the largest blooms I know of are found on" Miss Emily Mackenzie",a hybrid by Bonnie Vaughn. The pink blooms are often 24 inches long.It was widely distributed a few years ago and should still be available somewhere.

Bluegrassmom--

I have a 4-level split house.
The lowest level Shop, is 80% underground. So--naturally cool...and damp...YUK!
It does not have any heat vents down there--but it is part of the house. Lots of concrete...
The Temp. down there is about a ssteady 58*.

The Brugs do fine there--in a semi-dormant state. They grow little leaves on top which last until spring.
Once in a while--they even throw a bloom, probably because that part of the plant was
about to bloom anyway.
I dribble a bit of water on them now and then. My 2 Clivias are down there as well--
but they are under the shop light. One of them just finished blooming--gorgeous!

I have to tell you that I grow my Brugs pot-in-pot. The 2-3gal. nursery pot gets planted into
a really large pot, 2/3's of a way down. That is how I learned to grow brugs many years ago.
The smaller pot has 1" holes cut, all around, near the bottom. It grows roots through those holes
and into the soil of the bigger pot. When I have to dig it up to bring it inside--I have to sever
these roots with hacking them free and then removing the inner pot.
Then I wrap a plastic bag around the dug up pot--and that is how they live until end of April.
By then--they are ready to sprout--and I just bring them out, in shade, and let them get going...
It is like--BAM! and they are all green.

Every 2 years--I will un-pot them and give them a serious root-pruning. Then...re-pot them
in new soil and they really take off. I do not fertilize them a lot--I use osmacote--nor do i do anything special.
Did have some Whitefly issues last year as well as some Broad Mites on the Dr. Seuss.
That was hard to deal with. I had some "Forbid" someone gave me and that helped.

1--2-Here is a picture of a just dug up (from the bigger po)--Brug. See all the roots it grew through the holes?
It has been cut back--all blooms sacrificed--and ready to go down the Shop for dormant storage.

3--4--The cuttings from the stem's sections rooting and growing. I NEVER take cuttings from green growth!
and I NEVER root the sections on water. Just Mix. Stems, of any size, root really well, even the main trunk--
if you wanted.....
Gita

#5--My Clivia blooming don in the Shop. Some days--i forget to turn on the light. No biggie!

Oh poo! I just lost a whole post .... I hate when that happens.

Elaine - My large pink blooming brug looks very much like yours. I bet it is Frosty Pink.

JT - I have heard that MEM does produce very large blooms. I actually had that brug years ago. Unfortunately, that was before I realized that you can not grow brugs in the ground here in FL (or at least not in my yard).

Gita - Your Dr. Seuss does resemble my yellow-gold-orangish brug, so you may be right in the ID of mine. Thank you.

Your Dr. Seuss is amazing! WOW! That's what I'd like to see on mine. Beautiful!!!!

I have never seen or heard of anyone growing them like you do. Very impressive! You are one of the few people I know who has success year after year when bringing them inside for the Winter. And I am in awe of all of your rooted cuttings! What a set-up you have there! You've got it down to a science. How many different cultivars do you grow?

I have all of my brugs growing in 18 gallon plastic bins. I don't know if that is big enough or I need to go bigger, but they all appear to be full of roots in those bins and seem quite healthy. Or so I believe they are.....

Thanks for posting all those pics, Gita. That is a interesting way to overwinter brugs! I have seen people do a pot in pot for hosta because of moles/voles but never to bring the interior pot inside. Thanks for sharing.

How old is that brug? The trunk is huge!

The Brug can grow to this size in about 4 years from a cutting.

When they get this big--I start looking for where i can give it away,
I do not have room for this size Brug in my basement.
Last two--I gace away to an Arboretum--and they can propagate it and
sell the new Brugs at their "Market Day".

Saddly--the man I dealt with there was a jerk--and he said he no longer
can accept these kind of donations. Now I am stuck.

At this time--I am only growing 2 kinds. The Dr. Seuss and a "Maya".
Maya has variegated leaves and a cream-white bloom, which fades to a soft apricot.

I had a pink on as well--but did not like it's growth habit. Not growing it any more....

Pictures are of the Maya last summer.

I sure wish I was closer I would gladly take it off your hands

Gita - Too bad I don't live closer to you! I would certainly take that big beauty off your hands! LOL!

I like the look of Maya but have read that it does not do well in the heat of Florida.

I love how yours are growing. Any pruning advice on how to get such a nice shape and form on your brugmansias?

I have discovered that it is difficult to find sellers for Brugmansia cuttings or small starter plants. Is there some reason this has happened? A few years ago, it seemed like everyone was selling them and now they are hard to find for sale anywhere.

Becky, I found this site in my search a while back for a start of New Orleans Lady. They have some cuttings available for $5 it appears.

http://www.greenthumbsgalore.c...

dyzzypyxxy said:Becky, I found this site in my search a while back for a start of New Orleans Lady. They have some cuttings available for $5 it appears.

http://www.greenthumbsgalore.c...

I forgot about her. Her NOL is $10.00 for a cutting at this point.

Brugmansia 'New Orleans Lady'
Double orange 2006 introduction. Blooms open a dazzling white and over the next couple of days change through peach to the lovely orange shown in the photo.
Incredible Fragrance -- like fresh cut lemons!

1 Plant
Available


$10/unrooted cutting
$15/plant

Yes, the $5 one I mentioned was the noid pink one at the beginning of her list. Later I looked and it said 'Not Available' but at least that indicates she does sell cuttings of more common varieties for that much.

I guess I'd better get busy and order my N.O.Lady, huh? I think I'm going to splurge and order the plant.

Have you bought anything from her before?

Becky--

The only pruning I do is when i cut it back completely to put it in my Shop.
I never prune it after that. Cutting it back in a way so that you do not have
too many stems sticking out all over with result in a more compact plant.
The picture above--with the dug up plant--is NOT cut back properly.
I probably cut it all down much lower--near the main stem--before taking it inside.
The growth comes from the tops of the cut back stems--so keep that in mind how
you want to cut it back.
Also--I try not to cut them back below the "Y"--but sometimes I have to-like in the above picture.
I am sure I pruned it back a lot lower after i took that picture.
If you leave it ALL THAT SPRAWLED BEFORE IT GROWS BACK--YOU WILL BE SORRY.
(Sorry--did not mean to capitalize.)

Let me show you the "monster" my "Maya" grew into in 2009. It was bizarre! Like 8'x8'!
The only thing I can say is that I had to cut off all the blooms the fall before to take it inside.
That hurt! it was so pretty! Totally full of blooms..Fall of 2008. (see pic #1).
See the kind of cuttings I take? They ALL root in about 2-3 weeks. (#2).

The following (2009) spring--I cut the root ball all around and off at the bottom too
as it came out of the Shop and dormancy.
Then I re-potted it in fresh Soil MIX with some time release fertilizer added in. (AHA!!!).

Mamma Mia!!!!!! it grew and grew--and bloomed profusely. (#3--#4)
It had FOUR massive bloom flushes--one on the heels of the other. I could not believe it!
(pic #5 and #6.)
Then in October of 2009--I was faced with this. (#7 and #8)
After 2 weeks of begging the Arboretum to come and get it--they came--in a large, City
panel truck. This Maya barely fit into it.

My little Maya now is growing well. I am bracing myself..............Gita

dyzzypyxxy said:Yes, the $5 one I mentioned was the noid pink one at the beginning of her list. Later I looked and it said 'Not Available' but at least that indicates she does sell cuttings of more common varieties for that much.

I guess I'd better get busy and order my N.O.Lady, huh? I think I'm going to splurge and order the plant.

Have you bought anything from her before?

No I have not my dear. But I plain to today. She has one that I would just love.
Rhaps

Elaine - Thanks for the link of a seller. I may order from her at some point in the Spring. I really want MEM.

Gita - Wow! Your brugs are fabulous! Simply stunning!!!! How do you get them to bloom like that? Fertilizer secret?

Becky--

I have NO secrets....I hardly ever fertilize--just now and then when I think of it.

If anything--it may be the "Osmacote" or "Dynamite" slow release fertilizerI mix into the soil
as I am potting them up in the spring. It says it feeds for 3 months--or more.

I also want to mention that I have NEVER asked anyone for money for any plants
I have shared--just postage. Isn't that what gardeners do? Share? Maybe trade sometimes...
I have sent cuttings and plants to many people in many States.
Yes! it does take time to package them so they survive the trip. So--round up the postage cost
when refunding.

I think the one I had to chuckle over is ME--from Baltimore, MD--sending someone in FL Brug cuttings....
Brugs grow like trees there--don't they? Here, in Baltimore, most people never heard of one.

I also grow 3 different Epis and some Pregnant Onions...and always--a Brazilian Plume Flower.
I used to have Climbing Onion--but it rotted out after a few years. Too much water--i think.
When I was tossing it out--I found out that the pot had NO drainage. No wonder it died!

Many of these "odd" plants came to me in trades from someone in CA.
Over the years--I have "populated" anyone interested in any of these plants here, in the Mid Atlantic area.
I simply SHARED at any of our, 3 times a year, Swaps we hold.

Happy New Year to you all! in case I do not get to connect with any of you here before that.

Gita

She is out of the one I want so I guess it will be next spring... oh joy!

I love the flush of blooms on the one above. Can you give me names of those that bloom all together like that? Thanks

Teresa, most brugs I've grown put on a big flush of bloom like that, all at once. Then they take a rest, and put on another big flush. For me in warm weather it happens about once a month. Right now, with cool nights, the bloom cycle is 5 to 8 weeks, but the blooms last a lot longer. In hot summer weather they're done in 3 to 5 days.

My sickly Charles Grimaldi has been blooming for over two weeks now, and it's just about finished. I would think it will be at least February before I see flowers again. I think it's overdue for a hard pruning, then maybe it will do what Gita's does next time. One of my Monster Whites is just flushing out some blooms now, though.

I agree with JT.........MEM is sure a big girl. Also sporting a large blossom is Native Habitat Double Peach.........about the same size as MEM blossoms ............but a double.

Gita...............nice to see that colorful epie blossom.............JT shared epie cuttings with a few folks at some Round Ups years ago, and the Gold Medal he shared with me is going to bloom again. Seems early but it has lots of buds! Photo from last year, blooming in the greenhouse.........

Gita - Typically Brugs are difficult to grow in the ground here because of the root knot nematodes in many areas of Florida soil. I can't grow them in the ground here because of it. All of mine are container plants. So, yes! Folks from FL do request cuttings of Brugs. I got some of mine that way originally. When I couldn't find them for sale or trade or share, I started growing seeds that I had purchased on ebay. That is where most of mine came from. Of my 13 small trees, 10 of them came from seeds. (Which in itself was really fun and interesting to grow!)

I appreciate your advice on how you get such wonderful flushes of blooms. I purchased some Dynamite time-released fertilizer and used it on some of my brugs. I have to go back to the store and get more as it is only sold here in a small shaker container. I also added more compost to each container which all my plants seem to like. The weather here is cooler now and they all seem very happy and are looking good. The heat here in FL in summer can really stress many of my plants, especially brugs.

Your Epi photo is beautiful! I grow epis too, but mine are the common Epiphyllum Oxypetalum. I got one as a cutting years ago from a DG forum member in memory of her mother. It originally came from her mother's plant. I have many, many of them now and they are huge. When they bloom it is stunning! The scent is heaven! I had some other more colorful epis but they didn't do well here for me. I've no idea why since the oxypetalum seems to thrive here.



Rhapsody - Sorry to hear the seller doesn't have the one you want. Hopefully someone will.

Elaine - I believe I get flushes about every 3-4 weeks as you stated. Though not as spectacular like yours or Gita. Hopefully that will change and my flushes will be a lot more blooms. My orange-yellow brug is still blooming. Isn't that crazy? She started blooming 3 weeks ago and when one bloom drops off, another seems to take it's place. I've never had a brug do that before. This is the one that some here think might be Dr. Suess or Charles Grimaldi. The fragrance is wonderful, too!

Brenda - I have never heard of a cultivar named "Native Habitat Double Peach". Where did you get yours from? That is a beauty. Most doubles are smaller blooms. (Or at least that has been my experience.)

BTW - Love the color of the Gold Medal epi bloom! Oh how I long for blooms other than white! LOL!