Ok, as you guys who have been watching the 8/8 bloom thread know, I'm totally new at seedpods. So here are some pics I took of mine today along with some questions that I have ...
Pic #1: What is up with this tail-looking thing hanging out of this seedpod?
Pic #2: (From the same hibiscus as Pic #1), Why is this one rotten-looking?
This message was edited Aug 7, 2007 8:28 PM
Pic #3: Is this how a new seedpod should look?
Pic #4: (Again, another hibiscus) It appears as though these ants have eaten into the seedpod on this double red Celia. ARGH!
Pic #5: Well (sigh) this thing has just grabbed on and began eating! He might be the one who bit into the seedpod in the first place!
This message was edited Aug 7, 2007 8:39 PM
Pic #3 looks like a flower bud to me. The other pics I'm not sure if a seedpod has started to form there or not, all of mine look like that after the flowers drop off but I've never gotten any seed pods afterwards. That's where they'd form though if they were going to, I'm just not sure there's anything there yet.
Amanda your pic #5 looks like one of those evil grasshoppers. I just despise those things :-(
I'm a real softie for any animal, even spiders and most bugs, but when I see these little creeps munching on my hibiscus (always only the hibiscus) I grab 'em with my pruners and cut those little suckers in half >:-}
What is the saying? Something like h**l hath no fury like a bubble girl whose hibiscus' are getting munched...
Ha ha ha - AMEN!!!!!!!!!!!
I did find a large seedpod growing on my Forever Young but GEEZ, I HATE that shrub with a PASSION because it grows so ugly ... so lateral like it's creeping along the ground or something. YUCK. Stunning flowers - hideous shrub formation. So I don't think I'll pass those along, wouldn't want to wish anyone else the agony.
Grasshoppers, ugh! Finally caught mine and threw them in the lid tight garbage pail. didn't have the heart to kill them, but i"ll be darned if they were going to ruin my plants!
Ok here ya go. Pic number 1...
It can be one of two things. If you look close sometimes you will see a filiment and an anther ( the part with the pollen on it) that kinda like has a crazy groth spurt and wil hang way longer than the normal ones.
Either that or the pistil didn't completely drop off when it started makign a seed pod which would be my main guess.
Pic two...... That is a pod aborting. If you look you will see 4 sometimes up to six little pads all gathered together where the pollen goes. If all thos e pads do not have fresh fluffy viable pollen on them together at once, the pod will abort. Bees are great for gettign pollen on part of the pad but not all of it and so they abort.
Sometimes pollen will blow of f from one flower onto another and again not enough pollen to make a viable pod. If you want to make some good pods. Go out early in the morning and get down as close to the eye as you can and gently rip out the pollen and go aroudn and dab it yourselves on the pads of the other blooms.
Pic 3......Eracrane is right. That is looks like a bloom. I have put a picture of what an emerging bud should look like. The one s that are gonna be viable, have they outside flaps that stay closed to protect the pod while it grows. Where ever you see a pod with the outside casing open and just a tiny green or brown thing in it. Go ahead and remove it. It won't grow and wil save your plant a bit of energy for other things plus wil help keep bugs down from coming for the rotten seeds and the sugars and carbs still in them.
Pic . 4 ... Aren't bugs a bear.. grrrrrr. I fighting grasshoppers too. At least they not as bad this year as last year. Last year I create d all kind s of new dance steps while out there with a flyswatter killing the darn things.
starlight - THANK YOU!! I'm definitely going to do this!!
