spunwhirllin

Hope you don't mind the further post's in your thread Darklight. Here's a couple of pictures of what I'm trying to pollinate while precariously perched atop a six foot ladder with an ocean of spiny Trichocereus below me Anyway, The plan is to try to persuade some mature pollen into some freshly opened flowers that are hopefully still receptive to pollen. The way the flowers sporadically open on each rod will afford me at least an opportunity to give it a go.

Well,as predicted the flowers are blooming,however somewhere someone posted an article mentioning that the Acacia flowers are; pro·to·gy·nous[proh-tuh-jahy-nuhs, -gahy-, proh-toj-uh-nuhs] Show IPA adjective Botany . of or pertaining to a flower in which the shedding of pollen occurs after the stigma has stopped being receptive; having female sex organs maturing before the male. Also, proterogynous. So I suspect I'll be pollinating manually. The rods that emerged last spring are in bloom,while the rods that emerged this past fall are almost to the point of blooming. I've got my tiny paint brush and am ready to go. It's disturbing how little information there is regarding manual Acacia pollination,

The phleb had a flush of flowers this past June(mid spring),then another flush of flowers in October(early fall). Fifty or so flower rods. We're coming up on February,which is about the time the flowers from the previous year bloomed. This is also about the time the extra-floral nectaries start to do their thing,which draws in the ants,which I assume are the only available pollinators within the GH. The flowers are tiny,any tips on pollinating manually? I'm going to give a go regardless. It's frustrating to see all the flowers and potential seed just wither away. I'm still learning how to operate a greenhouse properly,I swear the phleb believes it's in the southern hemisphere.

We'll know in a month or two if my plant produces seed. In the proper conditions I'm sure phleb could indeed become weedy,as they're very aggressive growers once established.However the special circumstances required for germination could keep the populations under control.

The first flower started opening about a month ago.One partial rod has opened while a full flower rod is just begining. We're still in our grey dreary days,but a week of abundant sunshine really started the flowering process. I'll be expecting a more uniform flush of flowers this spring. Interesting note: The extra floral necteries are in full production. It appears that this draws in the ants which apparently pollinate the open flowers.Probably common knowledge,but it's pretty neat to see it in action.

I've had gallstones for 8 years now,confirmed by an ultrasound. I've done the magnesium sulfate/olive oil/grapefruit juice flush several times,all resulting in the expulsion of stones.This in itself dramatically reduced pain.I've not done this for five years now. Yes, the main concern is blocking the ducts.This has happened to me twice,and you can tell when it has happened by the absence of dark bile in your excrement. I still have stones,however the constant supplemental use of malic acid has dramatically cut down on the volume of stones,and frequency of pain. Diet is the most important aspect,but I have yet to aknowledge this for my own good.

A few pictures of the phleb. The flowers are still hanging on,hopefully through maturity,though I'm not really expecting seeds due to this being the first flush of flowers. We'll see.

Finally! After waiting a decade,the phleb has decided to offer a few flowers,however just emerging. Now, how long must one wait for the flower maturation? I've been watering it alot this spring and the growth has been decent for only being in the ground for two seasons.It's about 2.5 M tall and building up energy for summer growth. I'll try to get a photo up soon.

The picture is certainly not guayusa.

Cool topic Archaea. I'm not so sure that environmental variables will influence the downward nature of spination,this seems to be purely genetic,although genetics are what they are due to enviromental conditions,go figure. Good to see you back around.

Those are some nice cacti,when is the migration of these clones to the U.S. set to begin,I await with great anticipation.

Close up

Spring growth has been generous to the phleb.I expect alot of growth come summer.I've been watering more liberally since PD suggested to do so.So far so good.

The phyllodes were broader when the plant was younger,and I'd assume that the growing conditions most certainly play a role. The key to identification is the undulating edges of the phyllodes.

PD Yep,the lower phyllodes drop every summer,and aren't replaced,so yea it's naked at the lower portion. I do water it quite a bit in summer,but still try to hold back some.Gotta realize I haven't the resources to replace it.