I got a Cestrum 'Orange Peel' shrub. I think it might be tender, and I put it in a pot so I can put it in the garage or my dining room in cold weather. It has been distributed by Monrovia, and is a Dan Hinkley introduction, so I think it might survive in the ground. Has anyone tried this?
No but love the pot and the plant.
I agree, both are beautiful! Besides, a gardener has to push the zone limits and experiment sometimes. Would it be possible to keep one in a pot and try another in the ground in a protected location?
Sigh..... my pot that was similar to that was stolen from beside my front door last summer, in broad daylight, on a Friday afternoon. They dumped the contents out on the ground and just took the pot. I try to find solace in that whoever it was liked my taste in pottery but mostly, I just get mad!
Blue pots are my very favorite. I once asked for blue pots for my bday and my sisters bought me six of them in all sizes.
Willow-My sister gave me these pots! Maybe we are related.
mhf-I might try to propagate it-it seems quite vigorous and is growing fast. Then I wouldn't mind if I lost it in the ground.
ladyfiresign- I would be mad too. Why don't you plant a Euphorbia with lots of toxic sap in a new pot and put it there. Just kidding.
Here it is today. What a nice shrub. It took about a week off from blooming in midsummer, but otherwise is always in bloom. Blooms are soft orange, do not require deadheading. The blue pot echoes the Ceanothus behind it which happens to be reblooming now, but the flowers are hard to see in this picture.
That is really beautiful. Thanks for sharing new pictures.
Wow that really took off and is very pretty. Have you worked out how you're going to test it's hardiness?
I think this winter I will just put it in the garage if we have a cold spell (last winter we really never did), then plant it in the ground in the spring. I read in a book that for Cestrum I can do tip cuttings in spring or semi-mature cuttings in the summer. I will make new container plants if it works, to have backup if the one in the ground dies. But I don't really want it in a container in the long run, it needs watering every day when it is hot, which does not fit my long-term garden goal of making things easier, not harder. I like the location it is in now, but it is a bit exposed to winter winds. I could try it in a slightly more protected spot if it dies there.
MLM, it looks like your plant could get HUGE! Are the flowers frangrant? Do you look down on the lake?
Finally, you ladies with pot-giving sisters are so lucky. Hurray for sisters! How can I get one?
Velveteena you got me to go get my camera, I knew I needed to update this thread. Here it is today. It had a bit of trouble this winter due to a neglectful owner (me oops). It was left outside the first night of the cold snaps both in Dec, Feb, down to 10 degrees here, then pulled into the garage where it severely dried out. It wilted bad but perked up with water. Quite a bit of branch die-back, but sprouted out in spring! Blooming now for months again. I think I might put it in the ground. I also think it could get huge, but would tolerate pruning, as the cold-dry was basically pruning. It is now too big for the pot and I had to water it every day while it was hot.
It is lightly fragrant only. My bit of lake-view is just about gone, as all the local trees are growing. Oh well now it is a tree-view house, also nice.
