I am happily "mothering" African Violets, Hoyas, Epis and Orchids and more. I'm ready to try a Streptocarpus! What are your favorite mail order nurseries for Streptocarpus? Thanks for your help!
Karen
Graduating to Streptocarpus....can u recommend where to buy?
Hi Karen,
Rob's Violet Barn....they have a great selection of babies to choose from. There hybrids are great growers and bloomers.
http://www.robsviolet.com/streptocarpus.htm
I also really liked the BIG plants I got from Logees. they carry plants from the UK that are hard to find in the US.
http://www.logees.com/products.asp?dept=146
I am a streptoholic....won't go into how many I grow as I am a bit of a freak when it comes to that. lol
I have made a website to help get some growing info out about them as well as pictures and descriptions...there is also a link page for other places that sell streps...I have only bought commercially from the above two though.
Here is my site url if you want to peek.
http://users.sisna.com/carlynn1/indexstreps.html
I also have an old photo album of my plants I grow.
http://www.picturetrail.com/members/edit
At this time I don't have much time for them between kids home all day for the summer and gardening outdoors so don't have any extra babies to offer or I would send you a few.
Hope that helps.
I haven't bought from them,but all report that Lyndon Lyon has really good plants - healthy and a good size.
http://www.lyndonlyon.com/Comp%20Plant%20List%20Streps.html
Holy cow Wildflower! You certainly ARE a Strepto-head! LOL But what a wonderful plant! I fell in love with one I saw a couple years ago, and have wanted one ever since. I will most likely get a few for starters and see how I do with them. But I bet I'll do fine. I seriously need more flat surfaces in my home and office.....I'm running out of room for the plants I want! LOL Thank you for the links, I will check out Logee's and Rob's and see what they have. I'll wait until after vacation tho, I don't want to leave new babies home by themselves!!! Thanks again!
Thanks Keyring! That's a great site too. I just can't stand it, they are sooooo pretty! I have to wait until I get back from vacation, what a bummer! LOL
Karen :~D
This message was edited Jun 26, 2005 12:21 PM
Wildflower you have me drooling. They are incredible. Had to bookmark your site
Is this one? I planted it outside --oopps -- but it's happy in the shade.... His name is Jason
Hey,that's a beauty! Yes that's a Strep!
It probable didn't mind being outside in your area, they apparently like cooler temps.
I'm torturing one along with the rest of my AV's.
One of these days I'm gonna be really good at growing these plants...lol
I have some Strep seeds to try & grow as soon as I get my nerves up. There will be plenty to share if they live through my care. Wish me luck!
MsC
MrsC, here's what I do....I'm so lazy! I hope some AV Mavens will pop in and correct anyting I do wrong, but here's my "busy woman's way with AV's"......I put my AV's in a pot, inside a decorative pot that has no hole in the bottom. When watering I pour water (room temp!) with Eleanor's VF-11 in it into the decorative pot then set their pot back in. I let them slurp up as much as they want (10 or 15 minutes) then dump the excess (into another houseplant!). That's it. Bright light, but no sun (in my area it's a north window), household temps and bottom watering. You can do it!
K
K - that's good, especially the part about pouring out the excess.
MsC - you know how I underwater everything? well, even for me the streps do better in clay pots with a porous mix. They are said to be prone to root rot. They can be wicked but I hear the mix needs to be much lighter than for AVs. And yes, the like it cooler - they can be grown outside in the San Francisco area.
I probably have a few random extra strep seeds somewhere. If anyone is interested, drop me mail....
Karen & Keyring thanks so much for the encouragement! :)
I still can't figure for the life of my poor plants why I'm getting "blasted" leaves and ocassional crown rot.
I check each plant before I water it, making sure it needs watering.Then I have a variety of plants I'm using to see what my best luck will be...some are on wick system,some on mats, some in pots like Karen described,some (mini's) on a tray with gravel and bottom watered only.
I check and check the darn water temp and have left water in a jug out on the same stand as the plants to be watered.... you name it SEEMS like I've done it all.
I even bought one of those water meters so I would know for sure if it really needed water..lol
It's a "nice challenge" for me and I don't really mind that,
I just hate killing beautiful plants.
I seem to have a lot more luck growing them from leaves. It would just be nice to grow one really pretty and see it flower.
The Strep is in a very shallow pot and is wicked it is in what looks like almost half/half perlite and soil mix. I bought it at a local plant sale, but the person who grew them was not there to talk to at the time.It is still alive but doesn't look really happy.
MsC
gosh I guess I have been lucky with mine and knew nothing of their care. My strep is in a big hanging basket type pot with good regular potting soil and it has doubled in size from last year. It is hanging down the sides of the pots. I deep water 3 times a week. I give all my gesneriads plants the same care as far a watering. All are in full sun to part sun, only the strep is in bright light
OK... I'm envious now...lol
Maybe it's just my "moon and stars" being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
MsC :)
(Ppssssttt....MrsC.....road trip to steal Donna's plant?)
LOL
K :~D
OK Karen... I've got my lil clippers...let's go! :)
Donna Here we come...snip... snip...snip...
MsC~
...heck with snip...snip...girlfriend! We're bagging the whole plant to divy up between us later.....LOL
K
Somehting tells me Donna's not too worried. I DO need a vacation tho'...........(she must be asleep! Let's go!)
This message was edited Jun 28, 2005 11:34 PM
ROFL not asleep yet . I am a night owl unless I am feeling really bad
f you want to wait until fall when the weather is cooler and I am more up to it would be glad to send some cuttings for postage. They root very easy(for me anyway)
Ah, just messin' with you! How can we pick on you if you're paying attention and reading along? LOL. One way or another, one day I will end up with one. That's what I've learned here at Dave's. Gardening buddies are good people and are kind and generous!
K
Glad you got a chuckle Donna.... laughter is good medicine for you...how are you doing with your back? Healing, I hope???
NO-no, please don't send me a leaf until I check my horrorscope....I'd probable kill it...post a pic when you can the plant will be safer that way...lol
MsC:)
here is the one I have. http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/518091/
will take pic of the whole plant tomorrow to show you how big it is
Oh yes... I remember that one...beautiful!
That's a streptocarpella... similar but we were talking about a stretocarpus..the ones with the long strap like leaves. How do they say it in fancy terms??? Same genus but different species??
I do have a nice size basket of it .I did have it outside on the patio but I decided with the heat it might live longer inside with the other AV's & Episcias. I've lost several begonia's lately to the heat & some virus. I did not want to loose it to that,so it's now gonna be a houseplant.
MsC
So how DO you start Streptocarpus? Their leaves kinda look like a big weed. So you start them from leaves like AV's as well as seed?
K
K,
Hope the link works...it has a pic... if not look on the menus and go to propagation.
http://users.sisna.com/carlynn1/strep%20propagation.html
Streptocarpella is a subgenus of streptocarpus. (The other subgenus is streptocarpus.) "Technical" info here: http://www.botanik.univie.ac.at/morphology/genera_gesneriaceae/
ooh man-- Jason is gettin some brothers...
Oh thanks! That is exactly what I was looking for! I print out propagation and culture info and place it in a binder whenever I venture to a new plant. It makes it easier to find for reference later. Now I know why the one I saw 2 years ago looked so good, it was neglected! I think Streptocarpus is the "feline" of the plant community. "Leave me alone unless I want something, then you may enter my area, otherwise I expect you to admire me from a distance" LOL
K
Oh MS C it loves the heat/humidity. It sits on the NE covered porch rail recieveing only bright light. Thanks for clairafying the difference. I am still very new to gesneriads but have had excellent luck so far, even with rooting them.
Thanks Keyring for clearing that up and coming to my rescue...I never have been very good at keeping all the technical stuff straight. I make an effort but something always gets lost in the translation...lol
Donna,
I'm pretty new to the gesneriads,too so you fit right in and of course who cares what name you call them for heaven's sake, if you can grow them and not kill them like I do then that's where the fun is anyway!
I just didn't want you to cut on your beautiful plant for my sake.
I did go and cut a leaf off my Strep and followed the directions on wildflowers propagation link so if it works I will gladly have babies to share too.(crossing fingers & toes.)
MsC
Here's my Strep in all her glory. Well one side of her anyway
That's a beautiful basket and look at those pretty blooms too!
It sure seems to like it where you have it placed.
Is the other side blooming too?
MsC
not yet. It is just starting to bloom again. It takes a few weeks rest inbetween blooming cycles. The other side is not quite as full. I haven't rotated her in a while lol
Donna,
You said you have a lot of luck rooting them??
So how are you doing yours because I need to cut mine back and reshape it, but I'm afraid to touch it.
At least if I can root a few pieces I won't feel so bad if it keels over and dies on me...lol
Thanks for any tips,
MsC
Ms C I just pot them up in good potting soil making to sure to have a couple of leaf nodes in the soil, keep damp, and in the shade in the heat of summer. I have also rooted over winter in the GH
Thanks Donna!
I'll try a few because mine is filling up a whole tray kinda growing side ways but it has a lot of woodly stems with some bare growth in places I'd like to try to fill in.
MsC
Hey Mysticwill,
I would love to do a trade with you for a leaf of Jason. I was going through my baby streps and found I have a few doubles of some and only have room to keep one of each.
Please let me know. :)
Thanks.
Carlynn
wildflower525300@yahoo.com
I will dave mail ya! I just have to go out and see if he has 2 leaves (cuz I have procrastinated and haven't taken one for myself yet-- LOL!)
I haven't forgotten!!! My Mother in Law is visiting -- he has some leaves I can send you one nice sized one. What do you have?? Dave Mail me so we don't clutter...