This summer was quite a good growing season for tropicals. My banana trees topped out around 9 feet which is much higher than in the summer of 2007. All good things must come to an end though and today I tucked in one clump of my nanas to rest for winter. This year I'm trying to keep about 3 feet of the stem to jump start growth next spring. I'll keep piling on leaves as they compress making sure the stems stay nice and insulated. Time will tell so check back next spring for progress.

Poolside tropicals

Here are my tropicals growing nicely by the pool. This particular morning was mystical with all the fog. Having fog in June really doesn't happen to often. I'm sure all the plants enjoyed a little extra humidity though. Elephant ears are about a foot tall now at least for one of them. The other two are only a couple inches high so I'm waiting for them to catch up. Stay tuned for photos of the monsters. Last year the one elephant ear grew to almost 7 feet tall.

Plumeria still growing

All is well for the one plumeria seed I started back in March. Here is a photo of it as it enjoys nice sunny warm weather outside. You might notice the large plumeria trunk in the background. That one is a few years old and just now getting ready to bloom. I rooted that one from a cutting several years ago and it's doing great. Not sure how I'll fit it inside this fall though as it's about 6 feet tall and about as wide.

Canna seeds sprouting round 3

After three attempts, I'm finally seeing green canna tips poking above the dirt. I've perfected the germination of canna seeds, but this is the first time the seeds have grown once planted in dirt. My foolproof method of germinating them first involves using a metal file to scrape off the surface of the seed just to the point of seeing white. Then I place them in about a half inch of warm water, cover them and sit the container on top of the fish tank cover right over the light. I have the light on during the day and off at night so the water heats up pretty good during the day and cools down for about 7 hours at night. In about 3 days the seeds sprout. I leave them in the water for about a week, but change out the water every other day. When the white sprout starts growing hairs, plant it about a quarter inch deep in potting soil, keep moist and wait. It took my seed less than a week to poke above the ground. Happy seed growing.

Gardenia bloom

The gardenia gods are on my side. I lucked out and actually got a bloom to open. Woo hoo! I think what really helped was the moisture meter. Without that I'm sure I'd have been to wet or to dry. Let's hope for many more blooms. This one smells terrific.

Plumeria leaves growing

Growing strong so far. Now I'm just waiting for the second set of leaves to appear. As for the other seeds, I'm about to give up on them. I am having luck with a hibiscus seed I started about a week ago. The leaves don't look like hibiscus, but we'll see how it grows.

Plumeria leaves appear

What I thought would be the most difficult to grow is turning out to be the only seed that sprouted. Here is what my plumeria looks like at almost a month old.

With no activity on any of the other seeds, I've replanted other seeds in three pots. So the count begins again for another adenium, canna and a hibiscus seed. Maybe with longer daylight and warmer temperatures these will germinate better.

Plumeria growing strong so far

Temperatures in this room are in the low 70's and occasionally upper 60's depending on the amount of sunlight. I was hoping the plumie would grow faster, but at least it's growing. No signs of life in all the other 10 pots though.

Elephant Ears now available at Home Depot

So there they were all ugly and dried up like an old potato just waiting to be bought. Call me crazy, it may be January and only in the 20's outside, but what better time to think about hot weather elephant ears. Last year was my first time growing a softball size elephant ear bulb and I can't wait for warmer weather to plant the ones I just bought. Run to the nearest Home Depot and look for the boxes full of huge elephant ears. You'll be treated to massive leaves and a tropical looking yard like I had last summer.

Plumera seed germinates!

Almost 2 weeks to the day, one of the plumeria seeds has sprouted. No activity on any of the other seeds yet, but my fingers are still crossed.

So you can see what living conditions are like for my seeds here is a photo of the south facing table they sit on. The seeds are in the center of the photo and have been covered with a bag since I planted them.

Planting the seeds

This year I decided to venture into the world of growing canna, plumeria hisbiscus, and adenium from seed. I spent many hours researching online at great sites like:

http://www.gardenweb.com
http://davesgarden.com
http://www.logees.com
http://www.stokestropicals.com

Stay tuned for my seed growing experience. I started planting seeds in early January. They will be placed in a sunny south facing window and kept moist. Here is a photo taken January 5th of the 4 inch pots with seeds planted. The soil is a mix of sand, cactus/citrus potting soil and perlite. I plan to cover them with ziploc bags to keep them from drying out. Hopefully that doesn't hold too much moisture and rot the seeds.