Dear Uli, Remember our trade on about a year ago. I traded A.b. Blanda for your Hippeastrum calyptratum. After a long dormancy the Hipp finally produced shoots this month. I recall at the time, you updated the A.b name. Please refresh my memory. If it blooms next year for me, I would imagine some of our growers would like some pollen. To the future. Best wishes, Joyce Miller, At 06:32 PM 09/02/2006, you wrote: >Hi Gang, > > > >Many Eucalyptus species, and some related plants, make a lignotuber. I'm >not sure what a lignotuber is anatomically, but I think it is some sort of >stem-perhaps like a potato storage organ. > > > >Lignoubers allow Eucalyptus species (and Corymbia species, which used to be >classified as Eucalyptus) to regrow after fire or other damage. The >lignotuber is a tough storage organ, and because it is underground can allow >some species to survive 1 or 2 zones of colder temperatures than they might >prefer. I've had good luck with Eucalyptus citriodora (Corymbia >citriodora), the lemon scented plant. In the wild the tree can reach 60-100 >ft-tall. In my garden growth is more modest. > > > >However, the benefit of a lignotuber is that (at least some) eucalypts can >behave as dieback perennials in areas that are much too cold to allow tall >tree growth. > > > >Many mallees, some trees, and some odds-and-ends species will perform well >in climates that are too cold to allow a "real" tree or shrub to develop. >The plants freeze back each winter and sprout stems that can reach 6-8 >feet-tall each growing season. The benefit is especially nice with plants >that make beautiful foliage or which have strong and acceptable scents. I >do enjoy E. citriodora, a sprig can perfume a room with a pleasant lemony >scent. > > > >One other Eucalyptus that I grow is E. viridis. This plant does well here >and, so far, has not suffered from root diseases that plague other eucalypts >I have tried to grow. E. viridis is a modest appearing plant, but has >wonderfully fragrant leaves that provide oils that are used in soaps and >cough drops, etc. > > > >The main thing is that, for me, I treat these plants as bulbous-growing >things. If/when temperatures threaten to go very low, I mulch the plants >heavily, and let to tops freeze. In the spring, with warmth and some water >(warmth is key), the plants return and make a garden into a better place, >pleasing the nose as well as the eye. > > > >NOTE: I've tried various eucalypts here in the greater Houston, TX area. >Many survive the climate and thrive for 2-3 years only to succumb to root >diseases. I've had some luck growing the plants from seeds in sterile soils >(microwave baked) and letting them get large before planting out-then I give >them the best drainage I possibly can. > > > >TWO WINNERS (SO FAR): > >1. Eucalyptus citriodora > >2. E. viridis > > > >I hope to try more mallee types in the future (shrubby or with many stems >from the base, not trees but 10-30 ft-tall). > > > > > >LINK: Australia Plants, source of many seeds and some seedlings > >http://www.australiaplants.com/ > >NOTE: Eucalypts can grow 4-8 feet in a year, even from seed. > > > >LINK: The Hardy Euclalyptus Page > >http://www.angelfire.com/bc/eucalyptus/ > > > >LINK: Eucalyptus camaldulensis, a lignotuber seems optional in this species > >http://www.publish.csiro.au/paper/BT9830283.htm > > > > > > > > > > > >_______________________________________________ >pbs mailing list >pbs@lists.ibiblio.org >http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php