- First described
- 2015
- Into cultivation
- 2012
- Type
- extirpated wild site cultivation preservation multi clone
A Mike-cultivation conservation entry for plants rescued before the 2012 destruction of a Bulloch Co powerline-easement site. Multi-clone preservation including rugelii, ornata, intergrade, and possibly the wild origin of the famous 'Improved Black Veins' (IBV) lineage.
History
The site was a powerline easement assumed to be development-protected. In 2012 the easement protection failed and residential housing was built on top of the bog. Georgia Wildlife Rescue documented the rescue operation in August 2012 (5 photos preserved by Mike with credit).
Distribution of rescued material:
- Atlanta Botanical Gardens
- Georgia Southern University
- Mike Wang ("a small population")
- Other unspecified collectors
S. minor and S. psittacina were also at the site historically; their fate after rescue is unconfirmed.
The IBV question
Mike (post #1, 2015) raised an important provenance possibility: the 'black veined flava' (Improved Black Veins / IBV) lineage may originate from this powercut site, not the nearby Kennedy tract as previously believed. Evidence:
- Many surviving powercut clones show the tell-tale "red line where the red throat should be" — a marker of the black-vein trait family
- Mike has crossed the wildtype black-veined Bulloch plants from this site with refined IBV stock to create larger black-veined offspring for future preservation work
The 'wildtype' photo (post #20, 2019) demonstrates the difference between the un-refined Bulloch Co plant and the multi-generationally refined IBV — same trait, hugely different presentation.
Standout traits
- Multi-clone genetic preservation
- Possible wild origin of IBV lineage
- Variety mix: rugelii, ornata, intergrades
- Some morphology resembling Ben Hill Co flavas
Cultivation notes
- Outdoor NorCal preservation cultivation since 2012.
- Selfing avoided due to long flowering-to-maturity timeline (decade+).
- Seed increase backup done 2021; cross-pollination contamination risk flagged; not suitable for reintroduction without verification.
Standout traits
- **Possibly the wild origin of the famous black-veined flava lineage** (Mike, post #1, 2015): conflicting reports — previously attributed to nearby Kennedy tract, but Mike now considers the powercut site as the more likely source. Many surviving clones show the tell-tale red line where the 'red throat' should be — a marker of the black veined trait family
- Variety mix: rugelii dominant, with ornata, intergrade, and 'wildtype' (less-refined) black veined forms
- Some plants resemble Ben Hill County, GA flavas (Mike, post #2, 2015) — round-mouth trap morphology
- Mike has crossed his best pure black veined Bulloch Co clone with vigorous well-veined plants from the powercut site to produce larger black veined plants for future preservation projects (Mike, post #14, 2017-05-05)
- S. minor and S. psittacina also historically present at the site — fate unknown after destruction (Mike, post #1)
Cultivation
- Outdoor Northern California; Mike's preservation cultivation since 2012.
- Selfing avoided — Mike (post #5, 2015): refrained from selfing the rescue plants because the original black veined flavas (selfed) took over a decade to bloom. Instead crossed best black veined Bulloch parent with vigorous powercut-site individual to boost vigor while maintaining the black-vein trait.
- Seed increase as backup (Mike, post #31, 2021-06-22): Mike has done seed-increase on the population. Caveat: some flowers were pollinated by native insects, so there's potential cross-contamination. Seeds NOT suitable for reintroduction without verification — Mike plans to detect contamination by spotting hybrid-vigor outliers among the seedlings.
- Rescue cultivation infrastructure (theplantman, post #8, 2015): distributed material is thriving at the rescue institutions. GIS- based site identification has gotten extremely good for potential reintroduction; but in-situ conservation should still be prioritized.
- Conservation legal context (theplantman, post #11, 2015): Georgia state law allows landowners to do anything with plants on private property, even state-protected or federally endangered. ESA only applies to public land in this jurisdiction.
Photos (45)
Naming
Mike's site descriptor — the "powercut" identifies the powerline- easement geography. The plants represent multi-clone preservation rather than a single named cultivar.