Cotton Plants

[Dorthe]

Hi guys

my mum had some huge cotton plants some years ago, and I thought they were very interesting.

Does anyone know somewhere you can buy cotton seeds?

Thanks

[Dorthe]

[eileen]

 :) Hi Dorthe,

Sorry I don't know where to get cotton seeds from but I have cotton grass in the garden which only reaches a height of approx 18" and looks good grown in clumps (especially beside water.) It has 'cotton ball' seed heads. Just thought it might be an alternative you could think of and easier to get a hold of.  :D

Eileen.

[john_miller]

Try B and T World Seeds. Enter Gossypium herbaceum into their search facility.

[Andy H]

Hi Dorthe

Do you want some cotton seeds?

Mother in law got some flowers sunday and had cotton plants in them so I went rummaging for seeds and found there are about 30 in each head. If you email me I can send you some.

AndyA2B@aol.com

[Andy H]

[Andy H]

 ;D Growing already after 3 or 4 days!!!

[Andy H]

Stupid plants! Going brown on edges of leaves and dying ??? Whats wrong with them :-\

[Andy H]

They are on their way Dorthe. will post in the morning.

[Mrs Ava]

Where are they located Andy?  I would guess something like a dry atmosphere, or maybe overwatering, seedlings really don't need lashings of water, or even a chill?  

[Andy H]

They are on kitchen window sill?
Have put one in bathroom to see how it does and today I bunged one in the greenhouse to see what happens to that.

I can get seeds to go but after that :'(everything dies!
Balsa in propagator died.

Bamboo still alive and Large Gourds and Luffa ok

Just planted Mediteranean Fan Palm and Chilean Wine Palm, will see what happens to those.

[Mrs Ava]

Problem with a lot of the more unusual plants is they have such specific requirements.  I try and try and try to grow Proteas, but as I fail to provide the correct growing conditions, I can get them to germinate, even grow on and get a few true leaves, and then the b*ggers whither and die!  I think you need to research the plants needs thoroughly - they may want strong acid soil, so tap water is killing them...they may need to dry out between waterings, or need very free draining soil, or very hot, or humid, or cold......  The luffas are members of the cucumber family I seem to think...and if so...I would have throught they will need winter protection in a big way and won't produce anything until next summer.

[Andy H]

Thanks EJ, I guess I should research a bit more and try to get nearer to ideal conditions without moving to Chile!

Though I will get really excited if the Chilean Wine Palm pops out the soil, can take 2 years to germinate :-\

[Roy Bham UK]

Don't give up on your palm seeds Andy percy veer ants is what you need together with lots of pay shants. ???
I have had lots of failures with a few successes from seed and you have a lot more growing years ahead of you so keep on persevering.
Here's a site that may be of interest to you all about the Jubaea chilensis (Chilean Wine Palm) click here.
http://davesgarden.com/pdb/showimage/43234/

[Andy H]

Thanks Roy, Will cheque that owt layter :-X

Andy

[Andy H]

well it didnt take 2 yrs to germinate ;D but about 5 months :D

It is about 6" tall now. amazing pictures on the above link!!!

They are REALLY slow to grow!

[Andy H]

Doing ok so far

[Deeds]

Problem with a lot of the more unusual plants is they have such specific requirements.  I try and try and try to grow Proteas, but as I fail to provide the correct growing conditions, I can get them to germinate, even grow on and get a few true leaves, and then the b*ggers whither and die!  

How right you are Emma.  Proteas need a very poor dry soil, it may be that the compost you are growing then in is just too rich. They need a soil which is very free draining,  totally free of Phosphorous (P) and extremely low in Potassium (K).
They also produce a massively long root and this can be a problem when it comes to transplanting them.  They can even be a bit tricksy here in Cornwall.

Well done on germinating them though, this can be the hardest part, do you use smoke treatment?

[Andy H]

Deeds? What is smoke treatment? >:(

[Deeds]

Hi Andy,  a lot of the South African and Australian shrubs germinate freely after fire, and botanists have discovered that this is a response to chemicals in the smoke, rather than the fire itself. 

These chemicals are available on impregnated paper, which can be soaked in water and then watered onto the seed trays.

It's especially useful for seeds of Restios and Proteas, it promotes better seedling growth too.

More information can be found on this website.

http://finebushpeople.co.za/smoke_primer.html

[Andy H]

Thanks for that. Very interesting..........