Let me start by saying that I don't know anything about propagation.

In 2007 I planted 2 Calycanthus floridus ‘Michael Lindsey’ in my front yard and one in the back. Also, I planted a Calycanthus floridus ‘Athens' and Calycanthus 'Venus' in the back yard.

One of the Michael Lindsey in the front has had a baby. You can see it in the bottom right of this picture. I'm guessing that I should be able to cut it from the mommy this year. (if I'm wrong, please let me know).

The Michael Lindsey in the back yard was the only one that had seed pods on it last year. I have no idea if the other ones will have seed pods this year.

I know that the baby in the front will be just like its mommy. But I don't know about the seeds from the pods on the one in the back. Will it be a Michael Lindsey or perhaps a cross of that and either the Athens or Venus (since they are all close together and the other Michael Lindseys are pretty far away).

I also don't know if the seeds are hard to start.

Actually, while I'd like another Athens or Venus, I really don't need another Michael Lindsey since I already have three in my small yard. If anyone would like to try these seeds, let me know.

This is one of the seed pods cut open.

Very cool! Did 'Michael Lindsey' layer itself, or did the baby come from roots? I've found layering the easiest way to propagate a lot of shrubs. Hmmm...I don't have any Calycanthus, perhaps I should try some of those seeds. I've had good luck wintersowing shrub seeds.

I can send you some seeds. I think that you'd like them. Calycanthus is a native plant and is easy to grow. Last year, Michael Lindsey started blooming in mid-April and continued throughout the summer. Then it has a nice, yellow autumn color. I like it because it matches the red bricks on my home perfectly.

But the other two cultivars that I have are nice too. Athens has the best scent. Very sweet and fruity and it gets the most flowers. Venus has the largest flowers (maybe three times larger than the others) and the flowers look like magnolia blooms.

The extra plant came from the roots. If you want to try some seeds, I'd be happy to send you some.

Michael Lindsey, mid-November 2009

Is Venus the one with cream colored blooms? I've seen one in catalogs that looked like a Magnolia.

Yes, Venus is white. The flowers are probably 2". Like the other Calycanthus, it has a flush in the spring then flowers sporadically through the summer.

Lovely!

If you can figure out how to propagate it, I could send you cuttings. As I said before, I don't know anything about propagation of plants.

Michael Lindsey and Athens are both Calycanthus floridus but Venus is a Sinocalycanthus. I think that's why the flowers are so much bigger. I don't know if there are different ways of propagating them. But I think you'd like all three. They are relatively carefree.

Hmmm...I'll do a bit of research and see what I can come up with