my first P.gypsicola blooming

[uphwiz]

ive got a pretty good collection of pings now , well one of each in my collection which comes to maybe 12 or 14 . LOL
gypsicola has a bloom starting , ill have to read a little here , but while i have you here, can it be self pollinated ?
when i got this it was a very tight little rosette about the size of a dime , Were does the rosette come from , seeds or will this ping reproduce by division like the others do?
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[lizasaur]

Woweeeee Jimmy! Fantastic shots of a most gorgeous ping!!

 

[Exo]

I like it!

 

[jimscott]

Great job! basically, forget about hand-pollinating. Your best bet is to take leaf pullings and place them on dry media. Joseph Clemens suggest making a paper towel sandwich with the leaves, under artificial lighting, until they sprout.

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[twotut]

What's your secret!!!! I have tiny esseriana which have been popping up and even bloomed for me!

But as much I love pings .....the thing with the water is where I get hung up. Do you let them sit in water? How much?
AND I've been using black plastic bowls as watering trays for most of my cps. They're small and round and don't take up that much room. Is that a no no? Please, give me some info!! Just the basics, please?

thanks
marian

 

[Adam]

Amazing!

 

[jimscott]

Marian: When the pings are in the "growing season" (spring, summer), you let them sit in a little water. When they display "non-carnivorous leaves" you keep them essentially dry.

 

[Chomp]

12 is plenty! I have 5! and 2 of em are connected by roots!

 

[Tamlin Dawnstar]

Very nicely grown plant indeed! I can't answer about the pollination issue, but if you want to reproduce this plant, leaf cuttings taken at any time is the way to do it. The best time is in the spring when the dormant rosettes have those compact little leaves. Each one of those leaves is a potential new plant, and they should be harvested, otherwise the plant will just consume the reserves there to make larger (but fewer) leaves. Just pull them off with as much of the base included as you can, and place on LFS, keep moist and in bright light.
I never concentrated too deeply on Pinguicula, but I can recognize a fine example when I see it. If this is your first go at this species, be proud!

 

[jimscott]

FYI: P. gypsicola leaves are the hardest of the Mexican butterworts to sprout. Joesph Clemens suggest making a paper towel sandwich of the leaves and keep them dry and under lights. It works, but not all will sprout.

 

[uphwiz]

FYI: Joesph Clemens suggest making a paper towel sandwich of the leaves and keep them dry and under lights. It works, but not all will sprout.

Im giving this method a try.
how would you keep them i have them under t-12 lights now in the paper towel sandwich, should i have them in a baggie too or just laying on the shelf ?
what if i get them damp during my watering routine?
thanks for the ideas every one

 

[jimscott]

I rested the sandwich on top of a couple pots, under the light. I would just replace the paper towels and start over.

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From 2008, sprouts on the paper towel:

 

[Joseph Clemens]

uphwiz,
As everyone has said, excellent work with your Ping(s), and great pics. I hope you will also share your technique with the rest of us. It's always good to hear about other grower's successful techniques - the many different ways these plants are successfully grown. When I first started growing Pings it always seemed to take me a few years before I became successful with a new variety - Pinguicula gypsicola was one that took an exceptionally long time for me to figure out.

Here's a pic of some of mine -->

As has already been mentioned the flowers are easy to self-pollinate, but not easy to successfully fertilize. The transfer of pollen is all that is needed for pollination, but successful fertilizing, now that can present a challenge. I have attempted self-fertilization many times, but without ever achieving self-fertilization. Fortunately it is rather easy to propagate from leaf-pullings, as are most of these Mexican Pings. Sometimes the rosettes will divide in their crowns, as they grow. Sometimes older dying leaves will initiate plantlets near their bases.

Here's a pic of one that split its crown three-ways -->