ZZ Plant

From: "Plantsman" plantsman at prodigy.net> on 2002.09.06 at 01:51:18(9344) I bought this unusual looking succulent-like plant on a lark while visiting my area Home Depot several months ago. I'd never run across anything like this before and not knowing anything about it, brought it home and thus far and have managed not to kill it. It was unidentified outside of a "Tropical Foliage" tag on the 8" pot and was $7.99. Last week at our new Super Wal-Mart, I was surprised to see it again and noted that they were tagged as a "ZZ Plant". After doing a little research with that name, I was surprised to find that it was the aroid, Zamioculcas zamiifolia. It had to be the most un-aroid looking plant I've seen yet! Does anyone have any tips on how to successfully grow this outside of not watering it too much? I've had it outside since June, where it gets about three to fours hours of direct midday sun. Do these ever bloom? What is the inflorescence like? Thanks! David Sizemore +More Kingsport, TN (Zone 6a) plantsman@prodigy.net

From: hermine hermine at endangeredspecies.com> on 2002.09.06 at 02:47:16(9345) At 09:51 PM 09/05/2002 -0400, Plantsman wrote: I bought this unusual looking succulent-like plant on a lark while visiting my area Home Depot several months ago. I'd never run across anything like this before and not knowing anything about it, brought it home and thus far and have managed not to kill it. It was unidentified outside of a "Tropical Foliage" tag on the 8" pot and was $7.99. Last week at our new Super Wal-Mart, I was surprised to see it again and noted that they were tagged as a "ZZ Plant". A most WONDERFUL plant. and! you can remove individual leaves and root them and they form little things which look like bulbils even if that is NOT what they are really called, and they root and make more plants! I am trying to think about watering, what do i do, i keep this in an open textured mix and water it freely. but it is capable of storing water if asked to do so. For a moment i thought you had nabbed the fabulously rare Zazu Pitts plant. hermine +More --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.385 / Virus Database: 217 - Release Date: 09/04/2002

From: "Petra Schmidt" petra at plantdelights.com> on 2002.09.06 at 16:30:34(9351) Yes, this one is an odd aroid...I've used it in propagation class to demonstrate leaf cuttings; they form bulbs very easily. I did see that Zamioculcas zamiifolia made it onto the Top 10 Foliage Plants List (Florida); nice glossy leaves, nice overall form...and I've seen it at "better" garden centers for about $50 (8" pot) so your KMart/Home Depot find was a bargain... Petra +More ----- Original Message ----- To: "Aroid-L" Sent: Thursday, September 05, 2002 9:51 PM Subject: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant > I bought this unusual looking succulent-like plant on a lark > while visiting my area Home Depot several months ago. I'd never > run across anything like this before and not knowing anything > about it, brought it home and thus far and have managed not to > kill it. It was unidentified outside of a "Tropical Foliage" > tag on the 8" pot and was $7.99. Last week at our new Super > Wal-Mart, I was surprised to see it again and noted that they > were tagged as a "ZZ Plant". After doing a little research with > that name, I was surprised to find that it was the aroid, > Zamioculcas zamiifolia. It had to be the most un-aroid looking > plant I've seen yet! > > Does anyone have any tips on how to successfully grow this > outside of not watering it too much? I've had it outside since > June, where it gets about three to fours hours of direct midday > sun. Do these ever bloom? What is the inflorescence like? > Thanks! > > David Sizemore > Kingsport, TN (Zone 6a) > plantsman@prodigy.net > >

From: Plantbob at aol.com on 2002.09.06 at 20:28:58(9354) Hi, I do the ordering for all of the tropical plants for the Home Depot greenhouse in Upper Darby, Pa. I have been ordering the ZZ plant for about 6 month now in 10" pots. They sell for $12.96 and do sell fast. When we first received them as 'assorted foliage', I had to call the growers in Florida. Even they had doubts as to what it was. After talking to the "hort guy" (in charge of growing) at the grower, I was able to obtain the real name, Zamioculcas zamiifolia. He stated that the growth habit is shade and let the soil dry before watering. I know the foliage growers in Fl. have giant shade houses, so I assume that is where they would grow the ZZ. It would be nice to hear from one of the Fl. commercial foliage growers for their comment. Bob K

From: Piabinha at aol.com on 2002.09.07 at 03:35:17(9359) In a message dated 9/6/2002 3:20:40 PM Eastern Daylight Time, petra@plantdelights.com writes: > Yes, this one is an odd aroid...I've used it in propagation class to +More > demonstrate leaf cuttings; they form bulbs very easily. they do, but take forever to sprout a new leaf. last year i had a hanging basket fall on my Zz plant and i didn't want to throw out the 20 or so broken leaves, so i rooted them all. they finally started sprouting a couple of months ago. my plant blooms all the time in a north window. this is an incredible plant since it can take low light, high light, somewhat cold temps and hot weather. just don't overwater and you won't be able to kill it. i've noticed that my plant has more spear-shaped leaflets whereas other plants i've seen have more rounded ones. i wonder if there are other varieties out there. tsuh yang CHEN in NY

From: "Julius Boos" ju-bo at msn.com> on 2002.09.07 at 13:56:58(9361) Others have given tips on how to grow this interesting aroid sucessfully. I have seen it bloom here in Florida, the smallish and rather inconspicous blooms are borne on short peduncles at the base of the plant, or maybe they curve downwards towards the soil, I do not recall which, the cream-colored thick-textured spathes ar angled toward the ground, almost like an invitation for crawling insects (ants, beetles???) to crawl up like a ramp! It certainly is an interesting plant. It probably occurs in several forms as it is widespread in S.E. Africa in a fairly narrow 'band' from North to South. Julius +More >>I bought this unusual looking succulent-like plant on a lark while visiting my area Home Depot several months ago. I'd never run across anything like this before and not knowing anything about it, brought it home and thus far and have managed not to kill it. It was unidentified outside of a "Tropical Foliage" tag on the 8" pot and was $7.99. Last week at our new Super Wal-Mart, I was surprised to see it again and noted that they were tagged as a "ZZ Plant". After doing a little research with that name, I was surprised to find that it was the aroid, Zamioculcas zamiifolia. It had to be the most un-aroid looking plant I've seen yet! Does anyone have any tips on how to successfully grow this outside of not watering it too much? I've had it outside since June, where it gets about three to fours hours of direct midday sun. Do these ever bloom? What is the inflorescence like? Thanks! David Sizemore Kingsport, TN (Zone 6a) plantsman@prodigy.net<<

From: "denis at skg.com" denisskg at bellsouth.net> on 2002.09.08 at 19:12:22(9365) Dear Bob & Aroiders: Although this ZZ plant has been around a long time it wasn't till recent that it was being grown commercially. It has proven itself to be a durable and shade & drought tolerant... Nice plant, easy to propagate but slow to grow. Many tropical +More foliage growers are now jumping on the band wagon and I predict that soon there will be an ample supply out there in Walmart and Home Depot despite its slow growth. I don't know if it will be as popular as the ever present Ficus bejamina, Dracaena marginata or the Golden Pothos Vine (Epipremnum aureum) but it has definitely established itself in the interior landscape industry. I still have only one plant of it and that is because it was a left over from last year's September show & sale and wandered back to my nursery to grow out for this year's sale and I may just have to buy it back to keep as propagation stock. If it has a draw back besides being slow it is a little fragile when shipping and leaves to get broken off. Despite the fact that each leaflet will grow a new plant ( given time) it can be a bad thing when it come to transporting these guys on a big truck with all the rough handling they receive. Denis at Silver Krome Gardens Homestead Florida ----- Original Message ----- To: Sent: Friday, September 06, 2002 4:28 PM Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant I know the foliage growers in Fl. have giant shade > houses, so I assume that is where they would grow the ZZ. It would be nice > to hear from one of the Fl. commercial foliage growers for their comment. > Bob K

From: Plantbob at aol.com on 2002.09.09 at 02:32:14(9367) Denis, Thanks for the ZZ info. I remember these plants being delivered in 10" pots and they were DOUBLE SLEEVED. You are correct, a few leaves were broken after unsleeving. If only people knew how many times a plant gets handled before it arrives here in the Northeast, they would be shocked. In the end, the ZZ is different from the 'run of the mill' tropical plant and people are looking for the odd item. Bob K

From: "Harry Witmore" harrywitmore at witmore.net> on 2002.09.09 at 23:30:57(9371) Well, are there any other species of this genus grown or is this the only one known? Harry Witmore +More Cloud Jungle Art www.witmore.net -----Original Message----- [mailto:aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu]On Behalf Of Plantbob@aol.com Sent: Sunday, September 08, 2002 10:32 PM To: aroid-l@lists.ncsu.edu Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant Denis, Thanks for the ZZ info. I remember these plants being delivered in 10" pots and they were DOUBLE SLEEVED. You are correct, a few leaves were broken after unsleeving. If only people knew how many times a plant gets handled before it arrives here in the Northeast, they would be shocked. In the end, the ZZ is different from the 'run of the mill' tropical plant and people are looking for the odd item. Bob K

From: hermine hermine at endangeredspecies.com> on 2002.09.10 at 01:27:46(9372) At 07:30 PM 09/09/2002 -0400, you wrote: Well, are there any other species of this genus grown or is this the only one known? I believe there is one other with a slightly different leaf shape, but it is not VERY different and i am not certain it really ought to be a separate species! hermine +More --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.385 / Virus Database: 217 - Release Date: 09/04/2002

From: Krzysztof Kozminski kk at kozminski.com> on 2002.09.10 at 05:11:27(9373) On Sunday, September 8, 2002, at 12:12 PM, denis@skg.com wrote: Dear Bob & Aroiders: Although this ZZ plant has been around a long time it wasn't till recent +More that it was being grown commercially. It has proven itself to be a durable and shade & drought tolerant... Nice plant, easy to propagate but slow to grow. Slow??? I got a plant with five petioles in a 2-gallon pot in Dec. 1998. I have now six pots of the thing, most nearly bursting from the pressure of the growing mass. I think I can easily divide it into 40 pieces. Does this really qualify as slow? It is a faster growth rate than daffodils, for example... KK ----- http://www.kozminski.com/ "The party was a masquerade. The guests were all wearing their faces"

From: "Julius Boos" ju-bo at msn.com> on 2002.09.10 at 09:30:30(9374) Nope---only one species known in this genus. Julius +More >>Well, are there any other species of this genus grown or is this the only one known? Harry Witmore Cloud Jungle Art www.witmore.net -----Original Message----- [mailto:aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu]On Behalf Of Plantbob@aol.com Sent: Sunday, September 08, 2002 10:32 PM To: aroid-l@lists.ncsu.edu Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant Denis, Thanks for the ZZ info. I remember these plants being delivered in 10" pots and they were DOUBLE SLEEVED. You are correct, a few leaves were broken after unsleeving. If only people knew how many times a plant gets handled before it arrives here in the Northeast, they would be shocked. In the end, the ZZ is different from the 'run of the mill' tropical plant and people are looking for the odd item. Bob K

From: araceae at earthlink.net on 2002.09.10 at 22:09:10(9380) Sorry to disagree, Julius... There are at least two... I have two. One is quite a bit smaller than the 'Regular' one... Last year, after a presentation at the IAS, I discussed this with Peter Boyce and he told me this amazing story.... Seems that the monograph for this plant was written by studying a painting that is at Kew. Guess what, the painting is of the smaller plant... not the one that we know as ZZ.... So, to get the Taxonomists going... The ZZ plant that we grow ISN'T!!! The smaller one is!!! And, the one that we are calling ZZ is actually Z sp. To add some wood to the fire... It is also suspected that there are other species in the wild that have not been found as yet.... Do you think the Taxonomists will ever get their 'stuff' together? Dewey +More ----- Original Message ----- To: Sent: Monday, September 09, 2002 7:30 PM Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant Nope---only one species known in this genus. Julius Well, are there any other species of this genus grown or is this the only one known? Harry Witmore Cloud Jungle Art www.witmore.net -----Original Message----- [mailto:aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu]On Behalf Of Plantbob@aol.com Sent: Sunday, September 08, 2002 10:32 PM To: aroid-l@lists.ncsu.edu Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant Denis, Thanks for the ZZ info. I remember these plants being delivered in 10" pots and they were DOUBLE SLEEVED. You are correct, a few leaves were broken after unsleeving. If only people knew how many times a plant gets handled before it arrives here in the Northeast, they would be shocked. In the end, the ZZ is different from the 'run of the mill' tropical plant and people are looking for the odd item. Bob K -- Your Source for Tropical Araceae go to http://home.earthlink.net/~araceae/

From: "Julius Boos" ju-bo at msn.com> on 2002.09.11 at 10:08:00(9381) Great that you have this information to share with us, Dewey! I took my info. (that there was but one species) directly from the best available source, The Genera of Araceae, Peter Boyce is one of the authors, but the book was most probably published before the mix up w/ the type and the second larger species was discovered! This is the nice thing (to me anyway!) about taxonomy and research, there is always more to be learned! This is yet another example of the role us hobbyists plany in research, lots of the important informatuion about these plants comes from just mere growers like you and I !!! With our help the taxonomists will be in good shape in 100 years! :--) It is good that this second species (in fact the type species) and the common second sp. is grown by you, and is available to those who would like to purchase a plant!! I will be checking it out soon! Be well. Sincerely, Julius +More >>Sorry to disagree, Julius... There are at least two... I have two. One is quite a bit smaller than the 'Regular' one... Last year, after a presentation at the IAS, I discussed this with Peter Boyce and he told me this amazing story.... Seems that the monograph for this plant was written by studying a painting that is at Kew. Guess what, the painting is of the smaller plant... not the one that we know as ZZ.... So, to get the Taxonomists going... The ZZ plant that we grow ISN'T!!! The smaller one is!!! And, the one that we are calling ZZ is actually Z sp. To add some wood to the fire... It is also suspected that there are other species in the wild that have not been found as yet.... Do you think the Taxonomists will ever get their 'stuff' together? Dewey >----- Original Message ----- >From: Harry Witmore >To: >Sent: Monday, September 09, 2002 7:30 PM >Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant > > >Nope---only one species known in this genus. > >Julius > >>>Well, are there any other species of this genus grown or is this the only >one known? > >Harry Witmore >Cloud Jungle Art >www.witmore.net > > > > > >-----Original Message----- >From: aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu >[mailto:aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu]On Behalf Of Plantbob@aol.com >Sent: Sunday, September 08, 2002 10:32 PM >To: aroid-l@lists.ncsu.edu >Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant > > >Denis, > >Thanks for the ZZ info. I remember these plants being delivered in 10" pots >and they were DOUBLE SLEEVED. You are correct, a few leaves were broken >after unsleeving. If only people knew how many times a plant gets handled >before it arrives here in the Northeast, they would be shocked. In the end, >the ZZ is different from the 'run of the mill' tropical plant and people are >looking for the odd item. Bob K -- Your Source for Tropical Araceae go to http://home.earthlink.net/~araceae/

From: "Wilbert Hetterscheid" hetter at worldonline.nl> on 2002.09.11 at 13:47:21(9384) Sorry to disturb your euphoria peoples, but we have the small one in Leiden as well and it has no other relevant differences from the big one, not one single detail in the flowers differs etc. Conclusion: one and the same species in all probability. I discussed this thing with Peter several times and we alwys concluded that it is probably just variation, as is the trade with organisms under the influence of evolutionary forces. As for my shape...........hmmmm, could do better....... Wilbert +More > -----Oorspronkelijk bericht----- > Van: aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu > [mailto:aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu]Namens Julius Boos > Verzonden: woensdag 11 september 2002 12:08 > Aan: aroid-l@lists.ncsu.edu > Onderwerp: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant > > > > ----- Original Message ----- > From: > To: > Sent: Tuesday, September 10, 2002 6:09 PM > Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant > > > Great that you have this information to share with us, Dewey! > I took my > info. (that there was but one species) directly from the best > available > source, The Genera of Araceae, Peter Boyce is one of the > authors, but the > book was most probably published before the mix up w/ the type and the > second larger species was discovered! This is the nice thing (to me > anyway!) about taxonomy and research, there is always more to > be learned! > This is yet another example of the role us hobbyists plany in > research, lots > of the important informatuion about these plants comes from just mere > growers like you and I !!! With our help the taxonomists > will be in > good shape in 100 years! :--) > It is good that this second species (in fact the type species) and the > common second sp. is grown by you, and is available to those > who would like > to purchase a plant!! I will be checking it out soon! Be well. > > Sincerely, > > Julius > >>Sorry to disagree, Julius... There are at least two... I have two. > One is quite a bit smaller than the 'Regular' one... Last year, > after a presentation at the IAS, I discussed this with Peter Boyce > and he told me this amazing story.... > > Seems that the monograph for this plant was written by studying a > painting that is at Kew. Guess what, the painting is of the smaller > plant... not the one that we know as ZZ.... So, to get the > Taxonomists going... The ZZ plant that we grow ISN'T!!! The smaller > one is!!! And, the one that we are calling ZZ is actually Z sp. To > add some wood to the fire... It is also suspected that there are > other species in the wild that have not been found as yet.... > > Do you think the Taxonomists will ever get their 'stuff' together? > Dewey > > >----- Original Message ----- > >From: Harry Witmore > >To: > >Sent: Monday, September 09, 2002 7:30 PM > >Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant > > > > > >Nope---only one species known in this genus. > > > >Julius > > > >>>Well, are there any other species of this genus grown or > is this the only > >one known? > > > >Harry Witmore > >Cloud Jungle Art > >www.witmore.net > > > > > > > > > > > >-----Original Message----- > >From: aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu > >[mailto:aroid-l-owner@lists.ncsu.edu]On Behalf Of Plantbob@aol.com > >Sent: Sunday, September 08, 2002 10:32 PM > >To: aroid-l@lists.ncsu.edu > >Subject: Re: [aroid-l] ZZ Plant > > > > > >Denis, > > > >Thanks for the ZZ info. I remember these plants being > delivered in 10" > pots > >and they were DOUBLE SLEEVED. You are correct, a few leaves > were broken > >after unsleeving. If only people knew how many times a > plant gets handled > >before it arrives here in the Northeast, they would be > shocked. In the > end, > >the ZZ is different from the 'run of the mill' tropical > plant and people > are > >looking for the odd item. Bob K > > -- > Your Source for Tropical Araceae > go to > http://home.earthlink.net/~araceae/ > > >

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