Viewing comments posted by chuck7701

Lovely plant, profuse bloomer and re-seeder. If you had one last year that bloomed, they will come back in bunches so long as the soil is not turned over. Sprouts from the topsoil. If they flowered last year for you for any length of time you will have them the following year.

Don't disturb (turn over) the dirt around where they were too much. Seedlings appear in May to June in Zone 8 when the temps stay warmer. Where mine have been, I have to weed them out in rock border cracks, crevices, the grass, etc.

To collect the seeds, look on the stalks where the flowers where, and you'll see a small pod forming. When they start to turn light green, pick them and drop them in a cup. As soon as the pods yellow, they pop and push the seed out from the plant. Wait too long and you won't get any seed. When they grow to 12 inches high, top them to promote more branches and a sturdier bush.

Looks like the one I have, more of the common variety I believe. Fast grower, easily divided and propagated from seed. Makes a great background fence border. Grows in shade or sun, tolerates some drought or dry soil, but will wilt, fall over and not recover height very well if soil dries out for too long. Tends to start wilting or falling over in fall naturally.

Discards all fronds annually with new spring growth beginning in late winter. With spring and new growth, individual fronds start yellowing and die over couple months as new growth emerges. To avoid the unsightly mess and constant pulling off dying growth in spring, cut all the old growth off to the bottom with scissors or trimming shears in late November, early December before the new growth appears, or you can pulling dead debris off for months!

Seed pods can be harvested and sown in pots, or I just shallow bury the dry pods in the fall and transplant the seedlings.

Great shade plant, easy to grow. Propagate by division, takes a year or two to regain good growth after division. Best success I've had is purchasing smaller 4-6 inch or gallon pots of small plants and planting with long-term growth in mind, without disturbing root system or dividing.

Easily subject to ice burns on fronds, or broken stalks from weight. Trim off any broken, damaged or yellowing fronds in February or early March to avoid damage to new frond growth. With late spring freezes, I have experienced damage to new emerging tender fronds, setting the plant back for the year.

Propagating this plant is very easy from cuttings or branches broken off main plant. It is a type of succulent, so very hardy. However, any new cuttings or branches broken off NEED TO DRY FOR AT LEAST TWO WEEKS before repotting to harden and seal the pieces. Planting too soon will encourage rot at the cutting site, and you will lose the whole piece.

When cutting, use newspaper or do the cutting on grass as the white sap is very sticky and hard to remove. Do not know about toxicity of sap, but best to be cautious with sap. Goes dormant in the winter and loses all the leaves when I bring it in to overwinter.

Great outside patio plant in cold zones. Does not like to be dry. Avoid direct sun, which burns the leaves. Easy to grow. Prefers moist climate or environment. Can grow well inside, but A/C or winter heating causes it to drop a lot of leaves. Growth is retarded or goes dormant in winter.

Dividing overgrown pot is easy. Use a long serrated knife and slice through clumps of older dead growth. Can pull off masses of old dead roots. Watch for new shoots developing in the root ball. Repot chunks, allowing room to spread and grow new fronds.

Planted a small one about 3 feet years ago in a sunny location, but soil was too dry. Almost looked diseased. Moved it to am area with more consistently damp soil, and it has grown fabulously. Now about 6 feet tall and wide. Cut and dried branches make great additions to decorative flower arrangements. In zone 8, the hot and dry summer air of these past few drought-type years has seemed to burn the leaf edges, even when watered well.

Looks more striking in winter without the foliage.

These are great plants that can withstand just about anything except ice accumulation on the leaves, which burns the leaves. Snow does not appear to hurt them, other than to weigh them down and break the stalk or the fronds. It is a shade plant in the south. Direct sun will burn the leaves.

Easy to divide. Slow grower. Best left for 3-4 years before dividing. New shoots appear only in spring. Flowers around December, mostly unseen below dirt line. Grows in good to poor soil. Very hardy and drought tolerant to a large degree.

The first time I came across this squash was in the fall of 2014, and it is one of the best tasting winter squashes. Saved seeds and will try to grow some this spring.

For a comprehensive review on mounting and dividing very large staghorns, go to this link.
http://garden.org/ideas/view/d...

For my next outdoor hanging specimen, I am considering some type of heavy-duty, non-rusting, hanging box-cage type of frame. Will fasten some of my divisions inside the frame structure and just let it grow outward. I won't have to worry about rust, hanging chains, etc., and future plant division will be easier. In my experience, it is best to have a 3-4 chain support for balance and leveling since they will tend to grow lopsided over time.

Will post an image of one to the above mounting link when I build it later this spring. I think an 8-12 inch wide box frame of aluminum or stainless should suffice because I want the fern to encapsulate the frame in a few years, with eye hooks on the corners to easily adjust and secure the chains.

Easy to grow from seed. Seeds can be stored long term if allowed to dry in pods on plants. Like the red buckeye, it is difficult to transplant once in the ground. Very long tap root is easily broken when digging. Sow in pots for later transplanting, or plant seed(s) where long-term growth is desired and thin later. Tendency to throw off many stalks, so gets overly bushy. Thin to several main trunks to promote branches.

Easy to grow. Plant fresh seeds immediately for best results. Seeds may or may not last long in storage. Difficult to transplant once in ground. Very long tap root is easily broken when digging. Sow in pots for later transplanting, or plant seed(s) where long-term growth is desired and thin later.

Makes a very nice accent plant/small tree in sun or semi shade.