Name that plant

From: Lester Kallus <lkallus at earthlink.net> on 1997.06.13 at 20:14:40(841) I recall seeing a syngonium a few years ago that had variegated leaves and a tip that curved up creating a little cup. Could someone please name it and let me know if it's the type of plant that could survive easily indoors during our Long Island winters? Les

From: plantnut at shadow.net (Dewey Fisk) on 1997.06.16 at 14:28:32(843) >I recall seeing a syngonium a few years ago that had variegated leaves and >a tip that curved up creating a little cup. Could someone please name it >and let me know if it's the type of plant that could survive easily indoors >during our Long Island winters? Les, You might be getting your genera mixed up... Check Exotica for Xanthosoma atrovirens albo-marginatum.. Surviving indoors... depends on how warm you keep your house and how much light... Needs warmth and lots of light... Dewey +More Dewey E. Fisk, Plant Nut THE PHILODENDRON PHREAQUE

From: "Julius Boos" <ju-bo at msn.com> on 1997.06.16 at 14:38:52(845) ---------- Sent: Friday, June 13, 1997 4:14 PM To: Julius Boos +More Subject: Name that plant >>>I recall seeing a syngonium a few years ago that had variegated leaves and a tip that curved up creating a little cup. Could someone please name it and let me know if it's the type of plant that could survive easily indoors during our Long Island winters? Les<<< Dear Les, I believe you may have seen a Xanthosoma, called X. atrovirens "variegata monstrosa" (pg. 135) by D. Bown in her book on Aroids. I don`t know if this is a correct name, as she also uses it (pg. 199) for the yellow fleshed Xanthosoma on the Dominican Republic which is a different plant. It may grow indoors IF it is placed in as much light as possible, you`ll have to try it and see how it goes! Good luck. Julius. ju-bo@msn.com

From: eduardo gomes goncalves <eggon at guarany.cpd.unb.br> on 1997.06.16 at 20:54:12(855) Dear Julius, Les and Dewey, Based on Les' description it seems to be a specimen of the unmistakable Xanthosoma atrovirens Koch var. appendiculatum Engler, called "tambataja" by the Brazilian natives. It is a Brazilian subspecies of the "standard" X. atrovirens from Venezuela and adjacent areas (possibly the yellow fleshed Xanthosoma quoted by Julius). Whereas the Venezuelan subspecies has "normal" sagittate leaves, the Brazilian plants have somewhat degenerated leaves, with white portions, appendices in the end of the nerves and cup-like structures in the blade's apex. In horticulture, there are a miriad of other names, like: X. atrovirens var. monstruosum and X. atrovirens var. albo-marginatum, but as far as I know, the only botanicaly correct name of it is that I already cited. It inhabit northern Brazil, in the state of Para and I think I should say that such state is one of the wettest and hottest of Brazil so don't let the conditions go too cold, too dry or too dark. Good luck (you'll need some ;-)), Eduardo. +More On Mon, 16 Jun 1997, Julius Boos wrote: > ---------- > From: aroid-l@mobot.org on behalf of Lester Kallus > Sent: Friday, June 13, 1997 4:14 PM > To: Julius Boos > Subject: Name that plant > > >>>I recall seeing a syngonium a few years ago that had variegated leaves and > a tip that curved up creating a little cup. Could someone please name it > and let me know if it's the type of plant that could survive easily indoors > during our Long Island winters? > Les<<< > Dear Les, > I believe you may have seen a Xanthosoma, called X. atrovirens "variegata > monstrosa" (pg. 135) by D. Bown in her book on Aroids. I don`t know if this > is a correct name, as she also uses it (pg. 199) for the yellow fleshed > Xanthosoma on the Dominican Republic which is a different plant. > It may grow indoors IF it is placed in as much light as possible, you`ll have > to try it and see how it goes! Good luck. > Julius. > ju-bo@msn.com > > >

From: Lester Kallus <lkallus at earthlink.net> on 1997.06.16 at 20:59:25(856) >Les, >You might be getting your genera mixed up... Check Exotica for Xanthosoma >atrovirens albo-marginatum.. Surviving indoors... depends on how warm you >keep your house and how much light... Needs warmth and lots of light... >Dewey +More > >Dewey E. Fisk, Plant Nut >THE PHILODENDRON PHREAQUE > Oops, well it LOOKED something like the syngonium I'm currently growing. You're right, of course. Yes, I'd have enough light and enough heat but now the question becomes whether I'd rather have that or any of the other heat/light requiring plants. I'll have to think about this one. Les

From: plantnut at shadow.net (Dewey Fisk) on 1997.06.17 at 18:38:07(867) Quandry.... Eduardo.. I have both... or at least I thought I had both X. atrovierens var. appendiculatum and X. atrovirens var. albo-marginatum.... Now, the quandry... the ....appendic.. has, under the leaf an appendage that grows along the midrib... and is completely green... all of the leaf and appendage... now, the albo-marginatum that I have is variegaged and the base of the leaf has grown together to form a small cup... which forms on the top of the leaf I might like to disagree with you on what Les has... of course, based on the above and what I have been told.... Dewey +More Dewey E. Fisk, Plant Nut THE PHILODENDRON PHREAQUE

From: eduardo gomes goncalves <eggon at guarany.cpd.unb.br> on 1997.06.18 at 22:39:45(870) Dear Dewey, Your observation is quite opportune and accurate, but I have some interesting information about such plants. These names are very usefull there overseas, since most material are clones of a few wild collected plants, usually those with most odd characters. Here in Brazil (the center of origin) we have some cultivated material that seems to be different clones from yours and I have seen some rare plants with variegated leaves (and with white margins) bearing the cited appendix, and completely green plants with no appendix. Thus, probably the varietal taxonomy isn't that easy. Now and then I'll listen such species more closely. I also think that even if there is a true var. albo-marginatum, it is only a horticultural name, not valid taxonomically speaking. Best wishes, Eduardo. +More On Tue, 17 Jun 1997, Dewey Fisk wrote: > Quandry.... Eduardo.. I have both... or at least I thought I had both X. > atrovierens var. appendiculatum and X. atrovirens var. albo-marginatum.... > > > Now, the quandry... the ....appendic.. has, under the leaf an appendage > that grows along the midrib... and is completely green... all of the leaf > and appendage... now, the albo-marginatum that I have is variegaged and > the base of the leaf has grown together to form a small cup... which forms > on the top of the leaf > > I might like to disagree with you on what Les has... of course, based on > the above and what I have been told.... > Dewey > > Dewey E. Fisk, Plant Nut > THE PHILODENDRON PHREAQUE > > > >

From: "Julius Boos" <ju-bo at msn.com> on 1997.06.19 at 15:00:08(873) ---------- Sent: Wednesday, June 18, 1997 6:39 PM To: Julius Boos +More Subject: RE: Name that plant >>>>Dear Dewey, Your observation is quite opportune and accurate, but I have some interesting information about such plants. These names are very usefull there overseas, since most material are clones of a few wild collected plants, usually those with most odd characters. Here in Brazil (the center of origin) we have some cultivated material that seems to be different clones from yours and I have seen some rare plants with variegated leaves (and with white margins) bearing the cited appendix, and completely green plants with no appendix. Thus, probably the varietal taxonomy isn't that easy. Now and then I'll listen such species more closely. I also think that even if there is a true var. albo-marginatum, it is only a horticultural name, not valid taxonomically speaking. Best wishes, Eduardo. <<<< On Tue, 17 Jun 1997, Dewey Fisk wrote: > Quandry.... Eduardo.. I have both... or at least I thought I had both X. > atrovierens var. appendiculatum and X. atrovirens var. albo-marginatum.... > > > Now, the quandry... the ....appendic.. has, under the leaf an appendage > that grows along the midrib... and is completely green... all of the leaf > and appendage... now, the albo-marginatum that I have is variegaged and > the base of the leaf has grown together to form a small cup... which forms > on the top of the leaf > > I might like to disagree with you on what Les has... of course, based on > the above and what I have been told.... > Dewey > > Dewey E. Fisk, Plant Nut > THE PHILODENDRON PHREAQUE Dear Folks, I agree that the name is prob. horticultural, but the interesting thing is for someone to perhaps use this plant (and perhaps Caladium bicolor?) to try to determine how quickly Aroids can and do evolve or mutate vegetatively to what can be said to be a "new" species. I spoke to a member at an annual show and sale at Fairchild in Miami about three years ago who had specimens of the Var. of Xanthosoma that normally (?) has green sagittate leaves with the little "frills" on the lower side of the anterior lobe of the leaf blade, except that his plant did not produce suckers or propugules that were the same as the "mother" plant! Some had very differently shaped leaves, with or without the "frills", even to the extent of having linear or elongate, spatulate leaves! Does any one know of a study to illustrate the speed of mutation or evoloution of Colocasia (Taro)? I ran into a situation in Trinidad a faw years ago when I was collecting Montrichardia. I was looking for small plants that I could transport back to my home, and most plants I found were too large. I finally came across a population of small plants growing on the raised, drier banks of a small rivers mouth on the N. coast. I collected and transported these to the U. S. expecting them to increase in size when planted in "better" soil and given regular fertilization. No, they remain as small "clones", and the fertilizer only causes them to green up and bloom! In nature and growing relatively nearby in "better" conditions are other Montrichardia plants that are MUCH larger, probably as they were not exposed over a period of time to the seemingly depauperate growing conditions the smaller ones were. My point is, how long (or short!) a period of time did it take for the small "population"(?)to evolve to remain a stable, small one, and was it vegetative (as in Taro) or sexual? The Brazilian Xanthosoma may be a sutiable plant to observe to document the above. Sincerely, Julius ju-bo@msn.com

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