Tropical Zone Gardening: Happy New Year...Ti for Thee, 0 by AlohaHoya

AlohaHoya wrote:
Cordyline fruticosa is the bot. name. 'Ti' is, I think, Hawaiian. The original is the solid green big leafed thing Dave posted...the others in my post are crosses. None of the colored ones come true to seed....and the seedlings produce some really interesting variations.... There is a species called Cordyline australis...which is different - will post pictures of some of those too...they aren't as varied. I believe they are a very primitive genus - related to the Dracaena. They will take a light freeze and come back...but slowly.... All of them thrive in the sun except some of the leaves with white and or yellow which prefer shade/bright indirect light. At last count, friends of mine had over 400 different leaf shapes/colors/growth patterns etc. They are SO trouble free and really easy to start from a piece of the cane..... You could have one specific plant and it might have 3-6 (or more) names, depending on the family you get it from, what youy call the one you found growing by the side of the road, what someone calls it in a book...NOTHING is standardized by the names. For instance, this one is called
Shubertii
Hawaiian Flag
Turkey Tail

And probably other names too. This one has a thick cane and the leaves are HUGE...it is a BIG Ti...while other are quite small and lots inbetween....