Ledebouria

Cameron McMaster africanbulbs@haznet.co.za
Sun, 23 May 2004 14:00:14 PDT
Fred
The image of Ledebouria galpinii has been uploaded. Sorry, I thought it had uploaded last week!

The dwarf species from the Amatola Mts has leaves about 4 cm long and the inflorescence 7-8 cm. The plants in the photo were grown under 40% shadecloth which has caused a bit of elongation.  Normally the plants are more compact.  The bulbs multiply readily, hence the gregarious appearance.  The habitat is in grassland on well drained rocky slopes, NE facing, altitude about 1100 m, mainly summer rainfall about 1000 mm.  The flowers are easy to find after a winter grass fire, but with moribund grass they don't flower as much and are not easy to find.  

This is an exciting spot called Rooikrans or Red Ridge: other bulbs within 200 m are: another Ledebouria species (no photo unfortunately), Cyrtanthus suaveolens, Nerine angulata, Tulbaghia acutiloba, several Hypoxis species, Drimia capitata, Scadoxus puniceus, Zantedeschia albomaculata, Agapanthus praecox (a compact smaller form with deep blue flowers) Scilla nervosa (had a name change?), several ground orchids, and in a seep about 50 m away, Cyrtanthus breviflorus and Kniphofia fibrosa.

My 2-year seedlings of L. floribunda were also green in the first year; in the second year the leaves have pale spots.  Next summer I hope the spots will be dark.

Rhoda
Napier, W. Cape
Local flowers right now: Nerine humilis and Freesia caryophyllacea

>Thanks for the images of Ledebouria floribunda and two of L. species.  The
>image of L. galpinii is not yet accessible.

>Can you tell us something about the dwarf species from Amatola Mountains
>grassland?  How long are the leaves in the image and how tall the
>inflorescences?  Does this species truly grow amidst grass or does it occupy
>a special habitat in the grassland?  Is it rhizomatous like some forms of L.
>cooperi?  Or are the bulbs just gregarious?

>So far the seedlings of possible L. galpinii X L. socialis are just green.
>But then seedlings of L. socialis forms with heavily marked and colored
>leaves are green until the third or fourth leaf.


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