Well, this is the year that I have babies! Lots of babies.
Some of these "babies" have larger leaves than the mother plant that died back during our harsh winter.
So far, I have counted 14 babies, though several perished when I tried to pot them up earlier this spring. I checked with Burl Mostel, of Rare Plant Research, who told me he has his best luck digging and potting the youngsters in winter.
I had one apparent success at potting, probably because I dug a sizable baby and took a lot of soil with it.
As we know, volunteers rarely locate themselves in the spot you'd have chosen for them, and I have already removed a few Tetra babies that were too close to other plants. A few more of them will need to go, like the one below one snuggling into Camellia 'April Kiss' and the other menacing a young Camaecyparis thyoides 'Iceberg'.
But this is definitely the year for reproduction success. From little sprouts to robust adolescents, I have plenty of volunteers.
It looks like even if I decide to leave or move some around in the garden, I'm going to have lots of Tetrapanax offspring to share with locals next spring. But be warned: this could be the beginning of what will be your own Tetrapanax papyrifer 'Steroidal Giant' nursery in a just few years!
All material © 2009-2014 by Jane Finch-Howell for MulchMaid. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.