Australian and New Zealand Gardening: Bromeliads For Novices and Addicts - October 2014, 1 by splinter1804

splinter1804 wrote:
HI EVERYONE - FIRST LET ME SAY THAT MY ASSUMPTION THAT SHIRLEY'S NEO. 'ITSAGOODE' (ALL ONE WORD) WAS ANOTHER GRACE GOODE HYBRID WAS VERY WRONG. (AT MY AGE I SHOULD KNOW NOT TO ASSUME).

NOW THAT MY B.C.R. IS WORKING AGAIN, I SEE THAT IT IS IN FACT A CHESTER SKOTAK HYBRID AND REGISTERED BY PETER TRISTRAM.

IT'S FROM A CROSSING OF NEO. CAROLINAE X CHARM AS A SEED PARENT WITH CHARM AS THE POLLEN PARENT.

TERESA - WHEN BREEDING ANYTHING, YOU ARE STILL GOVERENED BY MENDEL'S LAWS WHICH ARE BASED ON DOMINANT AND RESESSIVE GENES.

JUST BECAUSE YOU CROSS TWO NICE LOOKING DOGS, CATS, BROM'S OR WHATEVER TOGETHER, YOU WON'T NECESSARILY GET ALL OF THE GOOD FEATURES IN ALL OF THE OFFSPRING, YOU WILL OFTEN GET THE FAULTS AS WELL AND DEPENDING ON HOW DOMINANT THAT GENE IS AND WHETHER IT'S STRONGER THAN THE GENE FOR THE GOOD TRAITS, YOU MAY GET ALL THE BAD TRAITS.

THIS IS WHY TO ACCURATELY PREDICT THE OUTCOME FROM A CROSSING, YOU WOULD NEED TO HAVE A VERY SCIENTIFIC MIND WHICH COULD APPLY THESE RULES OF GENETICS TO THE CROSSING AND EVEN THEN, THERE IS STILL THE POSSIBILITY OF SOME UGLY RECESSIVE GENE FROM SEVERAL GENERATIONS BACK STILL POPPING ITS UGLY HEAD UP UNEXPECTEDLY. THAT'S WHAT MAKES BREEDING SO INTERESTING AND FULL OF SURPRISES.

THATS WHY IT'S SO IMPORTANT TO LOOK AT YOUR RESULTS AND RE-ASSESS AND TRY AND WORK OUT HOW THEY CAME ABOUT.

TRISH - GOOD TO HEAR YOU GOT SOME RAIN, THERE'S NOTHING LIKE IT TO BOOST THE PLANTS.

THAT’S A GREAT LOOKING COLLECTION OF PAPH’S JOE HAS THERE. MR. LEO GILES WHO WAS A WELL RESPECTED ORCHID NURSERMAN AND JUDGE ONCE SAID THAT PAPH’S WERE THE CONNOISSEUR’S ORCHIDS; SO I GUESS THIS MEANS THAT JOE IS A PRETTY CLASSY GENTLEMAN DOES IT?

VR. TIGER TIM IS ALWAYS A “STANDOUT” IN ANY COMPANY AND PROVING TO BE A GOOD PARENT IN BREEDING PROGRAMMES AS WELL.

NEO. MORADO IS A NICE ALBO-MARGINATED PLANT AND THE SEMI CONCENTRIC RINGS JUST STARTING TO APPEAR MAKE IT EVEN MORE ATTRACTIVE. (AND NO, IT DOESN’T HAVE CONCENTRICA IN ITS BLOODLINES, I’VE ALREADY LOOKED) ALTHOUGH WE COULD BE FORGIVEN FOR THINKING SO BY THOSE PROMINANT SEMI-CONCENTRIC RINGS ON THE LEAVES.

NEXT IS ANOTHER NICE COLOURFUL GARDEN SHOT (OUCH! - NOW I HAVE A SORE NECK AS WELL) FROM LOOKING AT IT SIDEWAYS.

YOUR NOID REMINDS ME OF A FEW DIFFERENT PLANTS AT THIS STAGE, BUT AS IT STILL HAS SOME GROWNG TO DO, PLEASE POST AGAIN WHEN IT REACHES MATURITY AND WE MAY BE ABLE TO ID IT FOR YOU..

THAT’S IT FOR TODAY, BUT I JUST WANT TO FINISH WITH A SHOT FROM A N.Z. GROWER OF A PLANT CALLED NEO. ‘ROSEA STRIATA’ GROWING NATURALLY ON A TREE.

WE OFTEN FORGET THAT MOST OF OUR BROM’S ARE NATURALLY EPIPHYTIC AND THAT WE JUST GROW THEM IN POTS FOR OUR OWN CONVENIENCE.

WHAT COULD BE MORE NATURAL THAN THIS PLANT, WITH THE MORNING LIGHT BEHIND IT, GROWING AS MOTHER NATURE INTENDED AND EVEN HAVING ITS OWN INSECT PEST PROTECTION IN THE FORM OF COBWEBS AND A SPIDER LYING IN WAIT SOMEWHERE.

ALL THE BEST, NEV