Gethyllis seedlings
Leo A. Martin (Fri, 27 Feb 2004 10:14:52 PST)

Hellos,

Any suggestions on Gethyllis seedlings? I received some seed last July,
all sprouting, and managed to keep most alive over the rest of our
hellish summer. They went dormant in late summer/early fall, about the
end of September here, when it was still over 95F / 36C most days. They
had had enough heat for a while, I think.

With the onset of cooler weather in November they began growing again.
But rather than all sprouting at once, a few will sprout, grow for a few
weeks, and then die back. A few more then sprout. I don't know if the
ones that die back are dead or not.

They are in a communal 3.25" / 7.25cm square plastic "rose pot", which
is a little deeper than a standard pot. The soil is very sandy. I have
not let them dry out since cool weather began, since they are so small,
but neither are they standing in water. They have been protected from
our light frosts, but have reached temperatures into the mid 30s F / low
single digits C. Daytime temperatures are much like S California. They
are shaded until about eleven in the morning and receive several hours
of sun in the afternoon. The Ferraria, Lachenalia, Romulea, and mesemb
seedlings next to them grow fine, though the mesembs are somewhat
reddish. I have fertilized about every two weeks with quarter-strength
balanced water-soluble fertilizer. I water the seedlings with reverse
osmosis water because our water has so many dissolved salts.

Adult Gethyllis have done well in these conditions for me (with larger
pots.) Any suggestions? Or, is it normal for these seedlings to leaf out
only for a few weeks?

Thank you,

Leo
--
Leo A. Martin
Phoenix, Arizona, USA

Like cactus and succulents?
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