They also grow quickly from seed, which is how I got mine. I have three in a large container - just trying to figure out where to plant them. I had one in my back yard in Louisiana. It was a small but bushy tree. I loved it. Natal, Your garden is incredible!!! Your tomatoes look like trees!!! Wow! I love the arch and fence around it and it is so neat and tidy...just gorgeous! When you can grow tomatoes that big, no wonder your Vitex grew so big so fast! Amazing garden. Post more pictures!!! This topic makes me want to go outside right now and plant mine! We're about to get some rain (yippee!!!), so now is a good time to transplant them into the ground. Tom, I would move it now if I were you, before the trunk gets big and woody and the roots grow down deep. As much of it as you can see above ground, the roots will be twice that under the soil once it gets established. I love their flowers, but I even love the aromatic fragrance of the leaves too. Kind of reminds me of "Vicks" or Mentholatum or something like that - only very pungent, and the seeds smell of black pepper. It is on the recommendation list of trees to plant for creating Natural Habitats for wildlife here in Oklahoma. Tough and beautiful - what a great combination! Everyone, your Chaste tree photos are fantastic. Beautiful! Good luck with yours Tomas! ~Annie

Actually, because of our fierce summer heat, I find that plants in the garden do much better than the potted ones, which dry out incredibly quickly. We get a lot of what they call 'sea breezes' here, but I call them 'gale-force winds'. I use a heavy layer of mulch over all the garden, and that stops a lot of evaporation. I plan on getting my young helper to hammer in some lengths of pipe deep down. I'll water into the pipe, instead of onto the soil surface, and that way the water will reach the roots and encourage plants to send roots further down where it's more moist anyway.

Olga, As you know Chaste Trees are herbs. I have two in my landscape, now each about 9' tall. I don't know if they would make it in zone 5. I see them typically in Zone 6 or warmer. I've attached a link to pictures of my chaste trees, btw. I have tried to grow them from cuttings and did get a few started, but they died early (not sure why). I was at a nursery in Joplin, MO last week(try www.botanyshop.com) and they had 3 or 4 chaste trees for sale for $18 each. The trees were about 30" tall. They do have an email address and are very helpful. So perhaps they can answer your zone 5 question. Also, if you go to GardenWeb's Herbs Forum, there have been a few discussions on chaste trees. (just search the forum) Mel Here is a link that might be useful: my chaste trees

We planted a chaste tree here around 2001 or 2002 and it has survived every kind of crazy weather Oklahoma can throw at it. It anchors the butterfly garden that I planted outside my kitchen window. Bon, The chaste tree is very cold-hardy in general. Mine has survived temperatures down to 0 or 1 degree with no cold damage. Mine grows in unimproved clay. These are tough trees. In Texas they've been used for decades as highway median trees that get no irrigation or care. You shouldn't have to cover the plants themselves in winter, but I'd mulch the ground and also make sure to keep the soil around the roots moist but not sopping wet this winter. Since they are new transplants, their roots are smaller than they'd be if you'd planted them last winter or spring so you'll need to be sure they don't get too dry in winter. Overall, they tolerate drought well, but probably not so well just after being planted. Sometimes the foliage on mine wilts a little in very hot and very dry weather---more so last summer than this summer, and I rarely water it. Obviously I had to water it last summer about twice a month, but this summer I only watered it a couple of times. I don't cut mine back either unless it grows out far enough to block a nearby path. If I cut it back very hard when it does that, then I don't have to cut it back again for a couple of years. It is a butterfly magnet for sure.