Hi, I've particularly enjoyed the correspondence on Nerines, as I, myself, am a fancier of the genus. My collection is small, between 30-40 species and cultivars. I've read in the past NOT to apply nitrogen fertilizer, as it encourages virus. I DO use a balanced bloom food once a month during the growing season, in a dilute dose, and so far, knock wood, I'm still virus free. (or, so it appears.) If anyone else walks the edge, and fertilizes, I'd be interested in hearing about your cultural tips. Yes, I DO apply summer water as well, and grow many of my varieties in clay pots, so they dry out quickly, as it can stay wet even in the greenhouse during the winter. Rick K On Aug 23, 2010, at 10:25 AM, pbs-request@lists.ibiblio.org wrote: > Send pbs mailing list submissions to > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > pbs-request@lists.ibiblio.org > > You can reach the person managing the list at > pbs-owner@lists.ibiblio.org > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of pbs digest..." > > > List-Post:<mailto:pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > List-Archive:<http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > > Today's Topics: > > 1. Re: Nerine Thoughts - anew (James Waddick) > 2. Re: Lycoris in summer dry climates -NOT and.... (James Waddick) > 3. Re: Hi I am new (Douglas Westfall) > 4. Re: Nerine Thoughts - anew (Mary Sue Ittner) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 07:54:49 -0500 > From: James Waddick <jwaddick@kc.rr.com> > To: Pacific Bulb Society <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org> > Subject: Re: [pbs] Nerine Thoughts - anew > Message-ID: <p06240892c89819fe339c@[192.168.0.101]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" > > Dear Friends, > I thank you all for your comments both public, here, and private. > > I am not seeking to grow any Nerines, although they do show > some excellent and admirable qualities. > > I was curious then and confirmed now that there are few US > sources for named cvs. Far more in the UK and pleased to see the > unique Guernsey UK Nerine Festival. Wish there were more pix to > wander through. > > The replies also reinforced my thoughts that casual growers > in the US find these difficult bulbs to maintain and bloom with > consistency. They seem to be greenhouse bulbs in even the mildest > climate to manage their precise water schedules. > > I was also reminded of the dissolution of the Zinkowski > collection ages ago via the IBS with the help of Steve Vinisky (I > sure miss Steve's contributions to this group). At the time I didn't > think it was something the group should get involved with. With time > and a better understanding of their rarity, I guess IBS was as good > as any (with Steve's major hand at play) to get these into good > growers hands. Of course I now wonder how many of these still survive > to this day. And how many have been propagated and distributed > further? > > It seems that Nick de Rothschild (http://www.nerines.com/) is THE > PLACE to acquire the best new cvs. > > A note to Diane... You mention 'Quest' as purple. The wiki > also agrees, but the Rothschild Nerine page shows a white with rich > pink center line. Is one of these wrong? > > And the flowers do look marvelous with intricate color blends > and a range of forms. When is the next Nerine show near Kansas City ? > > An interesting diversion. Best Jim W. > -- > Dr. James W. Waddick > 8871 NW Brostrom Rd. > Kansas City Missouri 64152-2711 > USA > Ph. 816-746-1949 > Zone 5 Record low -23F > Summer 100F + > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 2 > Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 08:06:13 -0500 > From: James Waddick <jwaddick@kc.rr.com> > To: Pacific Bulb Society <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org> > Subject: Re: [pbs] Lycoris in summer dry climates -NOT and.... > Message-ID: <p0624088dc8971b387d1f@[192.168.0.101]> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed" > > > Dear Jim McK and all > > I can unequivocally state Lycoris are NOT in need of summer > dry or summer baking and that they suffer from extended drought any > time during their growing seasons. > > L. radiata is essentially a weed of rice paddies and swamp > edges. I have seen a number of species grown in wet soil immediately > near flowing water. Most species are native to regions with summer > rain fall either monsoon rains, or just scattered summer storms. > > In pots, Lycoris need regular watering or they will dry out, > shrink bulb size, loose roots and die - not necessarily in that order. > > This year we have had a very wet spring to the start of > summer, but as Lycoris bloom season approached, we entered an > extended dry hot period that covered a large part of the US. Lycoris > bloom has been way under typical and spotty at best. Established beds > throw up a few stalks here and there and a few more days or a week > later, but none of the major displays. In local gardens that have > automated sprinklers (evidenced by green lawns), the common L. > squamigera is blooming happily in abundance. > > > > > AND L. aurea is one of the most mis-Ided of any Lycoris species. > > The true species is the largest in the genus with foliage > over an inch in width and up to a yard long. It is also quite > succulent in texture and almost 100 % frost damaged. In any climate > with extended frost and no protection, the leaves will be damaged or > killed, the bulbs are much less likely to flower etc. > > L. aurea is also quite variable. Kurita, the Japanese expert > on the genus has identified 5 cytoraces with a 2n equal to 12, 13, > 14, 15 and 16. Some of these are anatomically distinct. I suspect > some may have more hardiness. > > AS a fertile species, seedlings may vary also in their > adaptability to specific sites. > > There are other hardier yellow flowered Lycoris that can be > confused with L. aurea. These range fro slightly tender to bone hardy. > L. traubii > L. chinensis (and yellow hybrids with L. longituba and L. > longituba flava) > L. caldwellii > L. anhuiensis (rare in cultivation) > > And there may well be L. aurea hybrids produced in Japan and > distributed commercially. > > Due to its essentially frost intolerance, the true species is > not widely grown successfully. > > Any help? Best Jim W. > -- > Dr. James W. Waddick > 8871 NW Brostrom Rd. > Kansas City Missouri 64152-2711 > USA > Ph. 816-746-1949 > Zone 5 Record low -23F > Summer 100F + > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 3 > Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 07:57:35 -0700 > From: Douglas Westfall <eagle.85@verizon.net>(by way of Mary Sue > Ittner <msittner@mcn.org>) > To: pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > Subject: Re: [pbs] Hi I am new > Message-ID: <20100823145817.8B3BF4C178@lists.ibiblio.org> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed > > Note from Mary Sue: > I'm passing on this reply from Doug minus the image that cannot be > included in posts to this list. > > kuang huang, > > You have to watch carefully to acquire sime if the more difficult > ones. You mentioned Paramongaia weberaueri. Not only is it difficult > to find someone who has offsets, but when you do, (depending on the > age/size of the bulb), the price will be rather high. To buy a mature > bulb (blooming size) the person MAY be asking up to $100 or more. Not > many people have it. > > I had a bloom last year. I thought that I may have some > seeds, but it "decided" not to develop. > > I was fortunate enough to acquire Hippeastrum intiflorum a few years > ago and it set seeds. As they developed, I discovered that I was the > only one in the world to have extras available for trade or sale. The > country of Argentina put a "halt" on bulbs being taken from their > country, so I even had a person from Argentina asking for one. > > Being fortunate enough to have these for "trade", I was able to > acquire some of the "rare" Hippeastrums in trade. > > You just have to be patient and purchase one or two rare ones and try > to "multiply" them (unless you have sufficient funds to purchase the > "rare" ones). > > Best of luck, and don't give up. > > > Doug Westfall > > > > ------------------------------ > > Message: 4 > Date: Mon, 23 Aug 2010 08:22:40 -0700 > From: Mary Sue Ittner <msittner@mcn.org> > To: Pacific Bulb Society <pbs@lists.ibiblio.org> > Subject: Re: [pbs] Nerine Thoughts - anew > Message-ID: <20100823152320.D6D714C04D@lists.ibiblio.org> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed > > Hi, > > I didn't have time to reply to the original post this weekend, but > I'd like to make a few comments. Some I've said in the past, but > we've had new people join our group since then. > > Like Mike I sent money to Steve to assist him in trying to save some > of the bulbs in the Zinkowski collection. I talked with Steve at a > NARGS winter study meeting and he talked about what a horrible state > the collection was in when he tried to save some of the plants. One > of the benefits from participating was receiving some of the plants > as a thank you. I gave half of mine to Diana Chapman. I don't know if > she propagated any of them. I had very poor luck with them for years > although there was one that looked more like a species that bloomed > the best. At the time (1999) Harold Koopowitz advised us not to plant > any of these in the ground. As an experiment I planted one in the > ground and the rest in pots. The one in the ground has bloomed once > since 1999. It was a shock to see it as I was sure it was long gone. > > Over the years I've tossed a couple of pots when leaves looked > virused and saved seed of some of my favorites and grown them on. > I've also given seed to the BX I think. Hamish Sloan offered seed to > the BX too and I have one plant in bud at the moment from some of > the ones I succeeded in growing. > > During the topic of the week years we had some first rate information > on growing these from Hamish and our wiki team has also added a lot > of good information on the wiki Nerine page: > <http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/index.php/…> > My Nerines hybrids bloom so much better now that they get summer > water so the roots don't shrivel. I can't leave mine out in winter > because where I live it is too wet and they got stagonospora curtisii > (red blotch). So I leave them in the greenhouse where I have a fan on > 24-7 and put them under the benches in summer and water every two to > four weeks depending on how hot it has been. If I lived in a hot > summer climate I'd probably move them to a cooler place during the > summer. Most years the majority of my pots bloom and they are > wonderful. I love the dazzling blooms. They are so sparkly (which you > can capture when photographed in the sun.) > > Hopefully Matt Mathus will speak up since he grows a lot of the > hybrids in his greenhouse in Massachusetts. > > Mary Sue > > > > ------------------------------ > > _______________________________________________ > pbs mailing list > pbs@lists.ibiblio.org > http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php > > > End of pbs Digest, Vol 91, Issue 43 > ***********************************