Oops, hyperbole about not seeing it mentioned...just not much about it. Only one mention of it being sent in the same shipment at the first fireball. Is it just an oddball that isn't 'widely cultivated' as it isn't super flashy/pretty? Oh, and I guess I should have titled it this thread 'info' rather than 'id'. Is it still considered an individual species or is it closely affiliated with other neos?

Go to FCBS site and search there,,,its a species neoregelia

Ah, thanks. There is more information there than I realized. I was just being lazy on the FCBS and only looking in the photo index. I guess I need to explore that site more in depth.

Anybody else growing it? Anyone have a feeling or experience with how variable it is? I had it in pretty heavy sun which explains some of the beat up leaves and of course would love to get the markings even stronger. I think I am going to try to self pollinate it to see how variable the seedlings are (unfortunately I missed it this year and will have to wait until the pups bloom).

I can't find much info on it either, except the collection data. From what I did find it appears to be a valid species, though. Michael has it on his list too.

It looks fairly tough and could be interesting to play with. Go for it! If it didn't self-seed on its own it may not do any better if you hand-pollinate it. It couldn't hurt to try, but you might as well try a hybrid or two while you're at it.

Thanks Lisa, I had glanced in the cup a while ago and didn't think I saw anything developing. But I checked again this morning and happened to find a nice ripe white berry. A few more look like they may be developing too. I didn't even think to check all along as I haven't seen (or paid attention to) any ripe neos before and I had just been focusing on the pupping on this plant. Now we'll just have to see if I can grow them without killing them along the way.

If you took the first picture on September 13th, then 3 months to ripe fruit is about right.