Re: modern "weaker" Siberians?
From: "Leroy Kriese" <ambrosia@silk.net>
To: <sibrob@egroups.com>
Sent: Friday, April 14, 2000 8:14 PM
Subject: Re: [sibrob] modern "weaker" Siberians?
> I am sure that some Siberians do wonderful in some locations but doubt
> whether all Siberians do well in all locations. If hybridizers are
selecting
> for performance only in their area before testing in other areas I think
> that that is the problem...
>
Leroy,
if you are waiting from hybridisers for selecting hybrids good growers and
performers for all areas you will be so much dissapointed. The best hybrids
which are told as "weaker" are raised by some generations in areas with
normal winters / with frozen ground and snow cover/ and comparatively warm
summers. Having in mind adaptivness of plants to climatic conditions where
they are born we can't require they were good performers for areas with
other temperature regime. For northern areas less summer warmth do most
visible influence for their performance. For next year flowering the
rhizomes during growing season must accumulate such a quantity of warmth
which is need to form embryo of flower. This index for each variety is
different. I have reports from dr. Rodionenko St.Petersburg, Russia told lot
of modern varietes raised in USA do not flower at all though grow they well.
When I write in my signature zone 5 I have in mind winter zone. The summers
are some cooler than for north of USA and I dont wait hundreds of stalks on
Roaring Jelly as have reported Kathy Marble though I am sure it will bloom
for me and if it will be 50 stalks on 5 year clump it will be good result.
It is obvious too, that tetraploids require more warmth. I had bed of
tetraploid seedlings half of which was in semi shade and other part sunny.
In semi shaded part only lonely stalks have appeared at the same time in
sunny much more. Speaking about good growth and performance can not be
thrown away the factor of combination of genes. Even in mild area raised
seedling can be good performer for northern areas and othervise. It is quite
different question when hybridiser select bad performer but with good flower
qualities even for his own area. And here Howard is quite right telling we
need strong new introductions. Also here the question remain-how far to
North this introduction will be good performer.At all from myriad of factors
as you write I would like to mention only some - the basic: warmth in active
growth after flowering season, good watering and fertilizing. Of course
warmth belongs from Heaven, watering and fertilizing from people. Most know
how to water, but from previous discussions I see many pay so great
attention to fertilizing. Planting in very rich soil than giving additional
fertilizing in first and second year may stimulate abundant growth for young
plants, but not
flowering. I never fertilize my young plants and they start to flower next
or second year after planting. Only later I give some fertilizing. I don't
know true, but overfertilizing may be one of reasons of your customers
Leroy, waiting so long for flowering. It can be quite different with
fertilizing in warmer areas and for that I can not give any advice. The
advice for those areas with less warmth can be to plant siberians on gentle
south slopes. It helps for rhizomes to catch more warmth. Planting even on
slighly northern slopes can "push away" this point hundreds kilometers to
north. So to questions for your customers you can include about this factor.
To have more adaptable siberians for northern areas maybe is need the
program like dr. Currier McEwen's with Japanese - Deep freeze project.
Edmundas Kondratas
SSI, BIS member
Kaunas, Lithuania, zone 5
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