- First described
- 2015
- Into cultivation
- 1997
- Type
- single clone foundational 1997 icps seed batch
Mike's foundational rugelii clone — sown 1997-05-23 from a May 1997 ICPS meeting Liberty Co seed batch. The most-requested rugelii in his collection. Fast grower, large pitchers, year-to-year consistency, exceptional breeding utility.
History
Mike acquired two seed batches at the May 1997 ICPS meeting: one from Ben Hill Co GA and one from Liberty Co FL. Clone A is the standout selection from the Liberty batch. Sown 1997-05-23 — among the longest-cultivated rugeliis in Mike's collection (27+ years by 2024).
The 2015-04-17 dedicated thread (post #1) is the first documentation post in this dedicated thread. Mike's framing is the high-demand-from- collectors story plus the breeding-utility recommendation.
The same clone has been used in numerous Mike crosses — most notably producing the famous SERT (Super Extreme Red Throat) Bay Co rubricorpora breeding line via crossing with Bay Co ERT.
Standout traits
- Fast-growing, large-pitchered, year-to-year predictable
- Most-requested clone in Mike's collection
- Outstanding lid shape
- Subtle year-to-year and pot-to-pot phenotype variation
- Heavily used in Mike's breeding program
Cultivation notes
- Outdoor NorCal.
- Standard rugelii care.
- Yellow color expression highly consistent year-over-year.
Standout traits
- **Mike's primary breeding-utility rugelii** (post #1, 2015): 'It's hard to find a more horticulturally friendly individual that grows fast and produces beautiful, large pitchers consistently year after year. It's also an exceptional plant to use for breeding'
- **High year-to-year demand** (Mike, post #1, 2015): 'why is it that everyone who grows Sarracenia constantly bombards me with requests for this exact plant?' — most-requested clone in Mike's collection
- Year-to-year subtle phenotypic variation — same clone in different pots looks 'very similar yet slightly different'
- Consistently produces large pitchers — predictable performance is the headline trait
- Outstanding lid shape (Mike, post #1, 2015)
- **Used in many Mike crosses** — Sandy Creek SERT cross used Clone A as the rugelii parent of Mike's most famous Bay Co flava breeding line; cross with Clone B produced Mike's documented seedling line (separate wiki entry: clone-a-x-clone-b-seedlings)
- Holds yellow color very consistently across years (post #6, 2023; post #7, 2024)
Cultivation
- Outdoor Northern California; Mike's plant is one of the longest- tenured rugeliis in his collection (1997 seed sowing, 27+ years by 2024).
- Predictable performance — fast grower, big pitchers, year-to-year consistency. Recommended starter-rugelii for collectors.
- Breeding parent — Mike has used Clone A in numerous documented crosses (with Clone B, with Bay Co rubricorpora to produce SERT, etc.).
- goodkoalie (post #2, 2015) lost his plant to rot in 2014 — re-acquired a division from his dad. Distribution is widespread.
Photos (14)
Naming
Mike's accession-letter 'Clone A' for the foundational Liberty Co rugelii selection. One of Mike's earliest-cultivated rugelii clones — the 1997 seed-sowing date is among the oldest documented in his collection.