Hi brom-nutter - Nice collection of flowering plants you have there. I especially like the Neophytum Lymanii with its brilliantly coloured centre; what an eye catcher!

What a coincidence both of our plants of Vriesea Gutatta are flowering at the same time, even though we are on opposite sides of the world. Looking at your plant reminds me of what mine would look like if the grasshopper hadn't taken a liking to it.

I'd been growing it for about four years, and never got a flower. A couple of weeks ago I was quite excited when I spied five nice spikes poking their heads out of the foliage. A week later when I went to show my friend, every spike had been mauled and the culprit was still on the job. ...... He wont do it again!

Thanks again for the pic's, all the best, Nev.

Hi
I especially like the Orthophytum. I have a couple of 1 year old seedlings of gurkenii, how long before they flower? (bearing in mind the feeble sunshine in the UK!)
Ali

My hat's off to anyone who can grow and bloom V. guttata. I love that species but it doesn't like me! :-(

It's nice that there are a few Vrieseas that can depended on to brighten things up during our winter months. Brom-nutter, I like 'em all, though that's a particularly handsome specimen of Vr. guttata! Alibaba- I've had O. gurkenii bloom in about 3 years from seed (growing in Michigan- where today we are experiencing our second sunny day for the month of November!)

Paul

Hi Nev, very interesting that they are both flowering at the same time and I was going to put in my post that the grasshoppers had not got to it as yet.

Hi Lisa sorry to hear that. It grows quite easily and flowers pretty much every year but keeping the bugs off is the big problem, like Nev we dont often get to see them finish flowering.

Hey Ali, I would say at least 3-4 years.
If overfed the flower spikes will not hold themselves up under the weight.
We grow a bit dryer and harder and the spikes hold themselves without staking upto 2ft tall.

Thanks All - Cheers Richard

Lovely photos of yummy broms, Richard. I particularly like the Vr. Florida Mischief, which I haven't seen nor heard of before. Is it a John Arden hybrid?

I have a clump of Vr. guttata in a tree which also has several flower spikes at present. I'm not at all surprised that mine is flowering at the same time as Nev's and Richard's. We all live in N.S.W., Australia! - LOL.

Cheers,
Kerry

yes Kerry , I thought Richard was an Aussie , so I checked and his profile does say he is in USA , ... were you at the WBC Richard ??

Hi All - yes I'm an Aussie - Mid North Coast NSW

I have changed my profile to reflect this.

Hi aroideana unfortunately could not make WBC (not happy).

Hey Kerry - I have lost track of where Florida Mischief came from but me thinks from an old grower (M McNamarra).
I have a spare if you would like one.

Cheers Richard

Ooh...yes please, Richard!

and hello to you, 'Roid!

Cheers,
Happy Kerry :)

Vey nice Richard! I like the very heavily marked leaves of your Vr guttata - looks almost banded! Is it permanently growing under that shade cloth? The markings on mine is more separate little round dots - and mine is also flowering, Kerry! Or rather, almost - the spikes are there but hasn't showed me a flower yet.

Japie

Hi Japie, yes it does look banded but up close it is heavily spotted. (almost in banding though) and yes its always grown 2ft from the roof of the shadehouse.

Cheers Richard

Japie - mine are in spike, but the first flowers are yet to open as well. I've noticed before that your South African seasons coincide with our Aussie ones, and we often have broms flowering at the same time. Having just said that though, one of my mature Ae. pectinata is about to start sending up its flower spike - so it's a bit behind yours. You win!

K :)

Lisa, I had a problem growing mine too and almost lost it the first winter. It was potted and did not seem to like it. So I removed the two little pups and discarded the dying mom. The pups I mounted in two different places and they both just took off and thrive! Have you tried growing one mounted?

Kerry, my pectinata grows where it gets the most of the feeble Winter sun possible, so maybe it warmed up a little bit faster that yours!

Richard, I have taken some pictures of mine and I see it also looks rather banded from a distance but here is a close-up of one, and then a bit further to show the flower spike. Also a picture of my other clump on a tree fern trunk:

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And here are some other Vrieseas flowering for me at the moment as well. I do not know the name of the one busy flowering, but on the right side of the picture is a vr erythrodactylon clump coming into flower:
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And Vr incurvata x erythrodactylon:
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Another unknown:
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And another unknown - that spike is 45cm long:
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Japie