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BEN # 156
BBBBB EEEEEE NN N ISSN 1188-603X
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BBBBB EEEEE NN N N BOTANICAL
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No. 156 February 10, 1997
aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca Victoria, B.C.
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Dr. A. Ceska, P.O.Box 8546, Victoria, B.C. Canada V8W 3S2
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LECTURE ON KAMTCHATKA IN VICTORIA, FEBRUARY 16, 1997
Dr. Vojtech Holubec, the Czech botanist and expert alpine gar-
dener, will speak on Sunday, February 16, 1997, at 2:30 p.m., in
room A240 of the Human & Social Resources Building at UVIC. His
topic will be
Kamtchatka - A land of fire, ice, beautiful alpines and
fantastic dwarf willows.
Admission is $5.00 and tickets are available at the door, at
Ivy's Books and at all Dig This stores.
TALL BUGBANE (CIMICIFUGA ELATA) IN BRITISH COLUMBIA
From: Adolf Ceska <aceska@freenet.victoria.bc.ca> &
the CDC Newsletter No. 5 - December 1996
Seek and ye shall find! On September 18, 1996, Jane Wentworth
(Washington Natural Heritage Program) took botanists George
Douglas and Jenifer Penny (both from the B.C. Conservation Data
Centre [CDC]) to a site of tall bugbane (Cimicifuga elata -
Ranunculaceae) on Vedder Mountain in Washington, in order to
survey the plant's habit and habitat. This paid off nicely next
day, when Jane, George, and Jenifer discovered over 50 plants
growing in a 6-hectare area of a 70-100-year-old western red-
cedar (Thuja plicata) stand in the British Columbia part of
Vedder Mountain near Cultus Lake. Tall bugbane was considered
extinct in British Columbia since the last collection came from
the late 1950's, and the plant has not been seen lately [cf. BEN
# 10]. The plant is on the rare plant lists over its entire
range in Oregon, Washington and British Columbia.
There was initial concern for the viability of the new Cultus
Lake site, since it fell partly within a small business logging
sale area in the Chilliwack Forest District. This concern was
quickly alleviated when Ian Blackburn and Greg George (from the
B.C. Ministry of Environment) took immediate action. Within
days, a site inspection by the logging company and CDC staff
resulted in alteration of the sale area boundaries and the
establishment of a Wildlife Tree Patch for the Cimicifuga
population.
After this find was published in the British Columbia CDC
Newsletter (No. 5 - December 1996), Rob Scagel (Pacific
Phytometric Consultants) reported to the CDC another population
of Cimicifuga elata in the cut blocks on the north side of
Vedder Mountain, in experimental plots established by the B.C.
Ministry of Forests. He also mentioned the occurrence of the
species near the junction of the Tamihi Creek with the Chil-
liwack River, and along the ridge top trail from Chipmunk Creek
to Mt. Cheam. (The early botanist J.R. Anderson collected the
plant from "Mt. Cheam" in 1899.)
Both Rob Scagel and George Douglas urge botanists to look for
new sites of this plant. Mt. Liumchen of the B.C. Cascade Range
is another area where the plant has been seen in the past and
not collected since 1957. Please contact Dr. George Douglas
(phone 250-256-5019, e-mail gwdouglas@fwhdept.env.gov.bc.ca) for
more information on how to gather data needed for the CDC
database of rare and endangered plant species. For more informa-
tion on the ecology and conservation of Cimicifuga elata see BEN
# 121.
CULTIVATION OF CASTILLEJA
From: Art Guppy, P.O.Box 7216, Stn. "D", Victoria, B.C. V9B 4Z3
[Adolf asked me to write a short note on the cultivation of
Castilleja levisecta. That is a difficult assignment. In fact it
is impossible for me to do it as a short note.]
Castillejas are hemi-parasites which attach to the roots of
other plants. Identifying host plants is difficult. I have in my
garden 8 Castilleja species that have reached flowering size,
and another 4 are coming along, but are still quite small. Of
these 12 species I found in the literature only one host plant
identified. Castilleja linariifolia (the state flower of Wyom-
ing) can sometimes be seen growing with Artemisia tridentata
(sagebrush) with no other plants nearby, so identifying that
parasite-host pair was not difficult. By doing a little
plantwatching, I have been able to identify common hosts of two
castillejas frequently seen at low altitudes on southern Van-
couver Island. Castilleja miniata commonly grows on Alnus rubra,
and C. hispida is often on Symphoricarpus albus or on Holodiscus
discolor. Frequently these castillejas are found where rock and
hard clay keeps the roots of the trees or shrubs near the sur-
face. I have grown these castillejas in pots with their hosts
and observed them to thrive and flower very well. I have ob-
served that at the edges of subalpine meadows C. miniata is
often associated with willows, but have not yet tested that
pairing.
When I have not known the natural host for a castilleja, I have
tried a substitute host and often these are successful, but
sometimes there are problems that probably would not arise with
the natural host. Castillejas on substitute hosts seem prone to
wilting on warm days as if unable to get sufficient water from
their hosts.
This brings me to the problem that I have writing about Castil-
leja levisecta. I don't know its natural host. I do have a C.
levisecta thriving in a pot on Symphoricarpos albus, but I don't
suppose anyone would want Symphoricarpos albus in a garden as it
is a very invasive weed. In my garden I have two plants of C.
levisecta growing on a dwarf form of Spiraea japonica, and last
May one produced 13 inflorescences, though these were not as
plump as they are in nature, likely because the plant was not
getting enough water from its unnatural host.
[In the Beacon Hill Park, where Castilleja levisecta used to
grow, and on Trial Island, two plants that regularly accompanied
Castilleja levisecta were Eriophyllum lanatum and the coastal
variety of Festuca rubra. - AC]
Recently I have been trying Symphoricarpos mollis as a host
plant for several castillejas, and the first results are excel-
lent. I doubt this is ever a host plant in nature as its choice
of habitat probably would not suit castillejas. I have a very
showy, semi-dwarf form of C. hispida from the Oregon Cascades
growing on this host, and it is doing extremely well. Unlike
Symphoricarpus albus, S. mollis seems not to be invasive provide
one cuts back the long runners. I have great hopes for success
using this host with C. levisecta. When I have the sunshine
yellow of C. levisecta next to the blinding red of Oregon C.
hispida, you will need sunglasses to view them.
All of the 12 species of castilleja growing in my garden and in
pots have been raised from seed. I do not recommend collecting
castilleja plants from the wild as the combination of the shock
of being moved to a new host would almost certainly kill the
castilleja. Certainly growing from seed is much quicker and
easier. Twice I have had a castilleja in a bloom within less
than 6 months of the germinating of the seed.
There are several ways of growing castillejas from seed, but I
can only describe the two I have used. Several books recommend
what I call the "sow and pray method"; that is one takes a
handful of seed, goes out in the garden, and scatters it about.
That might succeed if you are good with prayer.
I have used what I call the "improved sow and pray method." This
requires some preparation. You must propagate a number of pos-
sibly suitable host plants (strong growing perennials). These
should be young seedlings and rooted cuttings, quite small, and
with roots near the surface. Tastefully space these prospective
hosts about where you hope to have castillejas, and then sow the
castillejas seeds close to the host roots. Choosing the time for
sowing requires luck and judgment; it must be early enough in
the winter to allow the seeds a sufficient period of cold, but
the earlier you sow, the more time the rain has to wash away the
seeds. With an easy species such as Castilleja miniata, provided
you use plenty of seed, your chances of success are very good.
I no longer need to sow seeds of Castilleja miniata because the
plants self-sow prolifically, and I frequently pull up seedlings
as weeds. With other species I generally do not have much seed
to spare, and I use the more painstaking method which follows.
You will need clean, sterilized sand, a suitable container such
as 500 gram yogourt container and, as a cover, a piece of thin
plastic cut from a plastic bag. Put about 2 cm of moist sand in
the bottom of the container, level it, and sow the seed evenly
over the surface. Sprinkle on enough dry sand to almost cover
the seeds. (The dry sand will immediately take up moisture from
the moist sand.) Place the covered container in a fridge at
about 5 degrees C.
Germination will usually take place in the fridge after about 1
to 4 months. If there has been no germination after 3 to 5
months, depending on what seems a reasonable period of cold for
the species, bring the container out of the fridge and place it
in a window or in a green house. Some castillejas seem to ger-
minate best in the cold; others need warmth. Castilleja
levisecta seeds will germinate in the fridge within about 2
months.
While the seeds are in the fridge, you need to get host plants
ready. Fairly young seedling host plants or small rooting cut-
tings are best as their roots are near the surface and they
won't cut off light to the tiny castilleja seedlings. Pot the
hosts in a well-drained, light, sandy soil. Deep clay pots of
about 14 cm diameter are suitable. The potted hosts can be
plunged in the garden until the castillejas need them. At that
time submerge the pots in water for at least 24 hours to drown
any unwelcome guests; then allow them to drain for some hours.
When the seedlings castillejas have unfolded their seed leaves,
they are ready to plant, but they can be left in the fridge for
some time after that without suffering harm. Make several small
hollows in the soil near the host roots. Use a spoon to scoop
out the tiny castillejas with their roots enclosed in moist sand
and place them in the hollows. Dry sand can be used to fill in
around them, and this should immediately be moistened. Place the
pot in a clear plastic bag, and close the bag above the pot to
form a tent. If the host is tall it may protrude from the bag.
Place the pot where it will get plenty of light but little
direct sun. After the seedlings are growing you can gradually
open the bag and then roll it down. Thin the seedlings down to
no more than three in a pot. When the castillejas are sturdy
young plants, they and their host can be removed together from
the pot and planted in the garden.
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