Ipheion
Mary Sue Ittner (Fri, 13 Apr 2007 07:38:18 PDT)

I've been interested to read that not everyone finds all the varieties easy
to grow. I don't think I'm in Zone 10. I'm sure I'm Zone 9. But as we have
said that doesn't mean a lot. My Zone 9 is much cooler in summer than a lot
of zones with lower numbers. Perhaps the problem I have is my cool summers
relative to where they grow naturally and I'm talking both day and night
temperatures. A lot of the South American plants I grow and even some of
the South African ones like it warmer in summer than it is here. I never
knew the greenhouse we put in would mostly serve as a place for bulbs to
stay warmer in summer. That wasn't the intention. But if Lee finds they
grow really well for him that might be the difference and also why they do
better for Lauw as well. So it could be a combination of things, not just
my wetter darker winters.

And since 'Rolf Fiedler' is considered a different genus and species,
having a different experience with it would make sense. Does anyone know
what conditions it had where ever it was discovered?

I see seed pods on my white Ipheions and the pale blue ones that are happy
in my summers too, but as Lee says they curl down close to the ground so
it's easy to miss them. I don't sell anything I grow, but always understood
that seedlings of 'Alberto Castillo' would no longer deserve the cultivar
name. I think the man Alberto Castillo wishes people weren't growing on the
seeds of any of the cultivars so they will remain pure, but I don't know
how you'd stop that from happening. You'd hope that no one would sell
seedlings under the cultivar names, but if the seedlings grow well
and multiply well and get shared amongst friends who don't understand the
naming system, as Jim McKenney suggested, the horse may already be out of
the barn.

As for Kelly's request for people to label their seed for the BX,
explaining how they are pollinated, it's a great idea. But we've not even
been able to get people to label their contributions as evergreen, winter
growing , or summer growing as we hoped. For awhile we'd have help after
the fact with that, but not lately. Sometimes there is very little
information about the contributions at all. Dell passes on what information
is supplied and often there will be something on the wiki. I'd guess most
of what we get is open pollinated.

It's a little like asking pbs list members not to include the whole
message in their replies. You can always ask, but that doesn't mean you'll
get compliance.

Mary Sue