Re: Amorphophallus bulbifer stories

Albert,

This will certainly not help you unravel your apparent mystery, but I could add
that my A. bulbifer was the first to emerger (from the ground) this year,
some time
in May. The bulbils from last year that I had sown in a container earlier this
spring emerged about a month later. My largest plant has a leaf about 3
feet tall
now, but still has not flowered. How big does this species need to be before it
flowers?

My A. paenifolius emerged in June and the leaf reached 4 feet. This one
also has
not flowered...again same question: how big 'til it blooms?

Jody (in Miami)

Albert Huntington wrote:

> Hello, List.
>
>   I would like to bring up a couple of observations about my A. bulbifer and
> ask some questions.
>
>   I keep my A. bulbifer in a greenhouse (low 65F, high 90F, Humidity
>80%+), and
> around last September I noticed that the leaf ( about 2ft high ) was
>beginning
> to wilt, perhaps in preparation for dormancy of some sort.  Since the
>plant had
> been growing pretty vigorously, I figured that I would try out a
>procedure that
> I had read on the list for taking petiole cuttings, and harvest a few of the
> bulbils along the way.  I removed the leaf from the tuber and cut the petiole
> into 2-3" long sections which I sealed into a plastic bag with some damp
> sphagnum peat.  I stored the tuber in the fridge over the winter,
>figuring that
> I did not have room for the plant with everything else overwintering in my
> greenhouse, should it decide to come back up.  I also stored a bunch of
>little
> tubers that had formed attached to the big tuber.
>   Much to my amazement, the petioles did in fact form even more little tubers
> after a month or two.
>
>   Now, in March, I figured it was time to pot out the tubers, so I took them
> from the fridge, where they had kept relatively well, and I planted them in
> pots in the greenhouse.  I then proceeded to wait.  And wait.  And wait.
>   About early June, a few of the small tubers had sprouted, but not the big
> one.   Now, in July, I finally see a small pink shoot on top of my bigger
> tuber.  Some more of the smaller tubers I had potted up are beginning to
> sprout.  Every single other Amorph I have, including the ones Wilbert
>sent out
> this spring, is pretty much in full leaf by now.  This is somewhat
>puzzling to
> me.
>
>   Does anyone have any suggestions as to why my A. bulbifer and its offshoots
> should be poking their heads out so late this year?  Is it because I stressed
> the plant by cutting off its head a bit early?  Does it have something to do
> with its long siesta in the fridge?  Is A. bulbifer just a late species?
> Anybody else have any experiences like this with other species?
>
>   Thanks in advange for your answers...
>
> --Albert
>
> =====
> Albert Huntington           San Jose, CA U.S.A.
>            Visit my greenhouse at:
> http://www.geocities.com/RainForest/Jungle/1436
> -----------------------------------------------
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