You've heard it time and again: "Be careful what you wish for." Since planting Tetrapanax papyrifer 'Steroidal Giant' in the spring of 2011, I've been obsessively watching and hoping for it to sucker and make babies.
Well, this is the year that I have babies! Lots of babies.
Some of these "babies" have larger leaves than the mother plant that died back during our harsh winter.
So far, I have counted 14 babies, though several perished when I tried to pot them up earlier this spring. I checked with Burl Mostel, of Rare Plant Research, who told me he has his best luck digging and potting the youngsters in winter.
I had one apparent success at potting, probably because I dug a sizable baby and took a lot of soil with it.
As we know, volunteers rarely locate themselves in the spot you'd have chosen for them, and I have already removed a few Tetra babies that were too close to other plants. A few more of them will need to go, like the one below one snuggling into Camellia 'April Kiss' and the other menacing a young Camaecyparis thyoides 'Iceberg'.
But this is definitely the year for reproduction success. From little sprouts to robust adolescents, I have plenty of volunteers.
It looks like even if I decide to leave or move some around in the garden, I'm going to have lots of Tetrapanax offspring to share with locals next spring. But be warned: this could be the beginning of what will be your own Tetrapanax papyrifer 'Steroidal Giant' nursery in a just few years!
All material © 2009-2014 by Jane Finch-Howell for GardenTrip. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
Well, this is the year that I have babies! Lots of babies.
Some of these "babies" have larger leaves than the mother plant that died back during our harsh winter.
So far, I have counted 14 babies, though several perished when I tried to pot them up earlier this spring. I checked with Burl Mostel, of Rare Plant Research, who told me he has his best luck digging and potting the youngsters in winter.
I had one apparent success at potting, probably because I dug a sizable baby and took a lot of soil with it.
As we know, volunteers rarely locate themselves in the spot you'd have chosen for them, and I have already removed a few Tetra babies that were too close to other plants. A few more of them will need to go, like the one below one snuggling into Camellia 'April Kiss' and the other menacing a young Camaecyparis thyoides 'Iceberg'.
But this is definitely the year for reproduction success. From little sprouts to robust adolescents, I have plenty of volunteers.
It looks like even if I decide to leave or move some around in the garden, I'm going to have lots of Tetrapanax offspring to share with locals next spring. But be warned: this could be the beginning of what will be your own Tetrapanax papyrifer 'Steroidal Giant' nursery in a just few years!
All material © 2009-2014 by Jane Finch-Howell for GardenTrip. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.