Spicy Red Jatropha

I just made an impulse buy of this plant at Home Depot. It is really gorgeous, claims to be evergreen and blooming like mad. When I got back and did my research (which I normally do first, I promise), it appears that it is going to be taller and possibly wider than I really wanted.

Does anyone grow this plant, especially around Houston? Is it reasonable to plan on keeping it 5-6 feet high or will it be a constant battle to keep it at that height?

Below is a pic showing where I would like to put it. It will go where the sticks (a very unhappy tropical hibiscus) are on the curve.

So now tell me the truth, am I just dreaming that this is the perfect plant for this location? I would rather take it back and get something else than spend all my time fighting with the size of it.

Here is another pic from another angle to give you a better idea of the size of the bed.

This message was edited Feb 2, 2009 6:46 PM

I have two red jatrophas that I have had for approximately five years and I keep them around 6 feet tall. I usually have to trim them back once or twice a year and I have never felt it much of a chore.

This message was edited May 14, 2008 2:05 PM

Thanks phughes. That really is good news because I really like the plant and if it will work, then I think it will look good in that spot. Once or twice a year, I can handle. I just don't want to run into a situation like people do with red tip photinas where it is supposed to be a tree and people keep cutting them back to a 4 foot shrub.

thinking outside the box (or bed) if you made the bed bigger then you wouldn't have to mow as much and everything you want will fit fine. My jatropha didn't get very tall or wide and I was most happy w/that.

Ann

Well, I will put the plant in and if it outgrows my space then I will have an excuse to enlarge the bed!! LOL! Thanks.

I grow both the pink and the spicy red one in south Texas. They don't like cold weather at all, so I prune them back each spring and you don't have to worry about keeping her the size you want. I couldn't find my pictures of them last year, but , if I do, I will come back and post again.

They are two of my very favorite plants I have!!

Thanks so much. I went ahead and planted it this evening and I really like the way it looks, so hopefully, it was a good decision. Guess time will tell.

Here is a pic with my new beauty and her friends. Of course, now I need to remulch the beds since I dug in them and they got messy looking.

If you want her to branch out, you can also trim her now...........great looking plant.........good luck............they bloom here from March until January when the first cold front comes in.........they don't die but I would cover her up with a blanket if it freezes...........

Thanks. I will make sure to note that she needs to be covered in a freeze.

There is a compact red jatropha cultivar also. I have never grown the compact, but I assume it doesn't branch out and get as wide.

Your flower bed arrangement looks very nice. I think you will be happy with your selection.

Thanks phughes.

Patty, where have you been , woman!! I miss you around.

I had one in a container last year. It stayed healthy and put on buds, but the buds are in "clusters" and only half or so of them would open. That was the only disappointing thing. It was in blazing sun, and occasionally a leaf margin would burn a little bit, but not enough to be unsightly.

DP

Mine is in a large container and I have to prune it back each year to fit it inside my greenhouse because it grows like a small tree. Now is 5 feet tall and 3 or more feet wide after pruning. I am assuming that if it were in the ground, it would grow much larger. I also have a dwarf type in a large container. Unfortunately, I did not cover it this winter and it died back completely to the ground. The base is green; however, it has not sprouted back out. It may be a goner, but I will wait to see what happens.

Mine are in containers and I have them on the east side of house or the north side of the house as they can't take our blazing west sun.

I jut double checked my pot and it say that I hve the compact variety, so I would think that will help with the height. I hope it does well because I really do like the plant. It is very lush looking and that is what I was hoping for in that spot.

Okay, all of the leaves have fallen off my spicy jatropha plant. Will it come back from the ground or will new leaves come from the branches that are already there or does that mean that my mistreatment over the winter has lead to its demise?

If it will come back from the ground then when I start cleaning up, I will cut back the branches.

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Sheila

Sheila, I would wait to see if it leafs back out. Mine has lost a few leaves; however, it still has most of them. Scrap a branch and see if it is still greenish looking - if it is, it will leaf back out and there is no need to whack it to the ground.

I always leave mine outside through the winter but Houston is a few degrees cooler than in south Texas. I just wait, trim mine back in February and they come right back out. Both my red and my pink ones have few leaves right now.

We have had lots of sustained freezing and below freezing temperatures this year. I have not protected my jatropha. Usually, when it has been this cold of a winter, it loses its leaves. Lots of other tropical plants that I have not protected have no freeze damage. For some reason, most of these uncovered plants have not sustained freeze damage.

Glad to hear that you haven't protected yours. We have had lots of close to freezing temps and it has dipped below freezing, but not usually sustained that temp for long. I will check and see if it is still green. I do need to trim it back a little, but not to the ground if I don't have to.

Sheila, hopefully, it will be okay. Mine is in a container next to a fence to its north side and has some protection from a few oak tree branches high above it. I do have a blanket over the top of the soil.

Mine is about 7 ft tall under large oaks and has been for 2 years. I have never covered it and it loses its leaves each year but always comes back very nice. Haven't had maybe 3 freezes for about 2 hours each time so that wasn't much harm. So far the small freezes we had have not hurt any of the plants or fruit trees.

Well I scratched a branch in a couple of spots today and it is still green, so hopefully it will recover and leaf out.

Yippee! :o)