Streptocarpus normally have 5 petals, two upper ones and three lower ones. In many cultivars and most species the color of both the upper and lower petals are the same, or at least very similar. Some newer cultivars are known as “bicolors”. In these plants, the upper petals have one color scheme and the lower petals have a different one, hence the name bicolor. This blog post details the origin of the first bicolor streptocarpus and documents some other special characteristics of bicolors.
Key Takeaways
- Bicolor streptocarpus are popular.
- First developed by Bent Mรธllegaard Nielsen, the owner of Sosted Garden, Denmark.
The Origin of Streptocarpus ‘Silvia’ – The First Bicolor
The following information was collected by Pavel Enikeev (ะะฐะฒะตะป ะะฝะธะบะตะตะฒ), one of the top streptocarpus breeders today. The original story was posted on his Facebook page: ะะฐะฒะตะป ะะฝะธะบะตะตะฒ. Pavel, along with his wife Elena, operates the Dimetris nursery, based in Ukraine. His plants include the DS prefix in their name. The material is reproduced with permission.
Streptocarpus ‘Silvia’ was the first bicolor streptocarpus that made its way to Ukraine from Sweden. Its true origin and its breeder were unknown, so Pavel started tracing its roots and found the following information.
Three companies in Sweden offered the plant: Tribidao Gardencenter, Maartenssons Gardencenter, and Krika Gardencenter.
- Tribidao Gardencenter said they had received Silvia from Denmark, from a company called Sosted Garden.
- Maartenssons Gardencenter said there was only one official supplier authorized to distribute Silvia plantlets: Sosted Garden.
- Krika Gardencenterย explained that they had previously purchased Silvia plantlets in Denmark but now obtained them from Germany through Fleischles.
It all traced back toย Sosted Garden in Denmark. Pavel then learned that this remarkable variety had been bred by Bent Mรธllegaard Nielsen, the owner of Sosted Garden. Bent Nielsen told us that he had selected Silvia from a batch of seedlings and that the parentage of the plant was unknown to him.
Silvia possessed a remarkable color pattern that was consistently passed on to her offspring in many variations. Violet above, yellow below. Two distinct colors controlled by genetically independent traits. This unique combination made it possible to create the famous two-color patterns found in the “Silvians” โ the descendants of Silvia. “Silvians” (or “Sylvians”) are a highly sought-after group of Streptocarpus hybrids known for their exceptionally large, ruffled, and often heavily patterned bicolor or tricolor blooms.
Silvia herself was female-sterile and therefore could not be used as the seed parent. As with most bicolor plants, it has a deformed stigma. All of its offspring were produced using only pollen. It is believed that Silvia played a genetic role in producing most (maybe all?) other popular bicolor streptocarpus, including Jasmin, Listy, Gina, Cynamon, Roberto Cavalli, Kika, and Harlequin Lace. Because they don’t produce seeds, they are propagated exclusively through leaf cuttings. ย
