Darlingtonia House April 2014

[fredg]

For some time now I have been struggling for room in my greenhouses so I took stock of the space I could make available and decided to purchase a small 6ft x 4ft ( 1.8m x 1.2m) polycarbonate greenhouse. This is intended to house my Darlingtonia and the odd bryophyte and /or orchid.
One tree had to be felled and my reacquaintance with laying paving slabs and brickwork was required.
The result is quite good, the structure being reassuringly solid.
Ventilation is via the standard roof vent plus I replaced the bottom polycarbonate sheet in the door with wire mesh ( half the door).
For a small greenhouse the staged growing area is quite good. I made staging to cover 20sq ft giving myself an adequate 2ft x 2ft area to stand in. I can stand on both feet at the same time at last.

Here's how the plants look at present.

I'm looking forward to flowering, some are visible in the photos and many more are to follow.

 

[Not a Number]

 

[Tanukimo]

Your plants must have been growing for a long time to be that big. Amazing!

 

[Tacks]

Great looking Darlingtonia! Nicely grown.

 

[theplantman]

Have to say that I have yet to come across anybody with that massive of a Darlingtonia collection. Yours is spectacular!

 

[mikewilder]

excellent work Fred, makes me miss Oregon--

 

[fredg]

Thank you all for the compliments.

Your plants must have been growing for a long time to be that big. Amazing!

Not necessarily Tanukimo. I can take three offshoots and have a full double tray with 40+ flowers in three years. The evidence is here http://floridacpsociety.proboards.com/thread/375/darlingtonia-junior-colony-2009

 

[mass]

Looking great Fred!

 

[fredg]

An update on the flowering, it's going quite well.

 

[Maiden]

wow fredg, its just....wow

Great job !

Can i ask you what is your watering routine for theses babies ?

 

[richjam1986]

Beautifully grown plants! We are working on some Darlingtonia in a highland growth chamber at Meadowview (they don't do well outside here in Virginia), but we don't have anything of that size or caliber.

 

[fredg]

wow fredg, its just....wow

Great job !

Can i ask you what is your watering routine for theses babies ?

I grow them in shallow gravel trays of Sphagnum or Sphagnum/Perlite. The trays are flooded then topped up when the water level drops an inch or so.

 

[theplantman]

Beautifully grown plants! We are working on some Darlingtonia in a highland growth chamber at Meadowview (they don't do well outside here in Virginia), but we don't have anything of that size or caliber.

I am attempting to keep Darlingtonia in Georgia--what issues do you guys up there have with the plants? Is it the summer or the winter that is problematic?

 

[laurelmvh]

Beautiful! Truly an inspiration, I hope mine grow big like yours someday!

 

[pebes]

What kind of gravel and how much do you have in the trays?

 

[fredg]

There is no gravel in the trays. The term gravel tray is for undrained trays and simply to separate them from seed trays which have drainage holes

 

[pebes]

Ah ok. I wasn't aware of that term.

 

[fredg]

An update as of today 15th May.

Pitcher growth has now started in earnest, "Othello is looking particularly interesting again. The Ruby / Red clones just puzzling

 

[corky]

just stunning Fred

 

[theplantman]

Just another reason to be jealous of British plantsmanship