Having read about this“giant” A. paeoniifolius, I was intrigued, until I came to realize thatwhat I have, and the only form I have ever known, must be the giant !
Here are 2 photos Ijust took of a specimen in my garden.=A0 Leaning near it is a regular sizedwooden palette as used for the shipping of goods by sea.
I am 6 foot 2 =BD inches(189.23 cm.) tall and I just stood next to the trunk and the canopy was aboutan inch above my head.
This specimen receivesfull sun for much of the day, and I have taller specimens growing in shade.None received any fertilizer and they volunteered where they are.
I obtained my cormsfrom the late John Brudy (John Brudy’s Rare Plant House) in Cocoa Beach, Floridain the 1970s.
The flowers are ofcourse very sizeable, approaching 2 feet across.=A0 The corms are about 18 inchesacross.
The trunk of thisspecimen is 4 =BD inches near the base .
John.
From:aroid-l-bounces@gizmoworks.com [mailto:aroid-l-bounces@gizmoworks.com] On Behalf Of ju-bo@msn.com
Sent: Wednesday, September 30,2009 9:47 AM
To: aroid-l@gizmoworks.com
Subject: Re: [Aroid-l] giant formA. paeoniifolius
Dear Derek and Friends,
I recall a photo taken at Fairchild Gardens in Miami in an EARLY"Aroideana'' of our old friend Craig Phillips standing under the canopy ofa leaf of what was labeled then as A. titanum, this was later corrected,it was A. paeoniifolius. Craig stood at LEAST 6' tall, and the canopybegan to spread a little OVER his head, so the petiole MUST have beenabout 6' 4" tall, maybe 5" in dia. at its base?
A couple/three years ago, at the Sept. aroid show and sale, I assisted RonWeeks and others in hauling a HUGE tub with a GIANT plant of A. paeoniifoliusfrom the rare plant house at Fairchild up and into the ''display hall'', thisplant easily rivaled in size the one in the old photo, and, who knows, mighteven have been the SAME plant as was shown in the photo!
So--we know that a giant exists/used to exist at Fairchild, Scott USED to havea couple, and there were a few more hanging around in collections a few yearsago.
I don`t know about the blooming of these giant plants, I`ll ask my buddy Bobby,he just MIGHT know, or maybe our resident expert Wilbert may chime in?
I USED to be able to purchase soft-ball sized A. paeon. corms at an IndianGrocery on Okeechobee Blvd. here in W.P.B. (I still get eddoes, Colocasiaesculenta ''antiquorom'' there!), but I have not seen them available in acouple of years, I must ask the owner where he used to obtain them, they wereVERY popular with folks from the S. India/Cylon areas, used seasonally atweddings/feasts, called ''suran'', also available cooked and in cans.
I hope that this helps!
Good Growing, all.
Julius
From: derek@horticulturist.com
To: aroid-l@gizmoworks.com
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 2009 13:19:38 -0400
Subject: Re: [Aroid-l] giant form A. paeoniifolius
Hello Julius and everyone,
I wonder if these giant corms are theresult of the breeding program in the Indian subcontinent. Please see backissues of Aroideana on this. If so, I suspect that one of the side results ofthe program has been to minimize the likelihood of flowering of these corms. Iknow this to be the case for some of the named cultivars.
I find this size corm in UK greengrocersin the summer, and I am told that the general name is suran – perhaps oneof many names in various parts of the subcontinent. I have had no luck so farin finding them in South Florida grocers. Tobe honest, I don’t think that 24” diameter is particularly unusualor “giant” – mine go at least 18” and that is with myappalling growing skills.
Derek
From:aroid-l-bounces@gizmoworks.com [mailto:aroid-l-bounces@gizmoworks.com] On Behalf Of ju-bo@msn.com
Sent: Tuesday, September 29, 20098:53 AM
To: aroid-l@gizmoworks.com
Subject: Re: [Aroid-l] giant formA. paeoniifolius
Dear All,
This giant form of A. paeoniifolius is available in S. Florida, so there should not be a need to import it.
I'll wait to see if and when the owners/growers shake the dust off their shoesand the sand out of their eyes and reply to this forum!!
I saw a tuber that must have measured close to 24" in dia. some yearsago. I THINK Scott had and may have sold some plants of this giantclone??
Julius
W.P.B., FLORIDA
Date: Sun, 27 Sep 2009 13:18:40-0500
From: LLmen@wi.rr.com
To: aroid-l@gizmoworks.com
Subject: Re: [Aroid-l] giant form A. paeoniifolius
If anyone else would be interested in obtaining tubers or seed, perhapsa group order could be initiated, depending upon the costs.
Just a thought,
Don Martinson
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Mailto:llmen@wi.rr.com
On 9/27/09 8:48 AM, "Raj Shekhar Misra"<rajshekharmisra@yahoo.com> wrote:
HELLO
I HAVE GIANT AMORPHOPHALLUS PAEONIFOLIUS WHICH PRODUCES EDIBLE CORMS WEIGHING15 TO 20KG.
Kindly visit my webpage for more information.
www.geocities.com/rsmisra2000 <http://www.geocities.com/rsmisra2000>
regards
RSMisra
Dr.Raj Shekhar Misra
Principal Scientist & Head
Crop Protection Division
Central Tuber Crops Research Institute
Sreekariyam, Trivandrum-695017(India)
Mobile Phone No. 91-9446557657
Fax-0471-2590063
Phone-0471-2598551 to 2598554
From: Dan Jackson<rupert68@gmail.com>
To: aroid-l@gizmoworks.com
Sent: Thursday, 24 September, 200911:03:49 AM
Subject: [Aroid-l] giant form A.paeoniifolius
hello to the group.
I am looking for a source for the large, tallgrowing form of or "giant" form of A. paeoniifolius.
can anyone advise?
Thanks
Rupert
rupert68@gmail.com
Now, send attachments up to 25MB with Yahoo! India Mail.Learn how <http://in.rd.yahoo.com/tagline_galaxy_2/*http://in.overview.mail.yahoo.com/photos>.
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