Re: Cordylines
David Poole wrote:
>
> Moira wrote:
>
> >Dave
> >I can't let you get away with siting Duncan and Davies in Christchurch.
>
> Sorry Moira,
>
> I would rather say it was just a slip of the tongue, but have to admit
> it was a slip of memory. The last time I bought lining-out stock from
> them was in 1980 and for some reason have associated them with
> Christchurch - don't ask me why. Marvelous stuff though - I do
> remember being very pleased with the stock that arrived. Glad to hear
> they are still going.
I am sure D and D forgive you!!
>
> > I do actually have two
> >Cordylines, however. C australis came courtesy of nature
>
> Yes C. australis appears here courtesy of the birds as well - I pulled
> out quite a lot of seedlings yesterday and consigned them to the
> rubbish tip. I only have a red leaved form of this - known here as
> 'Red Edge' and 'Dutch Red'. It is a good purple with a ruby red edge
> and veins that almost glow in the light of a setting sun. I was very
> sniffy about them before I got this, but an 18" seedling just over a
> year ago is now a strapping 5 footer with good, long broad leaves and
> a decent trunk. Feeding heavily with a high potash fertiliser has
> maintained the brightness in the oldest leaves, with none of that
> dirty brown colour you so often see with the 'reds'.
These sound lovely. The so-called reds we have here seem to be mostly of
the brownish variety. Perhaps we should be trying the potash treatment
too. Trouble is that being native most people here think they can just
fend for themselves. And indeed the common green australis pretty well
can, surviving all sorts of adverse conditions such as forest fires
(Though, as you have possibly heard there has been some mysterious
sudden death afflicting a lot in the far north. Luckily the tide seems
to more or less run out around our latitude. I believe they think now
they know whatdunnit, but I am not sure if the have come up with a good
treatment.)
Have you ever come across the australis cv Albertii (aka Sir Victor
Davies of D and D)? This is quite popular here especially for containers
and is certainly beautiful with leaves striped in creamy yellow
sometimes flushed with pink. Apparently it was selected in Belgium early
in the century. I have never grown it myself and wonder if it is
somewhat tricky, as it is never all that common.
The only other I
> grow is C. indivisa which I have as young seedlings. I'm keen to give
> C. banksii a go at some stage as well, but cannot find a suitable
> place for it.
C indivisa is very tricky in the dryer hotter parts of NZ. I have seen
it grow beautifully for a few years in some local gardens and then die
equally spectacularly in a dry sunny summer. I have also seen it in the
wild in the moist misty mountain conditions it likes flourishing
exceedingly and looking very striking with its wide light green leaves.
C banksii I haven't actually encountered, but I gather it is much more
inclined to produce a family of stems than australis. Our local guru
suggests it is more suitable for small gardens than australis becoause
of its more modest size.
>
> >The other which I acquired
> >last year, is C pumilia in a lovely red form (I think it is called Red
> >Fountain).
>
> This sounds very interesting, does this form an elongated stem
> eventually or does it remain as a tuft of leaves? I'm not sure
> whether it has put in an appearance over here yet. If it has got to
> Australia, I might be able to get hold of it via an importer I know.
There have been several attempts to introduce this species into commerce
here before and I remember buying an early cultivar which did not
survive. But this seems a much more sturdy plant and has come through a
full year with me in a shady border without any problems. It is a very
nice red, similar to your australis I suspect (perhaps I should be
dosing it with potash). My book on cultivating NZ natives confirms this
species is a genuine dwarf. It says "a small usually stemless plant
forming clumps but sometimes with a short slender stem 30-90cm high,
rarely taller." It apparently will eventually amount to a clump about a
metre across, but needs plenty of room from the start to accomodate its
veritable fountain of long narrow leaves (up to 90 cm long and only
1-2cm wide). I have it next to a clump of Hosta which should keep it in
order during summer at least. At present it is rising out of a sea of
forgetmenot which self-sows in this border every spring.
I also raised the energy to go and look at the label and confirm the
name is indeed 'Red Fountain"
Moira
--
Tony & Moira Ryan <theryans@xtra.co.nz>
Wainuiomata,
New Zealand (astride the "Ring of Fire" in the SW Pacific).
