The Natural Ponderer on sabbatical…

Yes, it has been a disgracefully long time since the last post!

Part of the reason for that is I have been temporarily promoted for four months, so am busy doing two jobs at once. However, not being one to only share grim news and none happy, I’ll continue on with some ramblings about what has been happening botanically for our Tropical House.

This year has seen a break through for me in growing Victoria from seed – I’ve finally cracked a good growing medium that has kept the precious babies alive to (so far) the sixth floating leaf… an exceptionally pleasing result given I have seen so many fade away after germinating! I’m now facing the pleasurable challenge of finding space for them all. On that note, I’ve also taken the plunge (pardon the pun) and put the healthiest and strongest growing Euryale (Victoria’s fiercely spiny smaller cousin) outside, planted in a great innovation, the Thermoplanter (see image above). So far she has recovered quite well from the initial shock of moving from 31C water to ~18C, and is putting on a second new leaf since the move. For loads of information including a history of the species, cultivation and a wealth of experience head to Kit and Ben Knotts fabulous website Victoria Adventure.

Our Vanilla has been flowering profusely and thanks to a bit of pollinatory handy-work we should have a yield of seven or eight beans. For those who have never had the joy of a freshly picked pod, I can assure you there is absolutely no comparison between them and the shop bought product. The heady aroma from one of these gorgeous beans is so strong that even after two years in an open container one of ours still smells stronger than any I’ve ever had from a shop. For an excellent read about this wonderful plant try Tim Ecotts "In Search of the Luscious Substance". This was the book that taught me how pollinate our Vanilla, so I will be forever grateful to Tim for his work.

Other recent flowerings have included our young Anthurium veitchii, which after a year of settling in since acquiring it, has now begun to hit its’ stride, a couple of sweetly fragranced Crinums (C. jagus and a pleasantly variegated C. asiaticum) along with a few orchids including Vanda tricolor, Gongora quinquenervis and the almost ubiquitous Phalaenopsis sp..

Well, that’s it from me this time around, however to quote a line from one of my favourite films “Keep a weather eye on the horizon”, as next year I’ll not be spread between two roles and will thus have more time for Pondering!

May your greenery thrive and flourish!