Ensete maurelii post mortem (contains upsetting images!!)

[weve]

Dug up my 'deceased' maurelii yesterday and it was crawling with woodlice and various other beasties.

It was overwintered in the ground protected by my plastic greenhouse (min temp +2c) and was doing ok with some leaves retained (albeit untidy) and had the beginnings of a new roller in early Feb only to be followed by a sudden decline. I removed the greenhouse in late April

After digging out the remains of the E.m. yesterday, saw a finger sized hole in the side at just below ground level which went into the centre of the growing point (you could stick your finger in and out through the top of the plant). There were other 'eaten' holes in the still living tissue too (lots of it looked still alive and healthy, including several good roots). I soaked it in a weak h202 solution to get rid of the beasties so I could get a good look at the damage. There is definite evidence that some healthy tissue had been attacked and eaten.

I am now wondering if pests caused the demise rather than rot, and any rot set in afterwards (see Dave Bs post about the slug!) The maurelli had been crawling with woodlice before its deterioration, but I thought nothing of it.

If so, it may not be just down to temperature that make these so difficult to overwinter in situ. After all much of it, including the roots, is still alive and free from any rot.

Side view: Showing finger sized tunnel right into and through the growing point

Beginnings of eaten out holes in still living tissue (The two black bordered depressions middle of picture)

[grub]

Weve it might be worth potting it and chucking in the greenhouse. You never know, you might have set it up for a bit of propagation.

[mushtaq86]

The corm still looks pink and if it is still solid, pot it back up,in a greenhouse with high temps,in a greenhouse at this time of the year it might start to pup,i doubt it will grow again from the original p-stem.

[weve]

Cheer chaps! Thanks for the advice. Its now potted up and will be put into my propagator (my greenhouse still not erected yet!).

It'll be interesting to see how it fares.......not lost anything by trying.

Thanks again

[Dave Brown]

Weve, that looks similar to my big Maurelii stump left in the ground that died in 2008/9 winter, with a hole just below ground level to the heart of the pseudostem. I doubt slugs would bore thier way in, or out. In my current one they ate the roller as it emerged then just ate their way down the soft growth point to the heart.

Just wondering what might eat/chew its way in, or out. Some sort of grub that overwinters or something that burrows in and lays eggs Odd that it is just below ground level in both cases. It might not be a big hole but may allow rot to set in which enlarges it

Suggests it might be better to dig out and store the rhizome/pseudostem soil free and dry, which was my intention for mine this winter.

[mushtaq86]

could be grub of daddy long legs

[weve]

Just to continue the 'horror show' and to round off the thread. Here's a pic of the ensete now (i potted it up, put it somewhere warm and humid..... perhaps too humid and this is the result..... exotic fungi ).

left in the ground undisturbed i think it may have had a small chance of pupping, but as soon as I dug it up (thinking it had had it) I think that was that for the poor thing.

Not trying another for a while, there's a whole world of other plants out there for me to kill
My exotic 'kills' so far:
1 x Sabal minor
1 x (small potted) T rex
1 x Echium candicans
2 x begonia luxurians
1 x Phoenix canariensis_CIDP
! x ensete maurelii

[redsquirrel]

i think you can safely bin that one weve dont despair though,ive 2 in the ground here doing not a lot,come september,they will be looking for good homes for winter,would you give them some shelter? i will happily pack them off to you if you have room for them as i wont

[weve]

Red: That would be great!

I'm a bit of a "Dr Bernardo's" for plants here. i'll give anthing free board & lodging

cheers

[redsquirrel]

well done mate,ive got a couple of those black colocasias im hacked off with too.they can come in the box with them

[Dave Brown]

I've given up with trying to overwinter Ensete in the ground. I've been trying on and off for 30 years with the green seed grown and even in the mildest years they surcumb in March or April. Maurelii is more hardy than the green, but it is very rare to get one through, although several did in 2006/7. Montbeliardii seems more hardy than Maurelii for me, withstanding -4C.... but, and a BIG BUT, they have to be dry, and that is not possible in the ground in winter.

I can give them dry all summer when they want wet, but can only give them wet when they want dry in winter.

Even in large pots once growth ceases it is very difficult to dry them out enough to successfully overwinter dormant. Up to now the only way to growth heses was to give enought heat to keep them growing to use the extra moisture in the compost, but having sucessfully overwintered my Montbeliardii by digging out and storing dry, I shall do this with all ventricosum in future, even the potted ones.

Small ones really need to be growin on before trying to store, so summer grown pups would be best kept in heat of around 6 to 10C.

While I have given up attempting overwintering in the ground, the dry store has opened a whole new chapter in the size I hope to get these.

This is my 3 year 'Montbeliardii', after -4C bone dry in a small pot winter 2008/9, then dug out and soil and roots removed. Then stored dry winter 2009/10. Currently approaching 4m in height.

For the full history of this Ensete http://www.hardytropicals.co.uk/forum/v ... 111&t=6506

[redsquirrel]

its ideal if you have the facility to do it dave.would cutting off the leaves and removing most of the compost kill them?

[Dave Brown]

its ideal if you have the facility to do it dave.would cutting off the leaves and removing most of the compost kill them?

No, I cut off all the leaves, removed the soil and cut off the roots then dumped it in a pot with no compost and stored upright. If you wanted to you could cut the pseudostem down, and it would still grow but if you cut too low you will pup it However autumn is the wrong time to try to pup, that is best done in spring/summer

[redsquirrel]

might try that with a couple out back.they have romped away compared to the other two,grown under the shade of my Trachycarpus.odd innit??

[weve]

Dave
I was well warned by you (and others) that it was difficult (or nigh impossible) to overwinter these in the ground before embarking on my 'experiment', so I knew it was a long shot, but i wanted to give it a bash nevertheless...... (nothing ventured etc.) Didn't allow for it being 'eaten' tho..... and I picked a bad winter to try it too.

Will bow to conventional wisdom in future and store them 'dry', as you say. but thought it worth a shot tho', especially down here!

cheers