I have a curcuma elata that I planted early spring of 06. Last summer it grew to about 4 ft tall before going dormant over the winter. I think it got too much water during winter because it didn't come out of dormancy til July. At that time, it appeared that the main tuber had rotted, but it had sprouted from some "offsets".
Here's my quandry, the little shoots have been growing but are only about 8" tall. Should I:
a-leave them as they are, let them go dormant, hope they are strong enough to come back next year.
b-dig them up and pot them.
If I dig them, do I do it now, to give them time to adjust and keep them in a greenhouse or do I just wait til they go dormant and dig then?
Any thoughts or suggestions welcome!!
Deb
curcuma elata..to dig or not..and when?
Quite often with Curcumas the mature rhizome from the previous season does die off. Over watering would not postpone emergence, cooler temperatures along with a dry spring would do that, especially if you had very cool nights over an extended period of time. When do your spring blooming Curcumas usually emerge? I would begin light waterings at the time they usually pop up to encourage the reemergence, just don't over do it; if it is still too cool out they will rot.
You can either leave your current gingers in the ground and mulch heavily (10-12")when the cold weather arrives or wait until they go dormant and dig them up and keep them dry over the winter in your greenhouse.
Liz :)
Thank you, Liz. I only have one other curcuma (zedoaria) and it came up very early in June. We did have a dry spring and drier summer, plus a very unusual late freeze in April. I feel better now that it may not have been my carelessness with the nearby soaker hose that did in the large rhizome. Anyway, I would rather leave them in ground and mulch them. (I've moved the soaker hose away from that area.)
Thanks again!
Deb
You're quite welcome, ma'am. You didn't do anything wrong, nature just doesn't always do what we would like her to do...lol Our Hedychiums stared blooming a month earlier than usual, no matter when that particular species (or cultivar) normally blooms they all decided to give it their all a full month earlier than usual. I guess you just never know...lol
Liz
I have quite a few curcumas in the ground, and so far here's my idea for how I want to treat them (Liz, please let me know if I am planning on killing them if I do this).
I was going to try placing pots over the plants when the foliage dies back, fill the pots with leafy mulch and then mulch over them...was hoping this would keep them dry and warm. If there's anything else to keep them dry, I'd love to know. I'm going to try some kaempferias this way as well.
Liz: I'm learning that gingers aren't predictable! :) My Hedy. "Moy Giant" also bloomed about 6 weeks early, and my White Butterflies and Hed/ Coccineum are showing no sign of blooming at all!
Tropicanna: I'll be interested in hearing Liz'a opinion on your plan, because I've just put a wire cage with mulch in past, and I'm wondering if the pot would trap moisture or not? If not, it might be great protection...specially for my poor tiny c. Elata.
Deb
Sounds like a good plan. I would say the more protection the better. As long as you are protrcting the rhizome from moisture and freezing temperatures those are the 2 most important things.
Liz