Questions on "Species"

My first Brug that I bought - I noted in another thread that the skirts sometimes do not drop. Is the skirt dropped on this blossom? I don't really know what to look for. It is nearly a foot long, & 10 inches wide. Is this average? With the shortened NorthEast growing season, I wanted to know if the blossoms were normal. My former neighbors had Brugs for years in pots, but mine have outgrown several pots & they are now in the largest pots I can offer. Is there something I can do to ensure I can maintain these Brugs so they don't outgrow my largest pots? I love these plants, & I would hate to give them up!

I wish I could answer your questions, but I am very new to brugs myself and I am sure others can answer your questions better than I could.

I just wanted to tell you what a truly lovely flower that is!!!

You have mail!
Alice

I'm not sure if that's Species, maybe Monika will be along in a little while. She's much better at ID than I am, lol.
When I kept brugs in pots here is what I would do when they outgrew the largest pot:
Take the whole plant out of the pot. Scrape off some of the old soil and roots. I think about a third of the soil is enough. Trim some of the top growth, but leave the Y and 6 nodes above it. Repot in the original container with fresh soil, water in, being careful not to overwater. Increase water as new growth begins.

I'm bad about repotting so I can't answer you. Just wanted to tell you that I love your picture.

JRush, I can tell you what I do in my 9 zone and you could adapt it for yours. My plants do not go dormant, just slow down in the winter. In early spring I take my alley trees out of their pots. They are in pretty big ones.

I cut off half the root ball with a small plant saw. I boil saw between brugs. I then prune back the canopy by about half also and shape it. (general rule is you prune above ground about the same amount as you have pruned below. Though in the spring when plant has a big growth urge, I find I can get away with pruning the roots a bit more.) I do try to leave 4 to 6 nodes on each branch above the first Y at least so it gets off to a fast growth start.

I then repot it in new soil. If I didn't do this, I would not be able to keep them watered in the summer as the roots quickly fill the pot. They seem to love this treatment and some have been in the same pot for 4 years now.

I think you may have to cut the roots and canopy in the cold fall in your zone esp if your plant is too big to store inside, then let it go dormant and then in spring it would take off.

Pretty brug!

I think Calalily summed it up pretty well, that is what I have done with mine. and it worked. You have a truly lovely bloom!

I am so glad you posted this question, I have just learned lots!!!!
Thanks everybody I have wondering what I was going to do with mine this winter and the info has been very helpful!!!

Beautiful flower. Cannot add to the excellent info you were given above.

Boy, I would love to have one that bloomed like that. I've never seen one ten inches wide. The length, yes, that is normal. Great looking bloom in your picture. A tree full of those would be very nice.

Thanks so much for all the info - is it safe to cut back the roots before placing it in dormancy? I worry that it may die after the shock... can it wait until Spring when it comes out of dormancy? I am glad to know I can keep this plant - it is such a show stopper! More blooms are on the way. I think a large tree would be spectacular! Will someone post a picture of a large Species? This plant is from Logee's greenhouses. It matches the photos in their catalog, but I would like to know if it isn't indeed a Species!

P.S.
The scent is wonderful - especially in the evening!

Is this a horizontal picture?,my Species seems to hang more pendular then this bloom,sure is a great looking bloom!

Very pretty bloom.

Photo was taken at a slant. Is the skirt dropped? Does that refer to the flower-in-flower apprearance? It loves the alfalfa pellets... formed lots of buds within days of feeding. This variety is not nearly the bug magnet that the others are... I had no idea how much aphids, beetles, etc loved Brugmansias til I got a couple more!