Protecting T-REX.

[karl66]

Mine is planted outside. When people say you have to protect thr growing point does this mean just the top of the stem,or is it best to cut the leaves off & rap it up. karl.

[sanatic1234]

Protect the grow point on them. The leafs will fall off anyway so i have read.

[Yorkshire Kris]

Karl all are root hardy when established and most are stem hardy to at least -5. Mine received no protection last winter when the temp dropped to -10 and it still didn't lose the growing point.

The leaves will drop off first then if you wish, chuck a blanket etc over the plant on the coldest night or perhaps put a pepsi bottle filled with straw over the growing point if it turns really cold.

Also see this

[karl66]

Thanks, i have this afternoon wrapped a fleece bandage & tied it at the top of the growing point. karl.

[karl66]

Well after protecting the growing point i have still lost almost all the leaves. I have 2 big leaves left but one is half off & then only the small emerging leaf .

[sanatic1234]

I really hope i don't jinx myself when i say this But so far so good with mine all in full leaf from the summer and the growth point is protected with half a cut pepsi bottle, This put over the growth point then the outside of the pepsi bottle wrapped in 2 layers of fleece, I have also tied the bottle to the leaf stem so that it doesn't fly off on windy days like today. I shall put the bottle back over it today with frost forecast for tonight.

Don't worry karl about it losing leafs i have read loads of topics on here where peoples have been stripped to just the main stem and growth point.

[Kristen]

Mine, in a frost-free unheated conservatory, has lost all its leave. Growing point looks fine though.

[Dave Brown]

I think these are classed as semi evergreen here, as if you have a very mild winter with frosts no lower than about -3C it will keep it's leaves. However, this winter I have only had -2.2C but the wind has litterally ripped the leaves off most plants. The 1.5m leaves are lobed, but stand no chance in 50/60/70mph gusts.

This is where hardiness falls over as it is a personal opinion based on a multitude of variables, most of which you can't easily put your finger on Kris says his growth points were fine in -10C, where as I lost between 50cm and 1m of the stem on all plants in the same temperature.

One thing that has become apparent on both the ExMulu Monster, and the Cornish Grooved, is that when the growth point is damaged, any pups allowed to grow, reach 1.2 to 1.5m of stem in their first year, much, much quicker than the parent plant. This means losing a growth point on an established plant is not problem in terms of height the next season.

I have fleece draped over the growth point to protect the vulnerable soft emerging fists, much as you do with Dicksonia antarctica knuckles, but if we are forecast a a deep freeze I'd wrap the whole stem to ground level. Leave about 10cm of leaf stalks which will allow air gaps when wrapping.

Jim Hardy's experience in the US has showed that they are root hardy and return after around -17C.

[Yorkshire Kris]

The recent winds have ripped all the leaves off mine. In the centre is just a mass of flower buds.

[parkeey]

didnt protect mine last winter at all in all that snow , all leaves fell off and shooted in spring again, it has doubled in size now and getting a monster!

[Mr List]

i was going to see how it fared on its own but i bottled it yesterday.

i filled a plastic bell cloche with straw and put that over the growing point then a threw some straw in a fleece bag and put that over the newer softer looking trunk

[huporhaha]

I have six or seven of these. Three small ones look non-existent in their pots in the greenhouse. The others still have their leaves. All are undercover. What hopes are there for the little ones? I have also splashed out on a steroidal giant that looks suspiciously like the rexes. I wanted one with deeper lobes on their leaves but so far it looks just the same. Time will tell I suppose.......