- Breeder
- Mike Wang
- First described
- 2025
- Type
- single clone from controlled cross breeding line
- Cultivar
- 'AF heterozygous'
Mike's confession
The thread opens with Mike's acknowledgment that he had, over a decade-plus stretch, killed every AF venosa in his collection (see thread 826 for the originals) — including the replacements he later acquired. Disease susceptibility was the consistent failure mode, matching hcarlton's observation that pallidiflora and other AF/veinless purp forms are widely rot-prone.
The 12-year recovery project
Before the originals rotted out, Mike crossed them to a vigorous, disease-resistant venosa. The F1 offspring are heterozygous — they carry AF alleles but visually express red because the dominant non-AF allele masks the recessive. Selfing the F1 produces homozygous AF offspring with restored AF expression plus the vigorous-venosa genetic background. Seeds from the cross sat in Mike's refrigerator for roughly 8 of those 12 years before he activated them.
As of 2025-02-04: Mike has AF venosa back in the collection (a separate thread pending) and is on track to offer them 1-2 years out (~2026-2027 distribution window).
Standout traits of THIS clone (the heterozygote)
The headline value is breeding stock, not visual phenotype. But the documented plant has good shape and color. The featured photo shows a striking effect: partial shading by neighboring S. flava var. rugelii preserved color while exposed kin went solid red or fully brown from cold + light overexposure.
Standout traits
- Carries AF venosa genetics in a vigorous, disease-resistant background — the breeding-stock value, not the visual value, is the headline.
- Striking color contrast when partially shaded by neighboring plants (e.g. flava var. rugelii Brooks Co GA in Mike's setup): protected from full sun + freezing, the trap holds color while exposed kin go red-to-brown.
- Mike's noted clone has 'really nice shape' beyond the typical venosa form.
- Can be selfed to recover homozygous AF offspring — the project endpoint.
Cultivation
This entry's broader context: Mike's confession.
Mike has, over a decade-plus stretch, killed every original AF venosa he had — and then killed the replacements too. Before the originals rotted out, he managed to outcross them to a vigorous disease- resistant venosa, preserving the AF alleles in a heterozygous state that doesn't depend on the rot-prone visual phenotype. Seeds sat in the refrigerator for ~8 of 12 years before Mike worked through them.
As of 2025-02-04, Mike had AF venosa back in the collection (recovered through this 12-year breeding project, future thread pending) and was on track to offer recovered AF venosa 1-2 years out (~2026-2027).
hcarlton's relevant data point: pallidiflora is rot-prone every time he's tried to acquire it. Many veinless purp/rosea forms share this. Only AF type purp that hasn't been rot-prone for hcarlton is his one purp heterophylla clone (7-8 years in his greenhouse).
alexis: a Christian Klein clone (received 14 years ago in Colorado) has held up — possibly a single more-vigorous clone has crossed the Atlantic.
Photos (4)
Naming
"AF heterozygous" — descriptive: heterozygote carrying anthocyanin- free recessive alleles. Phenotype is visually red because the dominant non-AF allele masks the AF allele.