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| We found a nice little nursery at Yandina on Saturday that has a good range of less common tropicals. I managed to get out of the nursery with only a few plants - could have spent hundreds - but did buy a Medinilla. The owner couldn't remember the name of the plant but it wasn't the more common one. He had started a few plants off from one he obtained from a friend up North.
I know it is an epiphyte but don't know a lot about them and can't find much info on the net. I don't know if I should put it in a hanging basket or in the ground. The owner said the person he got the plant from had his in hanging baskets which looked really good. Any hints on their needs and the best way to grow them would be appreciated. Thanks. |
Follow-Up Postings:
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| Hi GH.. Sorry I cannot help much but in my Sub-Tropical and Tropical gardening book, they probably only have the common one and they class it as a shrub. Maybe you could grow it in a pot then if it tends to get the weeping look about it put it in a hanging basket.....Cheers...MM. |
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- Posted by coralcoast_tropicals z11 Qld, Aust (My Page) on Tue, Jan 10, 06 at 7:48
| Hi Goldhills, I have 5 different species growing and find that they will grow in any well drained mix in a pot or in the ground. They do grow naturally as epiphytes in the forks of trees in the Phillipines but unless you are able to ensure that it will receive adequate water and will not dry out at all I wouldn't recommend cultivating them that way. They can take a couple of years to flower depending on the species so don't be too worried if you don't get a flower next season. Hope this helps. Andrew. |
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| Thanks MM & Andrew. I will keep it in a pot for a while then maybe in the ground but that will depend on how it copes with winter here and if I can find a warm enough position. At least in a pot I can keep it warmer. Are they hard to get cuttings to strike? It looks to be the type of plant that strikes easily. I don't know why I buy things I know nothing about but I like the look of the plant. |
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| Hey GH we are all guilty of that. Make the Garden and Life Interesting.... |
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| Medinilla is a zone 10 tropical or house plant and gets to large to grow in trees here n both mine are 3 ft wide by 4 ft tall info: http://mgonline.com/medinilla.html |
Here is a link that might be useful: picture
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| goldhills said: "I don't know why I buy things I know nothing about but I like the look of the plant." I thought that's what gardening was all about and why google was created :-) here's a couple of links (courtesy of google) http://florawww.eeb.uconn.edu/acc_num/198500277.html |
Here is a link that might be useful: a google search
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| Thanks imanut and paradisi. I did do a google search and found a couple of those sites but didn't see the others. I'm wondering if I searched Australia only, I'm always doing that and forget to change back. I know it isn't the more common magnifica as the guy I bought it from had them as well, this is a smaller variety apparently. I'll probably keep it in a pot so it can be kept warm in winter. I hope I can keep it alive and see it flower. |
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| GH yes I have seen some grown in baskets at nurseries but would agree with Andrew - and your own leanings - to leave it in a pot. Adequate water but good drainage. I've had one which is also not magnifica - in the same terra-cotta tub on the porch for... good heavens, 12 years at least since we moved. All day filtered light through the patio cover, afternoon sun but a bit filtered by western trees. I guess I must have potted it on once in all that time. I used a half and half premium poting mix and orchid mix. I treated it like an azalia or tropical rhodo in terms of being initially shallow rooted, so filled the last pot about 1/4 with large river stones first. And put it on pot feet, if you know what I mean. It's spread wider than it's height, and the weight of the stones adds some stability to the tub when it's windy. All I do annually is a little prune of deadwood, top up the soil and I mulch it a couple of times a year as well as fertilizing. It is right now just laden with flowers, so I guess it's happy. |
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| Thanks for that. I put it in a larger pot in the bushhouse and it is sending up new growth already and looking good. My main worry now is winter but I will bring it inside then I think. |
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| I brought one at Bunnings West Gosford NSW and it grew and flowered for me at Gosford. I have since moved to SE Qld and it is growing and flowering in a pot with normal potting mix. It has been burnt by the sun so it would appear that some shade may be appropiate. |
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| Hi John, it does look like it needs a bit of shade. If yours survived in Gosford, hopefully mine will survive here. I actually posted a picture of it on the gallery today. I've put the link below if anyone wants to see it. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Medinilla picture
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