My current "science project" will be an attempt to fathom the depths of a SPOTTED rose which basically fell into my lap back in 2008. For background, you will need to click on the TAB labelled German seedlings at the top of this blog, and read about the provenance of the 'Red Galaxy' rose. The question at hand is this: What if I obtain some open pollinated (i.e. SELF pollinated) hips from 'Red Galaxy' and see what I get when I plant the seeds. The seedlings, resulting from a re-shuffling of genetic material, will shed MORE light on the ancestry of 'Red Galaxy'. Note: see the discussion in German seedlings -- there are photos of 2 siblings of the spotted rose, which already have given me some very important clues.
The project began last Summer when I didn't remove several spent blooms, but allowed them to develop hips, as shown in the photo below:
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| Photo taken: June 12, 2013 |
I planted the seeds last Fall, and I now have the good fortune to show you a typical seedling of several that have already sprouted. Here are 2 photos of one of the seedlings, whose "birthday" was March 27, 2014:
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| Photo taken: March 27, 2014 |
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| Photo taken: April 15, 2014 |
I'll have more to show you later this year when the seedlings begin to bloom. Don't forget to come back here to share the excitement. Will we be seeing SPOTS, and what color will the blooms be?
Update of June 9, 2014: The seedlings haven't begun blooming yet, but I'll let you know when they do. I've had the good fortune of obtaining 6 seedlings, and I planted them out yesterday in a small bed with some of their "relatives". In the photo on the left below, they are the 6 plants with the protective cones. Also present are 4 more clones of the 'Red Galaxy' mother plant -- for further background, please see my post of 8/26/2012 titled The clones are coming! The photo on the right gives you a closer look at the small cluster of blooms shown in the other photo, and as they looked five days earlier.
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| Photo taken: June 8, 2014 |
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| Photo taken: June 3, 2014 |
