A. jacquemontii

[P.Bruggeman]

Anne,

I just returned from the Shingalilla Ridge and western Sikkim and I found A.
jacquemontii the same way as you did. They also grew in the middle of
Berberis bushes and the plants were already completely dead with the
seedheads hanging down. They were just hanging there to be picked (by
me...). On the Shingallila ridge they were growing in mixed populations with
a member of the propinquum/griffithii/ostiolatum group. Sometimes the 2
species grew next to eachother sharing the same Berberis. I will not be able
to identify this other species on a short term but because it grew near
Mouley in the Phalut area it could very well be ostiolatum. The highest
place I have found jacquemontii was Thangshing in Sikkim (near 4000 m) were
it grew in open grassland fully exposed to the elements. I collected seed of
this colony of jacquemontii 2 weeks ago and there already were mild
nightfrosts which leads me to belief that the seeds of some species can
actually survive mild frost. During my trip I noticed that tortuosum and
jacquemontii were the most widespread species in the area around Mt
Kanchenjunga and I have found tortuosum growing at altitudes that could be
considered tropical. You certainly don't expect tortuosum growing next to a
banana but they actually did! In total I collected seeds of 9 species and I
will make some of the seeds available to the seedex.


Pascal

-----Oorspronkelijk bericht-----
Van: Arisaema Enthusiast Group (AEG) Discussion List (and other hardy
Aroids) [mailto:ARISAEMA-L at NIC.SURFNET.NL]Namens Anne Chambers
Verzonden: vrijdag 10 november 2000 16:37
Aan: ARISAEMA-L at NIC.SURFNET.NL
Onderwerp: A. jacquemontii


Folks - I've just returned from northern Nepal where I collected A.
jacquemontii seed that I've passed on to Craig. This was the only
species whose identity I could be sure of because the heads had
degenerate leaves attached and I got enough to distribute - it grows up
to an altitude of 13,500 feet (4115 m), one of the highest arisaemas,
usually in the middle of Berberis or other shrubs where the yaks can't
get at it! The plants appear to grow singly and don't seem to make a
colony. I found the best way to clean seed 'in the field' is to put all
the berries into a poly bag then mush them up by squeezing till the pulp
disintegrates. Add some water, the pulp floats and can be decanted off,
keeping the seed carefully in one corner of the bag and repeating as
necessary. Then the seed can be dried on tissues - minimum effort and no
contact.
A few weeks ago I queried the viability of my jacquemontii seed from the
garden because it looked so small but the seed in the wild is the same
size, and anyway my garden seed has started germinating well!

Anne
--
Anne Chambers