Aristolochia cymbifera!

Hello everyone,

My Aristolochia cymbifera "Gonzaga" bloomed over the weekend--of course the first flower opened on Sunday, when I was out of town. But the second opened this morning, and there are about 7 more large buds on the vine. The flowers are quite striking and interesting. They measure about 6 to 7 inches long. The stink level on the newly opened flower this morning was very minimal, almost not even noticeable. I don't know if this species will self pollinate, but since I had a Day 1 and Day 2 flower, I went ahead and did surgery on them. We'll see in a week or so. The day 2 flower had a small fly inside that had accumulated about maybe half of the pollen, but there was still enough to pollinate the second flower with.

Here's a pic:

Mark

Here's the Day 2 flower:

Another angle on the Day 2 flower, showing the closed bill:

Mark

Oh my goodness too cool! Thanks for posting pics. Wow... that is really neat!

Sincerely,
Vanessa

I got a pleasant surprise this morning when I found a seed pod on my cymbifera vine (woo hoo!). I thought the flowers were only on 1 of the 2 vines in the pot, but either I'm wrong, and both vines had flowers, or this aristo is self-compatible. The third possibility is that my cymbifera x ridicula cross was successful, but I doubt that. However, I neglected to mark which flower I pollinated with the ridicula pollen, and I can't remember, so maybe the cross did work. Will have to grow out the seeds to see. Here's a pic of the seed pod:

Mark

Congratulations on the seed pod! It will be interesting to see how the seedlings turn out. Very cool!

Sincerely,
Vanessa

anyone know where I can get one of these or trade for a Gloriosa Rothschildiana Bulb

Doris

Hi Doris,

I think Georgia Vines has some.

The seed pod is growing, so I should have some seeds this fall.

Mark

Mark,
I have an A. ringins that is several years old but has never bloomed. It was in a pot until this spring when I moved it to a very large planter box. The vine is growing better than ever before--much larger leaves and longer stems. But still no buds. Do you kow anything about this vine?
Johanna
Covington La

OK, Mark...we need a lesson on how to hand pollinate these rascals! :-)

Johanna,

I have some 2 year old ringens vines grown from seed. They are looking very healthy (much better than last year), but no buds yet. I believe they may bloom in the fall as the day length and temperature fall, but I am not sure of this. Some of these aristolochias are a little ornery when it comes to blooming. I think many of them prefer shade or at least afternoon shade, and I suspect that most like to really spread their roots. I have mine in 5 gallon pots. I don't want to put them in the ground, lest they get unruly and out of control. I have some Itarana vines that are 2 or 3 years old, that I just moved to a mostly shaded location, and they are looking happier (bigger leaves, more growing tips), but still no buds. That is the one I am really waiting for. I'm not sure that this cymbifera is really a Gonzaga--it looks like a hybrid to me. I'll have to email the seed vendor to see what he thinks.

Gordo,

To hand pollinate the aristos you have to do surgery on the "flowers". You'll need a small pair of scissors with pointy tips, and a small paint brush for the pollen. Although the visible part of the flower looks very different on the various aristolochia species, the innards are nearly identical. Most aristo flowers are open for 2 days (some wither and linger for a few more). The flowers are possibly unique in that the stigmae (female parts) are pollen receptive only on the first day. The pollen is released on the second day. The stigmae and anthers are part of the same organ if you will, called the gynostemium (sp?). On the first day the flower is open it typically has a scent to attract flies. The flies that enter the pipe may carry pollen from another pipevine. When they enter the main chamber of the flower, they crawl over and around the gynostemium, and the pollen on their bodies is transferred to the stigmae.

Here is a pic of a day 1 gibertii gynostemium (below). The white surfaces are the stigmae (swish your paint brush here):

Mark

In order to pollinate the flower, you have to cut a window in the side near the stem at the base of the flower. I used to just cut a complete window and tape it with Scotch tape, but now I usually make a U-shaped cut, and peel back the flap (the flap is then closed when you're done). Once you've cut the window, you stick your paint brush with pollen inside and transfer the pollen to the stigmae. Here is a pic of a gibertii flower with the window cut:

Mark

Here is a pic of my lone atypical labiata flower from last summer with a U-shaped flap cut into it (flap is closed):

To get the pollen, you have to cut open a day 2 flower from another vine of the same species (I think most aristos are not self-compatible). It is easier to collect the pollen if you cut a window on each side, but you can get enough pollen with one window if the flies haven't gotten in there and collected most of it. You could tie the pipe shut to prevent this or bag the flower with netting, but I usually don't bother. On the second day, the gynostemium closes into a bulb shape, and the anthers release their pollen. It is easiest to collect the pollen with a paint brush. I have tried to simply cut the flower off, and use a tweezers to hold the pollen laden gynostemium, but the brush works better. If you're working with more than one species, you should have more than one brush and keep them labeled. Actually, each vine should have its own brush. Here is what the day 2 gynostemium from a gibertii flower looks like (most of the flower is cut away, and the pollen had already been collected):

Mark

I usually cut one window in each flower, and pollinate it on the first day, then collect the pollen on the second day. The smellier the flower, the greater the need to bag it to keep the flies away. So far this summer, I've had success with the cymbifera and also with my gibertii (about 4 probable seed pods so far). No luck yet with the ridicula (2 vines blooming-probably incompatible close relatives), which is getting to be ridiculous (hehe), since I would really like to see what those seed pods look like.

Mark

Love it. Thanks Mark.