All right! I'm caving in, please let me know what I can send in return if you've any available.
Kim
konjac preparing for blast off
Oh I just found these interesting pics of a dissected spadix of the largest amorph.
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.usbg.gov/your-visit/images/DanSliceSpadix_lg.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.usbg.gov/your-visit/Last-Day-Dissecting-the-Titan-Arum.cfm&h=758&w=569&sz=142&tbnid=8lUc-Xo8-BxtjM::&tbnh=142&tbnw=107&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dspadix%2Bimage&usg=__nI0eaoyRZwfPHebI5IACG6oGlYo=&ei=gPHESeDBJpKmsAP4y5DtBg&sa=X&oi=image_result&resnum=3&ct=image&cd=1
Not much exciting in there.
OK. These are getting a bit tipsy, ( remember my spadix got knocked out at this phase last year- maybe I shouldn't blame the kids for wrestling there!)
The taller one is 5'2" The circumference of the bulbs has shrunk as the taller one now has a smaller bulb! They used to measure the same 24"- It is now 22 and 23 inches around. I guess that's only 5-10% shrinkage with the flower growth phase. They are still odorless.
Growin stinkies- I was wondering if yours are going gangbusters now too?
Kim, I just sent you a dmail.
oops, here's the picture for today.
This morning.....and I'm the only one who can't smell it! 'Have bronchitis.....maybe that's a good thing? The neighbors have been trooping in to see it in my unswept courtyard. How long does the bloom usually last? There's a flower show Friday, and I'd sure like to enter it!!!!
Sandi, that's awesome!!!
It's pretty cool, but it's been three years waiting..... Didn't you have three last year in a basket? Won't they come back up?
Mine kept in the basket, but they don't behave like yours. lol. They appeared to have slept all winter long, for two years in a row! I'm fixing to move the basket back outdoor as the weather is getting warmer here....too.
Karen, thank for your kind offer. I don't have anything on my list that I can send you back in return.
Kim
Sandi- you win! Yours opened first. Way to go! Oh BTW- Happy B-lated birthday!
The line about curbing your hubbys smoking with that in the greenhouse was funny.
Kim, don't sweat it. I'm sure we can work something out. Or there is usually someone on GW giving the babies away in the fall for postage as that's when the cold climate folks have to dig them back out. Maybe someone does that here too- I'm kinda new so ...I dunno!
Karen
Karen...
Well, I'm just glad it finally bloomed. Asking again, tho...any idea how long it will bloom? Thank you for birthday wishes...but it's next week...unless I slept too long (been sick)! As for DH not smoking,... bronchitis and acute sinusitis have curbed that for the time being. This morning I walked into our temporary greenhouse, that's attached to the gameroom patio, and saw that Mr. Stinky was blooming. I did not want to experience that odor on top of being sick...but there was no smell yet. We carried the pot around to the front courtyard so the neighbors could "experience" it. Only once today could I smell anything....so I went out and sniffed it......and you know.....that was plenty......! I expect to see the buzzards circling the house in the morning.......had flies this afternoon....ick..
I don't recall how long the bloom lasted. Last year when the spadix got knocked out was the first time we didn't have to lop the whole bloom off pronto. Days...yes, but I don't know about if it will make it 'til Friday. Maybe someone else can chime in to answer that.
Karen
Ok everything came into bloom this weekend. Here's the last shots I'll send.
I used a lamp to back-light a few of the "groovy" ones. The shorter one had a lighter colored flower.
the shorter one-
backlit- cool colors, huh?
In my experience, Amorphophallus blooms last only three or four days. It does depend upon the temps, but under ideal conditions, once the bloom opens, first day it is receptive to pollen, second day it sheds pollen, and third day begins to wither. By the fourth day, it's over, folks!
LariAnn
Thanks, LariAnn...it doesn't smell anymore, so I figured the end was near. Can I ask you...should I feed them now as bulbs (mine are in pots), after they flower and begin to grow a stem....or wait till the plant is actually leafed out?
You can add a time release fert but it won't affect the current leaf that much, although extra phosphorus in the Fall will determine how large the bulb gets this year.. The leaf emerging this year will be using whatever nutrients were stored in the bulb from last year's growth. Most people don't realize this. The fert you provide this year will go into the bulb for use in producing next year's leaf.
Where can I purchase one of these? I have some bulbs and plants to trade if anyone has any extra.
I didn't know that, and will give them plenty to eat this fall. Thanks again, I really appreciate it.
Sandi
I have bulbs for sale from small bublets to ones that weigh over a pound. If anyone is interested. My bublets are listed in the bulbs section of the marketplace on DG but my larger ones arent listed so just d-mail me if your interested.Thanks.
P.S. Sorry cheerpeople for abandoning you I have just been really really really busy! It's getting close to spring here. Anyway here is the pic of one of my bigger blooms
Nice plant, and I really like the security guard!
Karen, I think you remain the Queen of Stinkies! Maybe next year, I'll challenge for your crown. Those are awesome pics. I had to keep going back over them. Each is different variation of konjac?
It was a fun blast- off. Stinkies thanks for sending a pic of one that is even taller. Maybe in years to come mine will be that large..It's not busy here at all- it's not even lawnmower season!
Sandi- you bloomed first my dear! No mine are the same plant just one bloomed a lighter color than the other. Now the short 3rd bulb in a way -back- there -pic was a different aroid, but it isn't an amorphophallus.
I hope you can get yours to last until the flower show.
k
Next should be the largest Amorph leaf competition (excluding A. titanum, of course!). My A. paeonifolius 'giant clone' should give everyone a run for their money at over 6 feet tall later this Spring (living patio umbrella). Come one, come all!
LariAnn, my A. paeoniifolius might give yours a run for it money, have had to put 3 ropes on it to stop it falling over. When it dies down this year will have to re-pot it as it's been getting a bit shorter over the last couple of years. Been a bit unsure of whether it should just go in the garden.
No fair Lari Ann, you didn't tell us we needed to have fertilized last year! I have A. paeonifolius, but so far it's just a pretty little tree. Hasn't broken dormancy yet this year. Was a gift, so I don't know how old it is. And a. bulbifer that came from a co-op last year.
Geez...I just figured out.....I'm going to get the Booby Prize for the leaf competition....Just wait till next year, tho!
LariAnn,
I look forward to your leaf-off pics with your giant amorph later this spring!
I bought a baby paeonifolius from you last year. And as directed, I did fertilize the little guy ;)
K
I think I have the giant strain of A. Paeoniifolius too but If anyone has a bulb of the giant strain of A. Paeonii......... I would love to Buy/Trade I have lots of stuff! I would greatly appreciate it! I want to be sure I have this one. Thanks
and what is this co-op I keep hearing about?
Well, it won't make it to the flower show, but I took 'Jac' to the garden club mtg last night. He was quite a hit! Had to have DH drive so I could hold the pot at an angle. (DH was thrilled to sit thru a program on turning your backyard into a wildlife sanctuary. Not really.....).
Welll, folks, this year my giant paeonifolius has decided to bloom. Note how much maroon/purple coloration is present in the bloom. Very stinky, of course. I could smell it out on the street that runs in front of the house. The bad news is that usually the season they bloom, they don't throw a leaf. So we'll have to see what happens.
BTW, the pot it is in is at least a 25 gallon.
LariAnn
Oh WOW! That is stunning LariAnn, I didn't realize the flowers got quite that big in A. paeonifolius
I am having trouble getting my head around the idea of a 25 gallon pot. What is the height and diameter of the pot?
Ciao, KK.
Pot is 60 to 80 cm in diameter, and about 50 cm in height. ("by eye" estimates, not actually measured).
LariAnn
Lari..... About how old is your paeonifolius? I have one that's about 3, and it's never bloomed. Maybe it needed more fertilizer last fall?
LariAnn, Are you saying that the large variety of Paeonii has a more maroon and purple inflo than the regular. I have one that has a bud on it right now, should be open soon in the next few days. I still am unsure which is which. Are both leaf stalks bumpy on the larger and reg? Do the bulbs look different Are they bumpy too?
I've had mine since about 1981, believe it or not, and in that time period, it has bloomed twice, including this time! They need a specific fertilizer regime to build the tuber enough for blooming. Higher nitrogen in the Spring (leaf emergence only), balanced during the Summer, then high phosphorus in the Fall at least a month before dormancy - this is what really builds tuber size. I have not always followed this regime, hence the infrequent blooming. Also, hurricane Andrew put a big crimp in my plant growing activities for a few years. My tubers just hung on and waited for me to recover (never mind the plants!), then I came back to them and "started them up".
This message was edited May 26, 2009 3:18 PM
Growin_stinkies,
The stem is quite bumpy in the giant paeonifolius, just so much incredibly thicker and taller (6 feet or more) than the regular type. The coloration is darker, and the bloom is as you see it. The tubers are huge and somewhat bumpy, but pup very rarely when compared to the regular type.
LariAnn
Well, mine isn't a giant, but I'm going to follow your fert regime and hope to have a bloom one of these days. So sorry about Andrew putting your gardening on hold. I lived two blocks from the beach when Camille hit Biloxi. We stayed in the house and I'm still afraid of storms.
I separated all the Amorphs and didn't realize there were so many tiny ones. I've planted some out in a bed to see if they'll return after our relatively mild winter. I'm going to fertilize them as you suggested in another thread, maybe even a little more....
Thanks for your response. Sandi
Oh, and just for the record, I have the regular paeonifolius, too, so I can see the clear differences in them. The regular one never gets anywhere near as large as the giant, and the blooms on the regular are much smaller as well. It's been a while since I bloomed the regular one because if I give it the fert regime, I get so many pups that I just don't have room for them all! So I keep the regular one on a short leash, as it were. I do have another unique one that has no bumps (smooth) and pups less frequently. I've started it on the regime and will see a bloom next year in all likelihood. It's not a giant (only about 5 feet), but it is quite nice.
LariAnn