We're down for 38 CELSIUS on Saturday - the hot weather's finally arrived
down here (boo hiss!!) Cephalotus should be OK I think - it's not a tropical
plant and probably has cold winters in it's native habitat. However, play
it safe to be sure - this plant appears to be even more expensive in the US
than it is here! :-(
>>My biggest problem so far is damping-off due to mold. I get very little
>>direct sunlight during the winter due to the placement of some large
>>trees. The mold is mostly attacking the very delicate, herbaceous
>>Droseras like _D. burmannii_, and some Utricularias like _U. calycifida_.
>>I'm trying to combat this by watering with Benomyl, and by keeping
>>everything as dry as possible.
>
> You aren't the only one having mold problems. It's a symptom, I
> think, or too little air circulation coupled with humidity and
> low temps. My N. american plants which are right out in the open
> aren't having mold problems, but the stuff in my insulated growth
> area is.
Ditto from me too. The flower scapes on my Utricularia dichotoma plants are
getting white fuzz again (no major problem though) - not to mention the
various species of toadstools that keep appearing in some of the pots! This
time it was weird yellow ones... (no, not magic mushies)
>>On the positive side, my _D. peltata auriculata_ have really taken off!
>>After staying at 2-3" tall all of last year, they have now shot up to
>>6-7" with some really nice looking new growth. I suppose the cold weather
>>must have triggered them. Some of the rosettes that had gone dormant have
>>started new growth, and some of the plants have put up multiple shoots.
>>Does anyone know when I can expect blooming?
>
> Hmmm. Mine are still small. Many of them remained in rosette form
> all year, and didn't go dormant. This meant I couldn't repot the
> little pots which have multiple plants in them, which means the
> pots are a bit small this year for the plants which are going
> vertical again.
The aurics should start flowering soon - usually around 10-12" tall, but this
is quite variable. The stems will produce a raceme of flowers at the top,
and side shoots of leaves followed by more flowers will appear from leaf nodes
at around the same time. If the plants didn't go dormant and are still
growing strong, then let them! Often they don't form the vertical stems until
the second year of growth so don't be too concerned. I grow many plants in
the same pot without much problem - you usually start losing tubers if you
try to repot them...
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| John Taylor [The Banshee] | Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology |
| rphjt@minyos.xx.rmit.oz.au | Department of Applied Physics |
| MOKING IS A HEALTH HAZARD. | Melbourne, Victoria, AUSTRALIA |
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P.S. Happy New Year in an hour and a half!