Miketropics blog -- Spring is FINALLY here

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Yorkshire Kris
Posts: 10163
Joined: Wed Dec 16, 2009 8:59 am
Location: Rural South Wakefield, Yorkshire Lat 53.64 Long-1.54

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by Yorkshire Kris »

Excellent, cheers.
GREVILLE

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by GREVILLE »

Here, here (Brit agreement :lol: ) bring on those pics, Mike. Can't recall seeing any shots of lifted tubers on the forum.
miketropic

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by miketropic »

There still on the drying mat..drive way :lol: but I will def get some pics of them when there ready. the big ones still need digging. I did get a few things up though and took a pic of 2

This REALLY needs to be cut back already..it can't hold itself up anymore and frost is not far off

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Finally cut down the naranjilla..still only 3 ripe fruit after an entire season..just not long enough for it. The fruit are FULL of seeds so not worth eatting anyways but I have a million seeds for next year

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Siam Rubys had to come out, they were really suffering from the cold anyway. pretty good growth this year and a couple pups

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Still seems like so much to do I have to get some stuff moved over the weekend or I'll never finish.
Last edited by miketropic on Thu Oct 17, 2013 11:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
GREVILLE

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by GREVILLE »

miketropic wrote:
Siam Rubys had to come out, they were really suffering from the sold anyway. pretty good growth this year and a couple pups
The irony, Mike.

I picked up my first young Siam Ruby a few weeks ago. Mine is on bottom heat in the greenhouse throwing out one leaf (now all green) after another. It's going to a warm spot for the winter, a big bright south facing window in my mother's centrally heated retirement home. I'd have it in my home but my wife bans all big leaf drippers from ruining the furnishings.

I took Ruby's relative, Musa Margarita, there last winter and it did brilliantly. (Doesn't matter when it drips on their carpet :shock: )
miketropic

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by miketropic »

In my past experience those big P stems I have won't last...they will slowly start to fall till I cut them all the way back..then 100 pups shoot out and we start all over. I am trying to talk to local greenhouse man into letting me store a few things in there, the Siam being one of them. He keeps it heated to around 15.5C all winter an that should keep it going..Ive never had a pup revert to green although there all green till they get sun, sort of like a black magic collie.
miketropic

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by miketropic »

My wife picked up this Acuba "Mr. Goldstrike" for me in a half off sale the other day. really nice size for the price..

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All th collie tubers are still drying pics of them when there done.
miketropic

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by miketropic »

winter is here..first frost last night :(
cordyman

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by cordyman »

I had no idea you could dry out colcasias!!

Could I dry out my Alocasia Calidora's too?

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miketropic

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by miketropic »

you can dry either out but the alocasia are much harder to get restarted. they need high high heat to get going again. with the collies I will let them lay there till the leaves crisp up, drawing alot of water from the tuber. once they have gotten crunchy cut all the stems off about 2 inchs from the tuber top. leave them to dry on a shelf another week or 2 on some old news paper. once the roots have dried and fall off easy store them in dry peat, saw dust, dry compost, basically any way you want in a cool dark place. keeping them completly dry is the key. spring rolls around pot them up just add water and they jump right back up....People like me who actually have to worry about cold winters know this kind of stuff icon_thumleft



:lol:
User avatar
Yorkshire Kris
Posts: 10163
Joined: Wed Dec 16, 2009 8:59 am
Location: Rural South Wakefield, Yorkshire Lat 53.64 Long-1.54

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by Yorkshire Kris »

miketropic wrote:you can dry either out but the alocasia are much harder to get restarted. they need high high heat to get going again. with the collies I will let them lay there till the leaves crisp up, drawing alot of water from the tuber. once they have gotten crunchy cut all the stems off about 2 inchs from the tuber top. leave them to dry on a shelf another week or 2 on some old news paper. once the roots have dried and fall off easy store them in dry peat, saw dust, dry compost, basically any way you want in a cool dark place. keeping them completly dry is the key. spring rolls around pot them up just add water and they jump right back up....People like me who actually have to worry about cold winters know this kind of stuff icon_thumleft

That's the way I've done it when the rhizomes are big enough.

:lol:
miketropic

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by miketropic »

ive had some as small as a marble and some very tiny runners last over winter like this..I have a pot of say 30 collected species right now that all came from stray runner ends. If kept dry they will last even when small.

I tried this with canna one year with a horrible result..now I leave them all in the ground. they need the water.
cordyman

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by cordyman »

miketropic wrote:you can dry either out but the alocasia are much harder to get restarted. they need high high heat to get going again. with the collies I will let them lay there till the leaves crisp up, drawing alot of water from the tuber. once they have gotten crunchy cut all the stems off about 2 inchs from the tuber top. leave them to dry on a shelf another week or 2 on some old news paper. once the roots have dried and fall off easy store them in dry peat, saw dust, dry compost, basically any way you want in a cool dark place. keeping them completly dry is the key. spring rolls around pot them up just add water and they jump right back up....People like me who actually have to worry about cold winters know this kind of stuff icon_thumleft



:lol:
cheers MIke, i may give it a try!

ps. that spade looks like something from the trenches of WWII :lol: :lol: :lol:
Kristen

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by Kristen »

cordyman wrote:ps. that spade looks like something from the trenches of WWII :lol: :lol: :lol:
"Oversexed, overpaid, over here" and nicking our spades? :lol:
miketropic

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by miketropic »

leave my trench shovel alone..I found it over the hill when I moved in and have used it for 2 years now..I think the handle is cracked so it needs a replacement anyways :lol:

Went out today to do the last of the winter prep. There was a freeze waring last night but didn't get that cold..as I was cutting down canna and things like that I look around and there are snow flurries :evil: Weather already on the down hill here this year.

On a possitive note my largest canna "Omega" measure in at 11ft 1 inch..pretty good from a rhizome in april. also got a few seeds from it so the cross is unknown.
cordyman

Re: Miketropics blog -- The seasons closed

Post by cordyman »

miketropic wrote:leave my trench shovel alone..I found it over the hill when I moved in and have used it for 2 years now..I think the handle is cracked so it needs a replacement anyways :lol:

Went out today to do the last of the winter prep. There was a freeze waring last night but didn't get that cold..as I was cutting down canna and things like that I look around and there are snow flurries :evil: Weather already on the down hill here this year.

On a possitive note my largest canna "Omega" measure in at 11ft 1 inch..pretty good from a rhizome in april. also got a few seeds from it so the cross is unknown.

LOL great call on recovering and making use of abandoned spade then icon_thumleft icon_thumleft
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