Hippeastrum Calypratum - source of seeds?

David Pilling david@pilling.demon.co.uk
Sun, 07 Jun 2015 15:47:58 PDT
Hi,

I had a couple of emails from Brenda Ford about Hippeastrum Calypratum.

If you know of a current source for the seeds, reply to the list and 
Brenda will see your message.

First email...

Years ago I got seeds for this from Park seed.  They grew into bulbs in 
no time and they flowered every year.  They did have a weird smell. 
Used to think like naugahyde. (sp.) that faux leather.  When I moved I 
left them with a caretaker and only one survived when I returned.  And 
then I took it with me to California and wrapped it in a newspaper 
because it was not doing poorly and then it molded and that was that.  I 
thought that I would be able to find seeds again, but now it seems 
listed as something rare and difficult to grow.  I just grew it like a 
normal plant, in a pot, like an amaryllis with the bulb above soil 
somewhat.   Seemed to do better in a drier climate.  (It did well in 
Idaho.)  Seems like I had it in a finer textured soil than recommended. 
  It's been so long.  But someone should try those seeds again.  I'm 
sure it was Park seed that had them.  In the early 80's.

Second email...


I wish that I could remember the details better.  Just kept hoping that 
the seeds would surface again. I think that I have some old photographs 
of them in bloom somewhere in the attic.  Had no idea that the 
cultivation was supposed to be so problematic.  I am all but certain it 
was Park seed.  We used to laugh because part of the selling point on 
the seed was that the flower had some sort of odor that I had 
interpreted as pleasant, but that was a big stretch.  It was some sort 
of plasticky smell.

We may have taken the plants about with us when we moved to Minneapolis 
and then to Illinois.  We had blooms for more than a couple of years. 
We lost all but one of the plants when we left them with a house sitter 
in Idaho when we moved out here to California.  The house sitter killed 
most of the houseplants by keeping the house too hot and not watering, 
but one of the bulbs survived.  It rotted when we brought it out here to 
Humboldt County, though.



-- 
David Pilling
http://www.davidpilling.com/



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