Monday, October 3, 2011

Rumble Among the Jungle, Matches 1.49-1.52

Rules and Stuff
1) It's probably possible to vote more than once per poll, but please don't. If I believe that someone is voting repeatedly, I will throw out those results, repost the poll, and seriously question that person's priorities.
2) If you want to link to a poll on Twitter / Facebook / your blog / whatever and encourage your friends to come and pump up the support for your favorite plants, you are encouraged to do so.
3) You are also encouraged to leave comments on Rumble posts, if so moved.
4) All photos will enlarge if opened in a separate window/tab.
5) You can choose which plant is "best" according to whatever criteria you decide for yourself. My personal process is a bit convoluted.1
6) All polls will be open for three days.


Results, matches 1.33 to 1.36:

I was surprised by how close match 1.33 (Dionaea muscipula vs. Pilea mollis 'Moon Valley') turned out to be. I figured carnivorous plants would inspire strong feelings either for or against, and that whichever it was, pro- or anti-, almost everyone would feel the same way about venus flytraps. Instead, Dionaea just barely squeezed past Pilea, 54 to 49.
In match 1.34, by contrast, Aeschynanthus spp. whaled on Ardisia crenata so hard that its grand-seedlings are going to feel it, winning by 22 to 68.

Dionaea muscipula and Aeschynanthus spp. will face one another in match 2.17, on 11 October.

In match 1.35, Aechmea fasciata whipped Rhapis excelsa by 58 to 35.
Spathiphyllum cvv. KO'd Coffea arabica 62 to 36 in match 1.36. Neither of these surprised me much, but I'm a lot happier about one than I am about the other.

Aechmea fasciata and Spathiphyllum cvv. will cross swords on 11 October as well, in match 2.18.

On to today's bouts --

Match 1.49
Adenium obesum (desert rose) vs. Episcia cvv. (flame violet)

(Various unidentified Adenium obesum cvv.)


Top row, L-R: Episcia 'Coco,' E. NOID.
Middle row, L-R: Episcia NOID, E. 'Pink Acajou,' E. NOID.
Bottom row, L-R: Episcia 'Silver Skies,' E. NOID.






Match 1.50
Zamioculcas zamiifolia (zz plant) vs. Alocasia amazonica 'Polly' (african mask plant)

L-R: Zamioculcas zamiifolia, Z. zamiifolia NOID (possibly 'Zamicro'), Z. zamiifolia.


(Alocasia amazonica 'Polly')






Match 1.51
Ficus benjamina (weeping fig) vs. Begonia rex-cultorum cvv. (rex begonia)

Clockwise from top left: Ficus benjamina NOID variegated cv., 'Margarita,' 'Black Diamond,' 'Midnight.'


Clockwise from top: Assorted Begonia rex-cultorum, B. 'Escargot,' B. 'Harmony's Red Robin.'






Match 1.52
Asplenium nidus / antiquum (bird's-nest fern) vs. Haworthia spp.

(L-R: Asplenium nidus, A. antiquum.)


Top row, L-R: Haworthia tessellata (?), H. NOID.
Middle row, L-R: Haworthia limifolia var. ubomboensis, H. cymbiformis (?), assortment.
Bottom row, L-R: Haworthia attenuata, H. limifolia var. limifolia.






-

1 I'm deciding according to a hypothetical situation in which all of my houseplants are gone, as are all the other houseplants of the world, except for one producer/supplier/retailer. Said person is offering to restock me with one or the other of the plants in question but refuses to give me both. Which one would I choose?


4 comments:

Paul said...

Some hard choices here. I won't be surprised if zz beats amazonica, but won't be because of my vote. I tried a zz once for about a week or two before I returned it. I liked it better in the store than I did at home. On the other hand, I've really liked my amazonica which was a "Deathrow" rescue from Lowes.

Can't believe the vft just squeeked by the Pilea. I mean COME ON PEOPLE! A plant that eats bugs! How cool is that?! And for all those who didn't vote for the vft -- you just wait until the Zombie Apocalypse happens. While my mutant/genetically engineered man-sized trapped vfts are taking out the zombies at my house, you can just sit there with your wussy little Pilea while the zombies discuss which wine goes best with brains at your place.

mr_subjunctive said...

Paul:

Well, I voted for the Pilea personally, just because it seemed more practical -- VFTs have weird, specific needs that would be inconvenient for me to supply, so it'd probably die, so the Pilea makes more sense. I mean, I agree that VFTs are cool: I just don't want one. If I were deciding based on the zombie apocalypse scenario, obviously, I would have voted differently.

I really really want to like Alocasias, too, but I spent so much time on the damn things at work, trying to get spider mites off of them, that I just don't trust them.

orchideya said...

"Engineered man-sized trapped vfts"-Hahahaha!
I managed to kill both zz and alocasia. But alocasia went much faster while zz was doing great growing big for long time when totally neglected. At one point I decided to divide and repot it. All the fuss around it rotted the bulbs completely. So if I ever wanted to try them again I would definitely choose zz.

Long Haired Lady Rider said...

Gawd, I had forgotten about the value of a VFT during the Zombie Apocalypse. Mr. S, Can I change my vote? ;-) And since this is a Rumble, you would think that the plant with the best offense would win. You just never know, though, do you? I guess that's why play the games!

On another note, I was the first person to vote on today's matchups and for a brief moment, I had everything jus the way that I wanted it!

I can't believe Adenium obesum is winning. I mean come on people! Adenium obesum, which regularly loses all of its leaves and looks like a bunch of firewood, versus gorgeous, lush, tropical Episcias? What are you thinking?

Go Episicia! Kick 'em in the caudex!