Thursday, April 19, 2012

Ant plant from Gua Musang, Kelantan, Malaysia

Few weeks ago is Chinese New Year. We drive back to Kelantan and stop at a R&R station. Saw a malay uncle selling plants... it is ant plant!!! Dont think twice and brought them. http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/OthersPlants/IMG_3812.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/OthersPlants/IMG_3810.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/OthersPlants/IMG_3809.jpg Below plant is attached together with those seedling, anyone able to ID it? http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/OthersPlants/IMG_3811.jpg

Ant plant

Ant plant is unusual and weird plant. Below is 1 of post from internet---> This "Ant Plant" is an interesting and unusual epiphytic plant whose swollen base also provides housing for ants. Myrmecodia tuberosa have thick unbranched stems with larger leaves. They are sometimes covered with unusual structures, called clypeoli (shield like structures surrounding each leaf base). Clypeoli may have spines to give the stem an armored appearance. These spines can be simple or branched. The base of the stem develops into a tuber. The tuber is a brown or greyish color. There are entrance holes on the surface that connect to galleries inside the tuber. These galleries are split up. There are smooth walled galleries where ants live, and are protected. The plants take advantage of the ant's waste products while the ants are thought to help protect the plant from predators. Many growers successfully use a mix of peat and perlite, or a combination of long-fiber sphagnum moss, chopped fir bark, and perlite which is very open but retains moisture. The plants are watered when the mix is just barely moist, because sphagnum is difficult to re-wet if it is allowed to become bone dry. See other 'Ant plant' - Hydnophytum. http://toptropicals.com/catalog/uid/MYRMECODIA_TUBEROSA.htm
I got below plant from a nice forumer on dec 2010.
Photobucket                     Photobucket Photobucket Here is how the plant looks like after almsot 2 years http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/OthersPlants/IMG_3629.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/OthersPlants/IMG_3627.jpg The plant grow nicely and few mths ago, it giving some seeds as well... Here is end result...

Nepenthes rafflesiana green

Greenish pitcher that have strike lip is 1 of my favourite nepenthes. N. rafflesiana have very variance of that!!!! N. rafflesiana

Nepenthes Basal/stem cutting

I propagate my nepenthes basal/stem cutting using water method. I cut half mineral water bottle and make 2 overflow hole at the bottle (height of water is depends on length of cutting). Below photo taken on 23rd February 2011. Below is N. globosa x kuchingensis basal cutting that I did on 26/Jan/2011. http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/CPs/IMG_2254.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/CPs/IMG_2255.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/CPs/IMG_2247.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/CPs/IMG_2250.jpg ____________________________________________________________________________________ Below are N. mirabilis full green stem cutting that did on 10/Jan/2011 part of the cutting http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/CPs/IMG_2243.jpg http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/CPs/IMG_2245.jpg Upper node that failed to give be off shoot because it is cutted too low . But, lower node still giving me off shoot http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/CPs/IMG_2244.jpg 2 stem cutting that produce root http://i26.photobucket.com/albums/c139/caseyhoo/CPs/IMG_2246.jpg ____________________________________________________________ From above 2 set of cutting. I learn below 1. basal cutting will produce root faster. 2. when doing stem cutting, make sure didnt accidently cutted those "node" 3. Base on a post at green culture singapore, stem cutting that have leaf will produce root faster. Base on above 2 set of cutting, it seems like it is true. Or may be it produce root faster because it is upper portion of stem cutting. (Not dare to conclude it).

N. rafflesiana, ampullaria, campanulata, boschiana, thorellii x boschiana & ...

Just a quick update of my house nepenthes (photo taken on Mid of January 2011) N. rafflesiana pink N. ampullaria red N. campanulata N. boschiana N. globosa x ampullaria upper pitcher N. ? forget N. "thorelii" N. ampullaria brunei red N. thorellii x boschiana N. ampullaria harlequent N. mirabilis winged x (mirabilis x chelsonii) N. ampullaria N. mirabilis red N. rafflesiana N. x red dragon N. unknown N. ampullaria N. ampullaria var monavolare X mirabilis enchinostoma N. x tricorcapa N. ampullaria N. rafflesiana tricolor N. x kuchingensis N. rafflesiana N. rafflesiana N. rafflesiana