Just a small bit for you guys and gals.
Wildfire
You have got lots more leaves on your Wildfire than I have on mine !
Gorgeous Eric!!!!!!!!!!!!
what a dream come true it must be for you. Absolutely stunning.
I love it! It is beautiful!
Will Wildfire grow in hot, humid Mississippi? if so, how do I get a start???
Shirleyd
Zone 7b
Shirleyd,
I wouldn't count on Wildfire growing for you in your area. You would be better off getting an arborea and then requesting pollen from Wildfire to put on your arborea. The resulting seed pod would have a much higher chance due to environmental genetics of having more heat tolerant seedlings. Still, to be on the safe side I would send a few seeds to someone a bit further north to baby for you. Take those seedlings and cross them together to get your red color back as well as trying to cross back to arborea and Wildfire or Roter Vulkan to get some more red into the mix. What is important to remember is that your arborea x Wildfire seedlings will have red genes. This means that if you simply cross all of your seedlings back to arborea you will get more whites, but some of those whites from this second cross will still retain red in their phenotype. Crossing those seedlings back to a red will tell you which ones have red hidden in them. Those seedlings from your second cross that you determine to have red in them should then be crossed to each other to attain a much higher chance of getting a red arborea that will also be heat tolerant. Aside from this you could always take up tissue culture and select for heat tolerance in your culture by slowly adjusting the heat at which the culture is kept. Those cells that can not take the heat will selectively die off and you will be left with heat tolerant cells from Wildfire which you can then induce to form plants that will all be heat tolerant. Thats the theory at least and it has been done with other plants, just not this group of plants to my knowledge.
EricKnight-----thank you so much for your very prompt advice. Unfortunately, i am 76 years old and probably not up to doing anything like you suggested. But, the town in which I live has a university (Miss. State Univ.) which has a strong agricultural section. Perhaps I can find someone there to give me some assistance on this. My main flowers at this time ( I have let my 60 prima donna roses die off) are hydrangeas (about 120) as they require no constant care. Again, thank you.
Shirleyd
Gordo, I'm assuming you have at the very least an arborea? If so, I will gather you some Wildfire pollen if you promise to send half of your seeds up to the northern States or Canada. You will have to remove the anthers from your arborea before she opens though to remove the anthers before they have had a chance to ripen. I can't promise you that you will get one that is heat tolerant this way, but this is the best way to get one that is heat tolerant. I'd set up a deal though that whoever gets your seeds also crosses the siblings together and sends you back some pollen and 1/2 of their resulting seeds. In this manner, you can repeat your crosses and eventually have what you are after. It may take some time, but in the mean time you will be spreading some good genetics around as well. Its only a matter of time and you should be able to create a red arborea if you keep track of those siblings that when crossed produce red babies and utilize that on your arborea. Time after time and then you'll have what your after. When it ceases to be fun those red genes will already be hidden in enough arborea that perhaps someone who isn't even interested in getting a red arborea will accidentally get one.
Jeez, Eric. It sounds like I'm dealing with Rumpelstiltskin. Would you also like a golden egg and my first born? LOL!!!
Actually, my last attempt at an arborea is now a dry stick under my Ylang Ylang tree. I'm a risk for sure...
I think your seed would be better invested in an eager Californian - someone near San Francisco, or an industrious Costa Rican living near a coolish, dampish mountain.
As for making things red, I've got more of a chance getting a red nose from drinking Gordon's Gin, than I have creating a red arborea on the west coast of Florida. It would be easier for me to start a Panda farm. ;-)
*ching!*
(that's the sound of ice hitting the whisky glass)
;-)
Now, back to your first born and that egg deal. I'll up you one egg and two Kaitlyn's for this one. Unless of course your trying to tell me you don't have a hardy red arborea. You must excuse me as I get that way from time to time after a few too many *ching's. Thats the sound of crushed ice being devastated at the thought of no red arborea in Florida when I come home.
For the love of the arborea, I can't see enough pods getting going here as all of my pod space has been taken up with the best of the best aurea's I can acquire from any source willing to let a few flowers hit the ground. Yes, I'm an addict and I'm not afraid to admit it. Just ask the guards at the King's garden. I think a few of them thought I was sniffing powder when I came out of there with powdery white fingers and a black t-shirt dappled in white. You get the strangest looks sometimes you know?
Wow.. Where is Teresa? She'd be gaga for sure!
OMG! gaga gaga gaga!!!
Eric, that's exquisitely stunning!
Beautiful brug, Eric. Your experiences have been many in the brug world since moving to Belgium. What fun it must be.
Thanks Teresa. So good to see you gals in here. Here's hoping for enough seeds to share with all of you.
Very Beautiful indeed!!!
Karen
I love Wildfires look Eric!! Name sure fits too :) Your so lucky to grow this one....too much humidity & heat for me to.