streptocarpus help

Suet-Feung Chin

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Apr 6, 2000, 3:00:00 AM4/6/00

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Hi. I am new to gardening and have fallen in love with streptocarpus. I
ordered some plants from Dibleys and they arrived about a week ago. I had
not expected such small plants of just one medium size leaf and a tiny leaf.
I watered them upon arrival and I potted them the next day. I amde sure
that the compost was moist by placing the pots in a tray of water so as not
to get water on the leaves and drained them after the top of the compost
appear moist. The plants are then placed on a north facing window.
Yesterday, I noted that they were wilting and after reading my gardeners
manual, it is pointing to overwatering. I removed the plugs from the pots
and tried to dry them. I am very worried about them now since they really
look sad. They are the most expensive plants I have bought to date and I
really do not want to lose them. Can anyone give me suggestions as to how
to resuscitate them? Thanks you. Feung

Rod Craddock

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Apr 6, 2000, 3:00:00 AM4/6/00

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This is going to be long so anybody not interested in Streps just talk
amongst yourselves for a while.

Hello Feung,

That sort of soaking is a bit too much for streptocarpus but being
excessively wet for so short a time will do no harm at all. The plants were
wilting because they had been in transit and in the dark. You don't say what
size pot you put them in but I would suggest you use a fairly small pot say
3 inch (7 cm) for a plug at first and move them on when they are thoroughly
filling the pot. If you keep moving them on to the next size when they fill
the pot you could have them in 5 inch or 1litre pot by the end of the
summer.
What Streptocarpus need most of all is a 'quiet life' steady temperature
around 15-20C, medium to high humidity though this isn't desperately
important if the light and temperature are not too high, good light but not
full sun and an occasional high potassium liquid feed. You can let them get
fairly dry between waterings, they hate being very wet for long periods.
Watering from the top is OK as long as you don't wet the leaves.

All you need to do now is let them recover, if you've given them the right
conditions they will be OK with no more help from you.

They don't live very long so renew or increase them by taking leaf cuttings
during the summer, come back here or e-mail me when you want to try that -
it's very easy.

Dibleys plants are OK, and the Dibleys are good folk to deal with.

What varieties did you get?

Rod

Dave Poole

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Apr 7, 2000, 3:00:00 AM4/7/00

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Rod Craddock wrote:

>This is going to be long so anybody not interested in Streps just talk
>amongst yourselves for a while.

You're going to really hate me for this Rod, but I've actually now got
a 'hardy' Strep - identical to those in the 'Colour Wonder' series and
which has overwintered rather like an herbaceous perennial for at
least 3 years now in South Devon. I concur entirely with you comments
to Feung about these, but this one is proving to be an enormous
exception to the rule.

Flowering is usually from early-mid June, building up to a massive
show by mid-late autumn. Last year, it held a splendid show of
rose-purple flowers well into December, completely ignoring our first
frost. The leaves have died down since, but already plenty of new
ones are coming through. Unlike Streps kept under glass, it also
tolerates full sun without any burning to its medium sized, strap
shaped leaves. I first saw it growing in a rockery in Plymouth where
it is a degree or two colder than here and apparently the clump was
planted in 1995.

David Poole

Rod Craddock

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Apr 7, 2000, 3:00:00 AM4/7/00

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Dave Poole
wrote in message

You're going to really hate me for this Rod, but I've actually now got a
'hardy' Strep - identical to those in the 'Colour Wonder' series and which
has overwintered rather like an herbaceous perennial for at least 3 years
now in South Devon. I concur entirely with you comments to Feung about
these, but this one is proving to be an enormous
exception to the rule.

Flowering is usually from early-mid June, building up to a massive show by
mid-late autumn. Last year, it held a splendid show of rose-purple flowers
well into December, completely ignoring our first frost. The leaves have
died down since, but already plenty of new ones are coming through. Unlike
Streps kept under glass, it also tolerates full sun without any burning to
its medium sized, strap shaped leaves. I first saw it growing in a rockery
in Plymouth where it is a degree or two colder than here and apparently the
clump was planted in 1995.
>
> David Poole

No more than I expect from you David <G>
Does Rex Dibley know about it????

Rod

flo

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Apr 7, 2000, 3:00:00 AM4/7/00

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Hey ...I grow loads of streptocarpus ..and they need virtually no attention
at all !!!

they grow quite big if u pot them up - I have some about 2 feet across..very
free flowering..lovely
the leaves wilt quickly if they need water, but an application of water
revives them almost instantly ..they recover really quickly..so they're very
resilient....
By the way ..did u know u can propogate them really asily by taking leaf
cuttings ??

"Suet-Feung Chin" <sc1...@mole.bio.cam.ac.uk> wrote in message
news:B51213B2.3546%sc1...@mole.bio.cam.ac.uk...

David Rance

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Apr 8, 2000, 3:00:00 AM4/8/00

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On 06 Apr 2000, Rod Craddock wrote:

RC> They don't live very long so renew or increase them by taking leaf
RC> cuttings during the summer, come back here or e-mail me when you
RC> want to try that - it's very easy.

I was given a couple of streptocarpus by my mother long before she died in
1985 (which means I've had them well over 20 years) and they are still
going strong. All I've done is repot from time to time and, very
occasionally, divide the roots.