Brachychiton acerifolius
- To: mediterranean climate gardening e-mail forum for gardeners in theseclimates throughout the world
- Subject: Brachychiton acerifolius
- From: M* M*
- Date: Sat, 30 Sep 2000 23:05:14 -0800
Diane wrote:
>I've searched lots of photos and Brachychiton acerifolius
seems to be
>the closest.
That's exctly what I was thinking. If you were admiring
pictures of trees, it's one you would have been drawn to
because when it blooms it gets very prominent red flowers.
>So thank you all. Now I just need to know how many more
years it
>will be before it flowers. It's about 30 now.
I have one that has not yet flowered (it's about five years
old), and I knew of several in Los Angeles when I lived
there. They were not reliable bloomers, but when they did
bloom the sight was remarkable.
To quote from my favorite reference on Australian plants,
"The Australian Gardener's Wildflower Catalogue"...
"In areas with a dry winter and spring, the tree completely
dispenses with its leaves to make way for a spectacular
display of rich scarlet flowers."
So let me speculate that it might bloom if you cut way back
on the water this winter. Either that or you'll kill it.
Good luck,
Mike
San Jose, CA (zone 9, min temp 20F)
