What method do you use to remove the hats. I was always afraid of decapitation

i hold the plant stem between my thumb and forefinger, and use my other thumb and forefinger to pull off the bishop's cap ...

opposable thumbs is wonderful things ...

I generally give a fine mist with water and they usually slip right off with thumb and finger

I find, if you do it as before they fully dry, you can just skip the damp hats off, make sure you also remove the film. If the hats are stuck and dry, I uproot them and cover the hat covered seedling in the wet soil. Wait an hour and remove the hat. It's best to do it as soon as they sprout out of the soil. In these cases, the cotyledon initial leaves are all tucked into the stem and not risk peeling them off. I did decapitate a few cotyledon off and they seem to still grow. one is showing first leave without the cotyledon, fingers crossed they're ok.

They are larger looking sprouts. Thanks for posting a pic of your double garnets Dave. I love to see them before they straighten up completely. They look like little dancing worms. I will be watching their progress.

Tracy

Nicholas, I have a trick for removing the testa. Spritz them with a water bottle and turn the tray or bowl 180 degrees in the opposite direction. The change of direction will make the tops of the plants adjust toward the light and the testa will come off by itself.

Tracy

now they have had a chance to 'green up' a bit under the lights … 5 days after initial pix … 22 of 25 'soldiers'

dave

ps: skewer would still be in upper left [same pix orientation]. orig. caption should have said 22 sted 24

I've got some of my own, too. It's so exciting. Dave, are you zone 5? We are getting a late start in the growing season. What are your plans for the winter?

Dave many of them have a reddish caudex which makes them even cuter. Dain what variety are you growing here?

Tracy

Very nice.

Dain, I love your mix.

Marie

These are obesum seeds from Mr. Ko. These little guys are for ebay variety 51. Take a look at his site. I think they are absolutely stunning. Everyone has their own taste, and these definitely tickle mine. Hopefully I end up with one somewhat true to parent.

http://www.adenium.com.tw/indexe.htm

Marie, thank you for the complement. The mix is 50/50 coir and DE floor dry. It holds a good amount of water without getting soggy. Along with fresh seeds from Mr. Ko, this medium helped to provide an excellent germination environment. I think I had 25 of 30 germinate. I'm now down to 23 as one rotted before I got his 'hat' removed, and the other was a casualty at the hands of my roommate.

dain:

nice, a double with an almost reverse picotee with maroon petals and a hint of white along the tips, with a yellow to pinkish throat.

ko's which I have include: 1; 11; 16; 24; 30; 35; 36; 37; 42; 47; 48; 49; 52; 56; 57; 62; 63; 67; and, 69. Then there's about a dozen named varieties. I need to stop. HELP ME.

It seems to me your roommate needs to lose a pinky, or pay the 4 dollar postage on your next order.

Good lord, Dave! You auction much? Or are you buying directly from Ko? Now I know what you meant when you said, pick one and you'll sow it! I have been trying to get 65 forever and someone has always snatched it from me.

Dain, love 51 it is a stunner, hope you get some true to parent. Your mix is so neat it could double as top dressing. I have not yet found a bag of the floor dry that is a decent size. The bags I have found have been smaller pieces which end up getting thrown away with the dust that is sifted out. I have heard that the NAPA is a good size granule if you can find the brand.

Tracy

Tracy, this stuff is from car quest, but I'm not sure it's calcined. It doesn't break apart, but it's much softer than turface. I bought a twenty five pound bag of it which is absolutely huge, because it's so light. It holds a ton of water, and wicks well for bottom watering in the dry air where I live.

My plan is to keep these guys nice and toasty all winter long and maybe see some blooms next summer. Maybe next summer we can organize an online adenium swap.

dain

it is NAPA part no. 8822 floor dry. about 8 bucks a bag.

I think i'm good for a long time, lol.

i have gone thru 4 bags this summer

and here they are on 13 sept …. a little forest

from above, above

and from the side, below

dave