re: Sesbania punicea
At 10:51 PM 8/23/99 -0400, you wrote:
>> I have a Sesbania punicea which is well over 8 feet tall with all the
>> leaves growing at the top. My husband thinks I can cut the plant in
>> half, the top can be rooted & the bottom half will grow new leaves.
>> I think the plant will die. Who is right?
>> Thanks, Judy Showers, greenhouse gardener in PA, zone 6b
Hi Judy -
I can never recall seeing this splant NOT as a small tree. I used to think
it was because growers always trained them into a standard, but a friend
grew some form seed and they grew into the same shape - a small standard!
You might be able to get the top to reroot, but I'm not sure. And whether
the bottom would resprout is also uncertain. I have always seen these
grown from seed. Either they are difficult to root or do not make such a
good plant afterwards, They tend to be rather short lived anyway, so you
might hasten their end in this manner.
For those of you unfamiliar with this species, it is a fast growing legume
with pinnate, round-leaflets, and bright red-orange flowers in short,
wisteria-like clusters. It grows in warm weather and is not always at is
best in the cool wet of winter. It is not very drought tolerant in the
summer and does best with consistent irrigation.
This small tree was very popular locally for a short time - obviously a
grower made them available and people were excited by its fast growth and
bright colour. I seldom see it now, though it does appear occasionally.
It has recently been observed as an invader in California wildlands, those
along watercourses or on moist bottomlands. It produces copious seed in
curious, 4-winged pods which 'rattle', giving rise to the name 'Rattlebox'.
It is also know to be a weed in South African and the South-Eastern US.
See information from the Nature Conservancy (including photos):
http://tncweeds.ucdavis.edu/alert/alrtsesb.html
I was previously known under the genus Daubentonia.
Sean O.
