Helicodiceros-horizontal vs. vertical

From: "Julius Boos" <ju-bo at msn.com> on 2007.02.03 at 14:44:15(15214) Reply-To : Discussion of aroids Sent : Saturday, February 3, 2007 12:18 AM To : "Discussion of aroids" Subject : RE: [Aroid-l] Helicodiceros potting Hello Friends, Like Christopher and Dr. Waddick (below) I did not give the question enough thought or consideration, and they are correct about some 'tubers' (= corms, rhizomes, etc.) of some aroids growing horizontally. In some genera (Xanthosoma and Chlorospatha come readily to mind), the rhizomes do grow horizontally, enlarging and growing along or just under the surface of the soil, but with the apical tip and leaves growing erect at the end of the rhizome. I suppose that other underground growers such as Arum and Helicodiceros may do the same, but produce elongated tubers/corms which oriente themselves in a horizontal position but underground, and in the case of Helicodiceros, which may grow in the cracks between rocks, this orientation may be in any direction depending on the way the crack in the rocks is oriented! I hope these thoughts help. Julius +More WPB, FLORIDA Howdy! I guess I did not think about it much before. I just assumed that when it was said that the tubers were potted horizontally, then they were "stood upright" with the apical meristem pointing laterally, rather than laid down with the apical meristem pointing upward. If that is what was meant, then I still mean to experiment. It seems that since these plants grow in the wild in cracks in rocks, and often vertical rocks, this might not be a bad thing to try. Cheerio, Christopher<< D. Christopher Rogers Invertebrate Ecologist/Taxonomist ((,///////////=====< EcoAnalysts, Inc. (530) 406-1178 166 Buckeye Street Woodland CA 95695 USA ? Invertebrate Taxonomy ? Invertebrate Ecological Studies ? Bioassessment and Study Design ? Endangered Invertebrate Species ? Zooplankton ? Periphyton/ Phytoplankton Moscow, ID ? Bozeman, MT ? Woodland, CA ? Neosho, MO ? Selinsgrove, PA www.ecoanalysts.com -----Original Message----- [mailto:aroid-l-bounces@gizmoworks.com]On Behalf Of James Waddick Sent: Friday, February 02, 2007 11:35 AM To: Discussion of aroids Subject: Re: [Aroid-l] Helicodiceros potting Dear all; This strikes me as an odd topic. My tubers are all somewhat similar to tuberous Arum which have horizontal tubers (like A italicum) with a growing point on one end turned upright. It is not as if the growing tip is at the end and continuation of the tuber such as in some other tuberous aroids. I plant them horizontally with the growing point facing upwards. I have had this species for a number of years and they seem to do better some years than others and the one time they bloomed- multiple flowers - the smell varied from hour to hour and person to person. At its worst it was pretty awful. Of course in my climate, they are pot grown and winter in a cool frost free greenhouse. One time I had some extra smaller tubers and thought I'd try planting them in the garden in some high and dry spots. All failed - or so I thought. Two years ago I was astonished to find a couple small whispy leaves growing next to a dry log in the hottest driest part of the garden. They have returned since, but do not seem even vaguely large enough to flower. This year we have gone down to -5 F, so let's see what returns. The fact that they even persist in my climate - Zone 5/6 and have been subjected to temps of 0 F for extended periods should suggest that they be tried in Zone 6 (Steve Marek, have you tried them?). This plant always seems hard to find in commerce, but I recommend Telos Rare Bulbs. (telosrarebulbs.com). The proprietor Diana Chapman should be contacted for availability at info@telosrarebulbs.com. Jim W. -- Dr. James W. Waddick 8871 NW Brostrom Rd. Kansas City Missouri 64152-2711 USA Ph. 816-746-1949 Zone 5 Record low -23F Summer 100F + _______________________________________________ Aroid-l mailing list Aroid-l@gizmoworks.com http://www.gizmoworks.com/mailman/listinfo/aroid-l _______________________________________________ Aroid-l mailing list Aroid-l@gizmoworks.com http://www.gizmoworks.com/mailman/listinfo/aroid-l

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