Bought this guy unlabeled last year. Maybe someone knows his name? Cell phone picture so the quality isn't all that great. Thanks all!!!
ID if possible
Looks like a columnea, but I can't tell which one...myabe you can match it up from pics on the Gesneriadca site??
Look at this and see what you think...
http://www.gesneriads.ca/colum138.htm
MsC
I figured he was a columnea....the flower looks like the one in your link, but my leaves are fuzzy.....I guess like most things an ID is going to be almost impossible....thank you MsC
You're welcomed... you might take a close up (if you can) of the leaf front & back...it might help to get it ID.....
They are nice plants.
MsC
I just ordered my very a Columnea from Rob's Violet's last night. I can't wait to get it. I am new to these plants, got one in trade from someone here on DG and it's doing well so far, so I decided to order another one. Here's the one I ordered:
http://www.robsviolet.com/c_lightprince.htm
I hope it grows well for me and looks as great as that photo!
Thank you!! I have him growing right in the middle of a south facing window. Of course my southern sun isn't nearly as hot as yours might be, and the 140 year old windows probably don't let in as much light as newer ones would....but he's happy!!
You are getting Light Prince...wow...what a beauty!!!!!
I think your Southern window is probably the perfect spot for a Columnea! I have my little one in a South window along with a couple of Streptocarpus .... I wish I had more than one small South facing window! Seems like the perfect spot for most plants!
I am lucky I have 2 south facing and a good west facing window. I have tons of north facing windows which do well in a pinch in the summer because the sun comes in for about 3 hours in the evening. I have a nice little pink codonanthe which loves the north window. Blooms almost all year, but the flowers are tiny and i can't catch them with the cell phone. Yet, I keep trying!!
I almost ordered a Codonanthe plant recently ... might do it the next time I place an order! I would love to see a photo if you get one! I have one C. 'Paula' that I received in trade here on DG and I love it. It's real small, but doing well so far! Yours with pink flowers sounds lovely!
I'll try to get one in the morning when I have some good natural light. I discovered while hubby's daughter was visiting this weekend that she has the exact same cell phone as i do...and she has the memory card reader for it!!! I asked her if I could "borrow" it when we drove her home......yayyyyy...I can post pictures!!!
Lin, someone told me that one of the secrets to columnea is to keep taking cuttings and fill a small pot.....never quit taking cuttings until you have enough to fill a hanging basket.......
In a trade i got cuttings from this particular cultivar........the prettiest of all.....'Light Prince'
************After taking cuttings once, I did it again and look at my 4" pot..........as soon as i can I will take cuttings again.......
As soon as this 4" pot starts to get leggy, I will move up to a 5" or 6" pot and put all the new cuttings in the bigger pot..
Very Nice Gail! I can't wait for my 'Light Prince' to get here. It will be very small I'm sure because that is all Rob's seems to send. I sure hope I can keep it alive to grow and give me enough to propagate like yours!
threegardeners - nice columnea whatever the cultivar.
Gessiegail - doing great! Adding cuttings will give you a nice big basket before long. And the stems you take cuttings from will be improved also.
Pruning only makes Light Prince better. In fact any columnea cuttings if left to just grow will become long and stringy. Pruning early is beneficial.
Here's an example of a small pot planted with 5 tip cuttings. If left un-pruned, they would have grown long stems and been overall unattractive. You can see that by pruning early, the cuttings have branched and are making side growth. In the end, early pruning makes for a much better plant.
Lin - Hope you like yours when you get it and I think you will. Mine seems to thrive with warmth and humidity so should be good for you in Florida.
Well, I'll be!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Snowrose is the lady who taught me this about taking cuttings.......
Snow: That is one beautiful plant you have there too! I am so glad I posted about this plant and y'all have taught me about this. I would have never thought to prune it if you hadn't posted that it should be done! And, I do want a nice full, bushy plant! Thanks so much for all the great information I receive from this forum!
Lin
When you prune them, do you just stick them in the soil or in a glass of water? I have tried with these and can never seem to get them to take......he is sending up tons of new branches from the center of the plant, but if I could prune him...well....the possibilities are endless!!!
Sure, Lin...don't be afraid to prune them and of course you'll have more cuttings to root. They root so easily. The plant I posted is only in a 2 1/2" pot with 5 tip cuttings. A wick watered starter plant.
Gail - you probably knew all that already lol!
If you have trouble rooting them, you might try a mix of half perlite and half vermiculite, and use a prop dome or bag. This is the only mix that works reliably with columnea for me. Also make sure to give the cuttings light while they root. During the spring and summer, I find they root much more easily and I can root them without a dome or bag because I have more humidity.
Thank you, I will give it a try.....(grabbing scissors)
threegardeners - good you have new growth from the center. The long piece could be pruned back (after you enjoy your blossom, of course) and several cuttings made from it. I grow cuttings in a light porous mix. Just stick the cuttings, water and tent or enclose in a baggie till rooted. A gentle tug will let you know when rooting has taken place. I find columnea very easy.
This might sound silly, but on your cuttings, keep in mind which is the bottom end and which is the tip end.
More good general info on Columneas from Violet Barn -
"Question: My Columnea are never as beautiful as yours. My conditions are good, but they always look weedy and don't bloom very heavily. What am I doing differently?
Answer: Like violets and most other plants, Columnea nearly always bloom from the newest growth. This means that the more new, healthy growth there is, the more potential there is for blooming. Assuming that there is sufficient light and the culture is otherwise good, proper pruning is important in maximizing both foliage and blossom production. Treat columnea and other branching or vining gesneriads like Nematanthus and Aeschynanthus like you would a hedge. Why do you regularly trim a hedge? If you don't, it just grows tall and spindly, and never has that dense, thick, lush look. Trimming it occasionally forces it to branch and produce new growth, filling in those empty spaces and giving it a full look.
Doing the same to your columnea has the same effect. Let each branch produce one or two new pairs of leaves, then cut the tips. This cut branch will then produce two (or more) branches which can, themselves, be cut when they've produced enough new growth. If done regularly, what began as relatively few cuttings in a pot can be made into a very full-looking plant with lots of new growth being produced. Once you achieve the "full" look that you desire, stop pruning and let the plant grow. Disciplining the plant's growth early will reward you later."
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Looks like a dolphin doesn't it?
That's exactly what I thought when I saw the origianl post! Hehe!!! I thought she was holding a glass dolphin... LOL!!!
I can't believe I didn't even notice that before! We see Dolphins down here in the waterways all the time and that flower sure does look like a Porpoise!