Arisaema hybrids

[Paul Tyerman]

At 07:48  26/05/04 -0400, you wrote:
>>photos of a sikokianum x triphyllum in flower.
>
>OK. I see it. But why???
>
>I see no advantage in the hybrid. But it is one step toward making
>Arisaema as mixed up and confusing as Orchids. Why???
>

Ray,

I wasn't the originator of either the message or the actual crossing, and
while I definitely believe in making sure that the species stay clear (to
make sure that they are still in existence somewhere as opposed to some
genus where things are now so muddied that it is almost impossible to say
whether you have a pure version of a particular species) I CAN see benefit
to crossing those particular two!!

If you could get a flower like sikokianum on something that is as robust as
triphyllum it would be extremely attractive and far less likely to never
emerge from its dormancy, plus you might get the benefit of being able to
grow it from offsets rather than growing it from seed and then hoping that
you can actually get some of the seedlings through the various dormancies
to actually get to flowering size!!  In the case of my own seedlings from
AEG seedex seed... each year less of the sikokianums come back for me and I
have a feeling that by the time they get to flowering size there won't be
any of them left to flower <sigh>.  On the other hand I have triphyllums
which are already nearly flowering size and I think will likely have
offsets starting to form on them this dormancy).

I have never tried crossing Arisaema, nor am I intending to for that
matter, but in this particular case I can see at least those advantages to
it.  It might not be good fom a species point of view, but it would
certainly make something as stunning as sikokianum far more able to be
grown by people instead of having to be kept in proverbial cotton wool and
worried about whether it will return each year or not <grin>.

Now whether that was the reasons for the original cross I don't know, but
those would be 2 definite aims for a particular breeding programme result.

Cheers.

Paul Tyerman
Canberra, Australia.  USDA equivalent - Zone 8/9

Growing.... Galanthus, Erythroniums, Fritillarias, Cyclamen, Crocus,
Cyrtanthus, Oxalis, Liliums, Hellebores, Aroids, Irises plus just about
anything else that doesn't move!!!!!