Strelitzia reginae - Bird-of-Paradise Flower

beautiful

Such a beautiful sight.........

Very beautiful.

Amazing, my husband is trying to grow some from seed......

These are lovely plants.

Dottydaisy; mine will be seven years old this year & I'm hoping that it may finally bloom for me. I hope that hubby is patient!

I called into a garden centre on my way home tonight & they had one just coming into flower. Price - £50!!! Not much bigger than mine either.

Good gracious, I cannot believe it £50.00......!! 7 years is a long tome to wait, dont think I will tell him that!!

I was pretty gobsmacked!!
They're very easy to grow from seed & I reckon that I'm probably a year or 2 behind as it was the first thing that I'd grown since I was kid.

Yes, they take a long time to bloom from seed up to 10 years. Here in San Diego since they are so commonly grown...we just get a section from a neighbor or friend. Almost all my neighbors have one or many in their yard. I have only one large clump left now...as I pulled out the large clump in my backyard 4 years ago and gave it away.

Wow!!! 50pounds for a Bird-of-paradise! A 5 gallon blooming Bird-of-paradise costs around 8 - 10 dollars here.

You can pick up a tiddler with 3 or 4 small leaves for about £4 here!!

Meanie:

One about 2 feet tall runs about $4.00 and a 15 gallon very large plant is usually around $25 - $30.

I was thinking of buying a couple of large plants next time we go to Las Palmas as they are only a few euros. Would it be possible to chop the leaves off & empty the pot, just bringing back the tuberous root system, or would I be wasting my time?

Meanie:

Yes, that's very doable...they should grow back quite quickly...and even bloom within that same year.

Thanks for the reply - it's a plan
I found this site earlier.....
http://www.sayers-strelitzia.com.au/dwarf.html
....Dwarf S.reginae that could flower in 18 months!?!?

Meanie:

Good luck! : > )

The dwarf form of Strelitzia reginae is very widely grown here in the street medians along with Natal plum, purple Lantana, bright pink trailing Pelargonium - Geranium, Bougainvillea and Jacaranda trees.

That sounds amazing- all my favourites!

Bryony:

Most of all those plants bloom heavily here in winter with exception of the Jacaranda trees...which are starting to bloom now.