What's in a Name?

noreply@blogger.com (Brooks Garcia) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 10:12:00 +0000

When your collection gets out of control like mine has, I have 100s if not a 1000 plants, it is hard to keep track of them all. In the beginning, I was dutiful and keep an up to date grow list. Now, when people ask me for my grow list I cringe. Just the thought of it makes me break out in a cold sweat. I don't know that I will ever have a comprehensive grow list. One of the ways I keep track of the special plants in the nursery is give them a working name. This helps me to to remember physical characteristics about the plant and jog my memory. This is especially helpful when it comes time to make crosses. Remember when they flower the pitchers are for the most part not open. I look at the tag and the name helps me to get a visual image of what this plant looks like. In the beginning years of this obsession, I shared photos for some of my plants along with their working names. Many appear on Bob Zeimers web site HERE.

Well, the names have stuck for the most part. I know I want to change some of them when they are registered and this will cause confusion with people that already have the plant in their collection under one name and then I go and change to something else. Or, even worse have seed crosses bearing that name. “Wilkerson’s Red" will probably become 'Johnny Wilkerson.' This makes me choose working names a bit more carefully and not release photos until I am sure of the name I want this plant to have. I have fun with fellow Sarracenia enthusiasts coming up with witty and clever names. 'Leah Wilkerson' almost was 'DeFuniak Heart Attack.' Since it came from DeFuniak, FL. I am working on a page so I can share some of the really good plants that are coming alone along with their working names and photos. This will help my seed buyers in particular visualize what I was going for instead of trying to imagine what the plant looks like based on a name. It is all in name you know.

Musing on Mutability of Sarracenias

noreply@blogger.com (Brooks Garcia) — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 01:04:00 +0000

Some of you who have followed my work and plant introductions may wonder why the plants you heard about several years ago have not become available. You see their names in my breeding program and wonder what they look like so you can imagine like me the endless possibilities. Here is why: mutability. An enthusiast visited the nursery today and I was explaining about mutability but it dawned on me I had never shared that with the CP community at large. It has been my experience that some Sarracenias are not stable in the color they display from one year to the next. I have discussed this with fellow Sarracenia grower and theories have been thrown out: high acid levels in the potting medium, extreme heat, cool temps, filtered UV rays for poly film covered greenhouses. If heat was the catalyst then all of my plants should have spectacular color. Summers here can be brutal. I have tried high acid and still nothing. A buddy of mine in San Fransisco has gotten some outstanding color from some of my plants so much so that I have demanded them back. First it was how to maintain the bright red in Flava rubricoporea and autropurpurea as well as hybrids with these in the parentage. That lead to discussion of high acid levels. One thing I am certain of is old potting medium needs to be replaced every second or third year, at least for me it does. I see a loss of vigor. Not only is color mutable but I have seen shapes be mutable too. The one extreme example that comes to mind is "Surrender." This was one of the more outstanding plants I had seen with a large exaggerated hood that was almost pure white, from a distance it look like a white flag. I have had this plant for five years now and it has never displayed that shape or coloration again much to my disappointment. The original "Pink Eye" has been the same way, seven years and no change. It is because if this that I do not release plants that are not stable. I do use them in breeding because I know what they are capable of and I am using those genes though masked to hopefully create something else of exceptional color and form. I was excited about them and wanted to share my find. I spoke to quickly. The list of disappointments is long: "Surrender", "Pink Eye", "Blackberry Sundae", "Flame Mouth", "Red and White Flop Top", “Green and White Flop Top,” “Raspberry Sundae”, “Adrian Slack Imposter” and more Mooreis than I can recount. Mooreis seem to be the biggest let down. This is why ‘Leah Wilkerson’ and “Wilkerson’s Red” and the other Wilkerson plants are good plants because their color is consistent and dependable. I would be interested to know other growers experience with this issue.

Sarracenia Obsessed

What's in a Name?

Musing on Mutability of Sarracenias