African Expedition

From: Eric Green (saharris@iafrica.com)
Date: Sat Sep 06 1997 - 04:40:49 PDT


Date: Sat, 06 Sep 97 11:40:49 GMT
From: saharris@iafrica.com (Eric Green)
To: cp@opus.hpl.hp.com
Message-Id: <aabcdefg3402$foo@default>
Subject: African Expedition

To all,

        Fernando Rivadavia writing from Eric Green's house. I've been in Africa one whole week already,
although it seems like much more. So much has happened, both good and bad. The bad side everybody knows,
the robbery and all. But the good side I haven't had time to tell. Eric has been taking me all around the Cape
region and I can't begin to describe the beauty of the landscape! This is such a fascinating region!! It's
just one breathtaking view after another. If I lived here I wouldn't even know where to start searching
for CPs. The possibilities for new species are endless.
        The sandstone highlands remind me much of the ones I see back home in Brazil and the CP habitats
also very similar. There's even the Coca-Cola-colored water, resulting from the tannic acid. I've seen tons
of Drosera, but can't understand why there aren't Utrics and Genlisea. The only one we've seen is
U.bisquamata.
        Funny enough, the lowland habitats Eric has shown me are very similar to what I saw in Western
Australia! These are occupied by D.cistiflora, D.pauciflora, D.zeyheri, and D.trinervia, members of
sect.Ptycnostygma. These species die down during the summer dry season and then grow back from roots
when the rains begin in the winter (unlike the tuberous Drosera which seem to have a very good biological
clock and begin growing at a certain time of the year even if you haven't started watering their pots yet).
In fact the habitats occupied by these species in the highlands are apparently those which dry out faster
and remind me a bit of the D.hirtella and D.colombiana habitats back in Brazil (species which also go
dormant during the dry season).
        I have already seen in the wild U.bisquamata, D.cistiflora, D.pauciflora, D.trinervia, D.zeyheri,
D.aliciae, D.admirabilis, D.cuneifolia, D.hilaris, D.glabripes, D.ramentaceae, and D.acapensis! Yes D.capensis
does exist in the wild but does not seem to be nearly as weedy as it is in cultivation.
        Of course the species which has had the most impact so far is D.cistiflora. This species is really
amazing, with it's long stems and gigantic, beautifully colored flowers. When young they often look like
D.adelae and when old they remind me of a robust D.indica. I've been lucky to see many locations with this
species, with several flower color forms, and in some places growing so thickly, in such vast numbers, that
it defies the imagination! A magnificent species!
    I'm quite boggled by what is involved in the numerous flower colors of D.cistiflora. There are isolated
populations with a single flower color, populations where 2 colors are present in separate areas and a few
intermediate ones inbetween, populations where 2 different colors are present side by side, and populations
where two extremes and all possible intermediates are found. Maybe genetic, maybe ecological, probably
both.
    What I haven't seen in the wild around here yet, I've seen in Eric's amazing CP collection. Among
S.African CPs and other CPs, he has tons of tuberous Drosera, lots of fantastic Pings, the biggest
collection of mature Heliamphora that I've ever seen, a whole greenhouse packed with wonderful Neps, and
even a giant, mature N.rajah!!! This is the first time I see a mature plant of this species. I think Eric said
it was 18 years old. What a CP collection! Too bad it's Spring here now and all his hundreds of Sarracenia
are only beginning to come out of dormancy.
    
Best Wishes,

Fernando Rivadavia
Cape Town, South Africa



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