TRex (Tetrapanax papyrifer) about to flower?, pups,growth

[DiCasS]

5 to me - 25 to the neighbour.

Di

[DiCasS]

Okay, this is not what I wanted to see. I underestimated. Went round again this evening and had a quick count up, +35, I lost count. I bought eight back and potted them up, why? I don't know. I found one right next to my palm tree which I've now dug up, but whether this will encourage more pups by disturbing it, I'm not sure
Seriously though, I would imagine next door will put down weedkiller to get rid of them, most likely killing my main tree, so my next plan of action was eventually either growing it in a large container, or using a barrier. These are becoming a real nuisance and can't believe only a few months ago was complaining because I hadn't had a pup

Di

[weve]

You have my sympathies DiCass. I live in fear that mine is going to 'escape' its barrier, but they're such a stunning plants! Well worth having.

I don't actually know, but........ I wouldn't have thought a translocated weedkiller applied to the pups would kill the main plant. A mature rex is going to take a lot to kill I would have thought,

Its a lot of work, I know, but if worried, you could always isolate the main plant from the pups by going around it with spade, severing the runners/rhizomes (or whatever they actually are) so no weedkiller can be translocated back.

THis is a bit radical, but if I was in your position, especially with the pups spreading outside your garden. I'd ensure I had some good pups growing safely in pots and then kill the whole lot. Install a barrier and plant a pup. (But then I'm really very paranoid about invasive plants, so perhaps a bit drastic for the more sensible and sane gardeners).

[Dave Brown]

Heavy clay stops it dead. I have no pups in the heavy clay on one side of the mother plant but have had 30 or so pups in the greatly improved organic soil. The pups are not difficult to remove but try not to snap them off. If pulled from the root, they seem not to grow back, but if snapped off will immediatly grow again. Mowing will not gret rid of them as they will regrow faster than the grass.I have found that pulling pups without a base root section will still root and grow. I have loads of small pups being tried out. atm

[Chad]

That is interesting Dave. Aralia behave like that as well, 'pulled cleanly' sort the suckers out, but 'snapped off' seems to encourage them!

My Tetrapanax has never suckered, but it has taken me years to get one to stay alive, and I am proud that this year I have kept some stem alive! I know I have ‘Rex’ and yet I have no suckers, little growth and leaves ‘only’ 60cm across. It is in a sheltered spot with good soil, and its neighbours romp away. I am hoping that now it is ‘established’ it will do better.

Chad.

[DiCasS]

Weve, Dave, thanks for the tips and advice.

I agree, this is one of the best looking plants for sheer size of leaf and one(maybe two) I would always like to have in my garden. I had thought about chopping round the mother plant, severing the roots, but not being sensible or sane think I might go for the drastic measure of digging it up and putting a new plant in, hoping I can keep the main stem alive over Winter.(It will probably be next year now), I'll wait and see how the new neigbours react when they finally move in. For me, my trouble started when some of the main stem died as I never had a pup before then.

Dave, sounds as if they like to take the easy route then, don't want to be bothered tunnelling their way through clay when there's better soil at hand. I tried to get as much of the root as I could with the one I dug up from my garden, and got the horizontal root, but never got all the, what looked like a vertical root which went deeper than I would liked to have dug being next to my palm. I'll keep a close eye on that area, see if any more pop up.

A real problem plant now, but still love it.

Di

[Dave Brown]

The pups are doing well, but here are the main plants

3 Headed back garden Groved TRex with larger leaved pups in the background

Flat leaved ex Steve Jacobs front garden TRex getting quite large now

[weve]

Here's mine today. The leaves look bigger in the picture than in reality, nevertheless 3 of my 4 branches are now growing well and the other branch tried to flower, but aborted, and now may be branching, (hence the "micro-leaves" presumably).

Dave, you're getting quite a Rex-grove there. (you may not want one, but it looks really good )

cheers

[bobbyd44]

shows the amount of diffeence in these mine is the flat leaf type, but there is alot of difference in the leaf shape.

[Mick C]

The pups are doing well, but here are the main plants

3 Headed back garden Groved TRex with larger leaved pups in the background

20100606 BG TRex.jpg

Flat leaved ex Steve Jacobs front garden TRex getting quite large now

20100616 FG TRex.jpg

Dave is there some variegation in the one that you got from Steve Jacobs or is it a trick of the light?

[Dave Brown]

I think that is wishful thinking Mick

Here is a pic of the grove with the larger leaves pups to the right, and the smaller leaved parent to the left

Here are some of the pups I have started to grow

[Mick C]

I think that is wishful thinking Mick

I should have gone to specsavers

[Bob]

Mine also appears to be of the flat leaved variety (DtoJ)
Bought as a very small one leafer last spring, my biggest leaf was about 18" at the end of the year. I'd assumed that I'd need a good sized/aged stem to produce larger leaves, but the 9" main stem is producing leaves of 43" dia atm, which I'm well pleased with. I always knew I would be sacrificing the other plants in that bed as it got bigger, just didn't realise how soon.

[Dave Brown]

Same here Bob, but I am sacrificing a parking space

For anyone that does not believe the stonking growth rate these achieve. Here is the one just planted in my front garden on 11th July 2009

It has not been in the ground a year yet but just look at the difference Look at the border edging wood as a size reference

The lastest opening leaf has a real metallic sheen to it

[Bob]

I notice the stems and underside of the leaves are covered in a thick powdery layer, which I can't imagine slugs and snails can get a good purchase on to climb,leaving the suspended leaves unblemished. It's a different story as they hit the ground or an adjacent plant or static object, like your drainpipe Dave, or my Phormium.

Would be a an ideal candidate for some time lapse photography, which I keep promising myself to do. A frame a day for 50 days, then turning into a gif file for an avatar.