Awesome. Dan you have THE most interesting collection. Thanks for sharing...now if we just had smell-a-vision!

Dan,

Isn't it fantastic? I can't wait for mine to bloom, it should be large enough next year, do you know how big your bulbs are?

Did you ever find your pollen?

Josh

cindee, glad you liked it......I've been waiting to see this guy bloom for a few years now.....this is my 4th growing season with it and I was not disappointed!

Josh, I have no clue how large the bulb is as it has not been repotted in all the time I have had it. It tried to bloom last year, but the spike got broken off. This year it has produced 2 offsets so I hope in another couple of years I have enough to start trading.

I never got any pollen so no seeds unfortunately.

These sorts of bulbs are interesting....I have heard from everyone that they are very easy to grow and I can absolutely confirm that....even in zone 6 under grow lights they are trivial.....and yet you never see them for sale from anyone or any on any bulb sites......I'm always curious as to why that is :o) Dan

Beautiful... as always Dan!!!

Dan,

They sell them overseas at a few places, I don't think they're so easy to propagate unless by seed which most can't get a hold of as there aren't many clones available. They offset but not rapidly.

I currently have 8 bulbs right now and several seedlings, probably ten, I'm one of the few that had the opportunity to actually find seed which I've never seen offered. They seed germinated very readily and quickly. I've heard of auctions where Paramongaia can go for well over 140 bucks per small offset. They're easy to grow if you have experience with winter growing plants. The flowers are very showy and and fragrant but the plants are not floriferous by any means, one flower per bulb is usually all you get.

As far as I know there are only two known locations of Paramongaia, both very inhospitable locations with extreme heat, drought and just plain awful growing conditions.

Josh

HI Josh,

Yeah, the one place in the UK will not provide a phyto so that is off the table and the other place is horrible about getting back to me....I had a few arranged to be purchased, but then his e-mail seemed to go dead and kept bouncing back so who knows.

I have heard from several growers in my attempt to get pollen that these are very easy to grow and propagate, including a couple of people formerly from botanical gardens (Longwood, NYBG) and one in OZ.....this seems to be my experience so far....so far!! I would guess that once you get a half-dozen to blooming size you would likely get an offset or two from each mother bulb per year so at that point your collection would increase dramatically.....surely there must be many growers that have had these for decades (first introduced to US in 1965) that have large numbers of them?

I have heard that these grow in very inhospitable climates....searing heat in the summer and cold, drizzly rain in the winter....clearly, they do not require that to grow and flower though as we neither have the heat in the summer nor those conditions in my basement for the winter.

Just wish I cold have gotten pollen....I also heard that if you have two of the same clone you can force the flower open before it is ready and pollinate and get seed that way.....this comes from a grower formerly at NYBG so reputable and it is how he got his collection of bulbs he is now growing on.

Only one flower, but quite lovely :o) Dan

What a beauty! Dan, if you ever come across a source for this baby let me know!
chaz

Dan,
I am bumping this topic because my one winter growing bulb is about to flower for the first time. I brought the plant inside tonight because the flower developed so fast that I am sure it will open tonight or tomorrow in the sunshine. I also have 2 summer flowering bulbs that should flower later this year. Their leaves are just yellowing now.

Hi Heinie,

Can't wait to see some pics of yours! I do not have a summer-growing variant, but have 2 different clones of the winter-growing variant. Mine are interesting in that one starts to grow in maybe Sept and is dormant in early Jan or maybe even earlier. The other one does not grow until Jan or Feb and then goes dormant a few months later. Unfortunately, the Cyrtanthus obliquus you sent me a couple of years ago ended up with a virus so I had to toss it, but I have a few others that have flowered and produced offsets so I feel lucky to have them :o) dan

We have one on EBay Australia. The first i've seen here $152 at present (wow)
Love to see some seed get around the world as the photo's of the flower are great not to mention what they would be to an owner

Hi Dan,

What growing medium do you have them in? I had a few seeds some time ago that sprouted nicely, but evetually succumbed to a fungal infection :-( Needless to say...I was bummed.

Warm Regards,
Fred

Welcome back to the list Fred!!
K

Thank you Kristi :-)

Anyone know the secret to getting them to bloom. I have five pots of them some with several offsets and no blooms. I bought mine on eBay from a grower in New Zealand so they are all one clone. They grow like weeds but no blooms.

Maida

Hi Maida, That's funny, mine do not grow well as they are not appreciative of being in my basement and they do not get to stay outside long enough after they start growing in the fall - but, they bloom every second year without much problem. Mine have only produced 2 offsets in the 6-7 years I have had them. Wish I new the trick - maybe because they do not offset. Dan

Hi Everybody!

I´ve got two bulbs, and one is coming up with a bud for the second time just now. It´s thrilling to wait for it to grow and flower, what a sight..I´ve given the one offset I´ve had away last year, always good to have a spare with friends!

Mine´s from NZ via ebay, too. Probably the same as Rays?!

Don´t know anybody else in Germany who grows them, so I thought I´d try and get some chat from around the globe.

All the best from the cold north (near Hamburg) -

Carsten

...Snowdrop season´s coming up fast- anybody interrested in that?

Hi Carsten,

Do you have any pictures of them?

Fred

Morning(here) Fred!

I´ll dig up last years, and take a bud pic this weekend-

Ta-

Carsten

Hi Carsten,

please show us pictures:-) No signs of snowdrops in Berlin yet...

Anja

Pictures coming up this weekend- of BOTH buds- bulb nr.2 has one popping up, too!

...Anja,Galanthus: Had some hiemalis out since late Oct. now the first spring ones are nodding, tell you which tomorrow if the sun is out!

Carsten

This was last years show.

exquisite, dan/carsten ...

Hi Carsten,

What is the growing medium you have them in?

Fred

Hi Fred!

Last year I had them in pure pumice, this year I repotted in two parts pumice, one part compost, thinking they might like more food, beeing amarillids...

Carsten

Carsten,

You are so lucky as I have heard so much about the wonderful fragrance!!@

So this is what´s coming up today- nr. two´s still quite hidden away...

WOW!!! That's wonderful :-))))) Definitely post pictures when they flower!!!

So here they are in all their glory... Had to move them from my bedroom windowsill, they were squashing their faces trying to look out of the window... And what a scent! It incredibly filled the whole top floor!

Hi Carsten,

Thank you for the beautiful pictures, they all look very beautiful...especially your paramongaia :-))) I can only imagine how delightfully fragrant she must be :-)))

Fred

Spring has definitely sprung for you, thanks for the inspiring pictures, it gives us hope that hopefully for us, spring is just around the corner too!

Your pictures are amazing especially your Paramongaia weberbaurei!!

Donna

Hi Carsten,

of course I like your P. w. but also the Snowdrops! I didn't know that there are so many different varieties, thanks for posting! I think we have only one in our garden but they get more every year and I really love them. Is the second last picture a snowflake or a snowdrop too?

Yes, spring is here!!!!!

Anja

Oh I love pussy willows!! Did you know that they are used for rooting other plants, just stick them in water with some pussy willow stems and they might root. At least that's what I've been told, it might just be an old wives tale though.... not amaryllis though..☺☺

Yes, I even made an infusion of willow branches once to encourage rooting in other plants. You cannot buy rooting hormones in Germany anymore. To be honest I don't remember what plant I needed it for and whether it worked or not...

Good to know... something new every day! I´ll try that tomorrow, my parents have brought some cuttings from Malaisia today...

Anja, it IS a snowdrop, it´s called Walrus! It´s one of the funkyer ones...

I´ll take some more pics tomorrow (if it´s not raining)- have a look at the ideabook on my page!

Glad you all like the Paras, I´m SO happy about them!

Does somebody grow Hippeastr. calyptratum? Just had a bulb sent from Japan...

Anja, your snowdrops are Galanthus nivalis, and I think they are absolutely gorgeous!

Thank you Carsten, now I know what is growing under our cherry tree! I didn't know that they are Amaryllids too! Something new every day :-)

Anja

Hi Everybody!

Got to get last years pics on line... Paras not in bloom this year, but well and happy and lots of leaves... I´m feeding them more than last year though...

Hipeas are doing fine! Bursts of colour!

Galanthus are coming up, too, had the first in Oct., and some more (Warham) are in flower now, in the snow (I hate snow...).

Has anybody got ?Don?´s NZ email or address? The realy nice guy who sometimes has the Paras on Ebay? Ebay deleted my mails and logs (as they do after a while, which I know now...) and I haven´t saves any of his details- can anybody help?

Hoping you are all happy and well,

all the best -

Carsten