Australian and New Zealand Gardening: Bromeliads for Novices and Addicts - February 2013, 1 by splinter1804

splinter1804 wrote:
Hi everyone – It's good to see a few posting again but we're still missing a few of the regulars and I hope it's not illness or floods that's keeping them away. Sue, Wendy, Tash, Jen, Colleen (just to name a few)..........Where are you??????

Jean – That picture I posted of Billbergia 'Perriam's Pride' is probably not an accurate likeness as I just put the plant on the shade house floor and it seems to have absorbed the colour reflected from the Euco Mulch on the floor making it look more pink than it really is; I'll take another pic. outside on the grass and post that.

Breeindy – The difference between Neo. 'Predator' and 'Predatress' is that Predator is albo-marginated and 'Predatress' is not. The albo-margination isn't always clearly defined as it's mixed up with other colours as well and often over-layed with red spotting. Neo. 'Predatress' is a variegated sport from 'Predator' and has similar colours but without the albo-margination. I have had Neo. 'Predatress' sometimes revert back to Neo. 'Predator' so it seems it's still a bit unstable. Just out of interest, Neo 'Predator' is a Chestor Skotak hybrid and comes from the complicated parentage of [((carolinae x 'Painted Lady') x 'Takemura Princeps')) x carolinae)]

I'm not familiar with Neo. 'Gold Medal' so I really can't help you with ID confirmation. Having said that, your plant does look a bit similar to the second pic of Neo. 'Gold Medal' on the BCR; go to http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&i... and have a look and see what you think your self.

Ian – I like your idea of a vertical garden, maybe you could put one of the very small Neo's in the cup of that small Neo as well and make it into a three story vertical garden.

I notice that your Ques. 'Tim Ploughman' is just a single plant; I read somewhere that they do “sulk” a lot when a single plant is removed from the main clump and they take a while to get going and once they do start growing, it's best to let them clump up as they are easily “upset” by being disturbed. I was given a pup about eighteen months ago and it hasn't grown an inch yet.
I'm interested in your little experiment with it in the same pot as Ques. Marmorata and look forward to hearing what the result will be.

Ian, I found with any clumping prickly plants that when dividing it's much easier (and less likely to get spiked) if you turn the plant upside down and work from beneath.

You're lucky to be able to buy Skoria in bulk at that price, I have to buy it in 20kg bags for $15 each that's why I haven't up till now been using much of it. I think I'll try some in with my Billbergia mix because as well as the benefits already spoken about, the extra weight could possibly stop them from tipping over.

I also like your idea of putting it on the top of the bark mixes to stop them from being washed from the pot which has always been a problem especially with the plants I have hanging so I'll have to trial that as well......... Good thinking; keep the ideas coming, that's what these forums are all about.

Kristi – I think you should be able to get a similar product to Seasol over there as I often see my brom friends in America mentioning seaweed products on the forums. I'll post a question on the forums and see what sort of answers I get and report back to you. In what part of America do you live?

Shirley – Wow! What a haul of brom's you picked up at the markets, you should be very pleased with yourself; if only we had markets like that down here.

At first glance of your plant in Pic I was thinking one of the Ae. Luedemanniana cultivars like 'Mend' or 'Rodco' or one of those, but if the seller told you it's definitely a Neo., then that shoots that suggestion down doesn't it? I would definitely say that Pic.2 is Neo Kahala Dawn and that you're right on the money with your ID.

The plant in Pic.3 which you bought as 'Roy's Special' is a great looking plant with nice wide leaves and nice configuration. From what I know and hear about Neo.'Roy's Special', it seems to be a very unstable plant which would explain the difference between this new plant and the Roy's Special you already have and it's very likely they are both Neo. 'Roy's Special' even though the new one is albo-marginated.

When I last looked there were five different “Roy's” registered under different names; four of which were bred by Margaret and Bill Patterson and they are 'Roy's Dream', 'Roy's Lady', 'Roy's Pink', and a second different plant named as 'Roy's Pink' also. Roy's dream is variegated with Roy's Lady and both Roy's Pinks being albo-marginated.

The fifth one, Neo 'Roy's Special' (the one in question) was bred by Roy Ford and registered by Margaret Patterson. As I read between the lines it seems like the “Roy” after which they were all named is probably Roy Ford, the hybridiser of Roy's Special and you can see just by looking at the pic's of this plant that they all differ a little.
See http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&i...

I was “conned” into buying one by an unscrupulous seller when I was just starting into brom's and was told the variegations would appear as it matured. Of course they didn't and it turned out to be just plain with no variegation; knowing what I know now, it was a NOVAR. It still had the nice wide leaves and nice colour, but no variegation and should have been named Neo. 'Roy's Special' NOVAR.

That will do for today as my old brain is starting to burn and I'll finish with a few more pics. Pic.1 is a few more Bill. Seedlings, Pic.2 and 3 are a couple of Bill's, Pic.4 is Neo. Meyendorffii minor NOVAR and Pic. 5 is a seedling from a Neo. 'Thunderbird' cross.

All the best, Nev.