Bromeliads for Novices and Addicts, March 2013

Welcome to Bromeliads for Novices and Addicts for March 2013 ... please join us here, new members most welcome

We came from here: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1297061/#9436806

Whoops ... where's the photo?

Pic is Vriesea Fosteriana cv Red Dragon

Sorry 'bout that

Hi all, it’s raining here and we have had quite a bit of it today, a nuisance for sure. From what the mixed up weathercasters are predicting it could now be our turn for the wet season. It is late anyway.
Where are Shane Zaghini’s books available from and are they more useful for identifying or growing broms. Margaret Pattersons are mainly pictures and could be used for identification if one grew the same plant under the same conditions. I have her Neo book and should get her Til and crypt book next weekend. These will only be the plants she has bred and registered.
I have a N mini called wine gold, I presume it’s a mini and was thinking about Shanes comment on name change from sale to sale. I haven’t looked this one up, I just potted it up and said grow. It is not taking much notice of me.
Nev, the drops are prescribed, I won’t experiment with my eyes as I have only 2 and as yet I haven’t heard of a second eye shop.
The Ananas is another experiment of mine, well the first time that I have tried them. The adult plants will grow anywhere ordinary pineapples grow. My seeds from the parent plant are now about 1” high and look healthy.
I still don’t know about N Treasure chest seedlings, nothing happening as yet.
Dalyfire you can have our rain , just come and collect it, I cannot afford the postage or packing.
No Pics tonight, my computer is cantankerous.
Have a good one
Ian

Hi all, another day of rain, rain and more rain. We did get a respite of about 40 minutes this afternoon and I managed to pull a wheelbarrow full of weeds from the garden before it started bucketing down again.

Nev, the organic products you mention sound interesting, though most organic products are rather expensive. Sorry to hear that Ailsa has been crook too.

Nev, the NOID isn’t as large as neo Rosy Morn and has a much flatter rosette and less leaves. Actually, my neo Rosy Morn looks a little different to yours, Nev … I’ll try to get a photo tomorrow if there’s a break in the rain.

As for keeping a running record on the name tag … my tags go missing too often. I don’t know where they go but they do go missing. And yes, I have your name down for a pup of neo Chantilly, unfortunately I don’t have any yet but when they start, there should be quite a few as I have three plants. I would love a pup of your neo Mesmerize some time, please and maybe Ae Recurvata Sunrise too.

Sue, I always seem to botch it up when starting a new thread as I can never remember to do all the necessary steps, this time it was the photo. Anyway, I got there in the end.

Ian, I wasn’t aware that neo Wine and Gold was a mini, do you have a pic you can share, please.

Trish, I hope you have a much better week ahead of you than the one you and Joe had last week … also hope Joe is recovering well.

Has anyone seen or heard from Wendy recently.

Pic 1 is neo Groucho, pic 2 is neo Shelldance, pic 3 is neo Ring Leader, pic 4 is a little guy who wanted to get out of the rain

Till tomorrow, Shirley

Hi everyone! Lovely broms.
Sue i'll have to come visit once it drys a little, if it ever does. hehe!
Dont have much to say this morning but im up at 4.30 with not much to do (my partner just went to work). Can't hear any rain...yet. I'll be glad to be able to go outside once this rain stops for longer than a few minutes.
Shirley in the flood we had Kangaroos swimming past our house on there way to higher ground. Looked funny.
Lime and Lava.

Good morning,
Well done Shirley, on the new thread. Ah, well, sometimes things happen,but you will get more adept at it as time goes on. Don't feel you have to start the thread, as I am happy to do it, but like to share the experience if someone else wants to try. A pity your picture didn't go in, as its a stunner.
I think Wendy has been busy being Grandma, and helping others, as she does.
Your three Neos are lovely. I particularly like 'Groucho' and also love 'Shell Dance' because it is so different from most Neos. Is Neo. 'Ring Leader' a very big plant?
Ian, every day I look at the forecast for the week ahead, and it hasn't changed, except, instead of saying showers, it skips to 'a shower or two' which I think is the data entry clerk getting bored writing the same thing?
I have asked the question of Shane, about where his book is available from, so will let you know when he replies. I have no idea what it might contain, but have an inkling it is mostly about his hybrids, and probably along the lines of M. Pattersons book? (which I have not seen either)
I checked my Ananas 'Tricolour' yesterday, and the fruit never formed, but has instead put out three variegated pineapple tops, as well there is a huge pup growing out of the side of the plant. I'm not sure how big I should let the pineapple tops get before removing them. I did get some very small ones, years back, and they just struggled. They don't like the cold here. Do you have Ananas lucidis? It has brownish/rreddish leaves.
I had to laugh, Bree, at the descripton of the swimming kangaroo. We saw one swimming through the floodwaters here, and it did look funny! Only its head was visible, and it moved like an egyptian dancer, just kind of going backwards and forwards, but it seemed to get along ok and we watched to make sure it did get itself out of trouble. (it did)
Bree, there will always be things here to do, rain hail or shine! My gripe is, having to wer gumboots at the moment, but at least I'm getting exercise, slogging around in them!
We hardly got any rain during the day yesterday, so i was able to get a bit more potting done,and even managed to get some plants into the garden. I also got to check on my good broms,only to discover that Neo. 'Silver' x 'Skotaks Tiger' had succumbed to rot. I admit, I was a little bit upset. It was quite a costly plant, and was sitting in the open, and on mesh. I blame myself as I had never repotted it from when I purchased it, but assumed the local seller/grower would have had it in a pretty free draining soil. I aim to tip it out today and have a look. I don't know if its worth hanging onto the base to see if any pups form. What do you reckon?
Photo one, N. 'Silver x Skotaks Tiger'
Photo two is Guzmania conifera, the fower is about 12cm
Photo three is the corner I worked on yesterday. Three trays of smaller growing broms went in there, and some into the bit on the top right.
Photo four is a NOID Aechmea, any ideas? Nev, is this like a Ramosa again?
Photo five is Aechmea purpureorosea coming into flower (its planted in the log) Not sure what the burgundy Aehmea on the left is?
We had some pretty steady overnight rain, so I have my fingers crossed for another dryish day, but am prepared to do housework if that doesn't eventuate.
So mother nature, whats it to be? Gardening, or housework?
Talk to you tomorrow
Sue

Hello everyone. I dont have any pics today but I am still expecting a couple of new broms in the post.
It is very dry here and I would like some of the rain you all seem to be getting endlessly.
Even when it did rain it was nowhere near us at all. I suppose I will get more than I want during winter.

I hope you are all safe as the floods move in various areas. Its a shame to lose any of your broms but cant be helped when Mother Nature wont cooperate.

Shirley, your neo Shelldance is lovely. I bought one last year which is doing nicely.

Sue your garden always looks lovely even if it is raining too much.
I hope you can save all your damaged broms. Its hard to lose a nice plant especially an expensive one.

Good luck to those getting even more rain. Stay safe
Jean.

Good afternoon everyone – First of all thank's to Shirley for startinhg a new thread for us, now we have a bit more space to work; and your pic. of Vriesea Fosteriana cv Red Dragon is a beauty, one I'll bet everyone wishes they had.

Wow! What an exhausting day I had yesterday (well half of it at least, but it seemed like all of it). Fortunately the rain had stopped about 9.00am and the sun came out and we went to my grandson's third birthday where he an all his little mates spent the whole day running, jumping and sliding on the jumping castle we had rented for the day. Where do they get the energy? I came home completely “knackered” just from watching them.

Anyway, back to things brom related, and firstly I'd like to thank Sue for following up with Shane Zaghini on our behalf, the questions we had about the name confusion between Red River, Running River, Running Red River and Red Running River. From the answer we got, it seems like the Shane Zaghini plant we have is 'Running River'. As this is the only one of these four to be registered, are we now to believe the others are imposters and just carrying pet names”? (more confusion). I know Ice White River is registered and what he says supports what I have also found and that is it looks much better as a clump. I've never seen the Neo Grace Goode Girl he mentions except for a (not very good) picture on the BCR. I don't mean the quality of the pic isn't good, but the angle it's taken from doesn't show off the improved shape to advantage.

Ian – To answer you question about where Shane Zaghini's books are available; at our Brom Society we get all of our larger bromeliad books via mail order from: Florilegium - The Garden Bookstore and I think this would be a good place to start looking (See details below)

www.florilegium.com.au/
FLORILEGIUM The Garden Bookstore 65 Derwent St, Glebe 2037 (cnr Mitchell St) p: 02 9571 8222 f: 02 8208 9938 e: sales@florilegium.com.au

We have found their prices are very reasonable and the service is first class with the books always arriving in tip top condition.

I can't truthfully answer your next question about the books you mention, “are they more useful for identifying or growing broms?” as I haven't read them, but as they are written by the hybridisers and it's really information direct “from the horse's mouth” so to speak, they certainly should be a useful guide.

I don't know of the plant you speak of as mini Neo 'Wine Gold', but Shane Zaghini has a distinctively coloured Neo hybrid called Neo 'Wine and Gold' (but I don't know if it's a mini or not). It was registered in 1996 and is a crossing between Neo. chlorosticta and Neo. 'Sunrise' to see the pic go to: http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&id=7804#7804

Shirley – I think all organic products cost more than the chemical ones as they just can't compete with the multi-national chemical companies “cost wise”. However I also think the extra cost is well worth it when you consider the non-toxic benefits to us, our families, pets and other creatures that visit our yards to say nothing of the fact they don't harm the environment either.

The Neo. 'Rosy Morn' in my picture is a mature plant as it's flowering, so it won't get any larger, but it's one of those plants that you can't judge on just colour alone either as it's forever changing (up to and even after flowering).

Nice pic's as usual Shirley, and I really do like that Neo.'Groucho', I can't find it on te BCR but it does look like some of Chester Skotak's work and if so it's well out of my price range, maybe one day in the future. I also love your “little visitor”.

Breeindy – I like your Neo.'Lime and Lava' ,it was a plant bred by Bob Larnach which was grown and flowered by Jack Koning prior to registering. The seed parent is Neo 'Break of Day' and the pollen parent is unknown.

Sue – I wouldn't give up on your Neo. 'Silver' x 'Skotaks Tiger' just yet. Is that the only rotten leaves in it? I read once where a grower from Victoria (I think it was) always treated any plant he had like that by using ordinary beach sand on them. He said the sand must be unwashed so it still had traces of salt in it as this was an important part of the treatment.

Frst he would pull out any rotten leaves, then wash out the rotten centre well with a strong jet of water. Hang the plant upside down to dry for 24 hours and then stand it in an empty pot, put some dry fungicide powder (about 2 desert spoons full) down in the centre of the cup to cover the rotted base. and then cover it with about 3” of dry sand and leavce it for a week somewhere where it didn't get wet.

After that he potted it in a very open mixture and just supplied water via a light misting for a couple of weeks and then watered normally. He said he always got at least a couple of pups using this method.

I think this may have been a modified example of a method described by a Newcastle grower and which appeared in the “Illawarra Bromeliad Society's News Link” of April 2007 Pages 11-12. Go to:
www.bromeliad.org.au/news/Illawarra.htm

I'm all for trying out new ideas but I've never tried these ones out as I've never had any dry beach sand handy at the time and always promise myself to have some on standby for future use but still haven't done so, but probably it's worth trying if you don't know of something better.

Jean – Nice to see your still keeping in touch and the floods haven't reached you and caused you any damage at least. Keep in touch.

That's it once again, now for a few pic's to finish with. Pic.1 Neo 'Lambert's Pride', Pic.2 Neo. 'Rosatina' x 'Concentrica', Pic.3 Neo 'Catlan's Leopard' just starting to show some colour, Pic.4 Neo. 'Burnsie's Spira'l and Pic.5 is frogs eggs in the bird bath after the rain. (Today I transferred the tiny tadpoles to the Frog Pond)

All the best, Nev.

Shirley- you didnt get that Ring Leader off me did you? i remember sending it to a few people. Its a big plant isnt it? mine is. Dont you have this one Sue? Dont know if mine has any more pups, i'll look. I'd keep your N. 'Silver x Skotaks Tiger' for a while yet. I did throw away a few big old mothers as they were daggy and i dont have the room, they were alot more had it than your rotted one though. I know they could have pupped again but im impatient. hehe!
Out of all the bags of pre made mixes ive tried i think this brands the best for broms..id probably use it on my orchids also. I've just thrown a clear plastic sheet over the roof of my orchid house to try to stop them from getting any wetter but the problems with that is it'll stop raining and the sun comes out and cooks them then. I need wind to dry them without rain for a few days. No good photos this afternoon.

Hi all’ It must be my turn for the rain, it is supposed to be our wet season afterall.
Shirley first up it is time to change feet in mouth. I didn’t read the label correctly until today, It clearly says Wine and under it Gold but further on the leaf there is an and sign. It was in with the minis for sale when I bought it in May I was thinking (Dangerous) that just maybe we have 2 plants with a similar name. Groucho is a nice looking plant and I think it is 1 of a series of Chesters, Wild rabbit is another and I have seen a couple of others on propogation sites. I have seen the recipe for wild rabbit but cannot remember it.
Sue, I don’t know a lot about Ananas but I am learning by trial and error.I think it was mid January when I cut the tops off my tricolours, 1 we ate the fruit after I searched for seeds, I found a few and they are slowly growing, about 1”high now. The other fruit was overripe and seedless. The tops have not started to root as yet but still look strong. Ananas Lucudus , I do have and it currently has a couple of pups at the moment. It also fruited and I have a top potted for trial.
M Pattersons book, to me is a catalogue of her hybrids. I just had a quick skim through it today and it is a tease, but found out that her start was from a Colonel Don Patterson from Coffs Harbour.. Don was one of the original members of the Bromeliad Society of Australia.
Nev thanks for the information on where to get Shanes book. I haven’t been to the beach as yet to collect some sand to dry, it is only 1 k from where I work. I need one of those round things with tuit engraved on 1 face. That is the excuse breaker of all time.
Have a good one
Ian 400mm of rain today
Pic 1 N gold medal
Pic 2 N Wine and Gold
Pic 3 Somme seed to be tested
Pic 4 A Guz from Marlborugh nursery. unnamed naturally

Hi everyone, we had a few patches of sunshine today between the showers and it has been quite windy. I just hope it doesn’t blow too hard or there will be trees down everywhere as the ground is so waterlogged.

Bree, that’s a nice neo Lime and Lava. And yes, you did send me neo Ring Leader back in July, it’s looking really great, and it’s fast becoming a favourite of mine. It’s about 40 cm across now ... how much larger will it grow.

Sue, neo Ring Leader is one that Breeindy sent me and it’s a beauty. I’m not sure how big it will get as mine is still quite young. I think I would be hanging on to neo Silver x Skotaks Tiger, you might get a pup … I’ll keep my fingers crossed for you.

Jean, I’m looking forward to seeing pics of your new broms when they arrive.

Nev, I took a couple of photos of my neo Rosy Morn today along with a couple more of the NOID for comparison against neo Rosy Morn. I also photographed some other neo NOIDS and will download them before I post so I can attach them. Maybe someone will be able to ID these unknowns for me, please.

Ian, your pic of neo Wine and Gold looks similar to the one I saw on eBay, I just wasn’t aware that it is a mini. Your neo Gold Medal looks quite different to mine but it’s very nice. We could use one of those round tuits here as well ... do you know where to get one?

Anyway, pic 1 is neo Rosy Morn, pic 2 is the NOID from a couple of days ago for comparison, pic 3 is neo Gold Medal, pics 4 and 5 and both NOIDs

Bye for now, Shirley

Hi everyone – Well it looks like the rain's gone as we had sunshine all day yesterday and the forecast last night said fine and sunny with decreasing showers (tell me that's not an “each way bet”).

Breeindy – The potting mix in your pic. sounds like agood one, Searles is a house-hold name in the gardening world and have been selling garden products since I was a boy; and you don't stay in business that long if you sell rubbish. Unfortunately no one around here sells Searles products and I can't give it a try; so I guess we just jave to make the most of what we can get in our areas.

Ian – What you say about Neo 'Groucho' being one of a series from Chester Skotak seems to be correct as I looked up the formula name for Neo 'Wild Rabbit' which is Neo. (Carolinae variegated x Hannibal Lector) x Neo 'Tiger Cub' .

When I searched further, in this case I searched to see what other hybrids had been reistered using Neo. (Carolinae variegated x Hannibal Lector) as a parent, and there are 31 registrations with a lot of them being similar in colour to Neo. 'Wild Rabbit' and Neo. 'Groucho' (unreg). I didn't go through the whole list, but of the ones I looked at, all were Chester Skotak's hybrids.

You can have a look yourself at: http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?fields=Parents&id=10473&search=carolinae%20variegated%20x%20hannibal%20lector

There were many others besides you who though that Margaret Patterson's first book was just a catalogue of her hybrids. There wasn't a lot of cultural information in it for the average grower, but from a hybridists point of view there was plenty. There were very good pictures which were an accurate likeness of what her hybrids looked like and probably what I found most interesting of all was at the back of the book in the index. It was an 11 page list of the formulae used to produce these hybrids.

For some reason DG is playing games with me this morning just showing half of my text before the pic's. Maybe they are restricting the length of the text so I'll have to do it in two bites.

All the best, Nev.

DG won't let me post the rest of this post or my pic's so I'll try to post them once again after this, otherwise that's it!@!@!##$$%$%%

All the best, Nev.

.

Good morning
well the rot goblin has struck again, and this time it was my Hohenbergia leopoldo-horstii. Again, I am quite upset. I have a bag of dry riversand in the shed, so I will use tht in place of beach sand and try the method you described, Nev. i checked the soil in the N.'Silver' x 'Skotaks Tiger' and it was free draining, with styrofoam chips in the bottom, so......just too much water! The Hohenbergia was planted in the ground, and was on a lean after all the wind. As I tilted it upright, I saw the whole middle spin loosely in the plant. Anyway, its out of the ground and lying on its side, so both will get some treatment today and we'll see what happens. I don't mind experimenting,but wish it was with something a little less precious.
It rained on and off all day, but unlike Shirley, there was no sunny bits. The sunrise this morning looks a little promising, and the forecast says the showers will be less in the afternoon, so fingers crossed. Today is the day I stake up leaning trees, but wonder if I should wait until the ground is firmer?
Bree, its a catch 22 isn't it, trying to keep things dry, and aired, and not cooked! My Orchids have fared ok so far, as that shade house seems to be very supportive of whatever life I put in there. I even have lots of kikis on the Dendrobiums, so have been potting some up.
I don't have N. 'Ring Leader' so if you get a spare pup, I'm always open for a swap.
Thanks for sharing your Potting mix with us. Always good to know what someone else in my climate is using. I'm going for straight pinebark now, but have aged it for a couple of months and added Dolomite to bring down the acidity and help it compost.
Nev, I find kids exhausting even when they are sleeping. I don't know what kind of grandparent I will make, when it happens. I have been away from littlies for years, but I'm sure I will learn again. I used to be full of energy once too, but often think if you had kids around all the time, they would keep you well exercised.
Thanks for the links on the books and remedies. I saved the book one to my favourites for a look later. I'm sure I will find things I have to have. I spent alot of money on books when I did my horticulture course, and some have never been read. I am now cautious when I purchase books, and try to have a read of review first, if buying on line. Shane has offered to send me a copy of his book, so we'll see how that goes, and I'll let you know what its about. I am not familiar with many of his plants, so if its a book about his hybrids, it will be a good education for me. Nothing wrong with that. I wish a few more hybridisers would put out a book on their efforts, as we all like beautiful brom pictures!
Ian, you crack me up. I can tell from your posts that you have a very good sense of humour. Your Neo. 'Gold Medal' is lovely, and I guess the colour difference is due to lower light levels? Thanks for your info on propagating the Ananas tops. I guess I will have to try mine eventually, maybe when the skies stop opening every day? I hope you get your round Tuit, so that you can get things done.
There is a Don Patterson Drive here in Coffs, do you think its related to Margret patterson?
Shirley, if you put your N. 'Gold medal' side by side with Ians, you wouldn't know its the same plant. I don't know which one I prefer? I've grown mine like yours, but think Ians might be a bigger plant, being in lower light. I don't know about you, but my N. 'Gold Medal' is quite a small grower?
I hope you get a bit more sunshine today, and maybe just light winds, as it will help to dry out the ground and keep the humidity down. Thats the worst here. If the sun ever comes out its going to be extremely steamy. Still, I'd be happy to see it, and so will the rest of Coffs Harbour!
Well, thats it from me today, so I will leave you with a couple of pics. I thought I took some yesterdy, but apparently not, so these are sundays.
Sue
Photo one is a variegated stripe on a Dendrobium leaf, just thought it was interesting.
Photo two is a Spider....obviously
Photo three is part of the sales igloo, with he hanging minis I potted up
Photo four is more minis in the igloo

I love Ians Gold Medal, mines the colour of yours Shirley and Sue which i like but im going to put it in low light and see if it'll look different.
Shirley- i dont Ring Leader will grow much bigger then the 40cms.
Look 1. Old Love Letters has coloured back up because of all the cloudy days weve been having. Doesnt take long.
Well not much rain yesterday so it may be easing off. Hopefully.
2. Here the brom i have tagged Pink River, it does look like red river but pink. Maybe it one of them marbled ones.
Look at the nice colours on 3. Break of Day and 4. Small World. Very red tips. Are these similar plants Nev?

More beautiful pics from everyone. So lovely to see all the colors.
I received my 2 latest broms today and took pics .
I am going to have to move a few more of the neos from the greenhouse to outside to make room.
I have a space about 5' x 4' between two of the greenhouses. It is covered with beige shadecloth and get no direct sun on the open side.
I was wondering how vrieseas like being outside. I can always hang another piece of shadecloth on the open end in winter .
The space gets lots of light as the sun goes directly over it.
I thought it may be a good spot for some of the vrieseas as they grow bigger than most of the neos.
If we get plenty of winter rain, I can always throw a piece of plastic over them .
The broms in the other open shadehouse ( mainly neos with a few aechmeas and bills ) seem to survive well during the winter despite the rain.



pic 1 ... Pink Blush... a very nice size brom about 25cm across..

pic 2....White Chestnut.... a very large plant which surprised me as usually they are smaller when sold.
This one is about 30cm x 30 cm as you can see from the plastic crate beside it.
I love the color.

Jean.

clicked the wrong button . silly me . heres vr. White Chestnut..

Jean

Hi Everyone!

Sorry quick one tonight because I'm exhausted as still playing catch-up at work and at home and not sleeping too good at night so going to bed early most nights. I will probably be all over the show with threading till things get back to some sort of normality but will do my best to thread small like tonight just to keep intouch best I can for now rather than not at all.

Thanks to everyone for their kind well wishes, Joe is feeling much better now and is resting at home which is such a huge relief, it is so good to have him home safe and well.

Hi Nev I hope your wife is feeling much better and please send her our get well wishes.

Hi Ian I hope your feeling much better too with your eyes.

Hi Shirley thank you so very much, your surprise parcel arrived today and everything looks really healthy and happy, you packed everything so fantastic and nothing suffered at all, in fact they probably look as good as when you first packed them. It was so nice coming home today to such a wonderful surprise and I can't thank you enough.

Shirley attached is a pic of my Neo' 'Rose Blush', the centre well on your's is so much larger compared to my one which makes me think that your brom maybe something alltogether different as is appears to be a much larger grower than what I have, also my Rose Blush has hot pink tips and a fine hot pink line on the upper outer leaves that I could not see on yours but possibly that could be due to different lighting? Anyway it would be good to see what everyone else thinks.

Great pics that everyone posted these past couple of days, I am chomping at the bit to get back into the garden hopefully on the weekend if all goes well.

Hope those experiencing all this rain and flooding are safe and well, take care and hopefully you experience some reprieve soon.

Anyway time to head off to bed.

Speak soon and Happy Gardening!

Trish

Hi Everyone!

Sorry DG won't let me attach Pic as no icon to click on to select one? I will try attaching another night.

Trish

Hi Everyone!

Now it's letting me attach pic - what the???????

Pic - Neo' 'Rose Blush' (for Shirley)

Good night!

Trish

Hi all, we have had only patchy showers today but it has been quite windy here. Early this morning while playing with my broms, I heard a very loud crack, followed by a very loud, ground shaking crash as another big gum tree came down. It was in a neighbour’s property and luckily didn’t do any real damage.

Nev, looks like you never did get to finish your post, but your pics are stunners ... you certainly have some lovely broms. Can you ID three of them for me, please - Pic 1, the variegated neo in the bottom left, pic 3, the large variegated neo on the left, pic 5, the pink centred neo in the middle, top of the pic.

Sue, what a bummer, I hope you don’t lose your Hohenbergia leopoldo-horstii. I am keeping a close eye on mine as its looking a bit suss. I have repotted it and moved it out of the rain. I have my fingers crossed for both of us here … as you say, it’s always the expensive ones.

My neo Gold Medal is quite small, Sue, and I have a couple of them so I will move one into a lower light area to see how it changes.

Bree, the colours in your neos are gorgeous … so soft and pretty.

Jean, lovely vrieseas, you must have quite a few now. That offer to take some of them off your hands is still good, LOL.

Trish, it’s really good to hear from you and I am so pleased your parcel finally arrived. Gee, it took a long time … I was beginning to think it may have gone astray, I am so happy that they arrived in good condition.

I am pleased too that Joe is on the mend but Trish, you need to take care of yourself too or your health will suffer. Take it easy OK … looking forward to your next post.

Trish, thanks for the pic of neo Rose Blush, very nice ... my NOID is totally different.

My pic 1 is an unnamed guzmania … any ideas please, pic 2 is neo de Rolf, pic 3 is neo Goldilocks. Quite a few of my neos seem to be missing the sun and have lost colour.

Till tomorrow, Shirley

Hi everyone – Well I wonder if it's really worthwhile typing any info today after yesterday's little episode. The first time I posted DG reduced the text by half as it put the pic's after the first half of the text. When I went to post the remaining text, that too was reduced by half and so it went. In the end I just gave up and emailed Sue the remaining text in the hope she could post it on my behalf which hopefully she will be able to do when she posts again.

Sue – I hope the rain leaves you soon and you get a lot of sunshine to dry everything up, I don't think there's anything more of a pain in the bum that not being able to get out among the plants.

Regarding the sand treatment of rotted brom's, I think from memory that the reason unwashed beach sand was used was because of the antibacterial properties of sea salt in the sand and I don't know just how important this is but it's certainly different to river sand (unless of course it was a salt water river).

I was interested to see what you said about Dolomite. I have also read where putting Dolomite in bark will reduce the acidity and help with the composting, but these articles never say how much Dolomite to how much bark to use. Just as a guide, what would you use, say to a 70L bag of bark? You also say you leave it for a couple of months; does this length of time vary depending on the quantity of bark or is it the same for any amount?

Your spider looks like an Orb Weaver is that correct? We get a lot of them around here and there's nothing worse than walking out to bring in the paper of a morning and getting tangled up in one of their sticky webs strung across the path. Not real good when you're still half asleep!

Breeindy – Nice pic's you've posted once again and to answer your question about Neo. 'Small World” and Neo. 'Break of Day' it seems they are all from the same batch of seed which comes from Neo. 'Maid of Honour' as the seed parent crossed with an unknown pollen parent. There were some quality small brom's from this cross with quite a few registered; I have two others from that cross as well, Neo. 'Honour Bright' and Neo. 'One and Only'. You can see the whole collection on the BCR at: http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&id=3331#3331

Jean – You say, “I was wondering how Vrieseas like being outside”. I can only tell you what I've found here where I live; when I got my first Vrieseas I treated them with kid gloves as I thought that because the leaves were thinner than Neo's they would naturally be more vulnerable to weather extremes. When I got to know them better I found quite the opposite as they are tougher than Neo’s (Here in Shellharbour anyway) Even with the two recent heatwave days I had Neo's that were in the open in the front garden which suffered a lot of burn damage but the Vrieseas in the same garden, just had a few leaf tips burnt, so don't underestimate them for toughness.

Trish – I really like the pic of your Neo 'Rose Blush', it's a nice looking unusually marked plant. Are they very faint variegations I can see in between the spotting on the leaves or is it a pattern from shadows?........or maybe it's just my glasses need cleaning.

From what you say it seems like DG is playing games with you as well by hiding the “choose a file button”. That didn't happen to me, I loaded the pic's and when I went to preview the post, they were in the middle of the text with the second half of the text missing.

Shirley – I don't remember those names at present (the old brain ain't what it used to be), but I'll have a look when the sun comes up and let you know. I think the last one is Neo. 'Fairy Dust', but I'll have to confirm that.

Looking at the pic of your unknown? Guzmania – I don't know what it is, but I think it looks more like xGuzvriesea (Guzmania crossed with a Vriesea). I looked them up on the BCR and can't find one the colour of yours but there are a couple of red ones with very similar flower formations. http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=xGUZVRIESEA&id=9378#9378 (See 'Starfire' and 'Marion Oppenheimer') What do you know about it and do you remember where you got it from as it's certainly a nicely coloured plant.

That's it for today and I'll try to post a few pic's and see what happens today.

All the best, Nev.

I always thought Vrieseas like more shade than Neos dont they? Dont change my mind as ive never gotten into them as i only have sunny spots and defenatly dont have room to start liking them now. hehe!
Shirley i love neo de Rolf and Goldilocks. Lovely broms as always Nev. Well it hasnt rainned for a day or two. Finally.
1. My Camelot from Nev. 2. Cane Fire. 3. Look at the thick red lines forming on my Amazing Grace.
4. Little Cutie from Trish.

Good morning all.
sorry Nev, I have spet about 20 minutes trying to copy and paste text from your Emial and all I have had is frustration, so if you still have a copy of it yourself, it might be easier to do from your end. I could only copy one section at a time, and when pasting the second section, it comes in above the first, and no ammount of trying can reverse that, so I assume I have to copy it from the bottom to the top? Anyway, Anyone working with a tablet will probably understand. Its just too hard. Annoying really, as I would like to do away with the standard computer, but it is better at some things than a tablet.
Anyway, no rain for 24 hours! It must be a record. there was even a glowing golden ball in the sky at times, radiating warmth. Not so today, its quite gloomy. I had hoped it might be sunny again, as there are errands I have to run, and was hoping to get out on my bike.
I managed to get into the garden again yesterday afternoon, to do some tidying and plant some broms, as well as remove pups. I have put a couple of widely grown ones on Ebay, to try and get good feedback before selling any collectors stuff. I also started a page on FB to list some of the same stuff that I have heaps of. (Dmail me for the page name)
Bree, your Neos look stunning, especially 'Small World'. I'm glad you've had a break in the weather too. I find it really cheered me up to see a bit of sun.
Jean, I THINK Vrieseas are ok with watering in winter, as a Local Vriesea grower suggests keeping the soil moist during winter protectes the plant from cold damage. I don't fully understand it, but he's an expert. Vrieseas certainly like more moisture than Neoregelias, and I ususally pot them into more of a potting mix than an orchid mix. You will have to experiment with some that are not too precious.
Trish, I hope you get a chance to catch up and get back to us with some gardening news and some pics of your collection.
Shirley, I know exactly what you heard when the tree came down. Its quite an awesome noise isn't it, but slightly scary when the possibility is that it could be on your property. thank goodness it wasn't.
I love your unamed Guzmania/xGuzvriesea what ever it may be. It looks gorgeous. I was thinking G. remyi untill I looked at an enlarged picture, and its definitly not that. I have xGuzvriesea 'Marian Oppenheimer' but didn'trealise it was a bigeneric. It was labelled G. 'Marian Oppenheimer'. I will take a photo today if I get a chance.
Nev, once again, sorry I couldn't help with the previous post
It seems your request of dry weather here worked, so can you request it again?
I think I will stick with riversand in my rotted broms, and I am not game to sprinkle straight fungicide in the centre either so I am going to add some cinnamon to the sand instead. I can't see how salt can be good for plants, as it usually kills them. I know fertiliser is salts, so maybe I will add a small ammount of nutricote to the sand also?
As for Dolomite. I use a handfull to a 60 litre wheelbarrow, so its not a great deal really. I also leave the barrow in the weather and rain (so it got pretty wet here) then drain it before use. John Catlan also advises to add fertiliser to the fresh bark, so that as it composts it has nitrogen to draw upon. If it is used fresh, it will draw nitrogen from your plants as it breaks down. Anyway, I haven't had any problems and usually add a teaspoon of Nutricote at potting, which either the plant can use, or the mix as it composts. I use pinebark from the landscapers, as its much cheaper than bagged stuff. Its about 10-15mm, and is also used by other growers here, with much success. I have been trying many different mixes over the years, and still experiment with added potting mix for Vrieseas e.t.c.
Anyway, my time is up and I really have to go, so until tomorrow. I didn't get pictures yesterday but will try to get some this afternoon if its still bright.
Hello to everyone looking in
Sue

Hi Everyone!

Ah one day closer to the weekend, I got to be happy about that so I can play with my broms and Joe can play with his orchids, that’s if the predicted cyclone stays away (fingers crossed), either way I will still get to spend time with them whether that be finding shelter for them all in our house LOL. I remember with Cyclone ‘Yasi’ I moved them all indoors into our entertainment area and it looked so funny, broms and orchids everywhere like we were opening up shop or something, I will never forget that day and was pleased that we brought them inside with the amount of tree debris etc that ended up in our gardens, they surely would have got damaged. This time though if I need to move them it is going to be a much greater task because of how many I have in my collection know compared to then.

Hi Shirley thanks for your kind thoughts, Joe is feeling much better thanks and is back at work but taking it easy. Thanks I too am trying to take it easy but stress easily over the simplest of things like not getting a lid off a jam jar or the garage door not closing automatically, silly things really that normally do not frustrate me but I suppose that’s what stress does to you. I think it’s just that you lose momentum, what day of the week it is and it is easy to fall behind with things, but we are getting back on track and going to bed earlier just to make sure we get a good night sleep because tiredness does not help either.

Thanks Shirley once again for the surprise package, all are very healthy and happy and I luv them all.

Shirley yeah I tend to agree with you I think the NOID you thought was Neo’ ‘Rose Blush’ is something different, I can’t think what because I don’t have one but it reminds me of something I have seen somewhere but I just can’t recall where or what it was called? Sorry I can’t be of any more assistance. Nice brom pics you posted Shirley, hopefully someone will be able to identify your Guzmania because I do not have many of these so can’t be of any assistance unfortunately?

Hi Nev the faint variegation marks you think you can see in my Neo’ ‘Rose Blush’ I think are patterns from shadows of the shrubs nearby. Nev nice random brom pics you posted; looks like they have all recovered well from the dreaded heat wave you experienced.

Nev sounds like a few of us are experiencing games with DG, hopefully I have better luck posting pics tonight?

Hi Bree, got to luv those dark lines forming on your Neo’ ‘Amazing Grace’, does that mean it the “dark form” variety? I finally have 2 x pups on mine (not dark form) and am very pleased because it has taken so long and now I have a couple of fresh ones to display around the garden.

Bree that Neo’ ‘Little Cutie’ I sent you is really hardy, it can take a fair bit of sun but best not to give it too much direct sun, I do have some in full sun and they are bleached but the others I have around the garden get sun right up to about 11am and then they are in semi-shade the rest of the day and they are happy and have good colour.

Hi Sue thanks looking forward to getting back out into the garden and taking some more fresh pics of my broms and the garden, let’s hope the weather is kind to us and the pending cyclone stays clear of us and anyone else for that matter. We have been getting rain here and there and the breeze is picking up so we are keeping an eye on things and thinking of how to go about things if we need to so we are prepared.

I found one Neo rotted in the garden today that was in a large pot that I had buried in the garden to hide the pot, normally I sit a pot in a pot with using this method but this one was just a pot in the ground and understandably it rotted. I found two others that I had used the same method (pot in ground) and quickly ripped the pot out of the ground. Anyway lesson learnt, gosh the rotted brom stunk, it literally fell apart in my hand (the entire brom) with no way of saving it unfortunately (sad face). I just realised that I have had this brom for a couple of years and that it has never pupped so silly of me to have not recognised the signs that it was not happy, what confused me was that it had grown heaps and flowered but I had failed to recognise that it had not pupped.

Anyway time to head off to bed.

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

Take care and Happy Gardening!

Trish

Old random pics tonight:

Hi all, another day and not much achieved. It is just too wet to slop around the yard today, more rain this afternoon and more expected tonight. The wind is up here now, might even blow me off the page Well that was last night and today all I achieved at home was to mow the grass on a high setting. I still have water seeping through the front area. There was a bright fellow looking down on us late this afternoon, but during the day we had scattered light showers.
Dolomite has often been talked about to reduce acidity of a mix and I use it at the rate of 1gram per litre of fresh bark. When I can i also add rooster booster , a couple of handfuls per barrow load and then leave to weather for a couple of months. Mike from Tannum Sands had an article on here from somewhere about June last year and that is where I got my ideas from.
There was a smart comment on the Guzmania that I put on the dining table and that was that it ought to be in the pantry because it is a flower(flour). Bloody smarties of the younger generation.
I just bought N Gold medal from Big W and we have had a lot of cloudy conditions and most plants have lost some colour. It will be interesting to see what happens with different light conditions. Maybe my feeding pattern will be different also.
Have a good one
Ian
Pics of some seedlings

good morning.
not much rain again yesterday, but I bet we get the tail end of your cyclone, Trish, cause we need more rain....not! I hope it fizzes out before it makes land fall, and that your garden and broms stay neat and tidy! I have ALMOST finished cleanng from the storms, so hope the winds don't make it down this far, although it would help to dry out the ground.
Ian, its gumboots around here, and no mowing allowed for awhile. Two dryish days have seen those, lucky enough to have a draining block, out mowing. One numb skull decied to burn his green waste yesterday afternoon and smoked the whole neighbourhood out. Whats the hurry? It amazes me because whats the first thing that happens after a long wet spell? People hang washing on the line. This neighbour is either inconsiderate or completely stupid! Anyway, I'm trying to practise thinking positive, and decided the silver lining was, maybe he'll smoke out the mosquitos?
its amzing how much better i feel after a bit of nicer weather, and I am all enthused about getting most of my broms into the garden now. It will look great, and i can harvest pups as required, if required. I have almost bought hubby around to my way of thinking, and may yet get the levelest, dryest, already gravelled area, to move my igloo to. i have my fingers crossed, but need for him to make that decision.
well, not much else to report on, and I didn't get photos as it was a bit gloomy by the time I got out into the garden, but perhaps today I might get some good shots.
Sue

Hi everyone, another nice fine day down here with the sun shining and the birds singing.

Breeindy – That plant you say is Camelot doesn't look anything like mine, I hope I haven't given you the wrong plant. Although the banding isn't always as prominent year after year, I haven't had one with so little banding. Post another pic when it's an adult so we can all see what develops. I do guarantee all of my plants to be what I say they are and if it turns out to be something else I will replace it of course, but just let it mature a bit first to make sure as brom's do some funny things sometimes.

Sue I tried cutting and posting that text again yesterday, but the same thing happened even though the first post went through OK. I'll try fitting it in this one and see what happens.

What you say about keeping the soil of Vrieseas moist supports exactly what Jack once wrote on a forum. He said you will get a lot more damage from keeping them on the “dry side” as by keeping the plant less hydrated it has less resistance to cold damage and disease. In fact it was he who once said that the best way to grow Vr. Opsinae was in a saucer of water, something I've had drummed into me as a “NO NO” ever since I started growing plants, but when I tried it the 'Ospinae' in the saucer bolted away from the one that wasn't.

Thanks also for the info on the use of Dolomite. I'll pass on a little info from the talk we had at the meeting on Saturday regarding Dolomite. The Manager from the company, who gave us the presentation, says that this company makes a product called “ECO – flo dolomite”. It's a liquid product which contains Dolomite in superfine particles (10 micron in size) which are more readily available than traditional powered dolomite (1,000 microns). According to what he said, it does a similar job to the traditional method but very much quicker due to being much finer and breaking down more quickly...... I think he said because of this it would speed the composting process up as well, but I'll have to read the literature to check if that what I thought I heard.

Trish – That's great news that Joe is feeling much better and is back at work already. We went to the cardiologist yesterday and she has referred my wife to the same cardiac surgeon that treated me; he was a doctor the first time a few years back and now he's a professor so we're both satisfied she's in good hands and he will hopefully find what caused the chest pain and treat it accordingly.

They might be old random pic's you've posted but they've still got plenty of colour. What's the name of the Neo in the centre of the second pic?

Ian – You may have read of the problems I had trying to post an answer to your comments the other day so I'll try and “pop” it in here:

“There were many others besides you who though that Margaret Patterson's first book was just a catalogue of her hybrids. There wasn't a lot of cultural information in it for the average grower, but from a hybridists point of view there was plenty. There were very good pictures which were an accurate likeness of what her hybrids looked like and probably what I found most interesting of all was at the back of the book in the index. It was an 11 page list of the formulae used to produce these hybrids.

I like your plant of Neo. 'Gold Medal' shown in Pic.1, and interestingly, when I looked it up on the BCR I found that it is a sport which has possibly been tissue cultured. See entry below:

Neoregelia ' Gold Medal': Variegated sport (tissue culture?) of N. ‘First Prize’

Back again - It seems once again DG is cutting my post short so I'll try and add the rest here. The problem may be because I tried to cut and paste the info. about the Neo.’Gold Medal’ for Ian, so I’ll blame Ian for it.

This time I won’t cut and paste but I’ll add the link instead which is http://botu07.bio.uu.nl/bcg/bcr/index.php?genus=NEOREGELIA&id=9992#9992

Shirley – Regarding your request for names of the plants in the post 4th Mar. Bottom Left in Pic.1 is Neo. 'Firewheel', Left in Pic.3 is one of the seven different Neo.' Meyendorffii' plants I have and to identify it from the rest it is Neo.' Meyendorffii' (NFS). Centre top of Pic.5 is Neo. 'Mesmerize' which is a Rob Smythe hybrid made by crossing Neo ‘Charm’ onto Neo. Barbarian. There is even a better one from that crossing called Neo. 'Mesmerize Select’ which unfortunately I don’t have.

That will do today and I'll see if I can post this, OK?

All the best, Nev.

Nev- im pretty sure that theCamelot i posted is a pup off the Camelot you gave me (which got old and daggy so i threw it and kept the pup). Think it just really red because its grown in alot of sun.
1. My vriesea ospinae gruberi is grown pretty dry and seems ok. Not very dry at the moment though with all that rain.
2. Heres my Gold Medal looking not vey good, to much sun and rain.

Hi Everyone!

We went out to have dinner by the beach today but there were too many people and dogs running around not on leads and it was too noisy for us so we decided to come back home and eat dinner in our back yard surrounded by my brom's and all the nice paper-bark trees in the wetlands. it does not get much better than that and the girls were still happy to run around the back yard chasing lizards and bush chooks.

Hi Ian, great looking seedlings you have growing, looks like you are going a great job.

Hi Sue we are not too sure what weather to expect yet and I reckon we won't know until early next week, we have only had a wee bit of rain and some breeze here and there but nothing else, too early to tell yet. So hopefully I will get to spend some time with my broms as I noticed a few more pups ready to be removed and potted, they look like they have all had a bit of a growth spurt and I have noticed broms colouring up well since the weather has improved and we are not using the air-conditioner as ofter now. Even my pups are colouring up really well, some pups are just full of colour from base to tip and they really stand out amoungst the mature broms, so I am pretty impressed with them.

Sue I dont blame you being annoyed about your neighbour burning off, our previous neighbour used to and I used to tell them off because of the toxic smelling smoke that used to roll into our yard and me being and asthma sufferer caused me a lot of grief. Anyway they are long gone now thank goodness.

Hi Nev, thanks yes Joe is feeling much better thanks and back at work. Sounds like your wife is in good hands and hopefully all the tests results come back clear of any issues.

Nev the brom your enquired about in Pic 2 (centre) that I posted yesterday is Neo' 'Two Tone'. I luv this brom to bits. I have posted Pic 1 below of the pups when they were younger for you to see.

Nev what great random brom shots you took, so healthy and full of color - magnificent as always. I get lost in them and fall into a trance just looking at them because of all that beautiful color, keep them coming. Nev what the real Big Neo' in your Pic 4 (top l/h corner) with the pink centre as I really like it?

Hi Bree, your Vr' ospinae gruberi looks real healthy and happy, mine are potted up in a good quality potting mix and sit in a saucer of water and appear to be doing ok but I am thinking of moving one outside under one of our big tree's to see how it goes?

Hi Shirley hope your well, felt weird not seeing a post from you today as i so luv chatting with you.

Anyway time to head off and put the kettle on, hanging out for a cup of tea.

Hopefully not too many typos as I typed this without my glasses and typed directly into the forum page which normally ends bad for me so I will post this thread now then attach a few more old pics straight after.

Take care, hi to anyone looking in and Happy Gardening!

Trish

Pic 1 - Neo' 'Two Tone'.

Couple of more pics:

Pic 1 - Neo' 'Jolly Roger' - excuse ugly tag...
Pic 2 - Neo' 'Shamrock' - luv this little mini as I reckon it's got spunk!
Pic 3 - Neo' 'Pink River'
Pic 4 - Neo' 'Meyendorfii x Corinecea - I adore this one to bits.
Pic 5 - Neo' 'Sheer Joy'

Trish

Sorry could not help myself, look at my girls helping me in the garden:

Pic 1 - Lucy
Pic 2 - Lexi


Trish :)

Hi all,
Bright and sunny here today even though the weather people are talking about a cyclone. From everything I am hearing they are having an each way bet, it’ll either form or it won’t. Then if it does it’ll either head for the coast or out to sea. Ah well something will happen and that will be controlled by Mother nature. She’s the boss.
Ok Nev I’ll take tha blame, I have round shoulders and problems landing on them just roll off. My plant has The Olive Branch name tag on it. I have no idea how they propagate their plants, whether it is by vegegative (pups and seeds) or by cloning(tissue culture)
Margarets book is a recipe book, an Identification aid and a catalog. Some of the less favourable plants I would love in my collection, The Night Rider group, so different from the others with their chocolate colouring and very hardy.
I have done very little with my plants today, basically just looked them over, removed a few dead leaves and took a few photos.
Have a good one,
Ian
Pic 1 Bil Ralph Graham French
Pic 2 Bil Tickled Pink
Pic 3 Ananas Lucidus

Pic 1Bil Victoria
Pic 2 Guz Fools Gold
Pic 3 N NOID? is it even a Neo I have not seen it flower

Hi everyone, we finally had a mostly sunny day today, just a few showers early this morning and more this evening from about 6:00 pm, but I finally had a chance to get outside … think I’ve been suffering from cabin fever, it was so good to get outdoors.

Nev, thanks so much for the info on xGuzvriesea. I checked out the BCR and I agree that it certainly is similar to the ones you mention. I know very little about the brom, it came from Bunnings with the usual generic label ‘bromeliad species’. I do wish they would be a little more specific with names or at least species. Like many of their plants, it is probably tissue cultured, hopefully that will mean lots and lots of pups … it already has a couple of small ones.

Nev, thanks also for providing the names I requested, they are very impressive plants, all of them. I especially love neo Mesmerize … I think I might have asked to be added to the list for a pup of that one before, if not, can you add my name to what is probably a long waiting list, thanks.

Bree, nice pics … that last one, Little Cutie, is certainly aptly named.

Sue, I hope the rain stays away for you and also that you don’t lose any more of your lovely broms. As for mowing, I think by the time we are able to get out and do it, the grass will be 2 foot long. It takes so long to catch up with the mowing/slashing when you fall so far behind.

Trish, I have my fingers crossed that cyclone Sandra stays well away from the coast and doesn’t cause any problems. It’s great that your broms are showing good colour as so many of mine have faded with it raining for so long.

Trish, we also used to have a neighbour who would burn all sorts of stuff and the smell often used to make me feel crook. Plastic, styrofoam, paint … everything went into a big open fire which they would light and walk away from, fortunately, it only ever got away once and came onto our property. We now have different neighbours and they are lovely and I am gradually turning them into brom addicts.

Sorry I didn’t get around to posting last night but we had a big day and a late dinner and I went to bed early with a headache … good as gold today though, thanks.

Trish, love neo Two Tone, so delicate looking. Your neos in pics 4 and 5 are absolutely stunning too, along with neos 1, 2 and 3. And Miss Lucy and Miss Lexi are very cute too.

Ian, nice pics … DG is playing games again with pic 3.

I will post pics of some spotty broms tonight – pic 1 is neo Hawaiian Sunset, pic 2 is neo Lemon Pepper, pic 3 is neo Spot On, pic 4 is neo Justins Song, which is getting quite large now.

Bye for now, Shirley

Hi everyone- it's good to see a few posts to read once again, keep 'em coming.

Breeindy – You say your Neo 'Gold Medal' has had too much rain and sun and doesn't look good, I still think the colours look great and I'd certainly give it a home.

Trish – Your dinner with nature sounds great I wish I had been there to enjoy it with you.
I'll check the name on the plant in Pic.4 (top left side) you enquired about and post the answer tomorrow.

They're great pic's you've posted; the Neo 'Jolly Roger' is a great looking dark coloured contrasting plant, I hadn't seen that one before. I looked it up and find it is from the breeding stable of Vic Przetocki in Western Australia and is from Neo.'Takemura Grande' x Neo. 'Happy Thoughts'; and your little Neo 'Shamrock' is just beautiful, could you please put my name on your list for a pup when one's available. By the way, thanks for the feedback on the Neo. 'Two Tone', it’s a most unusual coloured brom and could you put me down for a pup of that also when available please?

What can I say about your two little girls? What great looking little mates they seem and they certainly deserve their moment of fame on the World Wide Web.

Ian – It will be interesting to see how your Bill. 'Ralph Graham French' performs. I have had one for about five years now and every time it pups, the pup looks different to the one before it. Either mine is a very unstable plant or is wrongly named. It was one of the few I have ever bought on EBay. Does anyone else have this plant and can you add any info to what I've just said?

Where did the NOID go from pic 3? It seems like DG is playing games with you also Ian.

Shirley – Yes I already have you on a list for a Neo. 'Mesmerize' pup and can you add me to your list for a pup from your pink xGuzvriesea when you get a spare please?
I like the selection of pic's you've posted today. Your Neo. 'Justin's Song' is a great looking plant; in fact it looks like a giant Neo.'Gold Fever' which is one of my favourite spotted types. Neo. 'Justin's Song' was bred by a H. Maertz, a lady from Hawaii and was a result of Neo. 'Correia-araujoi' x Neo 'Charm'. From what I have read from various hybridisers, although this lady bred some nice plants, this was the only one she ever registered and it's named after her grandson.

It's interesting to see the spotted types coming back into popularity again down here where I live. They were just going out of favour when I started into brom's and now they're making a comeback; it seems brom's follow a fashion trend just like clothing.

I'll finish with four more brom. pic's and a fifth which isn't a brom pic but a health warning; if you go to Japan for a holiday, stay out of the swimming pool !

All the best, Nev.

Good morning, seems I'm up at the same tme as the kookaburras, and just heard the morning chorus. Got to laugh!
Same old, same old, going on here, although another relatively dryish day yesterday. it rained overnight, so its back to where we started, in regards to a wet lawn!
Nev, thanks for the information on the liquid lime. I wonder how one would know how much to apply. I remember a horticulture lesson about how to raise the pH, and it related to how much to add to raise the level by one (from 6-7 for instance) by adding a 'light snow dusting'. But as this other looks like a hose on product, I can't imagine how one would control, or decide how much to use? It must be for a crop area, or garden that is acidic? I guess it would be handy to spray over a stock pile of pine bark, to help begin the compost process and bring down the acidity when its fresh? If it were me, I would then do a pH test before using it though, just out of curiosity.
Your Neo photos are such a riot of colour and just the thing for a gloomy day!
Bree, I think your N. 'Gold Medal' looks pretty good too, although I understand your comments about the broms losing colour. Too many cloudy days eh? One good thing is, if you have broms out in full sun that have been getting a bit burnt, this kind of weather is nice to them, in regards to colour.
Ian, Is that a trick question about brom number three? I'm not surprised you haven't seen it flower! heh heh. I recently bought Billbergia 'Ralph Graham French' and was a bit suss about it because I couldn't see any variegation, but the seller assured me it was grown in too much light, and that if grown in a little bit less light, the pups will be ok. low and behold, there is a new pup that has albomarginated edges, so I am happy. I am not familiar with margret Pattersons book, but your description of the 'Night Rider' series has me intrigued.
Trish, I am glad you opted for the peace and quiet of your own backyard, as it sounds like you need to get back in touch after the stressful time you recently had. Your two pups look as cheeky as.
I have N. 'Shamrock' also, and really love it, but found it to be extremely slow. Is it the same for you? I have had mine for nearly 4 years (at least) and it has one pup nearing maturity. All your Neos look great. You must have the right kind of light to get the colour up.
Shirley, I missed you posting the other day too, but assumed you had internet trouble. I knew you'd be back. I hope you don't get many more headaches, but bed is the best place for them eh? Glad you had a bit of a break in the weather to get out and about. It makes the world a nicer place when the weather is fine.
Your spotty foursome look great, and my favourite would be N. 'Justins Song'
Talking about the burning rubbish. While I was moaning to my husband about it, and then thinking of silver linings, he came out with the comment that it made him think of Bali, where they burn their rubbish roadside. So he went off with a smile as he remembered a holiday we had there. Its all in the way we think isn't it?
Well, lets see what photos there are today.
Photo one is a Perons tree frog in Alcantarea vinicolour
Photo two is xGuzvriesea 'Marian Oppenheimer'
Photo three is a Neo. 'Rosey Morn' just passed its best
Photo four is another N. 'Rosey Morn' that was the same size, and potted at the same time as the one in photo three. They came from different sources though.
Photo five is Pitcairnia flammea, which lways has droopy flower heads, because the honey eaters swing on them. It likes reliable misture, so i have planted it near pump out point on the biocycle. Its loving it!
Sue

Here is Pic 3 from last night, I'm off to work. More rain
If I always do what I've always done, then I'll always get what I always got.
Ian