Thunbergia propogation

Hey all, just poking around and ran across you all talking about Thunbergia. I've never seen the blue, that's gorgeous! I'm growing the Thunbergia 'blushing susie' this year, and was getting no seeds at first. Then I decided to poke around with a small paint brush and play bee. A couple of weeks later there were pods forming!

REALLY!! I sure wish you had come across us sooner. It may be too late in the year to do that. The weather has turned cool up here. No bees, so I wonder if it is too late to do the same here. How long did it take to get the pods? I doubt if I would have 2 blue ones open at the same time now. Darn!!

I think it took a few weeks to really see them, and another week or two for them to be ready. I just did it again about 5 days ago, and I can see teensy pods inside a few if I open the two little leaf looking things that surround the bloom (after its fallen off), but they're a few weeks away yet.

Well, I did like I do for my tomatoes in the spring. I stick my finger in the center of each one to pollinate them. We'll see.

I have been lurking in the back ground to see what I could learn fr ya'll! I have the blue & the white thunbergia vines but I'm not home now so I can't tell you which one. Had a dinner meeting tonite w/some DGers passing thru Hou! I will ck when I get back up north.
I am a warmer climate & still have possibility of more blooms. I'm going to try your 'artistic' method w/small brush.
I would love to find a dependable way to propagate these!
:~)

I have almost come to the conclusion that mine is an annual so I am not real concerned about propagating. Seeds would be nice, but it is too late in the year for mine to produce pods. And this has not been one of my better plants. Too much work for a mediocre plant.

Got my book. Mine are t grandiflora & t. grandiflora 'alba'.

In the classifieds one of the vendors has seeds, I think 500 for $4.95 of the mixed. showed orange, white, etc. In the bulk seeds.

jnette, any idea what vendor? I bought some paint brushes and just sort of whisked it around inside the bloom, is that correct?

It is in the upper 90's here now. I noticed a bloom just as I was leaving my house yesterday evening.
Down here in the big city until noon tomorrow but if there are any blooms when I get home tomorrow, I'm going to try & pollinate them!
:~)

I will go see if I can find it. I just stick my finger in each blossom of the tomatoes. one right after the other.

Garden Girl 1960 Here is her URL http://www.wholesaleseeds.info

This to you Coco.

This message was edited Oct 8, 2009 9:45 PM

This message was edited Oct 8, 2009 9:46 PM

This isn't taking.

This message was edited Oct 8, 2009 9:47 PM

Seems like I have one seeded betwen the flagstones, oh gosh no idea how i will get that out safeley and having tried so hard to propogate, go figure!

Well, now isn't that the pits!!

Well I fianlly did get one going, so I guess if I am not successful getting the one out of the paving stones it is not the end of the world ^_^

Now which one is it that you got going?

The blue Thunbergia...would love a white or orange.

If you look at Summerhill seeds they have all of those. All but the blue. In fact, someone has an interest thread going for a coop for their seeds. I didn't look to see if they were all annuals. I might have saved my blue one. Don't know. The cold got it along with the orange one that I had. But, I cut it off and brought it in. We'll see.

Thanks Jnette...will check it out!

Just surfacing today after a RU w/Dave & E Tx DGers! Noticed 2 blue blooms that have color but not opened yet. Will ck tomorrow & stick my little pinkie in them to pollenate (sp, too tired to spell correctly) them tomorrow!
I think I can still find the white one, cocoloba! Would you want me to mail you one? LMK
I don't have the orange or have I seen it. Got a pix?
:~)

Smockette, if you are talking to me I posted a pix on September 25 in this thread. Just scroll up and you will find them. Orange. Jeanette

Oh, girl!!!
This is a Thunbergia? Definitely does not look like the white or blue I have!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Can you save any of the orange? I'll find you a blue for an orange!!! Not this time of yr, of course!!!!!
LMK

I will try for an orange next year. Coco did you buy any of the seeds? Or did you find them?

Have ever seen a Mercer Blue Thunbergia? It is more of a bush, rather than a vine! Deeper blue color!
Awesome plant!
:~)

No!! Never have. Where did you see one? Now, that I could love. Those darned vines just go everywhere. Do you have a picture? Is the flower anything like the blue vine?

Oh I would love to see that too...mine is so old cannot remember where I got it but definately not seeds.....finally got one propogated but gosh took a lot of patience!
none of the brug seed I planted in July came at all, two of the second set in Sept came and then a lizard or bird got one :( On a positive note, I think my corkscrew will flower soon and ALL my curry leaf tree plants came, only one bilimbi but will try again.....I want brugs more than anything though.......

My brugs always get to the point of blooming when the weatherman says we are going to get a hard freeze. So, I ended up dragging them into the basement and went down yesterday, I could not believe it. One that I have not seen bloom before was a beautiful deep orange rose color. A double. I am trying to figure out which one it is 'cause when I transplanted them none of them have names on them!!! I can't believe I did that. I am always so careful about tags.

The only thing I can do now is try to do it by process of elimination. But, I bought a Cypris Garden, Pink Smitty, Salmon Perfection, and my daughter gave me my favorite, Tequilla Sunrise. So that is 4 but I have 7 plants and can't remember what else I bought. I got them from 2 Seed in the Marketplace and I think they keep track of what you buy. I might try that. But, the white one that bloomed is definitly not Cypriss Garden. It is a huge bell shaped bloom. So that is the 5th one, and 2 to go.

Sorry, I got off track again!! Ok Stormy, that is your project since you are the only one that knows anything about that flower. You need to go find it so we can see it.

Jeanette

Sorry Smockette I thought that was Stormy. Guess she is on my brain. LOL Seems like every thread I go to she pops up.

Smockette!! Where have you been? I sent you a package today and it has the starter for that bread in it so open it carefully. LOL, I sure hope it doesn't do strange things in the mail. Your plants may be covered.

Anyway, let me know how the things arrive. I have never sent plants this way so it should be interesting.

Jeanette

Jnette, Russ, & all who think I have 'surcommed' (I was never good @ spelling w/o a dictionary) I just don't get in the Garden every day!
Hope to have DSL or something better than this SLOW dialup, someday soon! I'm on a hill, above a lake, across the hwy fr The Woodlands, Texas!! They have it all & million $$ mortgages to go with it!!!
Must have IloveJesus tell you what we did yesterday!!! Wild rainlilys out of a WET ditch, into the back of my Honda! Old Fire Station, Mega crinmums!!! They were HUGE!!! & other old & forgotten beauties!
The back of my CR-V was FULL. It was full when I went to her house (75 miles away fr me) & I thought I would have some room coming home. NOTT!!!
It was great!!

PS I stuck my Pinkie in all of my blooms of the Skyflower b4 we got the flooding down pour of rain yesterday & today! I hope 2 have seed! If not, send all info on air layering these 2 plants, pls!!!! B4 it gets too cold down here! Remember, I have the blue & the 'alba'!!!























:~)

Now, Smockette, didn't you say your Skyflower was a bush instead of the vine? Alright!!

Jeanette

My GF & I have all 3! Vines, Skyflower, Thunbergia, white & blueish-purple. GF has Mercer Blue (almost royal blue) bush! I can look up the botanical when I get home!
Of my 2 blackies you sent me, one has already been potted up to go inside for the winter but I'm not sure if the other one is going to make it but I'm trying to get it to grow!!!
I'm going to try to get cuttings of all 3 b4 we get our first freeze! If they take, I'll share cuttings in the spring!
:~)

I wonder if the bush would survive here, zone 5?? I would love to have a cutting from it. What kind of flower does it have?

That darned blue one I brought in the house before it froze is starting to go crazy now. I sure wish there was a way I could start it from cuttings. I have tried and tried. Nothing.

Have you tried that bread? Russ said he sent you the recipe too. It should have been ok, even if it did leak a little. It doesn't have to be a full cup, or whatever. Kinda like sour dough.

Jeanette

Just wanted to come back and let everyone know my blue clock vine has oddles of buds and has been blooming for about 2 weeks now. I counted over twenty buds on one vine tip. Rather late for blooms here but better late than never.

Our average first frost date is next week so I don't know how much longer I'll be able to enjoy the blooms on this lovely vine. I did take a couple of cuttings. One cutting some time back and it rooted well. Then the wind blew if off of the deck and I didn't find it for a while. Poor little plants had the nicest roots but they were dumped out of the pot for I don't know how long and were a bit dry. I really didn't think it would live but I re potted it and it is holding on. I took a couple more cuttings last week and will see if they root. Would love to grow it again next year.

Mary

Congrats!!! Aren't they just beautiful?
:~)

Isn't that the same one that I have? It is beautiful but its a real struggle blooming here and so far I have not been able to get any to root. How did you root them? I probably didn't get more than a dozen blossoms this year before I had to bring it in. I let the orange one freeze. Got the blue one in and that night the orange froze.

Jeanette

Jnette,

Yes, this is a lovely vine. I didn't have any pest problems, which for my part of the country is a treat. I see the occasional ant climbing around on it but the leaves remained healthy and strong looking and finally, the flower buds began to develop and it bloomed. First year with this vine and I didn't get the little vine until mid summer so didn't have it growing the entire season. Maybe it is strictly a fall bloomer. Does your clock vine bloom while growing inside the house during winter?

For my cuttings, I just clip a vine tip, pinch out the tip, leave two sets of leaf nodes and clip off below the second one. I pinch off the lower pair of leaves, touch the bottom part into a rooting compound and stick the end into dampened ProMix potting soil (with some Perlite mixed in to lighten the mix) in a 2 liter soda bottle. Lightly press the soil around the base of the cutting to firm it up. Be sure the bottom leaf node is _beneath the soil_ as the roots develop from the node.

The soda bottle is prepared by cutting in half, with drainage holes punched in the bottom and the top has a slit on the side so it will compress slightly and slip down into the bottom half of the bottle. I leave the bottle cap off. This creates a mini greenhouse effect, which keeps the cuttings moist. The moisture that escapes catches on the sides of the bottle and drips back into the soil, which helps maintain the humidity level inside. Being clear, you can see inside easily and if the cuttings are left in this container long enough, you can see the roots develping through the clear sides of the bottom part of the container. Keep out of direct sunlight. Please DO NOT ever sit this type of container in direct sunlight as it will steam the contents.

I use this container for all of the cuttings I attempt to root except for O Sweet Potato vines, which I do in water. This is my first year to attempt cuttings and it's amazing how many plants can be propagated this way.

Mary

IHi Mary,

I had heard that it is a winter bloomer. However, I have never had it bloom in the house. If I had a greenhouse to put it in in the winter it would be much better. My house is very dry and warm in the winter. I do run 2 and sometimes 3 humidifiers in the winter. With wood heat it is harder to control the temperature.

I will try your mini greenhouse to start a cutting. One thing I have had fairly good luck with, and it is much "neater" when rooting in plain water, is putting some polymer crystals in the water. These hold the plants in place and lessen the chance of running out of water due to evaporation. Also, I have had plants roots grow around some of the crystals and when I plant them in pots then I just leave the crystals with the roots to plant them so they always have a supply of water. Works real good. Especially with the OSPs.

Jeanette

Hi Jeanette,

Thank you for the heads up on the polymer crystals. I do have a bottle of crystals and I'm currently taking OSP cuttings so I'll give it a try.

And good luck with your vine cuttings. Oh, I should tell you, it takes a while for them to root. They're not fast like the OSP's. LOL Just keep an eye and they'll eventually begin to put out new growth. I left my cuttings quite a while in the bottom half of the container after it began to put out new growth (at least, until it blew off the deck!) and the cuttings had a nice, full root ball. No doubt why the plants survived being left bare rooted out in the dry air. I noticed this morning they are putting out tiny new leaves so it looks like they're going to recover.

Mary

Well, I brought mine in the house a couple of weeks ago after cutting it off at the pot to be able to get it off the support. It has grown almost 2 feet already. I am going to cut it thru the root to give a piece to a friend and then repot the part that is left. I think I will also at this time cut the end of the vine off to try to start it like you said.

Maybe by doing these 2 things it will slow down the additional new growth, but improve the roots by giving it the new soil.

Jeanette

This is my blue thunbergia that is growing up a pinetree. Doesn't have many blooms but I'm sure that is because it has not gotten any fertilizer. Dies back in the winter and blooms end of October and NOvember.

edited for spelling

This message was edited Nov 7, 2009 1:49 PM