Friday, October 28, 2016

October Favorites...

Before I decided to include them in my "October favorites" post, these first few photos were destined for a post called "you can't kill those things"... I'll explain...

Those tall trunks belong to my oldest Tetrapanax papyrifer...

But instead of the lush, large, leaves that should be at the top, there is only this.

Not so pretty, eh? During the summer drought I thought I'd give them a nice, deep, watering by just letting the hose run in the tank for awhile. Just a short while! But when I returned I discovered a pond. Standing water that was not draining. I scooped out as much as I could but the damage was done. Over the next few days the large leaves wilted and fell off.

A couple weeks later I had friends over and my dear husband pointed out the sad Tetrapanax tank. Something I was quite happy to have let gone unnoticed, thank you. Sean (yes, Cistus Sean) quickly said "ah, you can't kill those things!" and then went over to give the trunk a shake. At which point one of the remaining leaves broke loose and fell to the ground. As though to tell him otherwise.

But....now there is this! While the leaves on my other (in ground) plants are turning a seasonal yellow these are pushing out bright green new growth like it's spring. And not at the top on the trunk but further down.

This same thing has happened previously, when a cold winter killed back the top but new growth pushed out lower. In fact here's where it first happened, in 2010, the "new" trunk on the left is kind of swallowing up the old scar.

And there's another one, further up. I think that growth-point dates to the winter of 2013/14.

I won't cut back the old trunks until spring sometime, this tender growth will be zapped by frost and who knows where it will begin again. The important thing is there's still life in there!

There are also new plants emerging from the soil, something else that has happened when the main plant is cut back over a winter. The moral of this fav? Sean was right, you really can't kill these things!

So...last weekend brought a break in our nearly constant rain and Andrew and I finally got the walls up on the shade pavilion "greenhouse" (I hope not too late, things are very wet!). As I was moving plants inside a brief sunny moment illuminated the Acorus gramineus 'Ogon' growing at the base of the Tetrapanax.

Lovely...

Planting the Sweet Flag here wasn't a considered decision. I was simply removing it from a place it was no longer desired and couldn't just toss it. Looking around I saw bare soil here and thought, why not?

It seems happy.

Stopping to appreciate that "grass" had me then glancing across the patio to the Liriope growing in front of one of the bamboo tanks. All of these plants came from the descendants of a 4"pot I bought at City People's Garden store when I lived in Seattle in the 90's. It grew in a container until finally being set free in 2005 when starting my Portland garden. This strip was planted with divisions during the spring of 2008. I mostly don't think about it when the patio is full of containers, but it shines during the winter, when the patio is empty.

Here's another plant I'm admiring now, with fresh eyes. It's Asplenium bulbiferum, aka mother fern — because of all the babies it produces along its fronds. I bought this on a whim at the Farwest Show in August. Now that it's been potted up and had some of its older (heavy with tiny ferns) fronds removed it's looking really fabulous.

Great texture combined with those dark, dramatic stems.

And finally Coniogramme intermedia ‘Yoroi Musha’. I picked up a pair at Secret Garden Growers last summer. And they're finally getting some size to them. I feel a major fern project coming on...

The stats on all these favs...

Tetrapanax: hardy in USDA Zones 7-10 (can resprout from the ground in colder climates), happy in sun to part shade with regular water (although my plants in the front garden get by on much less water than I would have though possible). Eventually reaching 8-12-ft tall, and spreading under ground to form a small forest (if you're lucky). Blooms late in the fall, but only in mild climates, in my Zone 8 the blooms are typically cut down by a freeze before opening.

Acorus (Sweet Flag): hardy in Zones 5-9, this grass-like perennial enjoys sun to shady conditions where the soil stays moist, even doing well in a bog or at the edge of a pond. Grows 10-12" tall and wide. Small inconspicuous blooms resembling tiny yellow cattails.

Liriope (I believe mine is L. spicata): Zones 5-9, full sun to part shade and regular water. Reaches a foot high but arches gracefully. Will spread underground to form dense patches. Small purple flowers form in the summer. I've heard of people mowing this plant to the ground in the early spring to get rid of the old foliage.

Asplenium bulbiferum: hardy in Zones 9-11 (comes from New Zealand), I'll be bringing this one inside when it gets cold. Thrives in the shade and with ample water, eventually reaching 3-ft tall and wide. I've been trying to get some of the small plantlets (off fronds I cut) to root, but so far they're refusing to do so.

Coniogramme intermedia ‘Yoroi Musha’ (Asian Bamboo Fern): Zones 7-10 and as you would imagine shade and plenty of moisture are required. It's said to reach 3-ft tall and 2-4-ft wide...which would make me very happy.

I'll end this post with a pair of Tetrapanx leaves from my front-garden plants. They're all rapidly coloring up and I enjoy bringing them into the house whenever I've got an empty vase. What are you enjoying in your garden this October?

All material © 2009-2016 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

20 comments:

  1. So glad your Tetrapanax isn't dead! And wow! The color on the leaves you brought inside is fabulous. Do you have a heater in your "greenhouse?" Or have you ever thought of putting heating mats under some things? I did that with a couple of things I thought might be too wet when I brought them inside, and they dried out quickly.

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    1. We do have a heater, which gets used when the temperature drops below 32. But ya...what a great idea! Use it now to dry things out. You're a genius Alison! (why didn't I think of that?)

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  2. Those yellow Tetrapanax leaves are gorgeous! I've been tempted to try the plant, although I never see it for sale down this way and so would have to resort to mail order. Liriope spicata has proven to be something of a weed in my back garden. I thought our drought would control its spread but it hasn't, although I haven't had the heart to pull it out. Unfortunately, the drought had managed to knock out most of my ferns, including my 3 pretty mother ferns. But I do have some plants that are both attractive and manageable to share this month: https://krispgarden.blogspot.com/2016/10/october-plant-favorites.html

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    1. If I get plenty of babies next spring I would be happy to mail you one. Although right now is probably a better time to send it. I'll look around and see what I've got.

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  3. The Mother Fern looks great in that tall thin metal container! Your plants are ready to ride out the winter snuggled inside the SP greenhouse. Cool after-the-flood tetrapanax story. Does that make Sean Mr. Right?

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  4. Both of those ferns are new to me and quite lust-worthy. Love the drama of those yellow leaves indoors.

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    1. I was hoping I'd have a huge crop of baby mother-ferns to share, too bad my rooting efforts aren't going well.

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  5. That Tetrapanax is amazing ... and amazingly persistent! I love it when I think a plant is a former plant, and then it surprises me! The leaves look awesome in the vase on your mantel, too!

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    1. I am amazed by its tenacity. And thrilled to have a suitable place to enjoy some indoor leaves of substance.

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  6. Woo...I hope my Tetrapanax produces leaves like that when it gets a bit bigger. Here's my Oct fave: http://bannersbyricki.com/archives/5631

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    1. Add those are just the smaller ones. There are a few that I couldn't use because they were just too big.

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  7. The leaves are stunning! I noticed that you are growing bamboo in a galvanized pot. I have some black bamboo left by the previous owner and I would like to move it from the large plastic pot it is currently in and put it in a galvanized one where it would have more room (as well as look better than the black pot). Are these the tubs you can get at farm supply stores? I am assuming that you drill holes in it for drainage?

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    1. Yes, the stock tanks are from Burns Feed Store, I'm sure you have something similar up around Vancouver. We didn't drill holes, there's a drainage hole at the bottom side and so we just took the plug out. The bamboo tanks have always drained just fine so it was a mystery as to why the Tetrapanax tank did not.

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  8. Your Tetrapanax has me impressed! :) It's great when plants are so resilient... and those leaves are fabulous!
    Okay, I shouldn't be using the internet at all right now; data caps are catching us up fast this month! But I couldn't resist posting for the monthly favs, however late...: http://www.smallsunnygarden.com/2016/10/29/the-alnwick-rose-and-friends/
    Compulsive Blogger Syndrome!

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    1. Data caps? Is this a self imposed thing?

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  9. thank goodness for the non-killable class of plants! Agave lophantha is much more of a nuisance for me than tetrapanax, which throws out a few runners in spring maybe, easily pulled out. I love that fluffy asplenium! I've got a mix of plants and ceramics as fav's: http://agrowingobsession.com/?p=75472

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    1. Oh to have the Agave problem. I dream of that...

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  10. That Coniogramme is certainly striking.

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  11. Tough plants really are wonderful. Who wants to have to baby all their plants? I had to laugh at your husband pointing out the dead plant. "Look! Look! Loree killed something!" "...Thanks for pointing that out, sweetie..," with murder in your eye. I've never thought much of Asplenium bulbiferum before, but yours looks stunning in that tall container. It's practically glowing! (Haha, get it? Mother fern...anyway.) I forgot all about a favorites post last week. Maybe I'll get around to it this week. Maybe I'll just wait until the end of November.

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