The nice thing about hydroponics is that your seeds are not buried and soil and are visible for inspection as they sit dormant or start to germ. I've got a Heliconia Latispatha seed that has been spewing some whitish material from one end and now has a white stub there. But it doesn't look like a root and the other white stuff is flaky. The trouble with digital cameras is that they aren't easy to set focal length on for macro shots. So this photo is fuzzy, but you can clearly see the white stub. I can't tell whether the seed is germinating or whether having been soaking in a hydroponic drip for several days has it starting to deteriorate and break down. Has anybody had the patience to watch a heliconia seed germ? What in the wild wild world of sports am I look'n at?

I haven't seen any heliconia but there were two varieties of Strelitzia offered in this year's Thompson and Morgan seed catalogue - one a "black" bird of paradise, it looked interesting. Just an FYI.

Would love to get one to three ryzomes of the sexy hot pink hanging heliconia. Does anyone here have them? Please email me at amberhawkx3@yahoo.com

Hi Christine, Are you still on Kauai ? I'm in Kalaheo and just starting to plant my acre and would like some ideas and/or new plants. Mark