Hardy Tropicals UK

After a gorgeous Sunday morning stroll in Colombia road Market I have purchased my first Dicki it has no trunk but is very wide spreading I thought £15 was a bargain. But now I am wondering if I should wait till spring to plant it out. And if there is a way to make it look taller could it be planted in a section of tree fern trunk.?

The smaller it is, the less likely it will be to tolerate cold winter weather. I would leave it potted and just move into a garage/shed/porch if you have sub -2C forecast. I would not advise planting into an existing old tree fern trunk as they need a large root system that they wont get in a trunk. They are still very nice plants without a trunk.

Thanks for the advice I will keep it sheltered and wait till spring

Hi philip. I had a baby one with no trunk but it died sadly. If you next have £20 spare mate have a look on www.seagravenurseries.co.uk you can get yourself a 1FT trunked Dicksonia antarctica for £20.

Hi Philip, why don't you use your one as a 'guinea pig' plant it out now, keep it well watered etc, until rainy spells become more frequent, then just fleece it when it turns frosty.

I'm sure you'll be looking to buy a bigger one some time next year anyway, and having that small one survive will give you the confidence to do it.

Thanks Nigel I will give it a go I have decided on the spot opposite the Trex which is going great guns by the way .did the echiums pull through I have three candicans now nice and bushy . The bajoo is doing well one 4ft piece has just come in to spend the winter

Let us know how the fern goes next year Philip.
Glad to hear the T. Rex is doing well though, along with the Basjoo.
Those E. Candicans you gave me faded away unfortunately. you're obviously more green fingered than me.

Philip, just an idea. Stick it in a bit of soil pipe, wrap an old dark wooly round the bottom, hey presto! instant trunked Dicksonia antarctica

Hi Philip.
I planted a small Dicksonia antarctica in a 300mm Dicksonia antarctica trunk and its doing fine, however I do water it every day If it doesn't rain.
Jas.

Good to hear its ok has. Long term it will suffer as it won't be able to set down decent roots.

Tom2006 wrote:Good to hear its ok has. Long term it will suffer as it won't be able to set down decent roots.

Tom,
I was hoping the roots would grow through 300mm of old trunk and into the ground. I hollowed out the old knuckle and planted the new plug plant in compost. It is now solid and has obviously rooted into the old trunk. I wait to see what the winter brings as I have a poor track record at keeping Dicksonia antarctica! I will throw a fleece bag over it and will keep my fingers crossed. Let you know if it survives the winter.
Regards Jas.

No it wont do that unfortunately as the old trunk will be rotting down VERY VERY slowly as its dead plant material now.

How on earth did you hollow it out so much? I tried on some of my stumps after last winter but it was a nightmare and I gave up and just bought new. To be fair I was only going to put in some young large hardy ferns and will try again next spring.

Is it in the ground? If not, bring it under cover and keep a close watch on it drying out IF we have a dry winter as some are predicting.

Long term, unless the hole goes right through so it can push roots out into the ground it wont thrive, probably will survive but that is all.....sorry.