hi, i just wanted to add a little info here. the laurels grow very long tap roots and do not like to be transplanted more than about 2-3 feet from where you pulled them up from the ground. i would recommend starting them in a tall container before planting them in the ground. be VERY gentle with the root system, it is VERY sensitive and any damage during moving can cause stunted and delayed growth/blooms. also fertilizing for faster growth is unneccessary, faster growth can actually delay blooms by up to 3-5 yrs. some of these trees have been known not to bloom until they are more than 10 yrs old. they are slow growers and will often go thru periods of dormancy. im not sure what triggers the sleep or wakes them up. my guess is temp and water. remember, texas is green in the hill country but it is still a dry rocky sandy desert on top of old limestone. too much water or not enough heat can cause little growth and death. your best bet is to plant the seed directly where you want it or in a container that will allow for a 6-10 inch long taproot. alot of root will develop before the plants start to grow above the soil. if you planted the seed in the yard expect the root to grow as long as 2ft before the plant itself is 6-12 inches. breaking off any part of the root system can be detrimental during the first couple years of growth. if you are having trouble starting the seeds, drill a tiny hole in the top just into the flesh or score it thru the shell wih a file . the shell is super tough and may take some creativity to break into. ive heard of rubbing them raw with sandpaper if they cant be easily scored. afterwards soak them in warm ( simulate texas rain)water for 24-48 hrs. seeds that swell to about 3x size will grow quickly, others will take longer. you can place them with the hole/score side pointed up on top of potting soil, then layer about 1/2 inch of sand on top. this will mimick the dry caliche dirt in texas. i would recommend a bottom layer of whatever soil the tree will be planted in after it is removed from the pot to aclimate the sensitive roots system. these trees do not require watering most of the time. excessive water will kill them off. i would not recommend any pruning as it will inhibit blooms, most of the time the tree naturally grows into a rounded or umbrella shape. if you do decide to prune, leave the flowers and "snakes" ( i call them that too:). leave the seed pods on the tree until they fall off or most of the green has toned down toward greyish brown. the seeds need time to mature. you can take them out of the pods and grow them just as they begin to turn from light green to pink and this may help speed up the germination process because the shell is still soft and thin. it is not unheard of for a seed to wait 2-3 years to finally sprout. this is a SLOW growing tree that can be trained into a bush or tree art( like benches etc) it can be trimmed to have a single central trunk or multiple trunks. ive even seen one trained to be a trellis. i think they look best with 5-6 trunks, it helps spread the canopy and gives more flowers. they enjoy hot days and full sun the most. as for the bugs that eat them, try to find out what sort of birds eat the bugs and try to attract them to your yard with seed or homes. otherwise i would look for a biodegradable spray like lemon juice or vinegar or orange oil. make sure these dont hurt the tree before you go all out on them. if i remember correctly the best time to spray for pests is during july-august while its the hottest. this tree is a lovely plant and once established(3-5yrs)it takes nothing but time and patience to grow. make sure you keep the seeds away from small children, they look just like candy. in most cases the seed shell is so thick and smooth that it passes thru the body without harm. however if triggered it can generate a potent toxin that i believe is semi narcotic. this plant has a bonus to being poisonous however, deer wont touch it! i doubt that livestock would be much interested in it either. this plant is supposed to be very disease resistant but has been known to catch things (like cotton rot). if you live in a colder climate it may be more inclined to sickness and pests that are resilant to its toxins. also colder wetter areas may be hard on the roots. if you do plant north of texas give it a little hill so excess water can drain away from the tree.add a layer of dark, heat absorbing material to the base of the tree, i have seen trees in cold climates with shredded tires mixed with cedar for mulch and it did an awesome job of keeping heat and excess moisture. i wouldnt worry about wrapping it up in the cold unless you get one of the sudden death defying freezes mid spring. i lived in the texas hill country for 15 yrs and it never really got cold enough to do major damage. however areas prone to ice stoms might be a problem. you could try saving a budding spring tree during a sudden freeze by using the fruit growers trick. turn on a sprinkler before the ice comes in and let it wet the tree until the ice is done. this may help keep ice crystals from shredding the cell walls. however it could send it back to sleep for a couple years as well. here again drainage is super important. try placing some pastic sheeting around the base of the tree to divert the water away from the main roots. this might also help insulate the roots. i havent tried it yet as our new trees here in oklahoma havent been started. ill update yall next spring if they survive the winter. i hope this info helps! wendy

Lisa, Thanks for getting past the subject line with input on the Autumn Sage question. Glad to hear it is doing well for you on the east wall at about 2 ft. They're still our leading choice for replacing the nana yaupons below the windows, but asked because we found them to be a bit temperamental about location in our heavy clay soil while experimenting with them in our backyard. Will go ahead and try a couple out front (east) this year before pulling the yaupons the next. Still want to take a look at myrtle-boxwood/mountian-lover. Unfortunately finding some native to the southern end of its range appears unlikely for now, though interest in new cultivars for landscape use seems to be growing.

kimivu: TML has a reputation for being difficult to transplant because transplanting a 5' tree tends to leave roots behind. The tree dedicated years to getting those roots established, and it resents having them disturbed/chopped off during the transplanting process. To optimize the procedure, dig deeply around the tree outside the drip line before attempting to lift the root ball. Years ago, I was part of a four-man crew that transplanted a six-footer. Once we had dug to 2' deep all around the tree, each of us used our shovels simultaneously to leverage the root ball out of the ground. I can't promise that we didn't leave any roots behind, but the tree survived in its new home. Back then, we weren't aware of the benefits of liquified seaweed when transplanting, so we used plain old tap water. Drenching the soil with 1 oz/1 gal seaweed once a week helps any species overcome transplantation shock, and you can use it any time of year. Despite these measures, if you notice any part of the transplanted tree suffering from stress, remove it to compensate for root loss. Finally, it takes a while for TML to recover and reestablish its roots, so you may not see any top growth for 2-3 years.

The main warning we got when planting TML on the north side of Dallas (8a) was about occasional flower loss because the buds set in the fall. We've had one in the ground for several years without any die-back, though has only been flowering the past two which were not particularly harsh ones. We had the Sophora worms/Tent caterpillars (Uresiphita reversalis) for the first time this year, but they devoured our little Baptisia and never made it to the larger TML on the other side of the house.