mnorell

Steve—

Beware, this is a long post!

When you’ve grown your Golden Torch and hirsutas in the ground, did you ever try them against south walls, in raised beds in sandy soil, and did you mulch/mound them heavily, etc., to help them out? You say you’ve had your Heliconias under live oaks and surrounded by lots of other plants, but I wonder about the drainage issue and how much winter sun-exposure they have received, as that really appears vital to their survival. I’m hoping I’ve gone far enough in prepping the soil around these and siting them intelligently. But as you say, you never quite know until you’ve tried it several times. I had supposedly hardy things rot in the ground last winter (‘Borneo Giant’ Alocasia, ‘Thousand Finger’ banana, some usually hardy Curcuma, etc.), and I chalk it up to planting small plants too late in the season, in lower spots where water gathers, in heavy soil and too much shade, etc. I can see with these Heliconias that planting up against that south side of the house is very beneficial. Also my own limited experience is that just about all Heliconias hate being bound in pots. They either sulk or push and shove their way out, run out of water constantly when pot-bound, and seem to be so decimated by mealy bugs and spider mites as well as dry air in winter that I wonder if they wouldn’t be happier in that chilly earth outside!

That’s fascinating about the Tacca, and congratulations on your success with it. How is it sited? They usually say, kill something three times before you write it off…luckily you tried four with this one! That’s great news. What a fascinating plant that is. Also I’m very impressed with your photos of Musa coccinea, I assume from your garden. I have struggled with that plant, lost a small one last winter and this year have two larger mats in the ground, this time amended with lots of sand and peat, and they’re actually getting some size on them, but they’re still a bit fragile-looking and I’m beginning to despair that I’ll see a bloom this year, it seems to grow more vigorously with just a bit of shade from the hot afternoon sun. Perhaps it will surprise me in the next few weeks, I’d like to know your secret!

Most of the Heliconias are up against the south/southwest front of the house, some under the partial protection of some Tetrapanax (which will last until a hard freeze) and some lightly protective Caesalpinia mexicana/yucatanensis trees, as well as the eaves of the house (though it’s a tall two-story).

Do you have experiences you can share about these particular species I've got growing in the test-bed:

Collinsiana: I have my collinsiana under some Tetrapanax, very sheltered up against the house in a good amount of shade, and it really slugged along at first, then threw a pup and now it’s five feet tall. Beautiful with the white powder under the leaf. I’m curious if you’ve ever tried it, it’s supposed to be pretty cold-hardy and shade-tolerant but I’m sure it’s a second-season bloomer.

Angusta ‘Red Holiday’: I have a large, dense clump of this next to the Collinsiana under the Tetrapanax. Very sheltered and shady…do you know at what temp these leaves and stalks fry in a protected place? Also have you ever seen blooms in the fall, as early as October, from stalks that emerged in spring? I know you use the greenhouse so perhaps you don’t have accurate info for a plant in such as a condition as I have, but it would be good to know. Also whether the yellow and orange versions are as hardy and whether they perhaps bloom a little earlier. Have you tried these?

‘Pedro Ortiz’: in much more sun and has grown like a weed, it is 5’ tall with huge leaves; I’ve been told by my rhizome supplier not to expect it to bloom the first year from the rhizome, and I think you’ve basically corroborated that info.

lingulata: this is out in full sun and really getting huge now; this one according to Eric Schmidt will bloom in a single season—have you ever tried this to see if it’s root-hardy?) Have you seen the ‘Kampong’ variety? Spectacular!

latispatha ‘Orange Gyro’: getting pretty large, it grows steadily but not monstrously, but is now 5’ tall with large leaves and a number of stalks.
Richardiana ‘Little Richard’: this is still in a pot as it was weak from the rhizome stage, and is just now seeming a little stronger. A more unusual species, I think, but I get the impression it can possibly bloom in a season. I have some red-yellow in the ground also, do you think it's got the same hardiness?

subulata: one of these has now thrown new pups that are about 3’ tall with about 4-5 very large leaves after two months in the ground, I think I counted 7 leaves at Fairchild on the subulatas there beneath each inflorescence, though their leaves were not as large as these, they may have been a little stressed. Mine are in manure and sand.

schiediana: I have put mine right up against the house near a bank of gallery windows, it doesn’t get much sun in winter, but I’m interested that you say you’ve gotten it to flower in a single season. Did I read that right? Perhaps it’s more stem-hardy than the others and can take down to mid-20s and keep growing? In California, this always took two seasons for me and the blooms emerged like clockwork in May.
Have you ever tried mathiasae or vaginalis, these appear to both be in the subulata/psittacorum type of mold, in terms of general flower-appearance and height, and supposedly do have a good degree of chill tolerance. But again I don’t know if they’ll flower in a single season. Curious to know if you’ve tried these.

There are a few others that pique my interest, some are complete gambles like lutea, thomasiana, and others that supposedly have some hardiness like pendula, spothocircinata (the colder-hardy parent of all those ‘Golden Torch’ type hybrids), spissa, etc. Perhaps you’ve had a chance to test some of these?

Thanks for any info you (and perhaps anyone else who has tried these) can give on the long laundry-list above, and I of course will share with you what if anything survives next year. Just really bummed to hear, though, that subulata never manages to get to blooming before the cold knocks it down. Sounds like Musa beccarii! I’m hoping that one of my two subulata clumps will find its site amenable enough to throw some blooms.

Michael