Philodenron Flower

Discussion in 'HortForum' started by juanitapb, Apr 23, 2010.

  1. juanitapb

    juanitapb Member

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    This is year three of my first blooming (1st year killed it, second year none, third year 2still in blooming stage).

    Are the flowers guaranteed to open? I've read a lot on the facts that a philodendron blooms, the beetles that help it along, THAT IT ONLY BLOOMS @ NITE (BUMMER). I'd love to hear any comments/personal experiences. Please help. Thanks.
     
  2. photopro

    photopro Well-Known Member

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    Sorry for the short answer. We are at a conference at the Missouri Botanical Garden.

    You are seeing an inflorescence. The spathe is not a flower but is only a modified leaf. The entire cycle takes place in two days. The flowers are very tiny and have already developed on the spadix at the center of the inflorescence. The female flowers would have formed in a chamber at the base of the plant and are hidden. The male flowers develop on the exposed spadix. It is not uncommon for the male flowers not to produce pollen in captive growth but if it did you should have seen a fine powder.

    Philodendron only produce their inflorescences at night. Pollination can be done artificially but only if you have two inflorescences. The female flowers are receptive on the first night and the male flowers produce pollen on day two to prevent self pollination.

    I must leave shortly for a conference but you will find all the explanations along with artificial pollination at the links below:

    http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Natural and artificial pollination in aroids.html

    http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Grow or Growing Philodendrons.html
     
    Last edited: Apr 27, 2010
  3. photopro

    photopro Well-Known Member

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    Sorry I was so brief this morning.

    The Inflorescence should have opened but there is no guaranteed. You are observing an inflorescence that is composed of a spathe and spadix. The spathe is not a flower but is instead a modified leaf. The very tiny flowers grow on the spadix at the center of the inflorescence and are very hard to see.

    In Philodendron the female flowers grow inside a hidden chamber at the base of the inflorescence while the male flowers are visible on the upper spadix, but only with a strong magnifying glass.

    The female flowers are produced only on the first night the inflorescence is open and are only receptive for that night only. The male flowers produce pollen on the second night and then the process is complete. You should have seen the spathe completely closed on the third morning.

    The inflorescences of all Philodendron (close to one thousand species) only open at night, Nature does that to allow the perfume produced by the sterile male flowers to drift on the wind in order to attract a species of pollinating beetle. All of this is explained with on the pages I noted in the post above but if you have questions I will gladly try to answer.

    If you post a photo of the plant I will try to help identify it. This link explains the entire process including how to pollinate your own plants, however the process with Philodendron is not particularly easy.,

    http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Natural and artificial pollination in aroids.html

    PS: I went back and edited this entire post since I was working from a laptop with a sticky keyboard. Apparently two keys were not working!
     
    Last edited: Apr 27, 2010
  4. juanitapb

    juanitapb Member

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    Re: Yet to Open & Maybe Never to be seen Philodenron Flower

    Since my first inquiry, two more have appeared. This Philodenron grew in my parent's back yard for many years. I dug up a piece prior to selling the property about three years ago. It's a potted plant for me. My plant area is like a enclosed courtyard. At night it's lit w/flood lamps (I keep them on because I don't like night visitors). The Inflorescence or spathes (resemble green bananas extending from a leaf) the largest is approximately 6". Friday I left the lights off until midnite but no change occurred. What a shame to miss the full effect of something so unique.
     
  5. photopro

    photopro Well-Known Member

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    Re: Philodendron Flower

    A photo would really help to give you good information. Many Philodendron produce inflorescences in clusters and they tend to open one at a time but will only open for the two night period during sexual anthesis.

    Also, many Monstera species are commonly called "Philodendron" so again, a photo would really help. Both are common in the Houston area but most did not survive the big freeze.

    The first photo is Philodendron bipinnatifidum and the second is Monstera delicosa. They are not closely related and produce their inflorescences in totally different manners. There are almost 1000 species of Philodendron and at least 35 species of Monstera so it is difficult to give you any additional advice without knowing what plant we are dealing with.
     

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  6. juanitapb

    juanitapb Member

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    My Philodendron as well as my bird of paradise & ficus survived just fine, with the help of bedding covers & flood lamps (90 watts/per). A neighbor had a huge one (yard plant) that this winter annihilated. One huge mess of dead, dead leaves (or so I thought until Friday). Green leaves are replacing the dead ones. I will try to get a photo to you. Thanks for all you info.
     
  7. juanitapb

    juanitapb Member

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    Re: Philodenron Pics

    Please see pictures. Thanks
     

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  8. photopro

    photopro Well-Known Member

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    Re: Philodendron Flower

    Your plant is Philodendron bipinnatifidum, commonly called "Selloum". You can find information here: http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Philodendron bipinnatifidum pc.html

    If given a tree to climb in the wild they can easily grow 100 feet tall. Your inflorescence will took like the one in Jim Edward's photo attached.

    These often grow in clusters but open one at a time. Pollination is not always easy since the tiny female flowers are formed in a globe shaped area called the female floral chamber at the base of the inflorescence. There is a tight restriction at the top which releases for a very short period on the night the inflorescence first opens. These are normally pollinated by Cyclocephala beetles in Brazil where the plant is native.

    On the second night the tiny male flowers on the spadix should release pollen that you can collect in a small bottle. You can freeze it for a few months if necessary and when you have another inflorescence ready to open prepare it by adding a small amount of distilled water to the bottle. Use only enough to make a milk-like substance. Put a piece of tape over the overlapping edges of the female floral chamber and slowly pour it in shortly after it begins to open at night. There is no other good way to pollinate this plant artificially with success.

    The female flowers are receptive for only one night and the male flowers produce pollen on on the second night. Although it may stay open one extra day if you wait that long nothing will happen.
    If you are successful you should see berries beginning to form in a few months. Each should contain a couple of seeds.

    If you read the link on pollination you should have a good chance to make it work.

    http://www.exoticrainforest.com/Natural and artificial pollination in aroids.html
     

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  9. juanitapb

    juanitapb Member

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    From the pics I provided, is there any way to determine the timeline to opening and will it only be visible at night. Thanks
     
  10. photopro

    photopro Well-Known Member

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    Re: Philodendron Flower

    I regret to tell you I blew your photos up by more than 300% and saw no evidence of any inflorescence. The brownish part is a dead cataphyll which surrounded a newly emerging leaf blade. I see another cataphyll forming as well as several petioles which support leaves but no inflorescences at all. Perhaps you are assuming new leaf growth is an inflorescence. The inflorescences shown below are on a specimen of Philodendron sagittifolium some 14 feet tall but the general shape of the inflorescence is the same as your plant.

    An inflorescence will be supported on a stalk called a peduncle and they grow fairly rapidly. That peduncle will stand a few inches or more from the main axis of the plant. The inflorescence will be shaped like a tube that is tightly closed with an overlapping spathe (see my photo below, there are several unopened inflorescences). As it matures you will notice it begin to bulge at the top and bottom and when it opens there will be a restriction at the center. At the time it is ready to open you can watch the overlapping spathe and should begin to see a line begin to form that is similar to a tan line at the point where it will open. That "tan line" is the clue the plant is ready to open.

    If you look at the first photo on the link I gave above the inflorescence will be shaped very similar to that one. It will be solid green and when it opens white on the inside. At this time I see nothing that even resembles a new inflorescence.

    This species normally must be at least 6 feet or more tall and very mature before it will produce an inflorescence. Your specimen appears to be quite young or at least under developed since it does not have the "trunk-like" stem that is normal to this subspecies of Philodendron (Meconostigma) known as the "tree" Philodendron. I have three that are over 8 feet tall and none have ever produced a spathe. One is purported to be 30 years old.

    The third photo shows the stem of the plant that most people call the "trunk". This plant was photographed at a level of close to 100 feet in the Brazilian rain forest. The stem does not have to be this thick to produce an inflorescence but it must be at least well developed and I see very little development of the stem on your plant.

    My guess is you have at least 8 years to wait to see an inflorescence due to the current size. These plants often grow in very bright light in nature and if not given adequate light the growth can be stunted. If you are growing this plant indoors keep it near the brightest possible window, best outdoors during the warmth of the year.

    The last photo is courtesy of the Missouri Botanical Garden and shows precisely what an inflorescence for this species will look like. As you can see the inflorescence develops directly from the stem (central axis) of the plant and the peduncle is relatively short.
     

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    Last edited: Apr 28, 2010
  11. juanitapb

    juanitapb Member

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    Re: See new pics - Philodenron Flower

    I was so disappointed after your message but I’m so glad I kept hoping. Look what finally opened Monday, Apr. 4 2010.
     

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  12. photopro

    photopro Well-Known Member

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    Your inflorescence was obviously hidden in the original photos. I am quite surprised due to the size of the plant.

    If it opened on Monday you might be able to feel the thermogenesis at some point today. Just place your open palm near the inflorescence, especially in the evening. The effect may be minimal since I don't see any evidence of pollen on the spadix. The pollen will appear as a fluffy powder.
     
  13. juanitapb

    juanitapb Member

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    I think my previous photos might have been deceiving in addition to the fact that I keep my leaves tied up to poles and I lost a lot this winter. There are a total of three so this is the first opening of possibly three.
     

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