Jump to content
Forum for Epiphytic Myrmecophytes

Squamellaria (was Hydnophytum) kajewskii fruiting


Recommended Posts

Hello, all.

 

In late February I harvested my first H. kajewskii fruit from a hand pollination that I did in early December. Since there appears to be some confusion due to mixed collections (with H. guppyanum) in the original description, as well as the assumption that unripe fruit was fully developed at ~ 6 mm and green, I thought it would be useful to provide some images of the ripening process that I have observed in this species.

 

As I have written in another post and based on plants being grown in cultivation from wild-collected seed this species appears to be dioecious, which would make it unique amongst the hydnophytines that I have flowered so far. I have now hand pollinated several dozen flowers since late last year, and flowering on my plants looks like it will continue through at least late spring. Based on two fully ripe fruits harvested so far, ripening time has varied from 72 to 76 days. Ripe fruits are from 9.0 to 9.5 mm long x ~5.5 mm in diameter. Seed is about 5.0 mm long (wild-collected seed to >6.0 mm). Color change from gray green with conspicuous dark green stripes to yellow-orange occurs overnight, as does the change from yellow-orange to bright orange. Unlike H. ferrugineum, ripe fruit loses the visible striping that is evident in immature fruits.

 

Zhon Bosco has confirmed that ripe fruit color here coincides with the color of ripe fruit in wild plants.

 

I have attached three images of unopened flowers, unripe fruit, ripe fruit and clean seed.

 

post-61-0-76203200-1458234276_thumb.jpg

 

post-61-0-45089900-1458234310_thumb.jpg

 

post-61-0-92913100-1458234351_thumb.jpg

 

Cheers,

 

J

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great photos Jay and thanks for putting in the time and work to make these observations for the record - thus amending what the original description of H. kajewskii says about fruit color at maturity.  Kudos too for growing these plants so well and getting them to reproduce so quickly!

 

Considering how robustly you grow the plants do you have any hypothesis as to why habitat seed would be bigger than your seeds formed in cultivation?  Perhaps just the fact that this is the first flowering year for both your plants?

 

Great stuff Jay,

 

Frank

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks, Frank.

Think seed size is a function of tiny sample size. In interim, two more fruits ripened; one with smaller fruit (8mm) and seed, one with a larger fruit (10 mm) and seed. Ripening times for these 72 and 73 days from hand pollination and tagging so range still consistent with first two.

Flowering appears to have peaked in late February through early March. Still continues, but at slower pace.

J

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Two more very recent pictures showing the plant with two ripe fruit from early January pollinations, and a detail of the apical portion of a fully ripe fruit. The way these drupes are held strongly suggests that they are dispersed by small frugivorous birds.

 

post-61-0-87081200-1458574394_thumb.jpg

 

post-61-0-58460700-1458574438_thumb.jpg

 

Jeff; plants cannot be sexed until they first flower at ~18 months of age. Obviously, all of the fruits shown here are on the female plant. Male plant flowers lack any functional female parts and vice versa. To produce fruit with this species, it appears that you need both sexes flowering in synchrony, not just plants of different -styly as is the case in many heterostylous hydnophytines.

 

I noticed yesterday that a number of individual inflorescences have not set any fruit, while others have set fruit on all flowers that were pollinated so far. I suspect this has to do with the relative immaturity of the plant and the way it allocates resources at this size.

 

J

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Frank changed the title to Squamellaria (was Hydnophytum) kajewskii fruiting

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...