Adel (Ed) Nazzal wrote:

My experience when it comes to rare paphs (expensive) is that the growers don
not do any selection from their flaskes. When I unflask a flask, I tend to
keep the larger fast growing seedlings and dump the rest. When someone
unflasks a roth. or a sanderianum, I have a feeling that no seedlings are
thrown out. Some of those slow growers (RUNTS) are sold cheaply and end up
taking a year or two to die. I have seen many growers (including me) buy $50
sanderianum only to watch them sit there for a year or two then slowly die!
For now I think you better know who you buy from and be ready to pay good $$$
for a good "fast" growing sanderianum. Me, I think I'll wait another year or
two till the stock improves and the prices go down a bit. Remember when roths
used to sell for $10 an inch. A good seedling can now be had for under $50.

Happy Growing.




That's an interesting point. While compotting for a friend, he basically
said, just let the runts go, the trash is the best place for them. My
problem with this is (and no matter what anyone says, it's all about the
flower) it may be that runt that has the best or largest flower, the
right color, the ability to bloom on only one growth, etc. How many of
us grow Paph.Delrosi knowing we may NEVER see the flower just because
it's so beautiful when it DOES bloom? (mine is sill a 'large seedling'
as it was 8 or 9 years ago when I bought it) Remember: there was only
ONE yellow Phrag.besseae! And my holy grail, Paph.Castle Rising
'Superbum'; Dr.Wilson (Penn Valley) said it was a poor grower, never
more than one or two growths; he 'thinks' Arnie Klehm got it in the
sale, and if that's the case it died in the fire/freeze (though Arnie
has yet to answer the question of whether he got it after several years
of my asking). I keep hoping someone turns up with the division
Dr.Wilson said he thinks he 'may' have made. Bad grower, but the
flower..........ah!!! (anyone gat a color pic?? it was int he Pann
Valley catalog in the 80's - which I of course threw away)

That said, as we move on down the years line-breeding should, if past
experience with other species is any guide, produce hardier, easier to
grow and faster-growing and blooming plants. I have a
Paph.rothschildianum which bloomed as a one growth seedling. How many of
these have we heard of in the past? It's not unheard of now, but 20
years ago, impossible!

I find encouragement in the fact that (I measured this time) 2 of the
seedlings from this flask of sanderianum had 8" leafspans. How many
years closer to maturity is THAT??

So, shall we all keep in touch and share pics in 10, no, eight, no,
maybe six years (dare we hope)???