How to flower :Gasteria bicolor

[MalcolmP2]

Not sure if I should post this in general succulents or over in the learned HaworthiaSoc. section Mods please move if needed.

As you may have seen elsewhere,
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=168195
I am reliably informed that our plant of nearly 40y is a G. bicolor.
It has never flowered. One wonders what it is thinking of its keepers ! If only they could talk and tell us what they need, rather than having to listen to (some of) us that talk to them.

Seems we are not alone, Rod also has this problem !

That is all a long-winded way of imploring you all to share your secret cultivation tips and tell me what I should do next for its happiness
It has had about three small waterings during the winter and recently, about two weeks ago, with 1/2 strength tomato fert. ( I dont think I have ever given it that before)

Edit later, PS, all its life it has had tap water, for a long time this was very hard (about 300 to 400 (depending on bore hole extraction proportion ) ppm bicarbonate, 50ppm (thereabouts) sulphate) A few years ago the water co. introduced exchange softening so now some of that is sodium equivalent. I think now I will give it rain water ?

[Terry S.]

Apart from G. batesiana and a couple of large species from KwaZulu-Natal, all of the gasterias hail from the Mediterranean climate area of South Africa. So I wonder if you have been keeping your plant too dry during the cooler months of the year when it should have been growing?

[Liz M]

I have quite a lot of Gasterias, some flower regularly. My regime, is to keep them dry and cool over winter. Water them from spring onwards, using the good soak and drying out completely method, and feed occasionally. I tend to leave them in the greenhouse and in a fairly sunny place, so that they have some sun during the day.

Gasteria batesiana

IMG_4022.1.jpg[/attachment [attachment=0]IMG_4272.1.jpg

[Tony R]

Lovely flowers, Liz. The batesiana does not look quite right though - it should have flowers like this (part of the true Longiflorae section). Yours looks like a 'repeat' of your third picture (carinata).

batesiana.jpg (182.41 KiB) Viewed 2616 times

...and, for Malcolm this is what Gasteria bicolor flowers look like (in habitat):

[Phil_SK]

Is it only me who removes them as soon as the peduncle's tough enough to pull out without snapping?

[Tony R]

Is it only me who removes them as soon as the peduncle's tough enough to pull out without snapping?

Haworthias - yes, do it, unless you want to X-pollinate.
Gasterias - no, much prettier and more varied!

[MalcolmP2]

Is someone pulling my peduncle ?


Thanks for all your thoughts, I'll try to do better this year and next winter.

[rodsmith]

Gasteria glomerata in flower today.

[Apicra]

To return to the original question, some plants of Gasteria have been circulating in cultivation for well over two centuries. It is the ones that off-set freely that get passed around most widely and it appears as if such clones loose the will to flower, no matter how they are treated.

You could try growing a specimen as a single larger plant, cutting off any offsets as they form. Maybe that will push it into flowering.

Best wishes,
Derek Tribble

[MalcolmP2]

try growing a specimen as a single larger plant, cutting off any offsets as they form. Maybe that will push it into flowering.

Thanks Derek, yes, this was one of those 'passed around' type plants from about 30/35y ago kept 'in memoriam'.

Good idea, I like it.
In fact I have already prepared a single offset, see a previous topic in which I was asking for an ID :-
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=168195

So, I will do with the new baby as you suggest, but it will have to hurry up a bit !