From: Ellen Hornig <hornig at Oswego.EDU> on 1997.12.31 at 03:38:40(1797)
On Tue, 30 Dec 1997, IntarsiaCo wrote:
> Hello Aroid-Lers;
> >From a "Euroseeds" seed catalog out of Czech Republic I have received seeds of
> "Arum besseranum" . The catalog states that this is "newly determined one,
> similar to A. maculatum". Any help/info would be appreciated. The seeds are
> a 1996 collection. Should I do anything special to ensure germination?
> Thanks in advance.
> Sincerely;
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> Mark Mazer Gaylordsville CT. Zone 5
>
Hi, Mark - I'm hoping Peter Boyce will come on-line here and get us up to
date, but until he does, I can sort of summarize what he says about it in
his monograph _The Genus Arum_ (pp. 175-6). The gist is that other
botanists have hypothesized that it is closely allied to either A.
alpinum or A. orientale (spelling, BTW, is "bessiaranum", not
"bessaranum", though that is how Euroseeds spells it), but Mr. Boyce
regards it as "incompletely known", and in need of further collection and
study.
Re germination: I bought some from the same source last year, and I don't
believe any have germinated yet. This isn't surprising - I've had several
arums germinate 18-24 months after sowing. What I'd do is soak them for a
couple of days (change water at least 2-3x), then sow and place in a cool
spot: 45-55F is good. If they don't germinate in the next couple of
months, shift the pots outdoors as it warms in spring, leave out for the
summer, then bring in to cool conditions in late fall (let them stay
outdoors for the fall cooldown). If nothing happens during late
fall/winter, repeat the cycle. Right now I have a potful of A. alpinum,
sown, I believe, in late '95, germinating nicely. Well, technically, not
germinating, but putting up a leaf; presumably they germinated
(hypogeally) some time ago. Have patience. In 5 or 6 years you might
have a flower.....
Ellen Hornig
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