Q: I received a Tabernaemontana africana, but it is not the
compact
cultivar, from the photo, this is definitely the tree version, not the
compact version?
A: The plant in your picture is Tabernaemontana africana and it is a shrub version, not a tree. The
plants we have in stock are smaller size but very vigorous so they can be
trained into standards.
We have this plant in our garden in the ground (3 years old) and by now
it bushed out and remains under 4 ft without any pruning. Just keep in mind
this plant requires regular applications of micro-elements, because the
species is very susceptible to iron deficiency.
The supplement we use, in case you notice any leaf yellowing, is Sunshine-Superfood.
Q: I purchased Parijat plant last year spring. It had good growth
in Summer, after that I kept the plant inside the house in winter. A couple
of weeks it was ok, after that the plant lost leaves. What is a better idea
for growing Parijat plant indoors in Winter?
A:Nyctanthes arbor-tristis, Parijat - is a semi-deciduous plant, which
means, it may lose its leaves during unfavorable conditions such as drought,
cold, low light and/or humidity. In your case, the plant dropped leaves because
of the stress of moving indoors that includes reducing light and humidity
levels. When a tropical plant loses leaves during winter, this means it goes
into a dormant stage. If this happens, you need to reduce watering and keep the
plant on a dry side, water in only when the top level of the soil feels dry
to touch. Do not fertilize.
Try to place the plant in a well-lit spot such as a windowsill. If the
windowsill and the window glass feel too cold for touch during wintertime,
you may place a sheet of a Styrofoam underneath the pot, and a sheet of a
bubble-wrap between the plant and the window glass, to create an extra barrier
from cold. The plant may re-leaf during wintertime; if not, it may wait until
spring, be patient.
Bring it back into outdoor light when minimum temperatures rise above
65F and resume fertilizing.
Q: I am a rare plant collector and obtained a very interesing
cultivar of Monstera from you that says it's a hybrid Monstera adansonii x obliqua. Is there a named hybrid? The leaves on
this specimen that came in 1 gal pot are much larger than the plant I have
grown in a 3 gal pot for a few years, under name of Monstera friedrichsthalii.
A: Due to their diversity, it is hard to find verified hybrids in
the genus Monstera. M. friedrichsthalii is apparently an old Florida name
for what is actually technically M. adansonii. The "primitive" juvenile growth
is very different from the much larger more robust form that only occurs when
it is allowed time to climb a tree, in which case the foliage becomes very
different and much larger with many many more fenestrations (holes) of various
sizes. If you visit our Garden Center, you can see the mature form climbing
the oak tree in our Shade Garden in front of our office - we use this mature
plant for propagation. If you take a cutting and don't let it attach to a
bark/trunk and climb upwards, it will quickly revert to the wimpy juvenile form.
Seems that even climbing a pole indoors, it never actually develops into the
truly mature more complex adult stage.
Some juvenile forms growing on a tree if given too much shade, do not
develop into the larger mature form. Move it in more light and allow it to climb,
and it will look very different, but still is the same plant under different
conditions.
