the world. I'm proud of having produced the plant from my own breeding program, but it is NOT my primary aim to make money from this clone; I would rather have it be distributed and enjoyed by as many people as possible. I'm sorry it is taking so long to propagate SD Kronos, but that is typical with Venus Flytraps, even with the advantage of tissue culture to produce clones. I'm guessing that within 8 months to a year or two, SD Kronos will be much more available to anyone who wants it. Because someone might be tempted to sell another clone or typical Venus Flytrap as "SD Kronos" just to make money, try to obtain it from a trusted source, even if you must wait a little while for it to become available.
  11. SD Kronos is the result of the breeding program at FlytrapRanch.com, New Mexico, US. As of this time (July, 2015) sources for SD Kronos include-- * Myself (Stephen Doonan) - I have the original plant as well as a few natural divisions, and plan to grow some tissue cultured clones of SD Kronos for sale or distribution in the US. * Mike Deford in Texas, US (cpukforum username mdeford09) - Mike has several natural divisions of SD Kronos and is actively producing tissue culture jars of SD Kronos clones for possible sale to countries other than the US, as well as growing SD Kronos as individual plants (outside of tissue culture) which can only legally be sold within the US, while clone plantlets in sterile containers can be sold to people in most countries. For the time being, inquiries from UK or EU vendors or growers about the availability or price of flasks (sterile tissue culture containers) of SD Kronos plantlets can be directed to Mike, above. In time, I'm sure there will be additional US sources of sterile flasks of SD Kronos that can be legally shipped to countries worldwide.
  12. The original SD Kronos plant with natural divisions, ready to repot, mid-season, 2015
  13. It is now July, 2015, midseason for the Flytraps in the northern hemisphere. I gave one of my two pots of SD Kronos to Mike Deford, a friend in Texas who has been tissue culturing SD Kronos for wider distribution. This is the same pot and plants as pictured in the photo at the beginning of this discussion, at lower right in the photo, taken in March of this year. He took a couple new photos of it a few days ago, which show the growth in these last 4 months. Here they are--
  14. What a beautiful Venus Flytrap! Thank you for posting a photo and allowing everyone to see it, Lucien.
  15. FlytrapRanch

    SD Kronos

    Most of my Venus Flytraps are now emerging from dormancy, in New Mexico, US. Just wanted to post a quick photo I took several minutes ago of several containers of them including DC XL, FTS Towering Giant and SD Kronos.
  16. That is a nice clump of vigorous, undifferentiated cell growth in the middle of your plant, producing quite a few small new leaves, like callus tissue does in sterile tissue culture. Like others, it seems to me that your sphagnum moss is too wet for the general health of the plant, if it is that wet all the time. In warm weather it may not matter, but in cooler weather being so wet might encourage fungal or bacterial infection.
  17. In my experience, Venus Flytraps may produce flowerstalks out of season or at a young age if they are stressed, as many annual flowering plants do. After attempting to set seed, the primary Flytrap rosette may die (this may take some weeks to several months), while the plant tries to recover (if it has enough stored food and wasn't too stressed by being too wet all the time, etc.) by producing one or more natural divisions from the shared tissue of the rhizome. I usually cut off flowerstalks on plants that are still too small and not yet well-fed or robustly healthy enough. Interesting photo.
  18. Sawtooth appeared before Bristletooth (at least in my experience and memory), and when Bristletooth appeared, it was said that it was even more "sawtoothy" (serrated) than Sawtooth. However, in my experience growing both Sawtooth and Bristletooth, that was not the case and they appear almost identical. I almost stopped growing Bristletooth in preference to Sawtooth (because Sawtooth came before Bristletooth), but I decided to continue to grow both because Bristletooth's deep red trap color tended to be a little more purple (while Sawtooth was more orange) and Bristletooth seemed to produce deep color more readily or more often than Sawtooth. I still grow both Sawtooth and Bristletooth, and although my original preference was for Sawtooth, I now slightly prefer Bristletooth to Sawtooth, although Bristletooth does not live up to its description of having more "teeth" than Sawtooth or being a more "extreme" version of Sawtooth. Both are nice clones, although very similar.
  19. Like Trev, Stephen, Matt and others, I also see this growth anomaly occasionally (that looks like "Saurolophus"), like many other growth anomalies (such as two-headed or split traps, bifurcated in the middle of the "hinge" of the trap) in plants that usually produce or revert to their more typical type of growth. However, nice pics!
  20. Because Dionaea is accustomed to germinating the same season, shortly after falling from the plant, and because the seed is so tiny and its brittle, shiny black coat so thin, the seed tends to dry out rather quickly. So it can help to put them in a small plastic bag with most of the air removed (to prevent too much evaporation of the water in the seeds into the surrounding air) and store them in the refrigerator until needed. Older Dionaea seeds often float in water because they have dried too much, and their germination rate is therefore reduced, while fresh seed usually sinks to the bottom of a container of water when stirred. But older Dionaea seed can be reconditioned somewhat and their germination rate improved by soaking in pure water for 2-3 days, which usually causes most of the seeds to absorb water and sink, before sowing.
  21. Some generic dedicated miticides that are available in the United States (and hopefully in the UK, Australia and Europe) are: bifenthrin (Talstar is a brand name), avermectin (Avid is the brand name), fluvalinate (Mavrik brand), and dienochlor (Pentac, patent expired, now hard to find). I have used Pentac (dienochlor) for years and it works very well for spider mites, although as another member mentioned, one must treat the mites at least several times, perhaps 3-6 days between each treatment, to kill all the mites including the ones just emerged from previously-laid eggs.
  22. "SD Titan" to SD Kronos This seed-grown plant, formerly named SD Titan, has been renamed SD Kronos because of a conflict with another recently named plant, BCP Titan from Kamil Pasek at BestCarnivorousPlants.net. Kamil has already sold some of his BCP Titan, while I have not yet sold any SD Titan, so I agreed to relinquish the name and use another. I'm grateful to Phil Green (earlier in this discussion thread) for being critical enough of both the name (when it was SD Titan) and the plant to make me realize that I should probably speak and write about this favorite of my seed-grown plants in terms that sound less hyperbolic and less like marketing or advertising text. Thank you, Phil.
  23. Very nice photos, Lucien! Like Richard, some plants I like, others I don't, but you are obviously a good grower. Thanks for posting.
  24. FlytrapRanch

    Seeds

    It can help the germination rate of older seed to soak them in pure water for 2 or 3 days. Although some of the seed may be too dried to germinate, soaking can help to rehydrate and refresh seeds that have not already dried and died completely. I can't answer the question about the medium to sow the seeds in, not knowing what your current medium is composed of or your environmental conditions. More info about germinating Venus Flytrap seeds at VenusFlytrap.info: http://venusflytrap.info/adv-grow-venus-fly-traps-from-seed.html
  25. Even without seeing the insects themselves, the leaf damage is very typical of spider mites. Spider mites (both the bright orange and translucent 2-spotted spider mites) love hot, dry weather and develop into huge infestations. They usually must be treated with a dedicated miticide (acaricide) rather than a general-purpose insecticide, and must be treated several times, 4 or 5 days apart, to kill all the emerging mites from the eggs that have already been laid. For these types of almost microscopic pest, a jeweler's or geologist's handheld magnifying loupe can be very helpful for identification and pesticide-results verification purposes. I personally love my Belomo brand 10X triplet loupes. More information about spider mites-- http://venusflytrap.info/how-to-grow-venus-flytraps_pests-and-problems.html Spider mites are the pest I fear the most, because they are hard to see until they are already well established, they breed extremely quickly, and they are so destructive in large numbers. Good luck--
×
×
  • Create New...