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Carolina Gardening

I have to chop down my elephant ears.

dottie_in_charlotte

17 years ago

These big boys loved the September rains and got up to 7' tall. They are lush and tropical looking now but they have to go. Not the bulbs, just the leaves.

I have GOT to wash that picture window before an important party.

So, I'm figuring to chop the leaf stalks down to about a foot or more above the bulb so I can get a ladder in there.

There's still enough temperate weather to let them put out baby leaves.

Question is..Haven't they had enough time fully leafed to feed the bulb or will cutting off the leaves now be detrimental?

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Comments (8)

rootdiggernc
17 years ago
Hey Dottie, At this point it won't hurt them at all. They're already starting to slow down with the cooler weather we're having. Just mulch them good for winter, after a hard frost.
dottie_in_charlotte
Original Author
17 years ago
Just got back from Orlando (not Disney)and I'm a hankering for a Chinese Flame tree. Dummy me, we drove a golf cart right past one with low branches to get the pods and I should have insisted hubby stop for me to scavenge.

Also saw a tree that looked very much like mimosa but a bit fuller and the blossoms (or seed pods) were dark purple. Couldn't get to that one.

Anyhoo..I don't like putting mulch over bulbs or anything else. It's like erecting a mulch hotel for voles with all they can eat nearby.
I just take the poly foam plant pots and invert them over the stub. Keeps the excess rain off the bulb top. That's worked for 2 years we've been here and the EE's are fine.
The poly foam seems to be adequate insulation.
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I'm not sure what's goin on sherry, I've emailed you several times and still no response! Have you tryied emailing me? My email is linked, I've never had a problem with it before... I would LOVE to have shocker, there's a few more things on your list I might like too! I'm really over run with colocasias right now! I'm offering even more generous trades than before! Especially for EE that aren't really on the market! This post was edited by grabmebymyhandle on Wed, Aug 14, 13 at 13:46
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I have bought a couple of elephant ears last summer, and I have overwintered them indoors. The package says hardy to 15 degrees F. Tonight it's going to go down to 40*F and tomorrow night + the night after + the night after that, temps are supposed to reach 26*F + 27*F and then 27*F again before finally going to 34*F. They overwintered perfectly last night for elephant ears who have been indoors with themperatures at 70*F all winter long, with some wilting maybe even some defoliation, when temperatures went down to maybe 25 or less. I don't know just how far though. Before finally bringing them in for the winter, they dealt with temperatures down to 28*F and have recovered as if no frost ever happened. It was really awesome. Now, enough of my bragging, how far down can they go in a pot? Can they go down to 27*F for two nights in a row, with highs at 47 (day 1) 37 (day 2) and 35 (day 3)? Will they be fine or will they die? So, help is appreciated. Thanks.
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jpe118 - they took a long time to get going this year because it was a cold spring. Put them in the closet, after they've dried, keep them away from ALL light. I place them in a paper lined plastic milk crate, with a large black plastic bag over them, and tucked in on the sides, to keep them completely in the dark. They do still start to sprout in late winter.
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Good to hear others Musa Basjoo are doing great. We are getting 30F tonight according to accuweather forecast link on my computer. I have a variety of Live oak that has survived a year in the ground with no protection this past winter, well actually 3 trees of this variety. It is Live oak "late drop" from Mossy oak natives nursery. It is listed as a variety of Quercus Virginiana. The graceful live oak from the south that is my favorite tree in the universe. The one draped with Spanish moss and branches are wide spreading and evergreen. I will be out there before sunrise spraying the leaves before the sun hits them to hopefully stop damage. The tree has already recovered once from frost, I don't want to push my luck again. I have failed at the regular Live oak from down south 3 or 4 times, so this variety is special. I would say I just got lucky but for 3 to do great after failures of reg Live oak, it is the tree being hardier.
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rosebush
17 years ago
Dottie,
GREAT idea! I'm going to try that for my EEs. Thanks for the tip!
rosebush
dottie_in_charlotte
Original Author
17 years ago
Yipes...I chopped down the ee stalks..gonna need some larger pots to cover the bases unless I wait til all the stalks die back to the bulb. Might just be that.

While I was in there chopping, I realized that the indigofera was making babies..big babies. Pulled one and realized it was attached to a shallow root off the Mom.

Suffice..indigofera is gone. She wanted to make a family grove and that just won't do for the small area it's in.
I'll try it again , another time another place because the everblooming pink flowers I just love.
brenda_near_eno
17 years ago
Dottie, could the mimosa-with-purple-blooms be Georgia Indigo Bush? I think it's threatened or endangered.
willf
17 years ago
I used to run everything we pruned trough a chipper/shredder to make mulch. I'm here to tell you, don't try that with elephant ear stems. What a mess.
Wm
dottie_in_charlotte
Original Author
17 years ago
Brenda, I don't know. This was a tree about 25' tall and fuller than mimosa. It was on the side of the road near a hotel complex so it might have been a planting.
I'll go google Georgia Indigo Bush

Will..that's funny. Yes, I'm sure we can all picture the mush of EE stems. I guess it's like my meat grinder when making turkey stuffing. You put the juicy stuff like onions and celery in and follow with the dry bread to clean out the mushy grinder.
I just hated to do it but I also pulled the bulk of the coleus and all the purslane too. Easier to pull now than when they're frost damaged and so mushy you have to dig the roots out.
dottie_in_charlotte
Original Author
17 years ago
Well, it's not Indigo bush.
The flower looked like a camellia or gardenia shape with curled-back petals. Dark greyish-purple.
We go back down there year after next. Hope I remember to look for it again.

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