I lost my mind on eBay back around Christmas. I'm embarrassed to tell you what these two cost me. The seller didn't email me when he was going to send them, so they sat in the post office for 18 days while we were on vacation. Think they'll live?
Sinningia 'Ruffled Wood Nymph'
Diastema vexans The smaller one on the right broke off, so I just stuck in there hoping... It had a stem about 2 inches tall with several leaves, but the whole thing was completely dried out.
my guess is you'll be fine on both. I can't tell for sure, but it looks like there is a tuber in the wood nymph pot? If so, treat it like an AV leaf - slap a dome on it, keep humid and moist (not wet) and wait. Take another vacation - why not?
The diastema - cuttings should root easily, but more importantly did he send you rooted cuttings or rhizomes? My guess is rhizomes because it grows a lotta rhizomes. Are those rhizomes I see in the photo? Each "scale" of the rhizome is a potential new plant. They should be planted near the surface. If you're not sure, feel free to dig through the pot to look for them. Rhizomes look like the Kohleria rhizomes in this pic but can be greener. http://davesgarden.com/forums/fp.php?pid=3392596 Again, slap a dome on it and treat like an AV leaf. And don't forget to take another vacation :P
Thanks, Ki! I knew you'd know what is going on (cause I certainly don't! LOL). Yes, there's a decent sized tuber in the Sinn. pot, not quite the size of two pencil erasers put together. It's a bit softer than I thought it should be, though.. I put them both in the pots they're in. The Sinn was in cotton balls, dried out, of course, and the Diastema was wrapped in plastic. There might have been paper around it, but I don't remember, I was too worried about getting it out of that plastic. The Diastema is rhizomes. Maybe they're too deep... Let me go take a picture of them... I'll be right back.
No, I was wrong...I think the Diastema is a rooted cutting. I had forgotten what it looked like. LOL
I think I see at least two pieces of rhizomes there?
Just put everything back in the pot and take that second vacation! LOL!
Long time gessie growers don't throw soil out for a few years at least - just in case something decides to re-grow!
just to clarify a bit, in case I'm being muddy like always....
For rhizomatous gesneriads (or tuberous ones, for that matter), if you have a rooted cutting that hasn't yet formed a rhizome/tuber, and the cutting dies, you have nothing left. But, if you have even a small rhizome/tuber, losing the green leafy part isn't the end of the plant because you still have the rhizome/tuber. Rhizomes have a very high rate of sprouting. (Tubers are not quite as high.)
I don't have a clue what's there. There's a couple pieces of bumpy green stuff, one of which is the thing I broke off, and a lot of roots! LOL Now to plan that second vacation... ;o) Sure wish we could! I've got them in my infamous wine glasses covered with a clear yogurt lid. High class all the way here! LOL I've really got to find more wine glasses; maybe that would be the secret to beautiful plants for me... ;o)
I was typing as you posted that last bit...
I knew that *if* there were rhizomes there, it would most likely be alright, but I believe this is my first rhizomatous plant, so I wasn't really sure that I knew what I was looking at. The green stuff, be it the stem of a cutting or a rhizome is a nice green color (that doesn't show well in the pictures) and is firm, not mushy. I've learned to throw nothing away til all hope is gone, so if these *can* make it, I think they will.
I feel pretty confident that the Sinn. will be ok, too. The tuber is pretty good sized, plump and green, though like I said, a little bit softer than my other Sinn. tubers. Still, I have high hopes for it.
They're just not what I envisioned receiving when I forked over $30 (how utterly stupid was that?? Please, somebody, learn a lesson from me so it wasn't all for naught.). I was supposed to have gotten some other kind of rhizome and a Codonanthe luteola as a "bonus" but evidently they forgot those. :o(
ouch.
Anyway, I think they'll be fine.
And as for wine glasses, they are classy. No question. For comparison, check out how I am currently doing some propagation..... Hopefully the green stuff in there are some viable fern spores. (the fuzz is long fibre sphag). Hanging by a paper clip, no less.
Ouch is right. I'll never make that mistake again. It was really, really dumb. I was taken by the flowers of the 'Ruffled Wood Nymph' and lost all sense of reason. Live and learn...
But Ki, you bought *real* Ziploc brand bags, not the cheapo store brand, so I think that qualifies as high class right there! ;o) And the paper clips are better than the bread ties I'd have used! LOL
The dollar store sells those wine glasses for a dollar so that's why I've been getting those. I used up my husband's grandmother's matching set of 6 wine glasses and needed more. My kids eat yogurt like it's going out of style and the clear lids are the perfect size to cover them. The added bonus is it raises those tiny pots up close enough to the lights.
LOL.
yes, I buy Ziploc freezer grade because they hold air - the others don't...... I just don't have any space left on the shelves, they have to be hung......
btw, if you feel so inclined, post feedback on gardenwatchdog...?
I've found the same thing with bags. Even the store brand freezer bags don't always hold air.
I didn't know we could post feedback on eBay sellers. I'll have to look up their name and see if they're listed on there. It's my own fault though. Shipping was something like $8 per plant, and I still bought them. I knew better. And on the box, the label shows they paid postage on 2 ounces. I'd guess that cost slightly less than $16 :oP
plantsnsuch? I was looking at the same plants on ebay tonight . I glad I didn't order from this person.
This message was edited May 30, 2007 7:53 AM
Yes, and I notice they've dropped their shipping prices a little bit. In their defense, it's my own fault for agreeing to pay so much in shipping, and they do have mostly good feedback. I've emailed him to ask about the other two items he agreed to send me, but haven't heard back yet. I'll feel somewhat better about it if he sends those. I'll keep you posted on how that goes. I'm sure the plants would have been in better condition if they hadn't sat in the post office so long. He didn't email me to tell me he was shipping them, though, or I would have told him to wait. I'd already waited 4 months, what's 1 more? I don't like to talk bad about anyone, and I'm still giving him the benefit of the doubt that he just forgot to send the other two items. If he sends those, then I won't feel so bad about spending so much. Broken down, it would be 4 plants @ $5 each plus $10 for shipping, which is still too much, but I can live with that.
Don't buy them just yet, though. If these live, you know I'll propagate them and share with whomever would like them. :o)
It took him 4 months to ship? I hope he takes care of you.
Because of cold weather. There was a warm spell after Christmas when he shipped some plants, but mine didn't get sent out in that batch like I thought they would. Then it was too cold either here or there, soooo. I'm still giving him the benefit of the doubt, til I hear back from him.
Saying a little prayer for them. :(
Thanks, makshi. Still haven't heard back from the seller. Grrr...
I heard from the seller today. He asked how my items were growing and said they still have to ship the others, that they're just now going through backorders and special requests. I'm feeling much more hopeful now. :o) I'm glad I gave him the benefit of the doubt and didn't send a second, ranting email. LOL
Here's the current progress of the Sinningia.
The Diastema... I couldn't get it to focus on the green part, so this is the best I could do. I have no idea if this looks good or not. LOL
sounds good :-)
The two pics you posted look fine too. The diastema looks like a tiny, errm, floret of green? That's good. Believe me, green is good, brown is not :D
He just emailed and said the missing items should be sent on Monday. If so, and they arrive healthy, I'll be happy. :o)
Our posts crossed... I'm glad the Diastema looks good. I was pleased with the green, but didn't know where it would go from there. One of the extra plants is to be another Diastema, so I should end up with at least one healthy one.
I'm pleased and relieved to see new growth on the Sinningia. I've removed the lid from the glass, as it was getting a bit fuzzy on top of the tuber, but I'm thinking maybe that was rotting moss...
Oh and I meant to add, I think "floret" is the perfect term! LOL
