I raised it from seed, and let it grow on a little trellis in it's gallon pot. When cold temperatures loomed over the patio this fall, I moved it indoors and forgot to water it for nearly a month. Instead of dying, it budded. Now it is getting extra special care!
The flower opened today. Aristolochia elegans (aka littoralis)
Side view.
Would you give me a name I can look-up in the Plant Files please.
It has a very neat bloom.
Sidney
Congratulations JamesCO. Gorgeous!
Erick
Way to go, James! When did you start it from seeds?
:) Donna
Thank you,
It sould come up under the latin name, Aristolochia elegans.
http://davesgarden.com/pf/go/942/index.html
The seed was from Park's Seed.
Kenton (James)
The seed was sown the 3rd of January, This year.
Kenton
So is this your first bloom?
:) Donna
Yes Ma'am.
Hey....I'm not that old.....lol! I guess I better start my seeds now so that I can get blooms in the summer.
:) Donna
Yes, Miss, then.
And treat them better than I did. Start them when they're fresh.
Kenton
How old does one have to be to be addressed as madam in The Peg?
Kenton
Oh at least 70....lol.
:) Donna
Well missy,
You, being where you are, know that it is just French: 'My lady.'
And la Doña is a feminine 'Sir' in spanish. You have to be at least 55 to be una Doña.
So how old are you? We'll get a title for it exactly.
See what happens when you pull my leg?
Or perhaps you are just la dona. American Spanish: doughnut.
(Kidding, all this.)
Touché, "¡mi dama!"
Kenton
Under 55 so that must put me as just la dona or doughnut.....lol.
:) Donna
Got it.
Wasn't there a discussion about Aristolochia seed somewhere?
It would be interesting to see your germination times. Post about it if you do, dona de Canadá.
What a nutter. I'd better go outside and do something active.
Kenton
Yeap, I'm a doughnutter....lol!!
:) Donna
I meant me, silly. But I suppose you knew that; clever. "Doughnutter." That's new. Fancy.
'Twas cold outside.
Ah, where were my manners? Everyone but a cad knows that one should never ask a lady her age. Or a doughnut.
I read somewhere,to pour boiling water on the seeds and soak 24 hrs before sewing. Sounds rather cruel. Did you pour boiling water on your's?
Peggy
Heck no. Those babies were tiny and I think that boiling water would have killed them! Boiling a living tissue will eventually kill it. Think of green beans or carrots. I just planted them and gave them bottom-heat. about 75-80 degrees. That can be done in a windowsill.
That's what I thought. Have very few d.elegans seeds from trade and I wasn't real keen on pouring boiling water on them.
Peggy
I say plant them as soon as possible, they have a short shelf-life. Warmth is good, though, to coax many tropical seeds out of dormancy.
Kenton
What about starting cuttings, will they grow, I have a large plant that was knocked over and several vines got broken off, will they start in water?
I have not tried it. Testing is how these things are found out; go for it!
Hello All.
A DG member shared some A. elgans seeds with me about a year ago. A number of them sprouted and did well. After a lot of pampering under lights, I finally got my first flower today. I expect a real show next summer in the garden!
I would suggest planting Aristolochia seeds as soon as possible, and then being patient. It can take awhile for them to germinate. I've had great luck w/vermiculite or seed starter and a cover of plastic wrap. Skip the boiling water - the seeds are somewhat delicate and would certainly be destroyed by that. Once the plants get few leaves and are established, they are relatively easy to grow and bloom.
In my limited experience, Aristolochia cuttings root easily in the same medium, vermiculite or seed starter. Just be sure to keep them humid with a cover of plastic wrap. After a few weeks, they should start putting out new leaves.
Thank you, Kenton, for starting this great thread.
Erick
What a bonny good photograph, thank you for posting it. The gold background is excellent.
My experience seems to be the same as yours. None of the older seeds have even thought about sprouting.
For your cuttings, Erick, do you use green, ripe, or semiripe stems?
I lost my rarer cuttings while I was away and now need to grow out some more plantlets for trading. An Aristolochis elegans certainly is no Holboellia, but I'm sure someone will want one.
Has anyone seen the new Logee's Catalogues' Aristolochias? Some are quite stunning. The miniature gold thing is quite intriguing.
Kenton
If anyone wants seeds, I just picked 15 pods and there are at least that many green ones still on the plant.
You've got D-mail.
Wow, a flower this time of year. My elegans blooms in Aug-Nov. The one here is planted in the ground, and has become a large vine that I use in lieu of shade cloth for part of the year. Since they do not need another pollinator, the seeds are produced in large quantities. When I need the light, pruners and loppers are needed. I should mention that it is grounded in the greenhouse, the thing is a tropical. My native Aristolochias are some of my favorite vines, I hope to acquire more of this genus.
Last year when the greenhouse got down to 25F/-4C, the leaves on the A. elegans turned coal black the next day, but the vine recovered nicely. I would like to make A. durior (=macrophylla) cuttings for propagation. Can you enlarge on your comment Erick? All the ones I've tried (semi-ripe cuttings in Aug.) died, never rooted. I had them moist in Premier (brandname) potting soil with a root enhancer. All turned black after a couple of weeks.
I rooted A. trilobata by layering, but it didn't work with A. gigantea. I took cuttings of gigantea, but they turned black too.
I have A. leuconeura that I'd love to root.
I do, Calalily, and JamesCo! What do I need to do? Krispi
Thank you Kenton. The gold background is actually just the growlight behind it illuminating the leaves. It was nice to get the flower in the middle of winter! For my Aristolochia cuttings, I always use new green growth at the end of the stem where the new leaves are (there must be a better word for that, but it escapes me). I have not tried to use "ripe" growth.
Penn_Pete,
I have had excellent luck (and maybe luck is all it is...) rooting a variety of Aristolochia cuttings, e.g. elegans, ringens, fimbriata, trilobata, and grandiflora. My system is pretty simple. I always use new growth with emerging leaves and dip the end in rooting hormone. I then place the cuttings in a pot with commercial seed starter and water them well. I then place them in a tray, cover the whole thing with plastic wrap and place the tray under bright lights, e.g. a growlight. The cuttings stay very warm and surrounded by 100% humidity - when I stick my hand under the plastic, the air feels hot and wet. I usually open the plastic for a few minutes once or twice a day to exchange the air. After a couple weeks, new leaves emerge. It can take a two or three months before I finally take them out of the mini-greenhouse and plant them up. I haven't lost a cutting since I started following this process. I'm anxious to try it with other species - once I get some! It has also worked well for my Passifloras and gesneriads.
I wish all of you every success in propogating this fabulous group of plants.
Regards,
Erick
Kenton!!! What an incredible beauty! Thank you for posting this gorgeous pic! Been missing you around SW, lately....where you been?! I will happily trade for seeds...pleeease?
CallaLily?? Any left?? Interested in Red Yucca, also known as False Yucca (hesperaloe paviflora)
I think I put some in your envelope. If not, I can send some later.
Cool, Cala!!!! Did you get your RY, yet?
Yes! I got it. You sent a bunch of seeds, I have lots of chances now! Thank you so much. Yours is finally on its way, it was a little delayed(some silly goose forgot to put the flag up on the mailbox).
Kenton~
Way to go! What a beautiful blossom. Looks like a nice chocolate truffle. Mmmmmmmmmm.........
Robert.
We shall see how they do as annuals. -Everywhere.
Cala, you're sending A. elegans seed to DesertW? If not, I can help her out.
K.
No prob, Cala!!! *s* I sent alot of seeds, I know. Everything I've read says they germinate well from seed, but last year I tried with no luck. But I nicked the seed, thinking they are so hard. Maybe I hurt them. I'm gonna try 2 batches this year. One in the fridge to stratify for a couple of weeks, and one indoors on a warmer. We'll see....
Thanks, Kenton, did you want some of the Red Yucca?
Kenton, I can't remember if I put aristolochia in the envelope or not. I should have written down what I included.
