Re: dividing restios
- Subject: Re: dividing restios
- From: John MacGregor j*@earthlink.net
- Date: Thu, 04 Aug 2005 11:22:10 -0700
on 8/3/05 8:45 PM, N Sterman at TalkingPoints@PlantSoup.Com wrote:
> I have several terra cotta pots of restios - don't recall which at
> the moment. They've been in the same pots for 3 or 4 years and need
> repotting. Some now fill their pots while others are still fairly
> well contained. Are these plants candidates for dividing? If so,
> any suggestions as to how?
Nan,
Nothing could be simpler. Restios increase the size of their clumps via
short rhizomes. With Chondropetalum tectorum (probably your restio, since
it is the most widely distributed one in this country), I simply yank them
out of their pots, cut back the top to soil level, then set the clump flat
on th ground and cut into quarters (or smaller pieces) with a sharp spade.
Pot these up in new soil, and they take off.
Since most restios make all their new basal shoots at once, usually in
spring, this is best done just before new growth starts. If done now, the
roots may just sit and wait until they think it is the right time to sprout
anew. If you must divide them now, I would leave the tops on to provide
photosynthesis to feed the roots.
John MacGregor
South Pasadena, CA 91030
USDA zone 9 Sunset zones 21/23
