The roselle sprout

Little roselle sprout growing from the pod still within the fruit!

I’ve heard about this happening, had hoped to see it happen, and have had my wish granted.

There are two roselle plants growing in our garden and I had decided to let the first fruits go to seed so that I could start growing several hopefully strong, healthy plants from them, because I didn’t know how old the cuttings were when I got them, and how long they would last.

My only conundrum was knowing when to extract the pod from the fruit for this, and I was keeping an eye on the plant that had produced the first fruit. From what I could see, the round pod inside had changed colour from green to brown, but I still wasn’t sure when to extract it.

In the meantime, the second plant had also produced a fruit, and I watched it as well, but not as closely as the first. As in the case of my loofah vine, the second plant did something while I wasn’t looking – a seed sprouted inside the pod! – and the first plant is still doing nothing.

This probably happened because we’ve had a bit of rain lately, and the water accumulated inside the calyx had provided the right conditions for germination to take place. Now I’m curious to see if more sprouts will appear, and what will happen if I just leave the plant alone. You know how I get a kick out of watching Mother Nature in action…

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Comments

The roselle sprout — 4 Comments

  1. Ok so now I know you are Singaporean, an experienced gardener who likes to experiment and a witty knowledgeable blogger. I hv not finished yr past blogs

    • Eh, I’m more experienced than some but less than others :D
      I’m in a hugely experimental stage with gardening now, but I guess when I become all wise and enlightened, I’ll focus more on growing healthier and more difficult plants. For now there’s just such joy in watching and learning, like a kid.
      Glad you are getting such entertainment from the blog. Enjoy!