Croton Adventure ...

Moose

Moose

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10/09/09
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Coral Gables, FL Zone 10b
Yesterday Mike Harris and the Moose went to visit Mike (Bullwinkle) at the Bullwinkle Ranch Estate. There were many Palms, Cycads, Flowering Trees and other unusual plants all over the ranch. Since this is a croton forum we will focus on some of the interesting cultivars that were encountered. :)

1st Photo: Daybreak. This cultivar may have been a sport of Dayspring. It has simular coloring to Dayspring but the leaves are narrower and longer. Rob (Borgy230) saw this plant several months back and thought it to be a Dayspring. Bullwinkle brought an air layer to Moose Land and I was skeptical as well.

One month later, the Daybreak air layer from Bullwinkle had to be stepped up to a larger container. It is already flushing new leaves in excess of 20 inches. This is definitely a different cultivar in my opinion. This is the donor plant. :)

2nd Photo: Irresistible looking very nice located next to the pool and planted in front of a Stoplight. :D
 

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1st Photo: A real Satan. 2nd & 3rd Photos: Older leaves on the same Satan croton exhibiting unique "black" and red trident shaped leaves. :mad:

4th Photo: "Pink" Rheedii air layer. This was a small air layer so the main focus was the largest leaf. You can see the other leaves are holding nice pink coloration. Look forward to seeing this exceptional beauty in a few years. :eek:
 

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It was great having Moose and Mike over yesterday:)The daybreak is unlike any dayspring that I have seen, the mother plant that I got my airlayer from had leaves over 24 ins long!!The final color will be a speckled pink ,hopefully we wont get too cold this year as this plant lost most of the leaves in trhe cold shock of 2010.

Moose Knuckle said:
Yesterday Mike Harris and the Moose went to visit Mike (Bullwinkle) at the Bullwinkle Ranch Estate. There were many Palms, Cycads, Flowering Trees and other unusual plants all over the ranch. Since this is a croton forum we will focus on some of the interesting cultivars that were encountered. :)

1st Photo: Daybreak. This cultivar may have been a sport of Dayspring. It has simular coloring to Dayspring but the leaves are narrower and longer. Rob (Borgy230) saw this plant several months back and thought it to be a Dayspring. Bullwinkle brought an air layer to Moose Land and I was skeptical as well.

One month later, the Daybreak air layer from Bullwinkle had to be stepped up to a larger container. It is already flushing new leaves in excess of 20 inches. This is definitely a different cultivar in my opinion. This is the donor plant. :)
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Bullwinkle Ranch Estate continued ...

First two photos are of an exceptionally colored Sunburst. Bullwinkle said that this cultivar has been a steady but slow grower for him.

The last two photos are of Tortoise Shell. This is one of the Moose's favorite cultivars and what really gave me the croton bug. Mike Harris came around the corner and saw this Tortoise Shell and in unison said WOW!!! :eek: This is by far the nicest Tortoise Shell I have seen. :cool:
I would care to guess that it may be the nicest colored one anyone visiting this forum may have seen. :confused:
 

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Mike,

Looks like a pretty nice collection you've started. Maybe in the near future you'll consider hosting a meeting and tour at your home.

Thanks Ron for sharing.
 
Sunburst? Looks like Sunny Star. Check the Cristian Papers for Sunburst.
 
Scott Mcintosh said:
Sunburst? Looks like Sunny Star. Check the Cristian Papers for Sunburst.
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Scott - thank you very much for the correction. It is absolutely a Sunny Star.

I don't know where my brain came up with Sunburst. I do not believe there is a cultivar that goes by that name. :confused:

Here are some more notables seen at the Bullwinkle Ranch Estate:

1st Photo: Queen of Siam. This is the cultivar confused with King of Siam. It is my understanding that the King has pink spots and is a moderate growth type croton. The Queen of Siam is much slower and has red spots. This croton here had the red spots on the leaves and is "painfully slow" according to Bullwinkle's observations.

2nd Photo: This is an unnamed cultivar that Bullwinkle said was a sport from a Mammie. It looks very interesting and very much like a Thailand type creation.

3rd Photo: This is a White (Yellow) Bravo. The first one I have personally seen. It will be interesting to watch this plant mature over time. ;)

4th Photo: Rudy Bachman probably the one of the most spectacular colored cultivars around in my opinion. This one looks way better than the one in Moose Land. :(
 

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Ron, Check out the Wiki when you get some time. You will find info on Sunburst.
 
There must have been two different cultivars at some time because both are in the original Dr Brown book ??Unfortunately pics in the original book are mostly black and white :(

palmisland said:
Does anyone have photos of a certified Satan? I can't tell the difference between the two.

-Randy
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Crazy for Crotons said:
Sweeeet stuff Mike!! The Tortoise Shell looks especially good. I'm not sure about Satan. I think that's an Irene Kingsley.

That's for posting these Ron.
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Ray,

I think Mike has told Rob, or maybe Ron, that this plant has been extreamly slow growing over several years. That alone could make a case for being a true Satan.

Mike?........
 
Yes Jeff,it has been pretty slow.It has grown around 18-24 inches in the past 5 years.That said, it really displayed some pretty vigorous growth this summer (lots of rain and fertilizer).Others with more experience will have to judge.
 
Jeff,

I don't think Irene Kingsley is that fast anyway. I had a really slow plant at one time but it was mainly due to the shaded area where it grew. There may be a Satan out there but the leaves on Mike's plant are IK all the way.
 
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