Nigel H-C Posted March 6, 2007 Report Share Posted March 6, 2007 Hi All, Disaster struck at the weekend when I noticed one of my big (5 feet) R. dentata plants had rotted. I've had a really bad winter and this is the second plant I've lost because I allowed them to much water. Well, it wasn't really my fault this time as the roof of the greenhouse seems to have developed a small leak, and the gradual drip, drip, drip had saturated the compost. Drastic action required, so I repotted it in to the 25 litre pot I had intended for it, and set upon it with the seceteurs. It's now a pathetic stem with 3 wiry remaining branches that (hopefully) are still unaffected. To try and reshape it in a few weeks I'm going to get my bonsai friend over here to turn the upper most branch in to the leader by wiring it, and then pray that it starts to bush out and recover. These plants can be pretty picky, and although R. gorgonias can tolerate wetter conditions it can still easily rot. One of mine had become loosened in its pot during some high winds, so I leant it against another plant to stop it getting worse, and typically forgot to stake it properly. Of course, when I moved it several weeks later two of the branches had rotted and had to be removed. Interestingly, the bare patch now has tiny shoots emerging from the old wood which proves that this species is able to regenerate. I did manage to completely lose one gorgonias by letting it dry out too much, and watched in horror as it gradually died over a few weeks. I removed all of the growth, and am now hoping that it will regrow, but so far nothing. Last year it was so stunning that I dsplayed it at a few of the shows, and you can't believe how annoyed I am with myself for allowing this to happen. The strangest occurence in all of this happened yesterday. When I savaged the dentata on Sunday, I threw the branches on the ground outside the nursery. Can you believe my surprise when I found a robin completely ensnared in the old stems as I walked past. It wasn't just sticky footed, but so smothered that I couldn't remove all of the leaves from the feathers. I got off what I could before he/she gave me the slip and managed to run/half fly in to the bushes. At least it managed to move, and I hope is okay, but this goes to show that perhaps with these plants we should be careful where we dispose of old growth. I guess it was looking at the potential meal of insects on the leaves? An interesting, if not sad observation! Nigel H-C Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
STEVE T Posted March 6, 2007 Report Share Posted March 6, 2007 Hi Nigel Sorry to hear about your disaster , after seeing the plants first hand earlier this year i can imagine how you feel . Steve Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stephen Crane Posted March 7, 2007 Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 My thoughts are with you also Nigel.. I have had the same troble with nepenthes this year.... a silly mistake that could have been rectified if I would have spent a few extra hours checking them.. never mind.. time to re-stock!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardenofeden Posted March 7, 2007 Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 I have never had much luck with Roridula in my greenhouse over winter, and lost several before I started to overwinter them in the house. My greenhouse is just too damp for them in winter... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vic brown Posted March 7, 2007 Report Share Posted March 7, 2007 I lost the smaller of my three R. gorgonias plants in the autumn, it just started to die-back from the leaves. Pruning the affected parts did no good. Fortunately, my two larger plants (both about 28" (70+cm) tall) appear to be in good health - they have just finished flowering for the second spring. I also have plenty of seedlings, sown last September, many of which are now 5cm+, so I should be able to provide a more secure future for the bugs. Hopefully, when they are large enough support colonies of Pameridea, I'll be able to share bugs with a few other UK growers. Vic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oliv-666 Posted April 22, 2007 Report Share Posted April 22, 2007 How large do they have to be for support a colonie of Pameridae ? I have my 'big' one about 80cm+, and several sowed from last summer about 7/8cm+. Oliv-666. PS : if anybodyone has dentata' seeds to swap, thanks thinking to me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vic brown Posted April 23, 2007 Report Share Posted April 23, 2007 The plants don't generally support bugs in the wild until they have branched, usually after flowering for the first time. Smaller plants just don't provide a large or complex enough habitat for them. At 80cm+ your large plant should support bugs, but they won't be able to survive on the seedlings. However they don't survive off plants and can't be successfully posted. Posting a plant with bugs would be almost impossible to do too. So, you will have to take your plant to a willing grower with bugs or buy a plant with them on. I was lucky to pick up two plants with bugs at the EEE in Prague in 2005 for 20 Euro. Vic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oliv-666 Posted April 23, 2007 Report Share Posted April 23, 2007 Still thanks, Vic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oliv-666 Posted May 24, 2007 Report Share Posted May 24, 2007 Hi. I could obtain any bugs at EEE, but the guy had a problem with his bugs collection. So he can't give me any. Is anybody has bugs to give, or swap at the EEE ? Do you know if bug eggs could survive by mail ? Thanks, Oliv-666. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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