Tropicals & Tender Perennials: Tropical Garden #113, 1 by dyzzypyxxy

dyzzypyxxy wrote:
Sunkissed, love those Mex. sunflowers. Mine are just about to burst into bloom, too.

I've grown Brugmansia here for years, both in pots and in the ground. Although I'm a bit warmer than you, my one old pink brug did suffer badly the last two winters. But I gave it no protection at all. From now on, it's getting a sheet thrown over it on any nights that fall into the 30's. It has recovered nicely now, although I was ready to give up on it and replace it this spring it looked so bad. Mjsponies is closer to you, as to winter conditions and she has some I think are in the ground. I'm sure she will chime in.

Some important things - brugs are very easy to start from cuttings and grow VERY fast. You don't need to buy a big, expensive plant. If you know anyone who has one, just ask them for a cutting (about 1ft. with a rosette of leaves) and let it root in some water then pot it up. If you can't find somebody locally to get a start from, one of us will certainly send you a cutting or two, for postage. I have two shades of pink, a white and a yellow-orange hybrid (it's not nearly as robust as the pink and white ones, though). See the pale pink one in the pic.

I started two this spring - mid-April - from cuttings I traded for on DG, and both plants are over 6ft. tall and have bloomed practically non-stop since June. One is already in the ground, the other really should be. I'll post a pic of it in a few days when its flowers open.

They're pretty hard to keep in pots after the first year, just because they get so big. So by all means keep it in the pot for a year, if you're willing to drag it indoors on the cold nights, but once it gets too unwieldy, plant it out, take a couple of cuttings, then just throw something over it to protect it on the cold nights. If you lose it, you have insurance with the cuttings to start a new bush the next spring.

They are very heavy feeders, and like lots of water. The more sun it's growing in, the more water it will need of course. I've seen people grow them in full sun here, or in partial shade, but they do need some sun to bloom really well.

Elaine