GROWING CAPE BULBS

November and December usually sees the postman popping 8 x 6 brown envelopes through the door, and that means seed catalogues or lists from the various plaint societies that operate seed exchanges.

In my case it was from the Alpine Garden Society and after having been to a lecture on South African cape bulbs some time before, I was hooked and had to have a go raising them from seed.

I quickly fingered through the list and jotted down the names that I remembered. All the varieties that I wanted were not available so I had to make a few substitutes. When the eagerly awaited parcel arrived it contained the following. Albuca canadensis, Babiana dregei. Crytanthus elatus, Galtonia candicans, Hesperantha, Lapeirousia laxa, Morea aristata, Polyxena ensifolia, Romulea Rosa reflexa , and nivilis Tritonia crocata, Watsonia beatricis and Zantedeschia hybrids

It was early January 1997 by this time and a little late for sowing seed from the cape, as most of the mature bulbs would be well into growth at this time. But better late than never, and so I quickly hurried to the potting shed and mixed up some seed compost. My seed mixture consists of John Innes no 2 (a soil based compost available in Ireland and the U.K.), with about one-third moss peat and one-third horticultural grit. Some times I add a handful of sand as I did on this occasion for extra drainage. Three-inch pots were used as I like my pots to fit into carrying trays for ease of handling. All were then covered with about half an inch of grit and stood out in the north facing cold frame at the back of the potting shed, and left uncovered.

The Tritonia were first to germinate on the 3rd of February followed by Romulea on the 18th of February. Nothing appeared for a month after that and I was beginning to think the others had decided to wait until next year, when up popped the Watsonias on the 20th of March followed closely by Albuca and Lapeirousa on The 22nd of March. It was the 16th of April before the Zantedeschia hybrids made an appearance and in early May I noticed small green shoots peeping from the pots of Babiana, and Morea . The Hesperantha and Crytanthus Elatus did not germinate until June 6th and the Polyxena ensifolia not until the following June, some eighteen months after sowing. The Galtonias have yet to put in an appearance.

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