Is this normal??

This is my first year to keep full grown brugmansias in the house for winter. I figured with the temps being nice this week (70's/50's), I would go ahead and bring them out to the porch for some fresh air. They have been growing most of the winter by a window in my dining room. I lugged them all outside a little bit ago and noticed a lot of droopy branches and leaves. The brugs look weak. I guess my question is, Is this normal or should I do something? I've noticed this on some of my cuttings with growth too. Should I feed them, should I bring them back in, or should I just let them be?

Jason

Here is my daydreams cutting. I had to pin it up with chopsticks to keep a form.

This message was edited Feb 19, 2007 7:48 PM

Hi Jason, your plants looks so healthy. When I grow mine in the window they can sometimes lack a bit more light and it could be the same with your plants. That can also be the reason for the droopy branch. Nothing to worry about really :) If it is your first season with Brugmansia you will probably be surprised when you put them outside by how fast they grow and how many flowers that they will get in the course of the summer. btw. have you noticed that your plants sometimes will crook their branches a bit and point their leaves upwards during the dark hours?
Tonny

Thanks Tonny. I actually just noticed that the leaves do that about a month ago. It looks pretty cool. Hopefully they'll get some good sun this week. It looks like it may rain today but the temp is going to be 77and I am glad to have my dining room back. It was overpacked with plants. Hopefully I can get some blooms soon on my daydreams. I just got it in the fall from Brugie and am excited to see it bloom. It started growing some buds, but they seem to dry up and fall off before maturing. Maybe the cutting is still too small or maybe its the light issue, but hopefully it will do better now that it is outside.
Jason

Jason,

All of my large Brugs look just like yours, only yours have more leaves than mine do! As Tonny commented, it is amazing how quick they will leaf out and get lush and full once they get outside for the summer. You have nothing to worry about.

Erick

I'm hoping to see blooms on the one in the first pic soon. It's one I got from a friend and was unknown name and unknown color. I'm hoping it is yellow since most of my yellow ones don't look so great. They were in the ground, but hopefully they will come back.

Jason, I can easily put myself in your shoes, how nice it is to finally having your dining room to yourself. We had a like experience here back in 2006, when we was making concrete floors all over the house and also had to fix up the wintergarden. There was plants everywhere. It was nice for a start, but boy was I happy to put them out in the wintergarden a short week later.

I think, that they will be delighted with a little sunlight. You are right about the day- and sunlight will make them bloom earlier. Pls. post a few pictures of 'Daydreams' when it bloom :) I only know it from pictures, but it looks beautiful and have had such good recommendations. btw. How is your winter in Texas? Are the frost periods about to be over? Back in time I grew a lot of different Datura varieties, which originated from Texas. I remember, that I was told, that these was frosted in their natural habitat, but emerged again every spring from the roots :)

Erick, how are your winterand how long are your growing season? I note that you are in zone 4b. Do you have those extra long days in the summer with intensified sunlight?

Tonny,

Here in Minnesota, we have very warm summers (and usually at least a half dozen days with temperatuares above 100F) with lots of humidity and ample rainfall. But our growing season tends to be relatively short. We can't really put anything even somewhat tender out in the garden until late May, and our nightime lows start dropping below 32F starting in late October - a total of just five months for an outdoor growing season. But us gardening diehards (nutcases?) don't let that hold us back. With proper planning and some culture tweaking, we can grow pretty much any tropical in our gardens. The notable exceptions are very large tropical bushes and trees, which quickly become impractical to move indoors for the winter.

My dozen or so large Brugs have been in my basement with virtually no light for nearly four months now and they are doing just fine. No leaves, but healthy stems and lots of new grow ready to go. The one mistake I have made in the past is not watering them enough during their "dormancy". I got the impression last year that they only needed a bit a water once a month or so, but I found that to be much too little, and lost a several of them. I now water mine lightly once a week.

Erick

Wow! Its pretty much that long season we have here :) The Brugmansia goes outside 20 of may and comes in again from 20-30 of october depending on the weather. Trees are figs and laurels are in containers, but already goes out on 1 of april. The same does pelargonias. They all can take a light frost.

Great that you are watering more now. When I started with Brugmansia I also lost some, because I let them dry out. I lost some also because I drowned them in water LOL Mine has leaves on them, so I use to look for signs in the leaves to tell me when to water. As it is right now I water 1-4 times per two weeks, but some more often and others not quite so much.