Saturday, August 17, 2024

MM 20-178

Seed parent: MM 15-73a (M. villosa form F X Homeria species)
Pollen parent: MM 17-53b (neopavonia X tulbaghensis)

What a wonderful little mystery this flower is. Its seed parent looks exactly like M. villosa, and in fact I doubt there are actually any Homeria genes in it. The pollen parent is a bright orange flower, typical for a cross between two orange species.

Based on my experience, crossing those two flowers should have produced a pale orange flower with prominent eyes. Instead we get this fascinating purple flower with dense veins, speckles, and no eye. It doesn't look quite like anything else I've grown. 

I suppose it might be a stray seed from MM 20-179, which is a cross between MM 17-10a (which is heavily speckled) and M. villosa. But that ought to look like villosa. So the mystery continues.

Unfortunately, this flower has virtually no pollen, and did not set seeds when I crossed something onto it. I will try again in future years.





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