New Member - Thames Valley / Nr. Ascot

[Mac]

Hello I'm Mac, and I think I may possibly be an Addict!

I'm a long time gardener, but in recent years (increasingly) an admirer of Palms and Tropicals (since holidays in Lanzarote), I have dipped my toe in the water very slightly and tried a couple of things, I've spent loads of time browsing (longingly) around the gardens and plants on this forum, and have now decided that some of the slightly boring ordinary garden shrubs in my garden have just got to go, to make some room for an "urgently" needed/desired "Hardy Tropicals conversion".

I have an urgent need to go Tropical, big-time "NOW" in time for spring/summer!

I Love sitting/eating /living on the Patio (It's an extra room in the summer) and admiring the garden vista, frequently with a view to changing things.
I have a (successful) history of digging medium sized things up and moving them any time of year just cos' they've got bigger or they might just look better somewhere else.

I'm interested in any unusual or striking Tropicals with an as yet unfulfilled love of Palms, Bananas, and Aroids. Just lately I've been doing some (a lot) browsing research for my Start/Wish list which includes (but isn't limited to) the following in rough order of urgency/desirability:

T-Rex
Burgundy stem
Various other Aroids
Waggi
a few other Palms
Plus …….. Top of the list is a plant I have not seen on here at all …… YET! More on that later.

Any advice at all on good (but cheap preferably) sources to get started, in and around the Thames Valley would be very much appreciated.
So, …….. we'll see where this takes me.

Happy Gardening, and may all your plantings succeed.

[Yorkshire Kris]

Welcome Mac!

Don't leave us in suspense

Plus …….. Top of the list is a plant I have not seen on here at all …… YET! More on that later.

what are you after? I'm sure someone on here will have one!

[Dave Brown]

Hi Mac, and welcome

It can get quite expensive if you want large plants straight away, so cheaper to get the hardy backbone in as early as possible, and rely on the quick summer stuff for your exotic paradise to start.

[Mac]

Hi Kris and Dave,
Thanks for the welcome, I've now done a bit of "start-up" ordering and feel much better now that's (partly) out of the way and I'll have somewhere and something with which to start my Tropical dream.

I was slightly worried about revealing my first "Must have Plant" ... in case there was a "rush" it got sold out before I got mine ordered.
I actually HAVE seen reference to it on here before, but not sure if anyone actually has one growing, maybe though?

Anyway, this is what I ordered to start off with:


Seeds:
First is the most important, what a fantastic plant to have if the seeds are succesful! I should/will have some spare if anyone wants to have a try ............... I'm more than happy to share some seeds.

Ravenala 'madagascariensis'
Nepal Laburnum, Travellers' Tree, Madagascan Travellers' Palm

Pride of Tenerife, Tower of Jewels, Viper's Bugloss

Bat Plant, Bat Flower 1

Bat Plant, Bat Flower 2

Plants:
COLOCASIA ESCULENTA 'BLACK MAGIC'
COLOCASIA ESCULENTA 'FONTANESII'
COLOCASIA ESCULENTA 'ILLUSTRIS'
CHAMAEROPS HUMILIS var.ARGENTEA small hardy palm
DICENTRA SPECTABILIS 'GOLD HEART'
DICKSONIA ANTARCTICA Tree fern. Small

DRACUNCULUS VULGARIS Netta Statham's "Old Smelly", Appallingly scented enormously large maroon flowers July, lovely snake-mottled shoots.

What I didn't order yet but have in my sights:
T-Rex …… Must have (I'll be straight onto that one tomorrow)
Colocasia Jenningsii ???
Brahea armata
ALOCASIA WENTII (out of stock)

Chamaerops humilis

brainea insignis (I think I saw Andys and liked it)

Bamboo Ginger Costus stenophyllus (Looks brilliant)

Elephant Foot Plant Dioscorea spp.

For future reference (possibly):

Golden Shower Tree Senna fistula X Cassua fistula

Royal Poinciana Delonix regia

Dwarf Orchid Tree Bauhinia monandra
'Napoleon's Plume'

Acer Shindeshojo

Can't wait to get started now!

[redsquirrel]

hi Mac,was trex your only must have?
Dave is right about the backbone, something i didnt do at first but am getting there now.
thats quite an impressive list to try and get going all at once

[Mr List]

Golden Shower Tree Senna fistula X Cassua fistula

!

lol.

[GREVILLE]

Hi and welcome. You could even bring back some items from Lanzarote. My garden and patio has quite a collection from the Canaries

[kata]

Hi and welcome Mac,

I saw an Image of the golden shower yesterday, Its just like our Laburnum. The Golden shower tree seeds is also poisonous so take care where you plant it if you have children..

I found the flower on Google, lost the site sorry but I do know it looked in a beautiful setting.

Its fruit is medicinal.

Its the National flower of Thailand which probably makes it not hardy but nothing is known about that.

Its a very fast grower, I expect with the right conditions, that be heat lol which we don't have Asia's heat.

It is a medium-sized tree growing to 10-20 m tall with fast growth. The leaves are deciduous or semi-evergreen, 15-60 cm long, pinnate with 3-8 pairs of leaflets, each leaflet 7-21 cm long and 4-9 cm broad. The flowers are produced in pendulous racemes 20-40 cm long, each flower 4-7 cm diameter with five yellow petals of equal size and shape. The fruit is a legume is 30-60 cm long and 1.5-2.5 cm broad, with a pungent odour and containing several seeds. The seeds are poisonous.

The Golden Shower Tree flower:

Pride of Tenerife flower

[grub]

Welcome aboard Mac

[Tropical Bob]

Hi and welcome, hope you get all that lot in the ground and growing well

[Mac]

I had to go out to work for 3 or 4 hours today, you know how it is duty calls - and it's a few extra pennies in the bank Right? ....... RIGHT!

Well on my way back home, as I was sort of passing anyway (40 minute diversion), I thought I'd just pop into one of THOSE places for a quick peek (never been to one like this before). So, just to see what it was like, and to get a rough idea of the lay of the land, you know what I mean.
Anyway, an hour and forty five minutes later I eventually managed to escape from that place of temptation, having been charmed and led astray by FOUR lovely ladies at a wallet crippling cost of £255 for heavens sake!

AND ................ as I drove away, I realised (too late) that they were ALL in the car with me!
One was stretched out wantonly in the front passenger seat (the tallest) with the seat-back fully reclined, another was laying stretched out across the back seat, AND there were another two petite ones hiding in the BOOT! ........ What on earth was my wife going to do when I got home, would she notice anything? ......... Aarrggh, PANIC!

I rather stupidly thought she might NOT notice if I tried to sneak the two small ones in first, (she did notice though, and just gave me a knowing look) but a few minutes later when I tried vainly to sneak in the two "Tall Very Beautiful Ones, Well all of a sudden she sat up and TOOK a lot of VERY interested notice indeed!

What I have ended up living with, apart from an injured back and wallet, is:

Trachycarpus Fortunei 7' 9" in the pot
Trachycarpus wagnerianus 5' 0"
Chamaerops humilis 3' 6'
Chamaerops humilis Vulcano 2' 6"

I am of course "blaming" Dave as the "ringleader" (he started it) AND all the rest of you for encouraging me with your comments, smooth talking ways, and ........... your lovely pictures of what might be!

@Red Squirel : No, I think there are loads of other "must haves" for me but T-Rex is definitely one of the "Big Leafs" that has turned me Tropical! And it's one that I'll certainly be looking for VERY soon! (If I'm ever allowed out on my own again.)

@Mr List : OK, You're the bad boy then, .....Behave! lol

@Greville : I did try quite a few illicit "cuttings" from Lanzorote, but our priority of course was loads of duty free stuff, so they were just small tender bits that didn't really last. If only we'd had a case big enough for one of those "Wantonly Waving" palms .................. there, you've started me off again now!

@Kata : Hi, Thanks for the welcome. I had come across a few pics and info of the small trees while browsing for what might be good and different, and as for the "Pride of Tenerife, Tower of Jewels", unusual & brilliant isn't it, I'm looking forward to that one and can you imagine popping a seed or two here and there (anonymously) in friends gardens? I can!

@Grub : Thanks grub, I'd seen your garden previously (I'm jealous), and you're absolutely one of those that I'm Blaming! Haha

@Tropical Bob : Thanks Bob, I'm sure that with the wealth of experience and knowledge and hints from all of you,my garden will all also turn out eventually, ........ hopefully soon!

Bring on the ..... SUNSHINE!

[jezza]

Be interesting to see when you've done everything. I'm only half an hour from you, might have to pop in next time i'm that way

[kata]

Pride of Tenerife, Tower of Jewels

I like that myself Mac, never heard of it before.

You have much spending yet I wonder, who did put those plants in the car..HAHAHA

[Tropical Bob]

HAhaa great story Just remember that once bought plants can never be taken back for a refund, however much her indoors moans, as plants are for life not just for the weekend, and besides without you generously adopting them theyd all be homeless in this cold winter and die.... or worse still be burnt

How did you fit an 8ft Trachycarpus in your car!? let alone the rest of them hahaaaa! That deserves some sort of medal on its own Maybe next time you unload you could do it stealth under the cover of darkness......

[grub]

@Grub : Thanks grub, I'd seen your garden previously (I'm jealous), and you're absolutely one of those that I'm Blaming! Haha

Mac that's terribly unfair of you to place me on your list of blame when I'm also stuck in the Thames Valley