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My little capillaris plants seem to be kicking in high gear with flower stalks. Of everything I've been growing, these seem to be enjoying themselves about as much as any has. I figure another month or so of blooming/drying and these might(?) be ready to harvest and I can finally make a seed bank donation. I might do the "shake a stalk over a piece of white paper" test before then (thanks @evenwind , for that advice!). Anyhow, here's how they're looking at the moment.

They're looking good. It'll be a long time before I have "Capillaris Butler Co" ready for the seed bank. I'm not getting a lot of germination from the super fresh seeds you sent me, so I'm assuming they need something different by way of conditions, probably more warmth or maybe humidity. Going to keep experimenting. Anyhow, looking forward to your donation!

I've noticed that capillaris seem to be more needy of heat to get germination, moreso than other sundew species. I've germinated quite a few different Drosera at room temp, but not capis. They have all consistently needed temps about 75-80°F to sprout for me.

Interesting, that the fresh seeds aren't doing that good. How about in comparison with the older seeds I sent you...better, worse, or about the same? Maybe they need a longer drying period?

I went by the site the other day, plants were sending up flower stalks like crazy!!! Very sandy soil with fine pepper-like organic matter mixed. Sphagnum moss grows thinly in the area so the pepper-like matter may be rotted sphagnum...??? The soil in the pots in the photos is the native soil. After my first attempt at growing these where I transplanted them into a peat-heavy based mix that failed terribly, I got smart and brought some native dirt back with me. I'm thinking something along the lines of a 1:9 peat to sand mix might get close to replicating it. The sand isn't that coarse, either, so a pool filter sand should work fine with them.

ChefDean wrote: ↑Sat Apr 15, 2023 6:09 pm I've noticed that capillaris seem to be more needy of heat to get germination, moreso than other sundew species. I've germinated quite a few different Drosera at room temp, but not capis. They have all consistently needed temps about 75-80°F to sprout for me.

Chef, I was thinking along the lines of what you've shared. It makes sense to me. The plants in the wild are currently flowering, so by the time the seeds fall it will be HOT here in the coastal plain...HOT and MUGGY/HUMID!!! I think the next time I go by the site I'll mark a plot of these plants and go back in a couple of months to see if any seedlings have popped up there.

If you have any of these seeds left, send me a couple dozen. Maybe I can get something to grow in Tennessee vs New York. Perhaps in a peat mix that's heavier on perlite than my normal mix.
Oh, and I see what you did there. In the title. Very funny!

ChefDean wrote: ↑Sat Apr 15, 2023 6:09 pm I've noticed that capillaris seem to be more needy of heat to get germination, moreso than other sundew species. I've germinated quite a few different Drosera at room temp, but not capis. They have all consistently needed temps about 75-80°F to sprout for me.

My capi seeds live at about 78 under my lights, so if it is heat, probably low-mid 80s might be a better starting point. My guess is it's the heat and humidity combo. On the other hand, I typically have little difficulty germinating Emerald's Envy and Eatonville, both of which are originally from the Florida panhandle. It may be that each successive generation of "domesticated" seeds are simply better suited to live in typical household conditions, having descended from plants that managed to mature maybe at one edge of their native comfort zones.

Intheswamp wrote: ↑Sat Apr 15, 2023 6:10 pm Interesting, that the fresh seeds aren't doing that good. How about in comparison with the older seeds I sent you...better, worse, or about the same? Maybe they need a longer drying period?

I'm not noticing a big difference. The old batch produced just one seedling, the fresh batch maybe 5. Too small a sample to draw any conclusions, I think. Currently the oldest, single, seedling is showing signs of stress - the leaves are semi-dry. I don't know the cause, it may merely be a late watering. I'm hoping it'll recover ok. The other seedlings are still tiny, at the stage whether they're either ok or not there.

I think the first seeds had simply gotten old. I'm thinking they were from the original flower stalk that was growing when I got the plants.

I keep the parent plants in 3" tall pots and a good 1/2" of water in the tray which I let dry down before refilling. The surface sand is pretty much always dry unless I top water, which I rarely do for these.

Chef, I don't have any seeds at the moment from these plants or I'd send them on to you. I'll try to check a few of the drier-looking flower stalks to see if any seeds fall out of the pods...if they do I'll send them to you. Before I make a donation of these to the seed bank I'd like to know they're viable...don't want anybody burning a request and wasting time on dud seeds!!!

ChefDean wrote: ↑Sat Apr 15, 2023 6:18 pm If you have any of these seeds left, send me a couple dozen. Maybe I can get something to grow in Tennessee vs New York. Perhaps in a peat mix that's heavier on perlite than my normal mix.
Oh, and I see what you did there. In the title. Very funny!

Oh, I thought you'd appreciate that.

FYI, it took 5 weeks, but the seeds I had set up for water germination are showing growth. Patience is a virtue.

Fantastic! Keep me posted on how they do!

ok, first report. Newly eye droppered from the test tube to the chopped sphagnum. Yup, you can actually see some of them. Squint!

"Squint!"???? I'm always squinnting!!!!

I *think* I saw four...of course one or two might've just been floaters.

Ok, ok. Don't hurt yourself! Looks like they're going to be fighting it out...

Thar they blow!!!!!