New to the forum.. couple of questions for ya'll

Hi.. I'm new.. Found the site while looking for ideas on making my yard a little more tropical.
I'm in Deep South Texas (Harlingen) bout' 30 minutes from Brownsville.

I got some great deals today at the local nursery (I think the guy was selling cheap after the boss went home) but,

I got a big 4' bushy plant (forgot the name, but it's real popular) leaves are red,yellow,orange,green..waxy..
I got 2, 3' Ti plants.
I got 1, 4' Giant Bird of Paradise. All of that for $60 :)

Okay enough gloating,, I just didn't have any one else to tell, ....on to the questions

I have a Lacy Tree Philodendron and I know they are supposed to grow like a tree but is there any way to stop the trunk from getting longer? I really like how it is now, with the trunk only about 3' long, but if it gets longer eventually I would have to cut it out as it would be out in the middle of my yard. I don't think I've ever seen one of these grow straight up.

Next question: The Giant Bird of Paradise I bought today... How tall do ya'll think it will get if it is in an indirect sun location? and is there any way to keep it from getting too tall (say, over 18')?

Sorry for the book length question.. but the guy at the nursery, however great the deals was, didn't really know a whole lot about his plants.

The 4' bushy plant is maybe a croton?
Nice price for that lot.

I don't know the answers to your questions.

yes, croton, that's it... really pretty... I'm on vacation today, I have to put all these plants in the ground.. before it gets 95f degrees outside. Yuck!

Aloha Rio - I also don't know the answers to your questioms - but I did want to welcome you to the TGZ forum!
We have some real tropical experts here and I am sure one will be along to answer your questions soon

Jenny

Hello Rio, and welcome. For the question regarding P. selloum, you cannot cut that plant in the middle of the trunk and get new sprouts. Unfortunately, it will continue to get bigger and your only choice is to remove it the whole way to the ground. Hopefully you have some other suckers around that 3' trunk.

As far as the Giant Bird of Paradise, or Traveler's Palm, these are big puppies. This is a plant that requires huge space, even in partial sun. It will take many years for it to grow to 18', but it can get as tall as 30' with a 15' spread. Perhaps you can consider enjoying it that spot and then planning to have to cut it down after several years (be careful, the trunks get heavy and hard to lift or remove over time), or relocating it to a place in the yard where it can get huge.

Good luck!

Giant Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia nicolai) and Travelers Palm (Ravenala Madagascariensis) are not the same plant; and the Traveler's Palm will get MUCH bigger than the Giant BOP.

If you do a google search of just the key words giant bird of paradise, it gives you 3 pictures, one of which is Ravenala. But, I think you are right, Dutchlady- that name is probably attributed to Strelitzia nicolai, however this is just the kind of confusion common names can cause. Here is the link to the plantfiles information for Strelitzia nicolai.

Hi Rio,
Travelers and Giant Bird are 2 different plants. The Giant grows about 20 ft. but EASY to control if you keep the trunks thined 2-3. You live in a good climate for sub/tripicals! You will have lots of fun! Pictured, giant Bird. Very easy to mistake for travelers.

Thank you everybody, good stuff!...

LApalms.. when you say to "keep the trunks thinned 2-3" what do you mean? Only let it grown 2 or 3 main trunks?

Yes Rio,
It puts out many little trunks (like a climping date palm). Just keep two to four trunks grow and snip out the extra suckers. They don't grow fast so this is easy, with the bonus that the good trunks receive the nutrients normally taken by the small aggresive suckers. These plants are true beauties! Very sensitive to 34F and below per the SWGB.



This message was edited Jul 5, 2008 10:36 PM

Here's a good example of a travelers palm which was at our hotel in Thailand. I originally thought it was giant birds of paradise - as they are very similar.


Mike

I thought mine was big until I saw that picture!!

I have a Ravenala madagascariensis which has gotten to about 30 feet tall in 12 years; and a Strelitzia nicolai which is just under 15 feet in 10 years.

Be careful when removing suckers. Folks here have been known to kill their plants by trying to dived them up for more plants.