Re: buying amorphophallus

From: Al Wootten awootten at NRAO.EDU> on 2001.02.08 at 17:06:55(5926) Zach, I remember when I was your age I discovered that while visiting South Africa my grandmother had joined purchased copies of the journal of the South African Botanical Society. On reading through these, I discovered that for the pittance of membership, which I could afford even on a 1958 allowance, I'd not only get the journal, but a number (20 I think) of packets of free seeds of South African wildflowers, as part of their preservation program. I had no idea what these seeds were but a lot of the fun of getting them (not many were viable after months at sea; I couldn't afford air fare for them) was just seeing what came up. I only wish I had discovered aroids then, but at that time I had become fixated on the proteas, which never did seem viable when I got them...later an article appeard in the journal suggesting that the key to getting these seeds to sprout was to provide a constant moist wind. Weird... Another I really wanted was Disa uniflora but the seed never did anything for me. Then an article appeared in the journal suggesting that for success, I needed soil from 'beneath the common black wattle tree...' I've still never seen a Disa. What world of discovery there is out there. BTW, the Botanical Society of South Africa is online at: http://www.botsocsa.org.za/ +More but it can sometimes be hard to connect... Clear skies, Al +--------------------------------------------------------+ | Alwyn Wootten (http://www.cv.nrao.edu/~awootten/) | | Project Scientist, Atacama Large Millimeter Array/US | | Astronomer, National Radio Astronomy Observatory | | 520 Edgemont Road, Charlottesville, VA 22903-2475, USA | | (804)-296-0329 voice Help us build The ALMA| | (804)-296-0278 FAX {> {> {> {> | +----------------------------------^-----^-----^-----^---+

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