When it comes to growing tropical plants, including plumerias, some
gardeners will tell you that these plants cannot be grown in temperate
climates. Recently, I have been asked how tropical plants and plumerias
can be grown in less than ideal conditions meaning outside their native
subtropical and tropical climates.
Tropical plant lovers can let their imagination run wild in creating
tropical gardens of their own with all the new plants and information
that is available to them these days. No longer do they have to listen
to all the naysayers telling them it can't be done. Gardeners can
create a tropical garden with banana plants, heliconias, plumerias, and
other beautiful exotic tropical
plants. Many of these tropical plants have been developed and hybridized
for this very reason.
In temperate climates gardeners have to grow their tropical plants in
pots, and supplement what is needed to re-create their native
conditions. The tropical plant gardener in temperate climate zones has
to adjust the plants and growing conditions to fit his or her local
garden parameters.
For example, if a gardener wants to include banana plants in the garden
design, instead of growing banana plants that grow twelve feet or more,
like Musa 'Ice Cream' and Musa 'Monthan', growing dwarf fruiting banana
plants is the available and correct choice.
Excellent dwarf fruiting banana plants include *Musa acuminata 'Dwarf
Cavendish'*, *Musa acuminata 'Dwarf Lady Finger'*, and *Musa acuminata
'Super Dwarf Cavendish'*. These dwarf banana plants don't take up much
space and can produce fruits when provided with the correct growing
conditions.
Another excellent alternate choice to grow in temperate climates are
ornamental banana plants, called *Musa ornata*. They produce colorful
inflorescences, flower stalks, which carry inedible banana fruits.
Colors of the inflorescences include red, white, purple and pink. An
excellent edible choice is *Musa velutina*, also called pink flowering
banana. The fruit is actually edible if one doesn't mind the seeds. The
bananas actually peel themselves back when ripe. Musa velutina starts
flowering and fruiting once it reaches three feet in height.
When traveling to tropical destinations vacationers encounter heliconias
growing in the wild. Many heliconias grow so tall that they would not be
considered suitable for container growing.
But there are also many smaller heliconias available that can be grown
successfully in pots outside during the summer months and inside during
the colder months of the year. One group is Heliconia psittacorum which
grows happily in a pot. Cultivars include *Heliconia psittacorum 'Lady
Di'*, *Heliconia psittacorum 'Strawberries and Cream'*, and *Heliconia
psittacorum 'Andromeda'*. Several plants of Heliconia stricta can also
be successfully grown in containers, including *Heliconia stricta
'Firebird'*, *Heliconia stricta 'Sharonii'*, and *Heliconia stricta
'Bucky'*.
If one's
growing space is restricted or limited in size, *Heliconia stricta
'Dwarf Jamaican'* is an excellent choice. This is a true dwarf heliconia
not growing more than two to three feet high. It is a bushy plant with
heavily pleated leaves which have a thin red stripe down the center.
The bracts look like miniature lobster claws and are comparatively large
in contrast to the size of the plant. These bracts last a long time.
Plumeria plants are another group of tropical plants thought to be
impossible to grow in temperate climates. By providing the correct
plumeria care these plants can be grown as far north as Alaska. Plumeria
care involves choosing the correct potting mix, soil additives,
fertilizers, and more. This is true for all tropical plants.
There is a feeling of serenity when one watches the flowers of plumeria
plants which come not only in many different colors such as white, red,
yellow, pink and rainbow, but also have unforgettable fragrances which
include citrus, coconut, gardenia, jasmine, peaches, roses and many
more.
Plumeria plants can grow quite tall, but can be maintained at the
desired height with the correct pruning techniques. In recent years
several dwarf varieties have been introduced, including *Plumeria obtusa
'Dwarf Singapore Pink'*, *Plumeria rubra 'Divine'*, and *Plumeria rubra
'Mini-White'*. Divine and Mini-White are considered true miniatures.
Another dwarf hybrid is *Plumeria obtusa 'Dwarf Deciduous'* which
produces large white flowers with a strong citrus fragrance.
Plumerias over the last fifteen to twenty years have gained more and
more gardeners' attention worldwide. More and more international
gardeners who have experienced plumerias first hand through their
travels, or have discovered them on the internet are including them in
their tropical garden designs. Plumerias are also known and called
'Frangipani' which is their recognizable name around the world.
These are just a few examples of tropical plants which can be grown
successfully with proper care in temperate climates. Other plants that
the tropical gardeners can include in their newly designed gardens are
gingers, calatheas, proteas, and tropical rhododendrons.
--
BobWalsh
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