Definitely a tease, Jack! The colour of my one does not even come close - rather a dark burgundy with the new leaves mostly green with some burgundy speckling. But I must admit that I feed it heavily to get it faster into a larger plant. Or is yours that marvelous colour because it's flowering - or is it just super genes?

What about a sideways picture including the inflorescence?

Japie

Yes thats certainly a tease. :)
I was lucky enough to see two of these about to flower at a recent society meet and I must say the Vinicolour has some amazing size and colour.
I can't believe how strong the red is in your photo.

Hello Jack,

I drool over your plant, Jack. My plant still young and doesn't show very nice red color as yours. Somebody told me, not all Vinicolors have nice red foliages, only the best clone. I'm not sure about and wait to see my plant grow up.

Cheers
Yong

Hi Jack, I must say that is a very well grown Alc vinicolor, well done.

I've tried a some hybridising with this sp over the years, but found it would only ever set viable seed when pollinated with other Alc's. I'd be interested to know what you're pollinating this one with, and if you've had any success with Alc x Vriesea crosses.

Thanks, Andrew.

Jack,

That Alc. vinicolor is just stunning. Thanks for showing it. Your comment about having it in the sunroom to do some pollinating might have just solved a problem for me as well.

I've spent all day puzzling over how to stop the moths from cross-pollinating a foliage Vriesea that I think might be receptive at night, and wondering about the sanity of tottering down the steps and backyard with a headtorch in the early hours of the morning. Why not bring it inside for the night! Why didn't I think of that before?

The plant is a Vr. Emerald Meadows that belongs to a mate. Your comments in another thread about fosteriana/fenestralis parentage have inspired me to try selfing it and my mate kindly suggested that if it involved the early hours of the morning, then I could do it myself. I don't have any idea how this is likely to go, but it will be fun trying. Thanks for the inspiration.

Cheers, Paul

Wow, is the photo color true to life, Jack? If so, that is the brightest red vinicolor I've ever seen!

Jack,

That colour is magnificent, Vinicolor is one of my favourite Alcantereas.

Can you tell us what you are pollinating it with?

Thanks,

Rick

Well here goes for answers to your kind questions,yes Lisa thats the real colour of my plant all who have seen it agree its the best clone for colour ,it does not have very big spike and the buds are greenish,Tamera's is a deep burgundy and the spike and buds are very dark,both came out of same batch of seed,Ok,i am crossing it (hopefully) with itself,with Tamera's clone and with the Alc,purpurea 'silverplum' from the Dillings, but have put its pollen on Vr,Angela ,Vr,Kakadu,thats all there is out at moment,but i have Vrieseas 'Montezuma's Gem', 'Machu Pichu' ,'Silver Moon'( a Milky Way hybrid) to name a few coming into spike so have to store pollen,its best i feel to put Alc, pollen on the Vrieseas as i dont think the pollen of a Vr,can make a thread long enough to get in to the ovary of the Alc,but i may try,now not all 'Vinicolours' are red,there are greenish forms as well,but they all need very bright light (mine gets full sun )hope it pups well.I may be a bit of a tease but it shows whats out there and for budding hybridists ,there is a real reason why we line breed species,you try to get the best of everything before you use the plant,it took me years to get the white centred Vr,gigantea (not NOVA )wich gave rise to 'Milky Way (i lost that gigantea )and its influence is still there on the fourth generation ,nothing is in vain if you have a plan (my thought)it just takes time .am pleased you all admired the plant.So far i dont know Yong as i have only this first flowering so am on a voyage of discovery about Alc X Vr. Jack

Hi Everyone. thought i would add my Alc. Vinicolour as well. My plant did loose a lot of its colour before flowering, but now that it is in full bloom the colour has returned.

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This is the plant just before it decided to send up a flower spike

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And as it is now

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It's flowers open of a day, so Paul much easier to play around with. Those night pollinations are a killer if you like your sleep.
Cheers Tamera

Hi Tamera,good photos,and you can post them all at once ,(having a go at me ?) no its all good, as you can all see ,Tamera's plant is a different colour but very nice big plant,so you can see why we want to cross the two of them with each other,should be some great offspring.glad you posted the piccies Tamera,and offcourse you like your sleep and i hardly ever get more than 5 hrs,so night bloomers dont worry me(yes i know ,i'm a sick person) its past your bed time,Bye Jack

Jack, one of the best examples of colour + leaf form I have seen, surperb!!. Now you have opened your self up for a whole lot of requests for some 'selfed' seed off this beauty, hint hint??. Our examples are as red as Tamera's but they are very variable in colour with some plants with a lot of green.

Hi Jaga, yes i get the hint, we will have to wait,first got to get the seed pods ,am sure the request will come though,and thats fine ,i would request it myself,will keep everyone posted on the progress,thats all i can do for now Jack

Jack, Tamera, its great to see a couple of people putting the effort into that sort of line breeding. I'll be looking forward to seeing a whole lot more exceptional plants in the future, even if I can't get my hands on one personally.

You're right about the sleep bit, Tamera. Last night was the first time I've tried some nocturnal pollination. I really didn't know what to expect, so I set the alarm for 11pm, midnight, 1am & 2am. In this particular case the flower started opening at around 7.30pm, but the anthers didn't start releasing pollen until 11pm and then no visible nectar in the flower until 12pm, when I pollinated it. After that it stayed looking much the same, but with no droplet of goo forming on the stigma (do Vriesea's do this?) - although with so much pollen on it, maybe it was difficult to tell. Hope it was receptive.

All the alarms going off and getting up was actually fun the first time around with all the anticipation, but I'm not sure how many nights in a row I could manage it! Maybe your future Alc. x Vrieseas will be receptive during the day? Cheers, Paul

Ok Paul,not all Vr.form the droplet of 'goo' as you call it on the stigma and with some it sets like glue,if it has gone glue like its no point pollinating, you have missed the boat.it does not have to have the bead of fluid on the stigma to be receptive or have nectar in flower ,as long as the stigma has opened properly (has a slight fuzzy look) watch for slugs (not snails) they have a sweet tooth and will destroy your flower(s) to get at the nectar,ants are no problem ,in 40 years i have never seen a ant with pollen on it in my flowers ,it seems to irritate them actually (maybe only Vr. pollen upsets them) the large Hawk moth will pollinate ,Bats of any size (even the smallest) will not they just bash your whole flower up .little darlings. as for losing sleep ? well no pain no gain, but in winter the flowers are often still ok at 6 am, best of luck, Jack

The sun is finally shining today, so IÂve been out & taken a few picÂs of my Alc vinicolor. This one is growing on my front deck, in virtually all day sun; I think the deck tiles also help by retaining heat.

I must say that I did take a number of photos, trying to get it to look as good as yours Jack ;-)

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This pic shows the vinicolor with a standard Alc imperialis Rubra to the upper right, and upper left is Alc Red Ensign, a cross of vinicolor & imperialis Rubra. The Red Ensign was virtually green up until end of last summer, but it has really started to colour up very nicely over winter, with the red of vinicolor coming thru while keeping, the size and form of imperialis.

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Scrumptious photos everyone!
I have five Al. vinicolors from different sources, and they all vary. One is mostly green, and only gets the red base and splattered leaf tips with the onset of cooler weather. I have one from the same source as Jack's and Tamera's, but it is not as intense in colour - must give it more sun, me thinks.

Devo Andrew - I love your brilliant trio! Your vinicolor is as good as Jack's, colour-wise. All three are wonderful. Question - do you know if the Kiwi cultivar Al. 'Ajax' is an imperialis type from Dick Endt's nursery - Landsendt? We have alcantarea seedlings growing on in Oz now which are simply named Al. imperialis 'Landsendt Red' and imperialis 'Landsendt Blue-green'. They are from seed collected by Arno King, from plants flowering at that Kiwi nursery. I have recently bought one of each from Bruce Dunstan - and they are stunners.

Cheers,
Kerry

Hi Kerry,

As I understand it, the NZ Alc ÂAjax is a named clone of Alc imperialis Rubra, it was grown by Kevin Johnson, & named after his mother, who had the nickname ÂAjaxÂ. IMO Alc Ajax is one of the best clones currently available in NZ. The closest match IÂve seen to Alc ÂAjax is the Aussie plant Alc ÂSilver PlumÂ. Both these clones have similar colouring, with the lovely deep colouring on the underside of the leaves, & both are known for not producing grass pups, but they are said to stay true when grown from seed. Dick Ent was the first to import AlcÂs from Hawaii, & most of the NZ clones did come from seed produced by these original imports.

IÂve added a link to my Alc Ajax when it was in full flower earlier this year.

Cheers, Andrew.

Here is a link that might be useful: Alcantarea Ajax in flower

Hi Jack, thanks for your feedback - that makes me hopeful. And Andrew, great pics and great plants. Thanks for showing them.

Those Alcs are just stunning. I've been really happy with the way my imperialis rubra and Silver Plum have been colouring up, but now I think I just have to try and find myself a red vinicolor! Cheers, Paul

Wow, those are all incredible! Those reds are just fantastic. So (I know its hard to make generalizations...) do alcs generally color up more in the cooler weather? Or do some also color up in the heat? How likely are they to lose any brilliant colors if not in full sun? Or do the superior clones just shine not matter what? I'm just drooling over all of your guys' plants. Especially those three plants shown together Devo. Wow. I wish I could see them all in person (but I guess at least I can see them online!).
-andy

Hi Devo, well there is nothing wrong with your plants mate,the vinicolour is just as good and the 'Red Ensign' gets my vote for champion ,i have a plant from a (supposedly)similar cross and its a piece of junk.now there is a healthy interest in doing things with the Alc, we are sure to see some more stunning plants in the future,pity it all takes so long,yes Andy,Alc .are true children of the sun and need lots of it.considering the feedback and other peoples beaut plants,i am pleased i posted the photo of 'vinicolour'. thanks for sharing one and all. Jack

Andrew - thanks for that information, and the link to your outstanding flowering specimen. In Australia, we call those very dark ones Al. imperialis purpurea, of which 'Silver Plum' is a superior clone. Also, if they are grown with the base set high in the pot, then they will produce grass pups - but apparently not so much with the clone 'Silver Plum', similar to your 'Ajax'. I believe all of the imp.purpureas (your imp.rubras) originally came from seed in N.Z. 'Onya Kiwis!

Paul - that clone of vinicolor which Jack, Tamera, myself and others have, comes from Bob Larnach on the Central Coast. I'll send you his phone number if you're interested.

Andy - yes, the alcs with red in them certainly colour deeper in winter, and full sun. It's got something to do with the difference in day and night temps. They do not colour up as intensely in the constant heat. I have some of the same superior clones growing in different locations in my garden, and those in full sun definitely colour best.

I have taken many photos of the magnificent alcantareas growing at Greenstock nursery (was Stockade), north of Brisbane. I might start a separate thread featuring some of them. Stay tuned.

Cheers,
Kerry

Good, that would be greatly appreciated Kerry. Personally, I cannot get enough of those beauties you guys grow down under.

Me neither. The more I see Alc Vinicolours the more I want them.

Kerry GreenStock have told me there next open day is on the 26th of September. For a lover of large/giant broms its a date not to be missed and yes i'm putting away every last dollar I can find.

The next plan is to organise somebody with a utility/van or trailer so I can take them all home.....lol

I can't wait to see your Greenstock photo thread.

Hello Everyone,

Alcantarea is one of my fevorite brom. Love full sun, fast growing, easy to care, Nice color and form and everything. I love all picture posted, that all are beautiful. I don't known that Al.imperialis has so many forms. Here in Thailand there only green, rubra, dark clone and purpurea forms. Thanks for flowing of knowledges here. ;-)

Devo. Your red ensign is real stunning, good form of imperial and nice red color from vinicolor. Thank for showing.

Kerry. Pleaseeeee , start a new threat about Alcan., including magnificent Al. from stockade nursery. I like to see Al.imperialis variety and also othe Al. :-b

Cheers
Yong

Where is greenstock nursery then? I'd love to have a look, just for the sake of a look! I haven't seen Alc. vinicolour in real life yet.
All these pictures are scrumptious.
BA

G'day BA...Greenstock is at 70 Wades Road, Bellmere - just outside Caboolture SE QLD.

Here is a link that might be useful: Greenstock