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[OfCows]

Hi all,

I hope this finds everyone enjoying life! Mine's been incredibly busy with drawn out dramas and projects recently, hence my radio silence...still, interesting plans are afoot, which I'm sure I'll post about here shortly.

My question: Does anybody have any practical input regarding the bulk propagation of Phalaris aquatica (from cuttings, I finally sourced a very expensive bit of AQ1 innit) and Phalaris brachystachys (from seed-grown plantlets)?

I'm in a small flat in the UK, so space is at a premium and outdoor space is non-existent. Currently, I have a ~30cm aquatica in a pot on the windowsill, along with some two-week old brachystachys from seed. They're bottom-watered at present.

I'm hoping to turn these into as much plant material as possible,
in as little space as possible,
as quickly as possible!

My current understanding is that I pretty much wait until the plants are big enough (no idea what size that actually is though!), then section them diagonally (so I end up with several sections complete with roots), plant this into larger pots to wait for more growth, then repeat as the new plants gain maturity...does that sound about right? Has anyone tried using fertiliser or other additives to speed up growth (some papers provide useful comparisons in this regard)? Etc? 

My aim here is purely to be able to quickly have as many healthy plants as possible that are hardy enough to be posted around the UK and Europe so that they're a bit more available to the interested researcher. I've found (and have noticed here a elsewhere) that sourcing specific clones and other live Phalaris plants these days is surprisingly difficult.

I've already got a number of interesting research papers and such on the topic (e.g. from Australian agricultural institutes) but am hoping somebody here will be able to offer some more tailored advice - preferably base on practical experience. Oh yeah, as always, hit me up if you would like me to share my archives with you.

Thanks as always,

OfCows

[MeanGreen]

Stem cuttings do not work with Phalaris, and in my experience cutting the apex of a shoot will cause it to die.
Basically it spreads through rhizomes, you'll see new shoots emerging from soil quickly and the patch will spread in size. You can dig up those rhizomes and carefully cut its roots away from the main root system.
They usually die down in the winter, even when brought inside but as long as the root system is alive you get new shoots in the spring.
Separating rhizomes can put a bit of a toll on the plant so I don't recommend doing it too often.

P. brachystachys does not produce rhizomes and I don't know any way to propagate it other than from seeds or maybe tissue culture.

2 Likes SKUNK and OfCows like this.

[Auxin]

I agree with the above and would just add that P. brachystachys is an annual, so named clones wont even be possible without amusingly high tech efforts. I also dont imagine brachystachys handling shipping by mail very well.

[OfCows]

Thanks for the input guys, much appreciated! I was going from the WSS guide when I wrote that post and presumed brachystachys would be similar. Looks like I should go back through my research on that one...

It's early days yet but I'll definitely be exploring this genus over the next few years - time to put all that forum lurking into practice! - so shall apply your advice as the earliest juncture possible. The brachystachys seedlings are thriving so far and the AQ1 looks a lot happier now than when I received it, so that's a plus.

Good point on the annual-factor too Auxin, so busy at the moment I managed to ignore that!

Cheers!