Re: seeding perennials now--Ricinus communis
Forrest Ladd wrote:
> Backyard gardener site didn't respond, but the other two sites did. Neither
> gives information on Ricinus communis (castor bean). They keep growing full
> blast until a frost hits, and I like to see them get very tall. I want to
> know the germination time of seed so I can have some well-started plants by
> the time frost is past in the spring in central Oklahoma.
> Forrest
My tallest castor bean plants reached 12' this year. I started them indoors under
lights in early-April. At the end of April I moved them out of the house to lights
in the garage so the cooler temps would keep them from getting leggy. Once outside
(Memorial Day), the daily watering is probably what helped them grow so big; I
didn't really fertilize or amend the soil in any way. Although they grew steadily,
they really took off about the beginning of August and didn't stop growing until
early November when the cold finally set in. Even now, with the top half of the
"trunks" standing dead, there are new leaf buds near the ground -- tempting me to
throw a rose cone over a couple of the stumps just to see what happens.
Dean Sliger
Warren, MI, USA
Zone 6B
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