Lachenalia
piaba (Fri, 30 Apr 2004 13:44:13 PDT)

dear mary sue, john b. and others,

many thanks for your thoughtful replies. i'm sorry
i'm so late in replying, but i appreciate all your
help.

book about his experiences to fill that gap. It is a
thin volume (about 100
pages), but quite remarkable as it includes so much
information. The title
is Growing Bulbs Indoors by P.J.M. Knippels.

do you know if this book is available in the u.s.?

i appreciate your observations on indoor growings.
i've realized that one can never generalize with this
group of plants. i've tried in the past growing some
cape bulbs indoors and did not have much luck. but
i'm able to grow some others like an unidentified
Lachenalia someone sent me (with spotted leaves and
white flowers with green tips -- is that aloides?)
that has bloomed and never gone dormant (i no longer
have it, since i gave it to a friend). i have not had
problems growing both Veltheimias so far (capensis and
bracteata) except that the blooms in capensis have not
opened, but have blasted. the ones in bracteata are
still holding on.

I am amazed at some of the things that he has been
able to grow indoors. In
the back in the third appendix I see that he has
classified Lachenalia in
the "very experienced growers" category (along with
Boophone, Brunsvigia,
Bulbine, Bulbinella, winter growing Cyrtanthus,
Gethyllis, winter growing
Gladiolus, Massonia, winter growing Moraea, Nerine,
winter growing
Ornithogalum, winter growing Oxalis, and
Whiteheadia.) A critical factor in
growing Lachenalia indoors he writes is that you
need to grow them in cool
temperatures.

i have rather cool windowsills. my apt. is not very
warm in the winter and in the windowsills, the temp
can drop to a high of 50's in the daytime. various
plants have appreciated that, whereas others have
adapted to it. i just don't grow things like Episcias
and some other very warm-growing platns in windowsills
anymore.

i have Boophane at the office. it's growing fine but
no flowers yet, it's still a juvenile. i'd love to
grow Gethylis one day.

tsuh yang

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