What's you most unusual plant that you grow???

17 years ago

OK, folks....whats the most unusual plant that you are growing here in the UK?? Is it a non-native/tropical/difficult/expensive plant etc etc. Have you bought it as a plant/grown from seed/cutting etc etc?

My most unusual are Desert Roses/Adenium Obesums that I am growing from seed. I have tried two batches and I can get them to germinate, but I find they are difficult to keep growing during the winter when they must be kept fairly dry especially if they go dormant. This 2nd batch has been more sucessful and I now have 5 nice young 14mth old plants. Hopefully I will get them to flower. They like lots of light and heat so I realise I will be lucky to keep them thriving. I saw my first one in Bangkok a few years ago and fell in love with them as they can grow huge swollen caudexes. I have only ever seen them for sale once in the UK and they were pricey. I also grow plumerias, strelitzia, several types of palms, echiums, various orchids, and far too many other plants, or so my d/h keeps reminding me.

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Comments (6)

garden_nerd
17 years ago
What a delightful view! Rather different from my own ramshackle semi! Plants are nice too.

I'm quite keen on growing stuff from seed exchanges - even if I've never heard of it before. One plant that I've got from this source is Vincetoxicum scandens (sounds appealing, NOT) - it's very hard to get any info about this in garden books and so far it has not flowered. It's probably a noxious weed in some far-flung part of the globe so I've always wondered how it ended up in the RHS seed exchange. Maybe this summer I'll find out if it was worth growing or not!

If anyone has any idea what it is I'd be glad to hear. It is a slender, herbaceous, twining climber.

Great idea for a thread, BTW.
plantsman70
17 years ago
Hi garden nerd,

Vincetoxicum is a perennial to approx 1.5m and can be shrubby or climbing. It has a milky latex; flowers white,yellow,reddesh-purple or greenish.
The ecology is woodland, rocky banks and and scrub areas. The genus has around 15 species 11 of which may be found in Europe, 8 in Turkey and the rest mainly in western Asia.
These unusual plants are sometimes grown as curiosities.
The family is Apocynaceae (sometimes Asclepidaceae)by some authorities.
I don't suppose I will have told you anything that you don't already know, but there is not much to say about this plant - certainly interesting to grow and see what you can make of it.

Here is a link that might be useful: Peter's Garden
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greenlarry
17 years ago
Well I've had some odd plants in my time,but not as odd as I'd like! Lots of Cacti and other succulents(now mostly gone when I lost my greenhouse in a storm) including a Trichodiadema which I managed to keep and is now indoors.
But apart from these I've grown a Peanut which flowered(you must try one but it needs a deep pot,and I had to repot mine twice in one year!)
I've also grown a potato as a house plant but it didn't last. Same with a carrot top that rooted and got potted in compost. Wanted it to flower indoors but it withered. Fun to try tho
greenclaws UK, Zone 8a
Original Author
17 years ago
Hi to all 3 of you, and thanks for the replies!!!
Garden Nerd, never heard of the plant you grow so had to do a Google to see what it was.
GreenLarry, hi there, think I recognise you from the EPS forum?? Coincidentally, we too have lost 2 greenhouses over the past few years during winter storms...very annoying to say the least and expensive in both cost and man (& woman!! ) hours to replace. Last time it was a 2yr old 16 x8 that was trashed so we decided enough was enough took the aluminium to the scrap yard to get back what we could for it. We re-used the toughened glass as we salvaged all but a couple of panes and went for a DIY wooden one attached to the side of the garage block. The wood cost a fiver, we already had the concrete blocks spare and spent a few Â£Â£Â£'s on wood stain/screws/bolts etc. It hasn't moved so far!!!

{{gwi:1123480}}
greenlarry
17 years ago
Greenclaws,whats your name on EPS? Do you also post on PalmTalk?
greenclaws UK, Zone 8a
Original Author
17 years ago
GreenLarry....On EPS I used to use the same user name as on here, but recently I changed to my more usual name of Gill. I dont post on the Palm Talk forum though : Â¬ )

What's you most unusual plant that you grow???

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What's you most unusual plant that you grow???

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