What dreams are made of…?
Carrie Krüger Utopia Clivias, Sedgefield, South Africa
When I first laid eyes on these plants eight years ago, I was blown away by the shape and size of these three-year old plants in comparison to our normal interspecifics. They were broad-leafed, sturdy and large. All were selfed seedlings of a Nakamura bred interspecific, grown from seed by Kerneels Buitendag. The first selfing of this plant only produced about 8 -10 seeds which grew into these magnificent plants.
I fell head over heels in love with them and managed to persuade Kerneels to part with them. These have grown into large robust, broad-leafed plants. When they came into flower, I knew they were special.
The first plant to flower, I named “Dreaming” and it has a distinct white picotee edge around the flower. The flowers are large and semi open. These plants all have flowers with picotee-type edging, and semi to broad leaves, up to 90mm.
I have named this collection, the “Dream Series”. I have been crossing them with each other, in order to line-breed and keep the quality of the flowers with the unique characteristics of these plants.
Some of the others that have flowered and have been named: ” Dream Catcher”, “Sweet Dreams”, “Apricot Dreams”, “Dream On”, “Future Dreams”, “Dream of Hearts”, “Day Dreamer” and “Dreamscapes”.
These are very fertile plants which set seeds well. I have also utilised their pollen extensively on my other interspecifics and cannot wait for the resultant seedlings to flower within the next season or two. Some of the seedlings show signs of variegation, making them even more striking. I will keep you updated on the results. Exciting times await us, as these seedlings grow and come into flower over the next few seasons!
These plants are now being registered at the International Clivia register and checklist.
