I have been trying to breed aroids for years and a little over a year ago I tried to cross breed a few Monsteras. I had thought that breeding with them was difficult and very unlikely. Manly because as far as I know it has never been done. Also I have never seen Monstera seeds and I have never been able to find any pictures or info on monstera seeds. So I figured what the hell I should aleast attempt some hybrids. I was fairly sure it was not going to work. I took pollen off of two monsteras I had in bloom one called Monstera friedrichallsii which is a very unusual plant with tons of holes in the leaves and another I believe is monstera peruviana this one produce large leaves with holes usually the leaves are held in a fan shape. Both the pollen of these two plants were put on my largest Monstera deliciosa yellow variegata. I taged and wrapped the flowers up. I have had fruit on the plant many times before never with seed. It took the fruit about 1 year and a few months to rippen. After it was rippened I went digging around in the taste yet very slimy fruit. I was very excited when I found the first seed. It was about the size of a lima bean maybe a bit smaller. As I removed the fruit and began to find more and more around 100 seeds. So with many plants I can look at the parents and get a good Idea of what the hybrids might look like but with these I am having a hard time imagining what they may look like.
Here is a pic of Monstera friedrichallsii
Hybrid Possibly a first for Monsteras
Clever Clever Brian! Congratulations on your spreading brood. How many species & hybrids of Aroids (not counting your own crosses) have you got anyway! I am imagining you having a giant wall chart somewhere with all the names across the top and down the side with various coloured flags at the intersecting points, like a military campaign chart! Pollen producers across the top, flowers to be fertilized down the side, Yellow flags for ripe pollen, orange for growing fruit, red for ripe seeds, blue for seeds planted from the cross, green for growing plants, and, finally a big gold star for any cross that turns out to be good enough to name and distribute. It would be a sort of "worlds to conquer" survey and plan of campaign all in one. LOL, KK.
Don't usually let people see that chart. Sorry! But you have it very close. I do still get made fun of thought when I put the bee suit on to go pollinate. I have also found all this sex with plants makes it hard on my girlfriends and our relationships.
Man those seedlings came up fast. Cant wait to see what they grow up to be!
Congratulations!
See...nothing ventured, nothing gained!
ROX
GOSH! That's exciting, Brian! WOW! I keep a holey leaf philo at work, (I really need to remember names) the smaller oldest leaves full like that. They seedlings look wonderful and happy to me. Please do keep us posted on their progress. Congrats to you!
Brian, you are just amazing. Please keep us informed of what comes of the babies.
I lurk on this thread often. I love Philodendron's and have a couple of common ones as house plants. I really envy the collection some of y'all have!
Brian: Do you make your living growing these awesome plants? I am just so amazed at you Plant MD's, Scientist's, Hybridizer's ..... Awesome! I can't wait to see what those babies end up looking like! I know they will be wonderful however they turn out! Hope you will post photo's as they grow and mature!
Plantladylin, join in anytime, we have a great time on the Aroid forum, sometimes we talk about them on the tropicals forum, too. Brian does have a commerical operation to support his passion...(briansbotanicals.org) My daughter and I visited last spring and it is awesome! Check this out--- http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/765594/
Wow! What Beauties .... Thanks AuntB for the link to the previous thread and the info on briansbotanicals!
(Plus he's just a sweetheart of a young man (AND easy on the eyes ;)
Aunt B: Yep ... I think most young, and also older men from Kentucky are like that ... all real Gentlemen! Our Director of Athletic's/Men's Basketball Coach at the University where my hubby teaches is from Kentucky and we've had a few players over the years from there too. I think they raise em' right in Kentucky! (I'm not saying they don't raise em' right in other states too .... we just happened to be talking about Kentucky boys right now.)
Well, maybe I need to relocate! LOL (I think we're conversing on 2 separate threads - where's everyone at? Are you and me and 2pugs Linda the only ones "working" today? ;)
:) hee hee ... Yeah, I guess so! Don't you just love this "work"??
I am going to get out of here very shortly and get some errands run ... hate driving in the rain but must get some things accomplished today!
Nice chatting with you!
