Androsace is a genus of a dead on target alpine , yearly or perennial plant of the Primrose Family , known as Rock - jasmines . They originate naturally in the rocky stretch above timber - wrinkle , and many of them require special treatment in the alpine or sway garden . Their parting , which are often very woolly , are usually tufted or in rosettes . The little flowers - pinkish , red , or lavender – are usually borne in rather flattened rounded clusters . They are grown from source , division or slip , and take a teetotal , gritty soil and skilful drain , though they must never endure from drought .
The official Androsace Group home page
Cultivation of Himalayan Androsaces in pots in the south-east of England by John T Lonsdale
This contribution deals only with the cultivation of Himalayan androsaces in peck , I have very little experience of mature them in the opened ground or raised beds .
Seed Sowing
All germ is sown on a exclusive compost , ie . , 60 % very sharp 2 - 4 mm moxie , 30 % hunky-dory grade Cambark & 10 % John Innes 3 , surfaced with a gently tauten 1 mm layer of sieve peat . Sown seed is covered only with a 5 millimetre layer of mark 2 Flintag ( 100 % silicaceous grit , nominal size 2 - 3 mm ) ; Mary Jane are then soaked from below , gently watered from above using a hunky-dory rose wine and site outside , full bring out to the elements . Seed , disregarding of the date of receipt , is sown around the New Year , or as soon as received if after this metre .
In my experience , a seed of most Himalayan androsaces does not have any especial requirements to spark sprouting other than a general rise in temperature such as is generally experienced in southern England in later February & early March . Seed received from the Kunming - Goteborg expedition ( KGB ) in late February 1994 & seed right away started to germinate in former March 1994 , whereas AGS China expedition ( ACE ) seed sow in at Christmas 1994 set off to evolve in mid - February 1995 with germination continuing into early April . Interestingly , germ of Androsace bulleyana was the last to germinate from both collections . One exclusion to this universal observation is seed of two collections of Androsace delavayi made by the KGB expeditiousness ; no germination was experienced in the first season following sowing but several seedling germinate the next spring .
Treatment of seedling
As shortly as any sprouting is manifest the pots are bring under binding . When the cotyledons are amply evolve , and there is an indication of formation of the first true leaves , the seedling are pricked out into 2.5″ pot using a compost consisting of 70 % needlelike grit , 15 % John Innes 3 & 15 % sieve ericaceous compost . Seedlings are hold open shaded for a week than in the nursery for a further 3 - 4 weeks before being grown on in an Access frame with some protection from heavy rain until well established , & shading at all time from the hottest sun . Copious measure of piss are given .
Listing of Alpine Plants and how to use : :
Mature Seedlings and Established Plants
All of the above are grown in Access frame , no Himalayan species are keep in the alpine house at any phase other than as young seedling . Roof glass is kept in the frame from other October until after flower ( mid - April ) , side chicken feed is only used in the winter during prolonged backbreaking rainwater or when temperature fall below -3oC. Watering in the pots commences after Christmas and is increase throughout the early spring until , following flowering , pee provided by rain is supplemented where necessary with overhead watering using a amercement rose on a hosiery - pipe . Androsace muscoidea var . longiscapa seems peculiarly susceptible to treetop rot in late summertime , this may be a reflection of the drier precondition receive by this mintage at this sentence in its native habitat . therefore , overhead protection is provided from early August . Androsace spinulifera ( KGB seedling ) was lose completely to crest decompose follow the onset of quiescency in late September even though no water had been given in the pots for several weeks . This species has a repute for difficultness in this respect & ACE seedlings have been moved into an extremely gritty compost with pure grit from the degree of emergence of the roots to the crown of the flora .
In a normal summertime very little shading is ply , plant are develop with full pic to the sun from mid - morning until late afternoon . For exercise , during the relatively spicy summer of 1994 , shading in the variety of a individual bed of 30 % shade netting was provide only for 5 calendar week during mid - July to former August . Androsace rigida , rigida var . minor & spinulifera ( KGB seedling ) were particularly dissemble , the foliage becoming slaked lime - green , although I mistrust that the major causa of the plants distress was sustain temperature over 75oC rather than excessively gamy light levels . Healthy growth resumed as soon as the temperatures dropped . Saxifraga georgii & S. lowndesii and Solmslaubachia spp . are ideal index number plant life for heating system strain , the foliage being among the first to show the adverse personal effects of high-pitched temperatures .
As soon as good root ontogeny is see to emerge from the bottom of 2.5″ pots they are move into 3.5″ corpse pots in the same compost as above ; all clay weed are plunged in sand . Henceforth , they are potted on every year , no food is given other than that comprise in the compost . Root aphids , green fly sheet & red spider mite are the major pests with which I have know problems but wrong can largely be nullify by suitable prophylactic treatment . Root aphid is prevented by drenching the compost in other spring and belated summer with spray - strength dimethoate ( commercially available as Murphy ’s Bio Long - Last in combination with permethrin ) , green fly and red spider mite are full controlled by over - head spraying with dimethoate or bifenthrin ( available as Polysect ) at regular intervals . Species which , in my experience , are particularly susceptible to red spider mite include Androsace tapete & A. villosa var . arachnoidea .
The major fungous disease is botrytis , which is mainly a trouble on senescent leaf . Very effective ascendance can be achieved by overhead spraying monthly from September to tardy December with Rovral ( Iprodione ) , a specific antifungal agent . This is , however , no substitute for regular observation and the speedy remotion of any pathologic outgrowth . It is interesting to observe that botrytis on any flora is always far worsened in the alpine house than in a well - ventilate external flesh . I would go so far as to indicate that the alpine house is wholly unsuitable as a home for any Himalayan androsace ( or rockfoil ) other than modest seedlings .
generation
Propagation is an downright requirement for the successful sustentation and distribution of any species . Germination of risky - collected ejaculate ( or home - saved cum in a few cases ) is ordinarily very upright & should result in a high portion of efflorescence - sized plants . Androsace rigida , for object lesson , flowered well the first spring after germination . Unless expectant population of mature fertile plants can be maintain it is potential that future propagation will bank on vegetative means . Every attempt must , however , be made to cut through - pollenate different plant as this is the sole mean to insure the survival of tidy , genetically diverse , individual of a given specie . Vegetative propagation is via the rooting of exclusive little potato cut ; this is comparatively straight as long as cuttings are need at the right stage of growth . A common mistake is to take cuttings too belatedly in the season when the runners have started to become woody – untested , gentle daughter rosettes with 0.5″ staunch will give better than 90 % succeeder if taken into silver sand in a disseminator . The optimum time to take cuttings vary greatly ; Androsace mucronifolia is generally propagated in other April , right away after flowering , at a sentence when Androsace muscoidea var . longiscapa , for example , is still torpid . Rooting will normally come within 4 weeks and plants can be pot up immediately to make strong plants which will over - winter without difficulty .
The refinement of androsaces in the south - east of England should , with reasonable attention to their basic requirement and regular propagation , be no more of a problem than anywhere else in the rural area . There is absolutely no substitute for uninterrupted observation of your flora – they alone will say you whether they are felicitous – although it is up to you to decide what they are saying !
The offical Androsace Group homepage
MEMBERSHIP
Don Peace8 , St. Martins Way , Kirklevington , Yarm , Cleveland TS15 9NRUnited Kingdome - ring armor : don.peace@iname.comFees : GBP 4 in the UK , GBP 5 elsewhereSeed exchange : Only Androsace and Douglasia
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