The red butterfly wing plant, bat wing, Mariposa Cristia Verpertilloris, is a rare and unusual plant in the USA. Adeniumrose Company started experimenting with growing these plants 3 years ago. Yes, these were offered on a limited basis starting late last year. Now we are in what we call rare plant seed / seedling production mode.
Viable Red Butterfly Wing Seeds
It took 2 years to get good seeds from various sources to start the process. Then another 2 yrs to get viable red butterfly wing plants to produce good seeds. Purchasing seeds is not an option due to costs and getting bad seed stock. It took 7 seed sources (all outside the USA except for one) until we received the right Mariposa Cristia Verpertilloris plant seeds. The germination rate on the seeds purchased were less than 10%. They cost on the average $2 a seed so you see it’s expensive!
As of the summer of 2019, ExoticGrower Company / AdeniumRose Company now has several Red Butterfly Wing plants growing for seed production. No do not and will not sell seeds. The germination rate of the seeds produced from our plants is approximately 32%. It takes about 8-9 months before the plants are well established in nursery pots before they are released to clients.
More Red Butterfly Wing Growing Information
How does Adeniumrose Company collect the red butter fly wing seeds? First, the germination rate of the seeds directly corresponds to seed collecting timing. The flower stalks grow at an uneven rate. In other words, the seeds start to produce from the flowers starting at the bottom of the flower stalk. Each stalk needs to be checked 7 days after they start to bloom for seeds.
AdeniumRose Company waits until the first 6 sets of flowers have produced seeds before we cut off the stalk. If you cut the stalk too soon on the Red Butterfly Wing then the germination rate will drop to 10% or less. If you wait too long then the pod opens and you will lose the seeds. We do not wait until all flowers have produced seeds. Each flower pod contains 3 or more seeds (VERY SMALL!!)
Each seed production plant of the Mariposa Cristia Verpertilloris plant produces several flower stalks a year in our environment. In some environments (cooler and less humid) may not produce any viable seeds. Plus, Adeniumrose Company / ExoticGrower uses Dyna-Gro Foliage once a month.
Germination takes place in a controlled environment. The temperatures, water and fertilizer are regulated to get the best germination rate. All seeds are planted within 45 days of collection. ExoticGrower Company uses a soilless coir based pro propagation mix. Once the plants are 4-5 months old we transplant them into 3.5″ nursery pots. When they are well established in the nursery pots (8-9 months) they are released to clients. They are easy to grow beautiful plants once they are well established.