Mary Sue, Please don't stop announcing the Wiki additions. I look forward to seeing them and learning more about what plants I should next covet. Cheers, Bracey San Jose -----Original Message----- From: pbs-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org [mailto:pbs-bounces@lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Mary Sue Ittner Sent: Friday, December 28, 2007 8:30 AM To: pbs@lists.ibiblio.org Subject: [pbs] Wiki additions -- Massonia, Haemanthus, Dietes, Chamaescilla Hi, I'm never sure if I should keep announcing wiki additions since I almost never get any feedback to know if anyone does more than delete the post. So perhaps people who care should write me privately and I could just have a short list I could send an announcement to. I know some of the others who add pictures have stopped telling people about their additions for the same reason. I just added some more Massonia pictures to the wiki. I also looked up the key in the Cape Encyclopedia and see that it is the stamens that are the distinguishing factors in telling the species apart. Massonia depressa has anthers that are more than 2mm. M. pygmaea besides being smaller has filaments of two lengths. Massonia pustulata has filaments longer than 10 mm (to 24mm.) and Massonia echinata 10 mm or less. So it looks like you need to measure to be sure of what you have. I went out and looked at my M. depressa and the anthers really are bigger. You can't see these subtle differences in pictures. Photos added: Massonia depressa from Cameron McMaster, Massonia echinata from Alan Horstmann (an unusual color) and pustulate, Massonia jasminiflora from me and now blooming, Massonia pustulata being pollinated (sorry these pictures aren't clearer, I had very little time to get a tripod or even be sure of my settings, but was fascinated watching the pollinator go from anther to anther), Massonia pustulata from Cameron, and finally Massonia pygmaea from Alan. http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/index.php/… I also added a few more Haemanthus pictures a couple of days ago. The first is of a hybrid I believe. Doug Westfall sent me seed of H. albiflos and one of the seedlings was distinctly different. http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/index.php/… rid And I added pictures of H. pauculifolius now blooming for awhile in my greenhouse. I obtained this from Telos a number of years ago, but this is the first time it has bloomed and I quite like it. http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/index.php/… auculifolius I also added a picture of an additional Dietes species that we saw in the Royal Botanical Gardens in Sydney. This species, Dietes robinsoniana, is native to Cape Howe Island, an island off Australia. I added an additional picture from Alan Horstmann of Dietes bicolor at the same time. http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/index.php/… Finally about a week ago I added a wiki page for Chamaescilla http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/index.php/… This is an Australian genus with blue flowers. It's a charming little plant we saw a number of times when we visited in September. It is not in the Hyacinth family, but in the Anthericaceae family along with some other Australian plants with the unusual root system that annually grows tuberous roots from a cormlike stem. This family has been included in Agavaceae or optionally Asparagaceae by APG II. Since Hyacinthaceae is also optionally included in Asparagaceae that is one way genera with blue flowers that have scilla in the name can be together. Mary Sue _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.ibiblio.org http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/