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Post by sockhom on Aug 20, 2009 11:48:53 GMT -10
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Post by sockhom on Aug 20, 2009 11:46:26 GMT -10
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Post by sockhom on Aug 20, 2009 11:42:17 GMT -10
Hello, Here is a tribute to N. mirabilis, an underrated species, as far as I can see. ;-) I observed it several times along the Cambodian coast. I won't give you new informations about that widespread species. It grows in wet spots and in open habitats. Most of the plants I saw look exactly like the pictures I used to admire in the Nepenthaceae literature. Just enjoy those elegant "pots"! N. mirabilis in Kampot: Paddy field on the left, N. mirabilis on the right...
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Post by sockhom on Aug 20, 2009 4:44:28 GMT -10
I did not found many upper picthers that day but most of them were almost white and they could seriously compete with N. alba (the former N. gracillima): From time to time, one can find strains with crimson pitchers. I bet this is such plants which had been collected and introduced in horticultural circles as "Nepenthes thorelii": Local khmers who live in the park told me that it can be very cold at night and they have sometimes found ice (!) in the pitchers. This reminded me what's been said of the population of N. smilesii growing in Phu Kradung (Mount Kradung) in Thailand which is a 1500 m plateau. I really hope that now you Nepenthes enthusiasts will be more familiar with that Indochinese species. Truly, François.
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Post by sockhom on Aug 20, 2009 4:44:03 GMT -10
Hello, I've been told that there is a population of Nepenthes smilesii in Kirirom National Park in Cambodia, province of Kampong Speu. One of my friend has been there before and I knew I wasn't going to see something "new". However, as fas as I know, there had been no official record of N. smilesii in Kirirom NP and, thus, I wanted to collect some samples for Phnom Penh university (RUPP). I also wanted to see the plants myself. Kirirom is not too difficult to reach from Phnom Penh. It's a well known place and at week ends, Khmers can be found looking for some walks along the trails or baths in the waterfalls. Black bears can also be seen from time to time but they are getting much rarer now because of poaching. The climate is cool there as it is more than 700 meters above sea level. Kirirom is more or less a vast plateau and the vegetation is quite variable. Evergreen forest, pines forest and savannahs can be find there. Away from the touristic spots , there are many trails which are seldom visited. That's where I found N. smilesii. That plant is well known from local people and they call it "Bampong kralaom". I apologize for the bad quality of the pictures. My trip in Kirirom has been a hell as it rained (downpours!) all day long - it never stopped. I was completely soaked and, normally, I should have never used my (wife's) camera in such conditions. You will see some drops in the lens from time to time. I'm sorry about that. The landscape where N. smilesii grows is very atypical for Cambodia. It is different from the idea one can have of a tropical country. The Nepenthes are quite hidden by tall grasses and small bushes. N. smilesii, just like in Kampot (my other post) grows in very open habitats. The pines barely provide any shade. They thrives in full sand among herbs. The easiest way to spot them is by searching for their very tall flower scapes (up to 100 cm or more): The peristome of N. smilesii is often raised at the front but this is not a completely constant feature and I am reluctant to use it as one of the most important keys to identify the species. That feature can also be observed in N. bokorensis, but, then again, it is not constant. Henri Lecomte, the french botanist who described N. thorelii and N. kampotiana refered to N. smilesii as a "dwarf" plant because it often stays at the rosette stage. Nevertheless, some smilesii pitchers can reach quite a big size:
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Post by sockhom on Aug 19, 2009 11:08:58 GMT -10
Dear François, It is best that you concentrate on the positive and on your work. You are once again in the field, where you want to be, and your efforts there have made a difference. We all look forward to your further reports. Thanks Sam. I really appreciate it. I just hope people will take care of the bokorensis seedlings they have. The species should be quite widepsread in cultivation by now. Actually, I returned from this trip completely excited and filled up. I found many interesting things and got some reliable contacts for my future work in Cambodia. I have some other interesting reports coming, with new stuff as well. Cheers, François.
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Post by sockhom on Aug 19, 2009 10:00:51 GMT -10
Hello, OK, I don't feel comfortable with this as I should be one of the last person to make that announcement but my friend Marcello Catalano asked me to do so and he's right, this must be done. Dr Martin Cheek and Dr Martin Jebb have just published two new species of Nepenthaceae from Indochina: Nepenthes bokor from Cambodia and Nepenthes thai from Thailand. The paper is here: www.springerlink.com/content/1p753w22088423n4/?p=4eea024db3ab4c42b111dd29f8f8a562&pi=12Nepenthes group Montanae (Nepenthaceae) in Indo-China, with N. thai and N. bokor described as new , Kew Bulletin, Volume 64, Number 2 / juin 2009 As N. bokor Cheek has been published in august, it must be considered as a later synonym of N. bokorensis Mey. N. thai is a new species which has been sold a couple of times recently as "N. sp. Narathiwat". It is close to N. benstonei. Marcello Catalano will post in september a report on Nepenthes thai in his site: www.nepenthesofthailand.com/Last year, Marcello sent some seeds of Nepenthes thai to the major nurseries, so seedlings should be available in the near future. I'm quite familiar with N. thai so if you want to discuss about it, feel free to do it. I will ask Marcello if I can post some pictures of that new Nepenthaceae. Regards, François Mey.
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Post by sockhom on Aug 18, 2009 7:08:09 GMT -10
Hello, This thread is to be compared with the following one I wrote two years ago: icps.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=...amp;thread=1216It's been two years now that I first saw Nepenthes bokorensis on Phnom Bokor. Having returned in Cambodia a few weeks ago, I couldn't miss the chance to return to see that species in the wild. It is quite special to me as you can quite understand, I think. I was quite worried of the species conservation status. A few months after I first visit Phnom Bokor, a well known private company, Sokimex, started works on the hill. despite Phnom Bokor being part of a national park (the Bokor NP also called Preah Monivong NP), the Cambodia governement had leased the hill for 99 years to the Sokimex society whose intention is to build a vast touristic resort including international hotels, casino, restaurant, gulf course, landing area for helicopters... the first step being the construction of a large road leading to the top of the flat plateau. Most of the N. bokorensis I saw in 2007 grow on the road side. "Road" isn't an accurate word as it was rather a large jungle trail enabling one car to pass at the time... Bulldozers wreak havoc here and carved plants, animals and trees... I couldn't barely imagine what's been lost. Bokor Hill has hardly been surveyed by botanists and other biologist and there are, arguably, many species to be described there... I would say that 80% of the populations I found have been wiped out. By chance or by irony, I found the very first plants of N. bokorensis that I encountered in july 2007. It was gorgeous as ever. They are growing in a spot where works have not been undertaken...yet. I reached the top of the Bokor plateau which is often surrounded by clouds. On the way, I saw that the Drosera peltata populations I admired two years ago had also disappeared... I found four Utricularia species (the subject of another thread) up there and I had the chance to have a glimpse of Bokor Hill's "bright future" ;-( : François.
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Post by sockhom on Aug 17, 2009 22:45:45 GMT -10
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Post by sockhom on Aug 17, 2009 22:41:14 GMT -10
Hello, I returned from Cambodia 2 days ago. It was an interesting trip. I spent three weeks there searching for carnivorous plants. It is now my intention to write a book on the CP of that country. I have observed 12 CP species that I will show throughout some internet field reports. Initially, my goal was to relocate N. kampotiana in Cambodia and in the true N. thorelii in Vietnam. Unfortunately, due to some logistic problems, I could not make it to Vietnam so I will look after N. thorelii on my next trip. I did not find N. kampotiana either (not enough time). However, my trip has been very rewarding as I have found many places for Nepenthes, Drosera and Utricularia, including one new taxon. In this first post, I want to introduce you to the most widespread Indochinese species: Nepenthes smilesii. The Indochinese Nepenthes have been a source of confusion for many decades and until very recently, no research has been undertaken. For a very long time, Nepenthes enthusiasts were used to know two species from Indochina: N. anamensis and N. thorelii. I'll make it short: All the plants known as thorelii in cultivation do not fit the type description of N. thorelii nor do they fit the lectotypes of that species. The "thorelii" in cultivation are either other Indochinese species (some might be undescribed species) of hybrids between them.N. anamensis has been this year synonymised with N smilesii (Mey 2009; McPherson, Robinson, Fleischmann 2009).This name is the right one to be used. N. smilesii is widespread in is clearly recognisable in the field Although, it can exhibits some variations, it is quite uniform and reports of N smilesii ( anamensis) to be a very variable species are simply false because such assertion were made at a time where Indochina was thought to only host two species (ie N. anamensis ( smilesii) and N thorelii). I found N. smilesii in several places in Cambodia. One of them was in Kampot, in southern Cambodia. The plant grows in dry savannah like meadow. They are exposed to full sun and to a very dry season. They are sometimes exposed to fire and can recover easily. Humidity can be very low during the day. N. smilesii is mostly found in intermediate locations but can be found in true lowland conditions. This very population has been found at 16 m, almost sea level. So how does one recognize N. smilesii from the other Indochinese species as this group includes similar species? It's actually easy. You just need to take the time to examine some features. In short, N. smilesii is hairy, has short tendrils, and is often a compact species. It flowers readily at a rosette stage and climbing plants are not very common. When you're used to look after Indochinese species in the wild, you can often distinguish them by looking at the pitchers but, to the untrained eye, most pitchers of that group of species are similar.
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Post by sockhom on Aug 17, 2009 8:40:31 GMT -10
Maybe, he could stop by and drop off my books? If the "whirlwind" does not allow for that then, maybe, he could just mail me a set from your place? ;D My poor Sam, Did you email Stewart about your book's problem? Cheers, François.
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Post by sockhom on Aug 16, 2009 11:29:29 GMT -10
Hello! I just came back from Cambodia this morning. Of course, I will have plenty of things to tell and to show. This is just a teaser... The underrated N. mirabilis: François.
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Post by sockhom on Jul 28, 2009 4:08:44 GMT -10
François, I didn't mean to stir the hornets nest on the N. thorelli controversy.... Regards, Keith Oh come on Keith, don't you worry ;D. We have to get out of this mess so you can shoot on the nest as much as you want! François.
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Post by sockhom on Jul 27, 2009 21:31:00 GMT -10
Hello, sdcarnivores, you should really take a look at the section mentionned by LeeB: lhnn.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=ht&action=display&thread=2768You will see things are not that arbitrary By the way, Keith's N x Red Dragon (N. thorelli x truncata) is likely to be N x Red Dragon (N. bokorensis x truncata). The striped peristome, vaulted lid ans shape of the leaves are good hints. Truly, François.
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Post by sockhom on Jul 26, 2009 10:40:29 GMT -10
Great pictures as usual! How old is that lowii?
François.
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