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hardy  Aroids)" <ARISAEMA-L at NIC.SURFNET.NL>
From: Ernie O'Byrne <nargsbs at EFN.ORG>
Subject: Re: Proper Winter Care/rotting
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William,

I would seriously consider carefully examining and consider changing your
potting mix. We rather cavalierly raise hundreds of arisaema tubers from =seed
every year with no problems, although in the past (about 10 years ago) we=did
have some problems with rotting of large tubers of A. sikokianum, and
attributed the rotting to keeping them too damp in the winter in what was
probably too rich a mix.

We leave the seedlings in the original seedpot, in a mix of half perlite =and
half Black Gold (a soiless proprietary mix) for a year, i.e. until the se=cond
period of growth, and then usually plunge the whole pot into a gallon pot=at
its original level into our regular potting mix for the nursery. They the=n go
into the hoop houses with all of our stock and get regular water during s=ummer,
which is then tapered off in the fall. They get little water in the winte=r,
although the soil mix is pretty damp. They are then potted on at the begi=nning
of their next period of growth into 4x4x6" band pots with a cross bottom =(very
open, i.e. good drainage). I think the deep pot aids in moisture control.=The
tubers are kept in the pots over the winter and until they get too big fo=r the
band pot (usually a season or two) at which time they are potted on into
standard #1 gallon pots, treated the same way.

So far we haven't had problems with this regime. One caveat is that we do=keep
the houses above 20 degrees F. during the winter, but the pots do sometim=es
freeze. Maybe it shouldn't work, but it does for us.

>From only visible evidence, it seems that Dan Hinkley at Heronswood uses =a
similar technique. I should have asked him yesterday since he spoke to ou=r
Hardy Plant Group and visited the nursery, but we were pretty involved wi=th the
hellebores which are in spectacular bloom just now.

Hope that helps. Comments by others?

Ernie

William Perez wrote:

> Speaking of dormancy and rotting, I've rotted every single arisaema tub=er
> I've ever owned.  But I continue onwards....
>
> I grow mine in pots since I don't have a garden, so my question is does=one
> wait for a tuber to start sprouting before watering or does one water a=t
> some point in spring to activate growth?
>
> I always water mine trying to push them into growth.  Methinks that's t=he
> problem, but I would like some confirmation.
>
> Thanks,
>
> William Perez

--
Ernie O'Byrne
Northwest Garden Nursery
86813 Central Road
Eugene, OR 97402-9284
USA
Eugene, Oregon is officially USDA Zone 8a, but we can generally grow only=Zone
7 plants.
Member of NARGS, AGS, SRGC, HPS, Meconopsis Group