Dear Jean:
Despite Mary Sue's continuing effort to keep things straight and the wiki a formidable educational tool, it always surprises me that the many introductions to genera are routinely ignored, even tho in a number of them is practically all the information relevant to the whole genus and its intricacies.
Along this, the Patagonian Tropaeolums and T. speciosum grow under cool conditions imposible to provide in a mild climate like that in the Bay Area.
Something else, the pots does not need to be large, instead they must be deep as the new tuber is formed right at the bottom, stuck to it. A piece of pipe is better than a pot for the first year. If the seedlings are in cells you just have to wait unti the whole cell is filled with roots and if the whole rootball is removed and planted somehwere else there will be no damage at all. The problem would lie in pricking the seedlings out before the rootball is a solid mas so to speak: in such case you will extract the plant and roots in pieces which is of course a disaster.
Do concentrate your efforts in brachyceras, azureum, tricolor, and possibly pentaphyllum in a really warm corner and leave the Patagonian scree alpine species to someone living in cooler climates.
All the best and good luck
Alberto
Argentina
South America
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