Bromeliads for Novices and Addicts - February 2013

Here is the new thread for February 2013 - Bromeliads for Novices and Addicts - new members most welcome, please join us ...

We came from here http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1292392/#9408872

This lovely little bromeliad is neo Small World

Shirley



This message was edited Feb 5, 2013 6:49 PM

Thanks Shirley. You have a nice Small World heres a pic of mine a little while ago, i cant find a recent one at the moment.
My number 2 pic is tagged Leopard? 3. Old Love Letters in alot of sun which doesnt make it as nice a colour.

Hi Everyone!

Hi Jean by the sounds of things sounds like you have been busy shopping for more broms, isn’t it a great feeling and even more so when they arrive in the mail.

Hi Nev the framework support that holds up the shade cloth in our nursery appears to be treated pine (not painted) timber rafters on timber frame construction. The nursery is built along one whole side of the house so there are a lot of these planks evenly spaced the whole length of the nursery. We have flat headed nails that we hang pots from.

Nev so pleased to hear that you really liked the pic I posted the other day of the “Paper Bark Trees” in the Wetlands that you want me to email you with pic so you can pop in a frame, more than happy to email you the picture you liked plus some others that I took on the same day. I will have to try and take a picture of the really huge Paper Bark tree that hangs over our back yard that also lives in the Wetlands, it’s that big I don’t think I will be able to get a proper picture of it but will try on the weekend just so you can see how beautiful it is.

Nev pleased to hear your first meeting of the year went well and thoroughly enjoyed reading what was covered on the day. I also really enjoyed your article “How I Improved My Guzmanias”. I only have a couple of plants of these but reading your article has made me want to look at collecting some more but first I will look at practicing your method as mine do not flower as much as I would like them too but the plants do look healthy.

Nev thanks heaps for posting your various methods for hanging all your brom pots, I especially liked your mesh fence panel idea as this gives plenty of options for hanging and they can be shuffled along as the grow in both shape and size. I can see us using a number of these different methods to accommodate different areas of the nursery. I can’t wait to show Joe when he gets home as he will have to think of more hanging room for his orchids and you’ve provided us with so many wonderful options to choose from. Thank Nev. Also those little seedlings posted in your last pic on 4/2 look so lush and healthy; I can’t wait for my baby seedlings to look like that.

Hi Bree great to see the water has receded back down the paddock, what a pretty back drop with all those trees in the background. Luv your planter boxes and pics of all your broms. Bree great pics you posted on 4/2, yeah I think your Pic 3 is Dillings Black Beauty, I don’t own to post a pic for you to compare but it looks like the ones I have seen on EBay and liked the look of. Your Pic 1 Concentrica x albo marg is gorgeous.

Hi Shirley thanks heaps for starting new thread for November - it worked!

Shirley after I thought I got rid of my headaches from reducing my coffee intake only to the weekend I ended up with a whopper of a migraine yesterday and had to book myself in for a massage today because I felt so out of whack. Anyway I will see how I feel tomorrow after a good night’s sleep and if things don’t improve I will go see doc. Today I only drank green tea and lots of water (no coffee).

Shirley I really liked the pic you posted on 3/2 of Neo’ Raphael, what a beautiful healthy looking plant. My one is just a pup with a lot more growing to do so it’s nice to see yours looking so full of colour.

Hi Kristi, great to hear from you and hope you are over the dreaded flu. A few of us have been in the same predicament either with flues or chest infections. Nice brom pics you posted of your new acquisition, vrieseas are so amazing, I can’t get enough of them but am concerned I am going to quickly run out of room for them as they are growing and I also have trays of seeds that have germinating and growing that I sowed back in Oct 2012 and I have some others that I have now transplanted into their own little pots as they are growing well.

Hi Ian thanks for also posting hanging ideas, we are going to have to consider going down this track soon as I need more room to keep my broms, especially the pups that need a bit more protection.

Hi to anyone else looking in or on the Sick List.

Take care and Happy Gardening!

Trish

Pics of my Vriesea Seedlings ‘Fosteriana x Red Chestnut’ – potted seeds back on 23/9/12. I decided to give them their own little pots today because they were pushing out of the seedling trays and blowing onto the ground in the nursery because the mix was drying out too quick and was too light to hold them down and with this heat we are experiencing I was really worried about loosing them. Hopefully this does not kill them as some of them are still small, but a good majority of them are growing really well and look healthy, all up I have 44 as I have another tray with some in it. What do you guys think? I know some are still small but they were blown over growing on their side so I thought at least give them something more stable to live is so I have grouped some of the smaller ones together for support. I also checked on my real little seedlings in all the trays today and they are doing really well after the Miltons spray that got rid of all the algae and they seem to have benifited from this plus the light feeding I am giving them every fortnight.

Hi everyone, I managed to set up the new thread ... pretty pleased with myself LOL.

Nev, I like your pot hangers, I could certainly use some of those. What size wire do you use, is it plastic coated and where do you buy it.

Bree, those are nice pics, I love all three. My neo Old Love Letters used to have beautiful colour and markings, one of my favourites, but it is not much to look at since I fertilized it. It has produced three pups though, none of them large enough to remove as yet but coming along nicely. I love neo Leopard.

Trish, your vriesea seedlings are doing really well. Mine are nowhere near that size, probably no more than one single leaf about 1 cm long. Even my neo seedlings are not as big … you must be doing something right.

I was in Bunnings today and bought a couple of ancantarias for $7.94 each. They are a good size but were in 5” pots. I noticed others of a similar size in a different section of the nursery but in 6” pots and they were priced at $19.95. I will post a couple of pics, maybe someone can ID them for me as they had just the generic label ‘bromeliad species’. I thought they might be Extensa but could also be Glaziouana, either way I thought they were a good buy. I repotted them into 8” pots, fertilized them and gave them a good watering. I put them out in the hope of a shower of rain tonight to really get them growing.

Pics are - 1 my new alcantareas in their 5” pots, 2 repotted into 8” pots, note my lovely red blanchy in the background, 3 & 4 are random garden shots ... can you see my Rebel.

That’s it from me, till tomorrow,

Shirley

Shirley ~ thanks for the new thread and the photos. I will mark it to watch so I can follow everyones' beautiful bromeliad posts. I spotted your Rebel looking as though he was watching your every move. He is charming.

Speaking of that, Trish ~ I love the airborne shot of your Lucy. Very fun!

Thanks everyone for the well wishes on the flu. It took the better part of the month to shake it but yes, I am improved. I have read that many of you have dealt with it also and am sure it was twice as bad when it is your summer and so hot out.

Nev, that photo of Vr. fenestralis was when I first received it. Its' leaves were starting to curl before purchase but it was shipped poorly, being packed tightly into a small box. I was disappointed as the leaves were either straightened or damaged. When it settles in to its' new home, I will take another photo and post it. Thank you also for the Bromeliad Photo link. I do believe this will be a correct ID even though my photo wasn't the best.

I wonder if the moisture level in bromeliads will affect leaf structure in this manner also? Will they curl tighter if left a bit drier?

Thanks also for the information on lighting. I was in a quandry as I have mine in the greenhouse and will be moving them outside in a month or two. I need to decide where to position them. I am unable to leave them in the greenhouse as they will be toasted in summer.

Hello to everyone here. I'm still enjoying your photos and posts and wishing I had access to the wonderful selection of plants that you all find. Thanks much, Kristi

My first separated pup ~ Billbergia pyramidalis Kyoto

Hi everyone – First of all a big thankyou to Shirley for starting a new thread for February; and now I must do what I forgot to do yesterday.

Yesterday I forgot to comment on Kristi's remark about the “Bromeliad Forum”. In 2008 I joined the Garden Web Bromeliad Forums. It was a great site and had many members which ranged from from “newbies” like me right through to international growers and hybridisers of world-wide recognition. The one thing they all had in common was they willingly shared information and we were getting answers to our questions from people from countries all over the world and even to this day I still refer to the archive files on that site which still contain a wealth of information and wonderful pictures.

The people on that site were much like the ones on this site and very friendly and willing to help where ever possible with the sharing of information and pictures, and I learned much more from them than I ever did from books I had read. My only criticism of that site was that it wasn't very “user friendly” and after a few years one of the members from South Africa started up a much more “user friendly” site which most of us joined. After a short time to get familiar with the new ways of doing things, I think everyone found it much easier to use to access information and it became more popular each day with the membership quickly growing. Sadly, although a few of us were using both sites, after a while the first site became very quiet with very little activity as most of the members spent more and more time on the new site. Consequently, now there are very few people posting about bromeliads there anymore.

This second site went very well for a few years but even now it is also getting quieter each day as more and more growers chose to change over to various Face Book Bromeliad sites. I tried some for a while but after having computer problems seemingly every time I opened up Face Book, I decided not to use it any more. It wasn't just the computer problems, but the people on the sites just didn't seem as helpful and friendly, and the camaraderie from the original site just wasn't there anymore.

It was then someone told me about this little site and “low and behold”, that same type of friendship and helpfulness exists here just as it was on that original Garden Web Forum and I've been happily posting here ever since even though I still do look in on the other two Bromeliad Forums from time to time. It seems to me that as soon as these sites get too big, the camaraderie goes out the door.

Shirley – That’s a beautiful perfectly shaped example of Neoregelia ‘Small World’ in the pic you’ve posted, well done! As for the wire hangers, I just make them out of whatever wire I have that will do the job. Small ones like that are made from the same gauge “galvanised tie wire” that I make my extensions for pot hangers from and if the pots are of a larger size and more heavier, I use a thicker gauge galvanised fencing wire. None of it is plastic coated and is available in most Bunnings stores.

They’re good sized Alcantareas you bought and the price was much less than they would ask down here, but the one that catches my eye is the beautifully coloured young Ae. Blanchetiana in Pic. 2, it’s a beaut, and it’s good to see “Rebel” the watch dog on duty guarding it for you!

Breeindy – The pic’s you have posted are also nice plants and the one of most interest is Neo. ‘Old Love Letters’ as it is a great example of just how much the colour can be bleached out of a plant due to too much sun and I think an example shown in a picture such as this can explain things much better than the written text, so thanks for sharing it with us all.

Trish – Thanks for the offer of more pictures of your Paper Bark Trees, I’ll certainly look forward to receiving them.

I like the look of your little seedlings, that’s amazing growth in a little over four months. It would take about eighteen months at least to get them to that size down here. It seems like you have that “magic touch” and are now starting on the journey of becoming a “Hybridising Guru”.

One little tip which I don’t think I’ve mentioned about small seedlings previously and which is an “optional extra” if anyone choses to try it. When you are planting these “little blokes” into their own pots, small plants such as these are often prone to rot if planted too deeply in their pots; on the other hand if they aren’t planted deeply enough, they are often inclined to topple over as the small root system is insufficiently established to support them. We all know that if a plant isn’t firm in its pot or on its mount it will be reluctant to put down new roots, and the same applies to small seedlings as well. What I have found is a big help, is to stake these little plants with simple bamboo tooth picks; this will hold them firm enough while they establish a sufficient root system to support them on their own. True, it doesn’t look too good but it’s better than having a group of rotted seedlings because they were planted too deeply to try and afford them the same support they can get from the toothpicks.


Kristi – I hadn’t realised that the Vr. Fenestralis had come to you via the post, I thought you had personally bought it at a nursery. I have found that with any plants I get through the post whether they are packed correctly or incorrectly, they will all benefit from the treatment shown below:

1. Open box as soon as it arrives.

2. Be careful not to lose any loose notes or name tags which may have become detached and be in the box.

3. Carefully un-wrap plants being careful not to lose name tags which may have just been tucked between leaves.

4. Bare-rooted plants will sometimes appear wrinkled and mis-shaped when first unpacked (like a butterfly when it first comes out of its cocoon) This is because they have been confined in an unnatural position and lost some of their fluid content due to dehydration. (No opportunity to absorb moisture from circulating air) This often happens no matter how carefully they were packed especially with softer leaved plants which suffer the most.


5. First, lay plants on a flat surface in the shade and give a good gentle hosing to completely wet them.

6. Take a cup of raw sugar and dissolve it in a bucket of tap water

7. Give plant/s a good dunking in this solution to ensure the leaves have been saturated and that the well in the centre of the plant is full of the liquid also. Then stand upright in the bucket all day or even over night, occasionally re-dunking the whole plant again a couple of times throughout the day.

8. The next day, carefully examine the plants for insects or signs of disease and if apparent treat as required. If clean, then pot up or mount them and give a thorough watering and place in a shady location.

9. As a really good "pick-me-up" give a good drenching of “Seasol” following the mixing instructions for "stressed plants" or "transplanting"

10 Keep in the shade for a few days until plants have regained their original shape and then gradually acclimatise them to your conditions. (Not too much bright light at first)

For some time I have been trialling various ways of promoting roots on Neoregelia pups more quickly than by simply planting in my normal potting mix. After reading a post from one of our members (I think it was Ian) I decided to give his idea of planting a pup in straight Skoria a try. The pup I tried had no roots whatsoever and the Skoria was the 3/8” size which I found in Bunnings.

On Nov. 28th I planted the pup in a 100mm pot with this Scoria as the only growing medium. The pot was positioned in a poly styrene box containing 25mm of Coco Peat in the bottom. It was given no fertiliser of any kind except a bit of Seasol as a tonic following the excessive heat we had.

Today Feb. 6th (65 days later) when I lifted up the pot I noticed roots protruding from the bottom and into the Coco Peat, obviously searching for moisture and food. On closer examination when I knocked the pup out of the pot, it had a much more substantial root growth than I would have ever expected by growing in my normal mix.

The question now is, was the “quicker than normal” root growth due to growing in the Skoria or due to the two abnormal heat wave days followed by excessive rain we had a couple of weeks ago? It seems like I'll have to repeat the trial once again to get a true result.

The following five pic’s show the results of the trial. Pic.1 shows the size of the Skoria used and the other four pic's show the root development photographed from varying angles

All the best, Nev

Hi all, another fine hot day and we are enjoying plenty of mossies, little black buggers. The local council in their wisdom have decided that due to the fact that some people have allergy problems, there will be no mosquito control measures. They used to spray selective insecticides in the wet areas. Better that 100% of the population risk Dengue fever than a few risk allergy problems. Again the minority controls the majority. Off my soapbox now.

Trish those Vr seedlings look great, I haven't tried any yet but I have tried Alacantarea seeds and they are older and still a lot smaller. Some of the other seeds I have planted have given spectacular results.

Kirsty light and heat seem to be relative with growing broms. Generally with more heat we also get more light and our plants also need more water and possibly low nitrogen fertiliser. If the weather is uncomfortable for me then our plants will feel it too.Some more than others.

Nev you asked if I had shares in a weldmesh company. No such luck. I had a job to remove a security fence and I kept the mesh for my back bush house. The rest was either second hand fence panels or offcuts from an engineering shop. I have to get what I can where I can for as little as I can.
I think I got the idea of using scoria from a member in Cairns and they use different sizes for different plants. I had a 20kg bag of 10mm but it is all used up now and all I have left is 20 mm, big but it still works. I suppose that I could always crush a bit as needed with a hammer. It will work. I like to pass on information that helps another.

Bloody desert roses are throwing seeds through my broms. I am trying to catch them but I think they are more wind accepting thanTillandsias.
Have a good one
Ian
Pic 1 N Old love letters getting bleached
Pic 2 N Princess Grace
Pic 3 Desert rose seeds

Once again, good morning everyone and a "cherrio" to all who can't post due to illness or other reasons and I hope we hear from you all again soon.

Ian – Regarding the mosquitoes, once again it's a case of a council being frightened that someone will sue them if they have an allergic reaction to the chemicals used to control the mosquitoes. Surely it's better for the people with known allergies to stay clear of the areas being treated and not put themselves at risk anyway, or maybe they would just like to get Dengue Fever instead; my son nearly died from it when he was in South East Asia and it's not a very pleasant disease.

I'm pleased to hear that like me you're into re-cycling; and there's just so many things you can do with bits of mesh and the off-cuts. My daughter calls me the “bower bird” because I'm always saving bits and pieces for that “rainy day”, but they do come in handy and with a bit of imagination I can always find a good use for them.

I thought it may have been you who passed on the tip about the Skoria, so thanks; it was a good tip and works well. Incidently, where Bunnings only ever previously sold the larger size Skoria down here, they now also sell the 10mm size, so if anyone is after some, maybe your local Bunnings will have it.

I must say your plant of Neo. 'Princess Grace' is a “beauty” and as soon as I saw it I thought it had some Neo. Concentrica in the breeding somewhere and sure enough just one generation back, one of the parents was Neo. 'Decora' which is Neo. Concentrica 'Plutonis' x Neo Princeps and it just goes to show how Neo. Concentrica has once again passed on the semi-concentric markings to a future generation.

Nothing much more to add today so I'll just post a few pic's I took yesterday around the yard. Pic.1 (centre bottom) is a seedling I bred from a Neo. 'Painted Lady' (sport), Pic.2 is Ae. Fenestralis, Pic.3 shows Neo 'Noble Descent' grown in low light and Pic.4 show a piece from the same plant growing in bright light. for comparison. Finally Pic.5 is a group of plants but take notice of the rather tall inflorescence on the large Vr, Fosteriana in the centre; it seems to grow taller and taller every day and the buds aren't even visible yet and I wonder if I will need to move it out or cut a hole in the roof to accommodate it as it nears maturity.

All the best, Nev.

Hi everyone, another working week nearly over, someone has to do it you know. We had a shower of rain here earlier tonight, everything is so green now. Of course, now the lawn grubs will move in en masse and turn the lawns brown again.

I spent a little bit of time with my broms this afternoon, potting up a few new pups, some of them from my collection and some eBay purchases ... photos to come later.

Kristi, congrats on your first pup, looks like a nice one too.

Nev, I purchased some scoria today and I thought I would give it a try after reading about your trial using it as a growing medium to promote roots on neo pups. Thanks to Ian too as it was originally his idea. Bought some wire too, so Michael can have a go at making up rings to hang pots. Thanks guys for sharing your good ideas.

I have a few more pups to pot up tomorrow then I might try to find the time to give them all a Seasol boost.

Now that was lucky … I was just about to cut and paste this from Word to DG when we had a power failure … it seems to be a regular feature lately. Luckily it was only off for about 5 minutes and I was able to recover my post as a Word document so I will finish up for now and then go and reset all the clocks, again ... bugger.

My photos are 1 neo Tricolour, 2 neo Tossed Salad

Bye for now, Shirley

Here we go again – It looks like it's just you and I today Shirley.

I spent yesterday at the Light Rail Museum and while there had a look at the brom garden which members of our Brom Society had planted about twelve months ago. Unfortunately the chap who usually looks after the garden has been unwell for a while and unable to attend and during the heat waves, with everyone thinking about their own gardens, this one was completely forgotten and subsequently copped a lot of damage which was made even worse with no follow up treatment, not even watering until the rain eventually started. There are a lot of burnt and severely dehydrated plants there now and it will be interesting to see just what Mother Nature intends to do about it. No doubt there will be a few losses, but I'm confident that most of them will “bounce back” and start the life cycle all over again. I'll see if I can arrange for some of our Brom. Society members to come down and lend a hand to tidy it up a bit as it's beyond me as I'm flat out just trying to look after my own garden. Anyway I'll keep you posted on how things turn out.

Good luck with the Skoria Shirley, I'll be interested to hear how your trial goes, I planted another half dozen pups in it the day before yesterday just to see if the previous results were influenced very much by the abnormal weather as it seems to have caused a few strange things to happen in the garden lately.

I've noticed that quite a few of the brom's in the shade house are starting to lose colour which down here doesn't usually happen until about April. Another strange thing has happened to the "Pony Tail Palm" which usually has about three flower spikes on it each year. Just a week ago I cut off the dead flower spikes which had been burnt to a crisp during the heatwave and yesterday morning I noticed there are nine new flower spikes just popping their heads out of the foliage which is most unusual as it never flowers at this time of the year and never more than three spikes at a time anyway. Maybe Mother Nature thought it was going to die and this is a natural response to try and produce some seed so it can re-produce itself. I've also noticed that two of the brom seedlings that were growing pups have just “bolted” and the pups have become enormous almost triple the usual size in a couple of weeks and now at least twice the size of the mother plant. (See pic's 1 and 2).

Shirley are your power failures due to the recent floods? We've been lucky down here with no interruptions, unlike back in the 50's when we were often getting “blackouts” and “brownouts”. Just last week we had a notification that due to necessary work on the grid, the power would be off from 9.30pm until 5.30 am the following morning and to switch off and unplug all computers, TV's etc. to prevent damage when the power came back on again. After doing all of this the power stoppage didn't eventuate which was probably due to the heavy rain we were getting at the time, so it looks like there will be a power cut in the near future when they try to get this work done again.

I like the pic of your Neo. 'Tossed Salad', it's a very attractive plant and the Neo. 'Tricolour' is nice as well. For some time this plant was called Neo. Carolinae 'Tricolor' and it got to the stage where almost every variegated NOID was carrying that name. It's interesting to read about what the BCR has to say about Neo. Tricolor, part of which says …...... “described and named Neoregelia carolinae var. tricolor which became N. carolinae forma tricolor in Phytologia 1967 and was completely ignored in 'An Alphabetical List of Bromeliad Binomials”.

You can read the lot at:
http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&id=7583#7583

There's also an interesting entry about the Neo. 'Tricolor Group' and this can be found in the BCR at: http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&id=7584#7584

Time to go already so I'll finish with a few more pic's firstly Pic.1 and Pic.2 are of the fast growing large pups I mentioned above. They are on two Neo 'Gee Whiz' x Concentrica hybrids I made about four years ago and are much larger than the rest of the grex. Both plants have put up two pups each which are so large, they completely obliterate the mother plants. It's easy to see the Concentrica influence in the plant in Pic.1; as for the plant in Pic.2, I still don't know what way that will go. Pic. 3 shows a sun damaged Vr. Phillipo Cobegii (which I must trim the dead bits off now the hot weather has passed). Pic.4 shows two other plants which have suddenly shot up through the weeds after the heat wave and the following rain; the one on the left is a "Blanchie" seedling and I don't remember the name of the Neo. on the right, Pic.5 is Ae. Blanchetiana x Ae Eurycorymbus which I grew from seed and is now coming into flower.

All the best, Nev.

You are not alone, Nev & Shirley. I am always lurking in the wings until I have something to show.
I learn a lot here. So much easier reading the posts with info and hints rather than trying to read some dry old book about broms.

I have done it again. I should write out 500 times.
....I must not look at broms on eBay....
I bought more...lol

I have used the scoria before as a medium for my cymbidium orchids. They didnt mind it but I found the pots dryng out too quickly in the hot weather and any fertiliser in the water was wasted as the water would all just run straight through.
Maybe the stuff I used was too large in size. I have not seen any other around .
The orchid mix seems to suit them all now anyway.

I took a few pics yesterday so you can see my new babies.

pic 1... vr. Poelmanii White Line x Milky Way
pic 2...vr. Red Chestnut x Squiggles
pic 3...vr. gruberi x Tiger Tim ( Shirley, I am sure I have the first name wrong as it was hard to read on the label. )
pic 4...vr. Luciue var. . I bought this one because I like variegated plants. I cannot find a reference to the name anywhere.
pic 5...a noid. This one has been sitting around looking half dead for a few years, but has decided to grow.
I like the coloring but have no idea what the plant is.
I am not even sure it is a brom.

Jean.







This message was edited Feb 8, 2013 7:52 AM

This message was edited Feb 9, 2013 7:33 AM

Im here also, i check in each day even if i have nothing to post.
Thought i'd put up some of my varigated broms, didnt realise i had so many until i was repotting. Im starting not to like them as much as i did, i think they all look similar. I like the really white/yellow ones like Shirleys tricolor and i remember Nev posting one in a pic must have been last months thread.
1. Luna a little burnt from them hot days. 2. Gunpowder. 3. tag says Tricolor? with a question mark. 4. Prinsler. 5. Aussie Dream, im not sure what Aussie Dream's ment to look like.

I'm here too, just reading over everyones' shoulder. I don't have much to offer in the way of bromeliad photos or knowlede but maybe someday...

Like Jean, I need to swear off of ebay not sure if taking up smoking again could be much worse. lol What say you, Ian?

Nev, thanks much for sharing your vast knowledge. I have saved the info about refreshing a poorly "shipped" bromeliad. Hoping another one is on the way shortly and I will test your suggestion.

Wishing I had access to Seasol and Skoria. To the best of my knowledge, neither is available here.

As always I enjoy everyones' photos and posts. Please keep them coming and don't think you are alone. Kristi

Cryptanthus cavaulis ~ it reminds me more of an Orthophytum than a Cryptanthus.

Hi all, just another day here, hot and muggy with some cloud cover and a flock of pigeons flew overhead this morning.
Kristi, remember the negatives about smoking, maybe even lick a part ful ashtray. Then see if you want to smoke. I won't recommend it. I too have to watch what I do on ebay I bought some this week and we have our market on Sunday before our group meeting.It is funny how we can swap the bitch for the witch.
Seasol is a brand name here for a seaweed extract, you probibly have something similar there.
What we call Scoria is a porous volcanic rock.
I tend to agree with you that the plant in your pic looks much more like an orthophytum, still a nice plant
Bree an Aussie dream but which one, there are a few of them. It looks a bit like rosie but I think it has more red than mine.Another beauty.
Have a good one
Ian
Pic 1 Double decker Neo. Actually a mini growing in Noble decent ib poor light.
Pic 2 Neo Birdrock
Pic 3 Neo Red Macaw
Pic a sunburnrd Ae orlianda the black one

Hi everyone,

here we are at the weekend again. We have nothing very exciting planned but will probably go to the market in the morning, if it’s a nice day. Then home again to continue with the clean up around the yard.

Nev, sorry to hear about the damage to the garden at the Light Rail Museum, hope you are able to get someone to help tidy it up and that it bounces back again.

Nev / Ian, I have a couple of questions relating to the scoria, I should have thought to ask them last night so I could have potted up the pups as planned today using the scoria.

Firstly, can it be used straight from the bag as you buy it or does it need to be washed and if so, how thoroughly does it need to be washed. Secondly, Nev you mention placing the pot on a bed of coco peat, which I assume is kept moist. Once the roots grow through the base of the pot into the coco peat, how do you remove the pup from the pot of scoria without damaging the roots. I guess it would be best to keep a close eye on the pups and as soon as any roots start to emerge, remove it from the scoria immediately. I remember someone saying that they grow their broms in scoria, might have been Tash I think.

I don’t know the cause of the power failures Nev, but I am guessing they are still working to repair some of the lines though it has happened several times in the last week, always very late at night or in the early hours of the morning so it could be that damaged tree limbs are dropping that have been weakened or caught up. We don’t get any notice of the blackouts and we often get brownouts.

Jean, good to know you are ‘lurking’ and enjoy reading the posts even if you don’t contribute. I have been brom buying on eBay too … it is very addictive, isn’t it. Just wish I had more spare dollars to bid with. You have the name Gruberi correct Jean but not sure about your last pic … it could be an agave … what does everyone else think.

Bree, I am still very partial to variegated neos. I have just bought neo Luna and I have all the others you have posted I think. Even though they do look similar in colour, they still look stunning.

Kristi, you might be able to get something similar to Seasol where you live. It’s a fish / kelp based product, I think. Nev could certainly set you right on its’ composition and you may have something available there by a different name.

Whoops … I just read Ian’s post … it’s a seaweed extract Kristi, and he has said pretty much what I was trying to say.

Thanks Ian, for the info on Seasol. What a shame your Ae Orlandiana has such terrible burns. No doubt it will recover but burning like that certainly knocks them about.

My pic 1 is vr Big Red with some of my hanging baskets in the background, pic 2 is neo Lila, pic 3 is vr Gruberi Tiger Tim and pup which I should remove but I think removing it will do too much damage as it’s very high up.

Bye for now, talk tomorrow,

Shirley

Good morning once again – here we are at the start of another weekend and a chance for more time out in the garden among the brom's.

Jean – When you said yesterday, “I found the pots drying out too quickly in the hot weather and any fertiliser in the water was wasted as the water would all just run straight through” - This will happen when any inert substance is used as a potting medium. I found the same when I grew orchids in Blue Metal, Slag or Pumice and the same when I've grown brom's in gravel, Skoria, Perlite, Polystyrene or straight Charcoal; none of these mediums contain any natural food value and food has to be provided as an “extra”.

As you say, fertiliser and water run straight through; so the best way to fertilise is to foliar feed, i.e. spray a liquid fertiliser on the foliage (preferably in the late afternoon) and let the plant slowly absorb it in this way. (Two good reliable fertilisers that come to mind are “Phostrogen” and “Manutec Bloom Booster”)

As for watering, when I use any of these substances as a growing medium I always stand the pots within a cut-down polystyrene box on a 25mm bed of (fine grade) Coco Peat in the bottom of the box. I put just a couple of drainage holes in the box covered with an off-cut of shade cloth to prevent the fine Coco-Peat from being washed out; this allows slow drainage after watering and time for the the coco-peat to absorbed a lot of of the water. Because it’s continually damp, the roots will quickly find their way though the medium in search of this moisture.

In your Pic 3 you say, “Shirley, I am sure I have the first name wrong as it was hard to read on the label”. However it's very likely what you have written is what was on the label, but it should be just Vr. 'Tiger Tim' as this is what ‘Tiger Tim’ is registered as.

Vr. 'Tiger Tim” is a select cultivar from a crossing using Vr Ospinae var. Gruberi as the seed parent and crossed with an unknown pollen parent.
See: http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=VRIESEA&id=9212#9212

The plant in your Pic.4 could well be Vr 'Lucille' with a badly written double “l” looking like a “u”
It is a variegated plant registered in 1970 and you can read all about it and see the pic's at:
http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=VRIESEA&id=8813#8813

As for your plant in Pic. 5, I think it could be Billbergia 'Perriams Pride' which was first registered in 1986. When it's grown into a bigger plant and given good light it can be quite attractive (See my plant in Pic.1).

Breeindy – What a great collection of variegated plants you’ve posted today and such great colour too. You mention about the plant in Pic.3 having a ? after the name of Neo ‘Tricolour’, this is exactly what I wrote about yesterday in my answer to Shirley where I said, “For some time this plant was called Neo. Carolinae 'Tricolor' and it got to the stage where almost every variegated NOID was carrying that name” which could possibly be what’s happened with your plant; the grower wasn’t sure of the name and it just became recorded as Neo. Tricolor?

You say you’re not sure what Aussie Dream is meant to look like; Aussie Dream was a grex name given to a famous cross made by Bob Larnach and which there were a lot of arguments about. It was proposed to register all of the special plants in the grex as Neo Aussie Dream followed by a different varietal name (in the same way that orchid names are registered). The registrar at that time decided that they would just be given the varietal name and hence the name Aussie Dream name was dropped altogether.
To read the full story, go to: http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&id=2992#2992

From this grex there are twenty seven (mostly variegated) registered plants as well as probably just as many which aren’t registered. Your plant looks very similar to an immature Neo ‘Glorious’ sometimes incorrectly called. Neo Aussie Dream ‘Glorious’.

Kristi – I don’t know about Skoria, but I know that Seasol is exported to some countries but whether yours is one of them I don’t know. You can read all about it at: http://www.seasol.com.au/ and could check on availability in your country by contacting the suppliers at export@seasol.com.au

Alternatively you may be able to get a similar “liquid seaweed product” in your country as I know there are different types apart from Seasol made here in Australia and overseas as well.

I have to agree with you, your plant of Cryptanthus cavaulis looks more like an Orthophytum than a Cryptanthus to me also. Just for the record, is that snow on the ground outside the window in the background?... Brrrrrrrrrr.

Ian – Was you double decker plant the result of putting a mini in the cup of Neo. ‘Nobel Descent’ to promote quicker root growth or is it an experiment of yours to accommodate more plants within the same space?

The plant in your second picture (Neo ‘Birdrock’) is an interesting plant and for the members here who don’t know of it, it is a plant which has unusual silvery like lines on the underside of the leaves when grown in good light (See Pic.2). The exact parentage isn’t known and the information on the BCR was updated in Sept. 2012 by the registrar Geoff Lawn and now tells us the following:

“Hybrid of 'Rosea Striata' ? . Available from Bird Rock Tropicals in 2000. Named and acquired by Pamela Koide Hyatt in the late 1980s from her landscaper friend Doug Laglan who found it in a Los Angeles garden, unidentified. Breeder, exact parentage and origin unknown. This entry updated 9/2012 by G. Lawn .Country of origin: California USA”

I just mention this as another example of where a plant which was previously a NOID is now registered and much sought after because of its unusual foliage and for more pictures, go to http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&id=3170#3170

Shirley – When I use the Skoria I use it straight from the bag and once potted up I give the pot a good deep watering until the red coloured water runs clear from the bottom of the pot. This colour will continue to leach out for the next couple of waterings and then it eventually runs clear all the time.

As for placing the pots on a bed of Coco Peat, yes the roots will get down into the Coco Peat, but that’s not a problem. I just lift the pot out, cut them off where they protrude from the bottom of the pot, and take the plant from the pot and then pot up in my usual mix. (I only used the Skoria to get quicker root growth on the pups initially and don’t use it as the growing medium all the time; but there’s no reason why you couldn’t as long it’s fertilised as I explained above in my response to Jean). Perhaps Ian has more experience with it and has comments that he’d like to add.

Regarding some variegated plants looking a bit similar to each other, I usually just put a spotted plant in between to break up the monotony of the variegations and they seem to look altogether different. As for removing your Vr. ‘Tiger Tim’ pup, I’d be inclined to leave it on the plant unless you want to swap or sell it to someone. These plants look quite spectacular when allowed to clump up a bit.

I’ve always marvelled at the colours in Neo ‘Lila’ especially where the red meets the green, it looks like someone has painted it on and the brush has run out of paint halfway through the job.

Well that will do me for today. The pic’s today are Pic.1 is Billbergia 'Perriams Pride' for Jean to compare with her NOID, Pic. 2 shows the underside of a leaf from Neo. Birdrock, Pic .3 show my burnt Vr Phillipo Cobergii after I had trimmed off the damaged parts of the leaves. The damage isn’t as obvious when you trim the leaf ends the same shape as the undamaged ones. Pic’s.4 and 5 show a few Billbergia seedlings just starting to colour up nicely.

All the best, Nev

Shirley, I did think of an agave when I saw how the noid brom had grown . It had been at the back and done nothing for so long .
The leaves are not like the succulent agaves.
The label it came with says blanchetiana, but its not like any pics I have seen.
I will just have to wait until it grows more.

Looking at my old brom pics, I found the one I thought it was, that came with the epis, but that one has been ID'd by Sue a few years ago as ae. coelestis. (pic below)
Seeing the two now , they do look alike.
Jean.
.

Nev, thank you for the helpful info. I think I will leave all the orchids and broms in the orchid mix as they are all doing well.
I do foliar feed the broms when I do all the epis & zygos. .
I have a bil. Perriams Pride here and the noid does look a bit like it.
I will have to wait until it grows more.
Thank you for the name of the vr. Lucille.
You may be correct as the label was hard to read.

Its always a pleasure to look in here and find help while admiring all the broms I really do need. ..lol
Jean.

Heres some varigated ones i do love alot.
Love Birdrock, one i have on my to get list. Thanks for that information Nev. Whats the difference between Predator and Predatress?
1. Gold Medal (do you think?). 2. Ach. Pie in the Sky. 3. Chirripo. 4. Wild Gossip.

Hi all, I went potty today and potted up some plants and did some dead leafing in between light showers.
Nev my double decker was accidental, the mini was knocked off a tree last year and I just put it in the centre to do something with it later. It hasn't happened as yet. I wonder if I was to keep growing them upwards whether this could be called vertical gardening and saving space.
I am experimenting with a lonely plant, Quesnelia Tim Plowman and have put it in with a Quesnelia Mamorata to see if I can get Tim to reproduce. It has been sulking for nearly 2 years now. Maybe some root competition will help. What can I lose.
The clumping Dyckias are a bit of a challenge to separate but I didn't take any pics of it. The name of that 1 I worked today is Dyckia Sun Tan hybrid. The other Dyckia that I worked today is Shere delight and I did take pics of it step by step and then mixed them up here. This is only a small plant as the original pot will show, it is a 2" pot and there is also a cigarette lighter to scale the size.
When I use scoria I use it as I get it, actually I am using it on the floor over a concrete floor to increase humidity. I use on it's own with starting my Vresias and it seems to work, it gives good drainage and aeration. I always use liquid fertiliser and I heavily rely on a weak solution of Condy's Chrystals. I use it on everything. Here it is worth $240.00 per cubuc metre plus delivery. It is expensive but does not break down like other mixes. I hope to be able to use more of it. With Neos I use a pinebark and potting mix with some scoria on the top of the pot to hold down any floating parts of the mix and also to stabilise the pups. I even have a couple of tills growing in it and a broken one I put there last year has roots on it today. I don't know what its limits are
Bree Tiger tim is a nice plant. Taking the pups off can be damaging to the plant, Nev's idea of letting it clump could be a good one. I might try it with mine.
Have a good one
Ianh
Pic 1 Ques Tim Plowman and mamorata
Pic 2 Dyckia shere delight pups
Pic 3 Dyckia shere delight needing separation

Ian ~ I like your Dyckia shere delight. I like all the Dyckias until time to separate them. Is there any easy way to do so?

Nev ~ thank you for the Seasol link. I had already read up on it as you had all recommended it highly. I will have to search locally for a similar product.

Thankfully, no! That wasn't snow out the window. It was a gloomy day and you are probably seeing leaves on the lawn that hadn't been raked. Although we get some cold temps, it is rare to see snow here.

I had this Dyckia since 2009 and it has never pupped. Dyckia leptostachia

Hi all, we went off to the local market this morning as planned but while it was sunny here when we left home, when we arrived at the market, about 10 km away, it was raining. There were very few stalls there but I managed to get three nice broms. Unfortunately two of the three were unnamed and the third, I believe, was incorrectly named. I will post pics and hopefully I can get positive IDs on them.

I potted up a couple of pups in the scoria this afternoon and placed them in a low Styrofoam box with coco peat on the bottom. Nev, I will let you know how they go.

Nev, you have some lovely bill seedlings there.

Jean, hope you get an ID on your brom. I know it doesn’t really matter but I like to have a name for mine if possible … mind you, not having an ID has never stopped me from buying a brom I fancied.

Bree, all three broms I bought at the market today are variegated, I am really attracted to them.

Hi to Ian and Kristi and anyone else looking in. Sue, Wendy and Jen, you have been missed, hope you will be back again soon. Trish, looking forward to hearing from you.

Anyway, back to the market broms …

Pic 1 is a large NOID brom, the seller assured me it’s a neo, if anyone can ID it for me that would be great. It was in a 5" pot when I photographed it, I have since repotted it.
Pic 2 was also unnamed but I’m 99% sure it’s neo Kahala Dawn.
Pic 3 was labelled as Roy’s Special. I already have a neo Roy’s Special but it is very different from this one. My other one is not albo marginated and those pictured on the BCR aren’t either. There is one named Roy’s Pink that is, so perhaps that’s it.
Pic 4 is my original neo Roy’s Special.

Well, it’s getting late so I’ll finish up and catch up again tomorrow.

Shirley

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&id=9992#9992 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&id=6895#6895

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.

Yeah Shirley the varigated brom you got from the market are all nice ones, i would have gotten them also.
Thanks for the answers Nev.

Hello everyone.
How lovely to see all the variegated broms.
It seems I'm not the only one partial to them.
I have been moving all the broms around this morning.
Some of the less colorful have moved to the back shadehouse. They still get lots of light and sun but may be colder in winter than those in the greenhouse.
I want the greenhouse for all the vrieseas & nidulariums.
Its funny how ones taste develops for a type of plant over time. Now I have had the broms for a few years , I find I really like the vrieseas best.
Some of my earlier buys of neos are also relegated as they are very plain .
I need to get more variety in the vrieseas too as most are plain green.
My latest buys have been much better and I am including a pic of nidularium Ruby Lee variegated.
Its still a bit crumpled from travel but is very pretty.
It will sit next to the non variegated Ruby Lee which is pretty too.

The other pics are for a question ....
I have 2 plants which look similar but vary in size.
One is an old one about 5" tall with numerous stolons. It was labelled Ae. gracilus. It flowered last year with lovely pink/purple flowers and now has yellow seed pods.
The other is much larger . about 12" high with 2 stolons .
The smaller one is in the front greenhouse where it gets a lot of morning sun as the door is open most times.
It is looking more yellowish green .
I confess, I do neglect it.
The large one is in the brom greenhouse and is a nice bright green.
They both have the purplish bases . the larger was labelled ae. organensis.

On looking up the names to check, I read that the gracilus is merely another variety of organensis.
What do I name the plants ?. Both organensis or as one page I read, suggested..make gracilus into graceful. as the real gracilus is not in this country.

It doesnt really matter now, but if I ever want to sell them, I would like the labels to be correct.
Jean.

Hi Everyone!

Apologies for not checking in for so long, things have been pretty hectic aside from having 2 x birthday parties to go to this weekend, we just got home not long ago from the last party and sighed a huge sigh of relief when we walked in the door to our beautiful quiet and peaceful home. One was a fancy dress party so we went as a couple of the Flintstone cartoon characters - Fred and Barney, I went as Barney (Fred’s Sidekick) because Wilma’s dress was not overly appealing to me aside from the fact that I am not a big dress wearer to begin with apart from the odd summer dress that I don’t mind wearing because they are pretty comfortable, but anything fancier than that and I’m totally out of my comfort zone.

Hi Shirley, thanks pleased to hear you thought my vriesea seedlings are doing well; I am really pleased with their progress. Shirley great pics you posted on the 7/2 of Neo ‘Tricolour and Neo ‘Tossed Salad’, both gorgeous looking broms. I luved the nice thick wide leaves on ‘Tricolour’; looks like a good sized brom. Also luved the pic you posted of Vriesea ‘Big Red’ and Neo ‘Lila’ on 8/2, what great looking broms. My ‘Big Red’ has a pup now and I hope to get some more off it down the track. Great buys you brought at the market, especially liked Pic 2 which I reckon you right it’s Neo ‘Kahala Dawn’ and looks 100% like mine. Not too sure what your Pic 3 NOID is and because I don’t own Neo ‘Roy’s Special’ so I can’t really say unfortunately?

Hi Kristi, glad to hear you got a laugh when you saw the airborne shot of Lucy, she is a bit of a larrikin and keeps us very entertained with the things she gets up to. Just before she jumped on me while I was typing this thread and put her head across the keyboard so I could not type to pay her some attention, she is such a cheeky little bugger when she wants either attention, treats or to go for a swim or walk.

Kristi, nice healthy pup pic you posted on 5/2 of your Bill’ Kyoto, these broms are great for producing a good number of pups each year and when they are in flower in our nursery it really livens the place up with colour. It is so nice hearing from you and wonderful that you are participating along with all of us in this forum. I so enjoy reading everyone’s posts like you do and seeing all the beautiful pics everyone posts – it’s wonderful.

Nev sorry to hear about the damage to the garden at the Light Rail Museum, hope you get some volunteers to help bring it back to its former beauty. Wish we lived closer as this is the type of volunteer work I enjoy doing around Townsville.

Nev I emailed through to you yesterday pictures of the ‘Paper Bark’ Trees, hope you enjoy doing something with the pic you liked the most in putting it in a frame. Wish we could post one in the mail to you but postage would be a killer LOL.

Nev thanks for your kind complements regarding my vriesea seedlings I recently posted pics of. I read your thread the other day about using toothpicks to stabilise them to assist them to grow better and as soon as I read your great advice I quickly went and brought them inside and checked I had not planted them too deep (some felt like I may have) and then placed toothpicks either side of the seedling and lifted them a tad higher out of the growing medium, they are all doing really well, none have blown over or out of their pots with the wind, so I thank you Nev for your wonderful advice as always. Some of my other seedlings are still growing slow but they had to recover from all that algae that was growing around them that I finally got rid of with the Milton Antibacterial tablet I used per the packaging directions.

Nev fantastic pics you posted on 9/2, especially was intrigued by your Pic 5 of Neo ‘Thunderbird’ cross as I have never seen this one before and was blown away by its glossy autumn appearance.

I have not tried neorgelia seeds yet as I have not seen any of these for sale, would anyone happen to have some I could buy from them as I would luv to give some a try as I understand from what I have read in this forum that they grow a lot quicker than vrieseas? I have about another 10 trays of vrieseas to sow which I hopefully will get around to doing in another couple of weeks when things have quietened down a bit.

Nev I found you experiment with planting pup in scoria very interesting, the root system looked very healthy and happy as there was quite a bit of it growing happily by the looks of the pics you posted back on the 5/2 at different angels. It will be interesting to see if you get the same results after your 2nd trial and look forward to finding out how this trial goes. What sort of pup did you use in the first trial and will you use a similar type pup in the second trial?

Hi Ian thanks for your kind comments regarding my vriesea seedlings, you will have to give them a try, not all of mine are growing as quickly because of the algae issue I had but this lot have impressed me and have really made me want to keep trying these and other types of bromeliads. 43 + seedlings of this batch growing that I will have to look at accommodating as they grow, not counting all the other trays I’ve got growing lol. But hey how much enjoyment do you get out of trying something new and different, it makes you feel so alive and one with nature, such a rewarding hobby and great exercise running around the yard and nursery tending to broms and seedlings, life cannot get any better.

Ian really liked the pic you posted on 6/2 of Neo’ ‘Princess Grace’ what a gorgeous sized brom with great shape and colour.

Hi Jean great to hear that your still buying broms and by the sounds of things you may be getting hooked on EBay LOL. I really like checking broms out on EBay as I like to see what new stuff is out there and if I think something is worth the money then I don’t mind bidding for it, but for me it’s important from the very beginning to have a figure in my head on knowing how much I would be prepared to pay and know when to walk away, which is not always easy but the more you practice this method the easier it gets. Jean nice pics you posted on 7/2, it would be great to see down the track what your Pic 1 Vriesea ‘Poelmanii White Line x Milky Way’ ends up looking like when it matures as I have not seen this vrieasea cross before so this one has intrigued me.

Jean I think the pics you posted on 9/2 are Neo ‘Ruby Lee’ (first pic), and the other two pics remind me of either Vriesea ‘Pink Cockatoo’ or Vriesea ‘Red Cockatoo as mine have similar purple looking bases?

Hi Bree awesome variegated broms pics you posted on 7/2, Neo ‘Prinsler’ especially caught my eye as the leaves looked nice and glossy.

Hi to anyone else looking in or on the Sick List.

Take care and Happy Gardening!

Trish

Pic's - Group shot of some of my Vrieseas:

Hi all, just popping in for a minute or two. I had a good day at the markets this morning and got some good buys I got an unusual plant thet was in a seedling batch(grex) that was supposed to be a cross between a Bilbergia Rosa and a Quesnelia Tim plowman making the offspring Bilmeas. This plant looks nothing like either of it's parents, in fact it looks like an Ae chantini but with dark colouring. No one can be certain a seed has not got mixed up. No one can prove one has either. There are no certainities with seed raising and nature. The human element may have prevailed. This would be interesting to run by one of the well known brom hybridists. Maybe there has been a throwback to a parent several generations ago, it is possible with livestock so why not with plants.

Trish I just might have some Neo seeds to swap for some others maybe Veresias seeds. I will Dbox you this week with a list of my more successful plants.
Have a good one
Ian
Pic 1 Bilmea maybelooks more like a Ae Chantini dark form
Pic2 Neo Constance

Hi all, another weekend over, don’t the weeks fly by quickly.

Nev, you might know Bree’s neo Gold Medal as neo First Prize Variegata. The scoria I bought last week from Bunnings cost around $8.00 for a 16 kg bag.

Nev, I think you are right about my NOID being one of the Ae Lueddemanniana cultivars rather than a neo. I have bought quite a few broms from this seller, who is a lovely man, but his knowledge of bromeliad names / species seems fairly limited. But, his broms are nice and his prices very reasonable so “what’s in a name”. But I must admit I do like to know … then, of course, there's always the members of this forum to ID his broms for me.

Thanks for the info on neo Roy’s Special, Nev.

Bree, glad you like my new variegated broms.

Jean, I have always been partial to neos and vrieseas, there are just so many beautiful specimens of both I find it difficult to choose between the two as a favourite. Lately I have been purchasing a few aechmeas as I have seen some really attractive ones.

Trish, sounds like you had a busy weekend, hope you enjoyed your birthday parties … how about a pic of Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble.

I should have a spare neo Prinsler pup I can send you Trish, if you would like one. I will check on the Chlorostricta F2 and Grace X Break of Day pups tomorrow and see how they’re going as well. I think they were two that you wanted, the neophytum Galactic Warrior still needs to grow a bit more though. I love that awesome pink vriesea in your photos, what a stunner … and also the white centred one in the forefront of your pic 3.

Ian, I like your neo Constance.

OK, that’s it for me, enjoy your week everyone.

Pics 1 and 2 are neo Prinsler, the first one is the mum grown in a shady spot and the second is a pup I have had in high light, I like them both. Pic 3 is neo Chlorostricta F2, Pic 4 is neo Grace X Break of Day (not a very good pic), and Pic 5 is neo Bobby Dazzler.

Trish my Prinsler doesnt have pups or i would give you one, might want to take Shirley up on the offer. I love Shirleys Chlorostricta F2.
I got a few new broms. 1. Gladiator. 2 & 3. Maya(still a little squashed from the mail). 4. Duannes Night (doesn't look like much yet).

Hi everyone – I hope you all had an enjoyable and productive weekend like I did. I spent most of Sunday tidying up and potting-on seedlings and as usual found it very satisfying. I enjoy nothing more than being able to look at a group of freshly potted up seedlings and enjoying the satisfaction I get from growing them but more importantly wondering what they will look like when they mature. When you have a few hundred seedlings there's always something to look forward to and always something different each day.

Breeindy – I have to agree with you, Shirley did “make a killing” at the markets and I would have brought those nice plants home as well .

You're lucky to have got a plant of Neo 'Gladiator' it's a beautiful brom and was a cross made by Sharon Petersen using Neo. 'Hal Ellis' as the seed parent and Neo. 'Kahala Dawn' as the pollen parent. For pic's of a mature plant go to: http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/showImg.php?id=4746 Please put my name on the list for the first spare pup you have. Neo. Duannes Night, I don't know; do you have a pic of a mature plant?

Jean – You say you need to get more variety in your Vrieseas as most of them are plain green. They come in two types and it's just a matter of personal taste as to what type you prefer. The patterned foliage types such as Fosteriana, Hieroglyphica and their hybrids are grown mainly for their many different foliage patterns and colours, but the down side of these is their flowers are often very plain and they can grow quite large and require a lot of space. The plain leaf types are often much smaller and although the leaf has no markings or colour, they do have very attractive long lasting flowers and the plants are small enough to be suitable for taking into the house for a bit of extra colour. Like everything, it's a matter of personal choice and there is some type of bromeliad for almost all conditions.

Ruby Lee is a very attractive Nidularium and there are others with attractive coloured foliage as well, such as Miranda with its variegated foliage of yellow and green or Innocentii Striatum with its green and white striped leaves. One of the smaller types is one called Nid. 'Nana' and is very attractive with its dark burgundy (almost dark chocolate) coloured leaves and contrasting red bracts. Like the Vrieseas, there are plants in this group to suit everyone as well.

As for your plant labelled as Ae. Gracilus, the name does need to be changed as it isn't Ae.Gracilus at all but a small form of Ae. Organsis which has since been registered as Ae. 'Graceful'. You can see more about it at : http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=AECHMEA&id=253#253

Trish – First of all, thank you for the wonderful pic's of the “Paper Barks” you sent me they're most appreciated as they are my most favourite tree.

Trish, I have used Neo. 'Thunderbird' in a few different crosses but I can't tale the credit for that one. It was from a pod I didn't make and was probably made by Mother Nature and her "little ants". I still like it nevertheless and so do a lot of other people who see it, so I guess it will still get some bench space for now.

As for my trial of the pup in the Skoria, I didn't pick any particular pup. I just had this particular one which I had been told was very slow to put down roots so that's why I tried it. I have just planted six different Neo pups in the same size Skoria as well as a Vr. Fosteriana pup and it will be interesting to see what happens now that we'll soon be going out of summer and into the cooler months. I'll keep you all posted on the results.

Great shots of your group of patterned leaf Vrieseas, so neat and tidy as usual. They certainly do make quite a “statement” when shown in a group like that. I do have to “second” Shirley's request though, “how about a pic of Fred Flintstone and Barney Rubble”. 

Ian – Gee you people up north seem to get on to some “cracking plants” at you markets up there; I hope you realise just how envious you are making me feel down here with not a decent brom seller to be seen at any of our local markets.

I agree with you that the plant you show in the picture certainly looks very much like an Ae 'Chantinii' or one of the many colour variations in its hybrids. You say it's supposed to be a cross between a Bilbergia 'Rosa' and a Quesnelia 'Tim Plowman' which is certainly a very interesting sounding cross.

I've searched though the registered xBillmea crosses on the BCR (only ten of them) and Bill. 'Rosa' hasn't been registered as a parent in any of the crosses so we can't even get a hint of what its seedlings might look like, but if we to the BCR at:

http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=BILLBERGIA&id=768#768

…..........and go back just one generation to one of Rosa's parents which is Bill.'Collevii', the first picture shows very pronounced barring albeit in reverse colours to what your plant has; so is this where it's markings have come from?.

I agree with you when you say, “There are no certainties with seed raising and nature". I have said many times, man may very well pollinate a particular flower, but who's to say an ant hasn't been there and done the job a few minutes earlier?

Just yesterday I was looking at a small group of Bill. 'Rosea' seedlings that were supposed to have been “selfings” (Self pollinated species [of which Bill. 'Rosea' is one] should produce all plants similar to the parent). Even at this early stage (about one year old) there are obvious differences between the marking and growth rates of these seedlings even though they are growing side by side under exactly the same conditions, so it's very possible that ants were at work in this case as well. There's always surprises for the amateur hybridist!

Shirley – No I don't know of Neo 'First Prize' variegata either.

As for the price of the Skoria, I think I might come up there to buy any in the future. Ian buys his in bulk so maybe it's quarried up in that area somewhere and that could account for the price difference. Extra transport = extra retail costs.

As for your NOID that I said I though could be one of the Lueddemannia c.v's, it will be easy to ID when it flowers as all of the Lueddemannias and their c.v.'s have similar flowers which are nothing like a Neo as they are born on a stem.

I like the plants in your pic's in particular Chlorosticta F2 and Neo Grace X Break of Day, are they both small/medium sized plants?

Gee look at the time, time I wasn't here,. A few pic's to finish with Firstly Pic.1 is Bill. Perriam's Pride (this time photographed outside on the grass) Pic.2 is Nid. 'Nana' (a cv. of innocentii var. innocentii ), Pic.3 is Nid. Innocentii 'Lineatum' and Pic's 4 and 5 are of the Bill. Rosea seedlings I spoke of in my response to Ian's post.

All the best, Nev.


This message was edited Feb 11, 2013 12:21 AM

Nev, thank you for the confirmation of the name change for my small gracilus. I will alter the tag to Ae. "Graceful".
I love the vrieseas for their wonderful flowers. I just want to add some of the colorful foliage ones among them.
This is why I am adding the nidulariums with them.
I had a nice gift from a friend which enabled me to go totally mad and buy an expensive brom.
I dont know if I got a good bargain but I love the look of the plant. Cant wait until it arrives.
The cross is vr. Snows of Mauna Kea x Red Chestnut. I paid $40 which is way more than I could have afforded but for the kind gift.
I just hope it lives up to its wonderful parents.
I will also look out for any of the variegated ones that you mentioned.
I do like variegated plants of any sort as they make a statement anywhere.

I found a small brom huddling at the back of a shelf and it has no tag . I have no idea where it cane from. maybe something I saw at a market once. It is beautifully colored. I will get a pic later. Someone may know it.
Its soft leaves remind me of a nidularium.

Cold wind here now but I had better get out and water the rest of the pots as its going to be quite hot later in the week.

Jean.

1. This is a pic the seller had of adult Duannes Night Nev.
Paperbarks papers is good to use as lining in wire baskets for certain orchid like stanhopeas (the ones that the flower comes through the bottom) as they can push through easy.
2. This is the picture of the adult plant from the seller of my Gold Medal/First Prize. 3. then My pup. Sue started Jan. thread off with one and its alot redder which is what i thought it was ment to look like. Dont know what mine is then but i like it.

This message was edited Feb 10, 2013 8:31 PM

Just took pics of the little orphan I found hiding at the back of the shelf. I see 2 little shoots coming from the base. You can the lovely color and stripes. Its only about 5"high. Very cute.
Jean.

Hi all,

Jean - The little plant in your pic is a Guzmania; just which one I don't know.

All the best, Nev.

Hi all, I went to our first of the year group meeting yesterday. We had our usual discussion on what we want to do and when to do it. We are considering planning a field day later this year as well as our normal activities. Our March meeting is cancelled due to some members going to NZ for the conference. So our next meeting will be in April in Bowen a 2 hour drive and at a private nursery and make a day of it..Should be a good day.
Shirley I think your pic 1 09-02 is a pic of Anagelia Madam Lash, a John Catlan creation crossing a Ananas nanas with a Neoregelia.

Jean Snows of Mauna Kea X Red Chestnut sounds nice. Lengthwise Red stripe on bottom of leaf indicates probable Guzmania.

Nev The Bil X ques was done locally and is nothing to write home about for the rest of the grex, they all look much like Bil rosea with a bit more curl and the 1 normal that I have is a lot less resistant to scale. It is not something that I would try to breed from. That chantinni looking one may be a different story though.I will let it grow a bit first and then make a decision.
Have a good one.
Ian
Pic 1 N Gold fever

Hi everyone. been a while hasn't it? still trying to catch up on all the reading but have to say congratulations to Shirley for starting the new thread.
We've been run off our feet since the Australia Day weekend weather event. We had 38 hours without power then the big cleanup began. We didn't really get any damage here but a lot of trees blown down around the area. I think since then we've taken 20 loads of green waste to the local dump. we've been helping so many people clean up and Johnny has been running himself ragged and risking us both collapsing in a heap from exhaustion. our place has been suffering from neglect.
sorry about not sending the parcels I've promised people. I will get to them eventually. I sent one off today to another lady on the fb forums. I have started a spreadsheet of wishlists with a collumn for when plants have been sent. to help our if I've promised anyone a brom please prompt my memory so I can record it on the spreadsheet. I do have some written down.

I've also had a bit of trouble with one of my eyes and find it hard to look at the computer or a page of a book. they called it a 'floater' which is an air bubble which gets under the retina???? so when I look at something it looks like little worms swimming across the screen or page. it is now finally starting to settle down after about 6 weeks which is how long they said it would take. It scared the hell out of me when I woke up with it one day. The old lady behind us is legally blind and I don't know how she fills her day. no TV or reading, can't see the garden or the views. she goes from her bed to her lounge chair and back to her bed. My worst fear I'm afraid. fancy not being able to see our broms. OH NO!!!!!!

I think I've read enough for tonight so I'll get back to it tomorrow .

Wendy

Hi Everyone!

It has been a rainy (on and off) sort of a day here at work today which was a refreshing change to the usual muggy heat we have been experiencing; it only reached 32deg which was nice. Tonight should be low 20’s instead of the high 20’s we have been getting, so it will be nice to hopefully sleep without the AC on.

Hi Ian that sounds great possibly swapping some of your neorgelia seeds for some of my vriesea seeds. I will also D-Mail you on what seeds I have at the moment. I am looking at getting some more vriesea seeds down the track but need to organise some more shelving in my half of the nursery first. I would find it very interesting to try my hand at growing neorgelias as I hear from this forum they grow a lot quicker than vrieseas? I wonder if this is because they germinate quicker.

Ian nice pic of Neo ‘Gold Fever’, what a good looking brom.

Ian great to hear your first of the year group meeting went well and that you are looking at planning a field day and a trip to Bowan, isn’t it great having those sort of things to look forward to especially when it is such a great hobby enjoyed by you as well as others so you all get to learn and discover something new together.

Hi Shirley / Nev thanks yeah we had fun at both birthday parties but we were pretty over being out by the time we got home late Sunday and felt pretty exhausted when we finally stumbled through our front door. Sorry no pics to post of us in our fancy dress costumes, but possibly you will see one down the track as our friends took a few even though we tried running away LOL. Joe looked great and played the part well as Fred Flintstone. I was not overly pleased with my Barney costume so ended up accessorizing and ended up in a crazy wig, drew myself man brow that ending up pretty radical because I got a toothpick and fanned what I thought to be petite brows out to look like something out of the Stone Age era. I had a bone sticking out of my wig and wielded a club, but just not as big as Joes because I was his side kick. Even though my club was little it made a great sound the couple of times I did land a couple of shots to Joe’s head, I just had to be careful to avoid a hit from his club because he wielded a bigger stick than mine LOL.

Shirley thanks heaps I would ABSOLUTELY luv pups from your Neo ‘Prinsler’ and Neo ‘Chlorostricta F2’ and Neo ‘Grace x Break of Day’ if you can spare any pups that is. Pleased to hear the Galactic Warrior pup you are holding for me until it grows up some more is doing well. I have you down for quite a few pups so will have to check on the weekend and see if any of them are pupping yet and get back to you on where we are at with them?

Shirley the white centered vriesea that you liked in the forefront of my Pic 3 posted the other day is Vriesea ‘Kaumana’ – Shiigi.

Hi Nev great to hear you liked the ‘Paper Bark’ Tree pics and like you they are one of my most favorite trees. I am one of those that when we go to national parks or go for a bush walk if I see a tree that impresses me I go over and hug it. It’s been a habit of mine since I was a kid, I confess I am a Tree Hugger but I do not chain myself to them or protest or sleep in them day and night, I just admire them for their beauty and the shade they provide for my broms and the crisper air we get to breath because of them.

Nev that Pic 2 of Nid. ‘Nana’ is gorgeous; I have never seen this one before, what a stunner.

Hi Bree thanks for offer of Neo ‘Prinsler’ if you had a pup, I will definitely take Shirley up on her kind offer for one.

Bree nice new brom pics you posted; aren’t you glad you have that extra garden bed now to house so many more of these beauties.

Bree my friend too uses Paper Bark to line some of her baskets for her orchids and they really luv it. Joe has not tried some yet.

Hi Jean sounds like you did well with your purchase of Vriesea ‘Snows of Mauna Kea x Red Chestnut, you won’t be disappointed as sounds like a wonderful combination, I have these as individual plants but not crossed together so I can’t wait to see a pic of your new brom once it arrives.

Hi to anyone looking in or maybe on the Sick List.

Happy Gardening!

Trish

Pics 1 - Old Random...
Pic 2 - Neo' 'Rose Blush'
Pic 3 - Vr. 'Kiwi Sunset'

Hi everyone, fairly typical Monday today, I didn’t get much done outside, I had lots of housework to catch up with.

Bree, nice lot of new broms there.

Nev, neo Chlorostricta F2 is a medium sized neo and I am positive I sent you one a little while back, neo Grace X Break of Day is larger and more open. Your nid Nana looks very exotic.

Jean, I saw a Vr Snows of Mauna Kea x Red Chestnut on eBay, very nice, congratulations on your win. I didn’t bid on that one but I have made a number of bids lately but haven’t been successful in winning a thing. I have had a couple of second chance offers, which is great, but I just seem to be pipped at the post every time. Oh well, I guess I’m saving some money this way.

Wow Bree, that neo Duannes Night looks nice, I’ll have to try for that one if I see it on eBay again. I’ll post a pic of my neo Gold Medal.

Ian, thanks for the info on Anagelia Madam Lash, I hope that’s what it is. I read a little bit about it and apparently it doesn’t produce a flower, just twisted leaves … I guess I’ll know for sure when it flowers. Neo Gold Fever is another one I will have to look out for.

Wendy, great to see you back posting. I am pleased to hear your eye is getting better, don’t over do it though, just in case.

Trish, I forgot to check on the neo pups today but I will do it tomorrow and let you know where they’re at. Lovely broms in your random pic Trish, what is the name of the tall variegated one with the post behind, please.

My pics are 1 neo Gold Medal, 2 Ae Chantinii pup

Hi everyone – Nice to hear from you all again. Not much of interest to report just more re-potting and re-potting and re-potting and re-potting and re-potting!

Breeindy - Wow! That Neo. 'Duannes Night' has such vivid colour, what a statement yours will make when it's mature.

Just comparing the two pic's of Neo Gold Medal/First Prize, yours has much better colour, so keep growing it where you have it and don't change it. Possibly the “sellers plant” was grown in low light but more likely pumped full of high nitrogen fertliser to maximise pup production; this is why it's so green compared to your plant.

Ian – Thanks for the update on the Bill. x Ques., It will be interesting to see how it eventually matures and what sort of flower it will have and I look forward to more pic's in the future.

Field trips with Brom clubs/societys are always interesting – we go on one or two each year and as there are no brom nurseries anywhere handy we usually visit about three gardens of club members each time. It's just amazing at the little tips you pick up on these visits as everyone has a different way of growing these plants and the gardens are all very different which make it even more interesting.

I love Neo 'Gold Fever' it's probably one of the best spotted plants around. It's a beautiful plant but doesn't show its best until it's grown in quite strong light.

Wendy – It's great to see you back posting again. Glad to hear you and Johnny have been so busy with the clean-up, after all isn't helping your mates what's being an Australian is all about.? But please don't let Johnny run himself ragged, we don't want to see him back in hospital again.

Pleased also to hear your eye is starting to settle down, it isn't until you have something like this or are faced with a life threatening illness that you really start to appreciate the things around you; everyday things like trees, animals and birds and all of the other things in nature that we usually take for granted. It sound to me like you both need to sit back now and put your feet up for a bit and re-charge your batteries.

Trish – It's good to see you're really getting your teeth into the seed growing; you'll find it's one of the most interesting aspects of brom growing that you could wish for, just don't let it become like my place though where the seedlings are threatening to engulf the house.

Like you Trish, there's nothing I admire more than a nice tree, I don't hug them though, I just admire them from afar. There are two large Paper Barks that our local council planted on the nature strip outside the Girl Guide Hall when it was built many years ago. One in particular has the most amazing trunk you would ever see and I'd just love to have it in my front yard. Unfortunately, like often happens, they are now getting too large and starting to damage the road nearby and are going to be cut down, so I must get a few pic's before this happens.

I really like your Neo 'Rose Blush', I haven't seen that one before and it has most unusual colouring. I think it's all the different colour combinations in brom's that really appeal to me the most, there just doesn't seem to be any end to all of the different variations. The plant in your pic doesn't look anything like the pic of the one in the BCR so maybe this is an unregistered Australian version, who knows?

Shirley – I really must have a stock take as I didn't remember you sending me down a Neo. Chlorostricta F2, no doubt I'll find many others I had forgotten I already have also.

They're nice markings on your Ae. Chantinii, unfortunately they don't do well down here; they seem to struggle on for a couple of years but eventually the cold winters get them in the end.

A few pic's to finish with Pic 1 is Neo Gold Fever grown in bright light, Pic's 2 and 3 are a couple of brom gardens we have visited with our Brom. Society on past Field Days and Pic's 4 and 5 are of my area for larger seedlings, first standing in the entrance and looking left and then looking right.

All the best, Nev.

Shirley- If you can wait i'll send you a pup of Duannes Night when it eventually pups. Love your Gold Medal, yes thats what i thought it was ment to look like.
Nev- i love the sellers green mature plant though thats why i bought the pup, looks like mine wont look like that as i only have sun. hehe! I also love Gold Fever, im sure i have it somewhere. Nev- your on the Gladiator pup list.
For some reason im having trouble posting pics...will later!