Why wont my seedlings return ?
Daryl Geoghegan (Sun, 21 Nov 2004 16:05:25 PST)

Hi Rob,

the first adjustment I suggest is your raising medium. Try pure sand and
feed with blood and bone and woodash. The simpler the soil content, the more
success I have had. As bulbs are natures adaptatin to poor soils, you will
find that sand and clay keep these bulbs really well during the dormant
period.

The second is, once they are settled and growing in the sand, use a small
covering of grass over the soil during the hotter months. This slows down
dessication of most small Amaryllids.

My challenge here is too much heat and spring rain before they have had a
chance to die down and go dormant. This cooks them in the soil and I can
loose them very easily if I don't shade them somehow. I am growing corn in
the rows this year and that is working well.

Must be that we all have one hickup or another in dealing with our
environments.

Have a great day,

Dash.

Daryl Geoghegan, Mainly Amaryllids Garden, P O Box 173, Barnawartha,
Victoria, 3688, Australia.
+61 02 60267377, Mobile 0429 621 612 Visit my web site @
http://www.mainlyamaryllidsgarden.com/

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----- Original Message -----
From: "Robert Hamilton" <robhamilton@trump.net.au>
To: <Australian_Bulbs@yahoogroups.com>
Cc: "Pacific Society" <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Monday, November 22, 2004 10:16 AM
Subject: [pbs] Why wont my seedlings return ?

Hi all,

Firstly apologies for those who receive this as a multiple
posting, but I want to reach as many experts as possible.

I have an ongoing problem of not getting my winter rainfall
South African amaryllids to return in their second season. They
grow well from sowing in autumn / winter until late spring . As
it is now towards the end of their growing season here I have
been gently removing the surface of potting mix and in most
cases am finding plenty of small bulbs sitting there with
active roots in most cases. They do occasionally sprout the
following autumn winter but often a lot less than were present.

There are exceptions and this year Brunsvigia orientalis ,
Cybistetes longifolia , Haemanthus coccinea , Nerine humilis and
Strumaria discifera and tenella all returned although the latter
tended to remain evergreen through summer.

In past years I have raised several other Brunsvigia , Crossyne
and Strumaria species without any problems.

I have no such problem with summer rainfall amaryllids with often
grow for 12 to 18 months before their first dormancy.

I wonder if our daytime temperatures being too low is part of
the problem - from late autumn we often have prolonged periods
where daytime high does not get above
10-12C with odd days even lower. However there are many
winter growing amaryllids which are very happy growing in the
garden here including Amaryllis belladonna, Brunsvigia
jospehinae , Haemanthus coccinea and Nerine sarniensis and
others of these genera which I have purchased as more mature
seedling bulbs seem happy.

I am going to trial some of the species under glass next
winter to see if it helps with a glasshouse currently under
construction.

I now raise all these seeds in commercial seed raising mix
50;50 with coarse sand.

I would love to hear of your ideas and experiences.

Cheers,

Rob

Dr R F Hamilton
7 Beach Road
Snug 7054
Tasmania
Zone 9 equivalent at 43 °S

Dr R F Hamilton
7 Beach Road
Snug 7054
Tasmania
Phone 0362679221
Fax 0362679041
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