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Funkthulhu
07-15-2013, 01:23 PM
Okay, I don't really know much about diferentiating species, so I need some help. I've looked at the big green guy here and was under the impression it was a dwarf Cav. (That's what the seller "thought" it was) However, there is no red on the pseudostem, it's green all the way down.

http://img819.imageshack.us/img819/7132/gvdg.jpg

Now, this one was a single stem through summer of last year (when I bought it), put out a few pups over the winter in my office, had maybe 18" to 2 feet of trunk. But while in my office it stunted out and didn't grow much, kept losing leaves. I repotted and put outside end of May, nearly all the growth you see is from the last 2 months outside. All the old leaves have gone brown and down and were cut off. It has also gone from 3 pups to more than 12 at last count. I've fertilized it with 20/20/20+micronutrients twice since it went outside.

What the heck do I have here? Is it a dwarf "something"? If it's pupping this much can I expect a bloom soon?

If you want a closer pic of petioles or any other part of the plant, I can post requests tonight.

(also, ignore the blood-leaf, that I have no hope for fruit from it)

Fence is rougly 3ft high, top of the last cigar leaf was taller than me (6') before it opened and flopped over.

Also, Thanks for looking!

caliboy1994
07-15-2013, 02:29 PM
Looks like Basjoo.

Abnshrek
07-15-2013, 04:25 PM
Looks like Basjoo.

That's what I was going to say, but I don't know jack about them unless they are edible. :^)

caliboy1994
07-15-2013, 05:21 PM
That's what I was going to say, but I don't know jack about them unless they are edible. :^)

Basjoo is pretty easy to spot. You can tell by the red midribs on young plants, deep green pseudostem and petioles, and open petioles. The yellow flower is a dead giveaway too.

LilRaverBoi
07-16-2013, 07:51 AM
Yup, almost positive it's basjoo.

Funkthulhu
07-16-2013, 11:11 AM
Okay, so, probably a Basjoo then.

So, I guess the next question is whether I should split out some of those pups and plant them in the ground, since they might actually live here. . .

Thanks, guys!

LilRaverBoi
07-17-2013, 06:08 PM
I can't remember how large the plants were (and picture no longer works for me). If they are smaller, I would say leave them on there. In zone 5, you're probably on the edge of what basjoo can handle, even with proper mulching, etc. Bigger, more established plants will have the best chance of surviving the winter because they have a bigger corm to feed from during the winter months. Therefore, if they are smaller, it would probably be best to leave everything alone for this season, fertilize and water as necessary to get the most growth out of them that you can this year. Mulch heavily (look into overwintering threads for information here) and hope for the best. I fear if you separate and remove some of the corm/roots, you might go into fall/winter with small corm pieces that might not make it. Once the corms are large and the plants well established, you have a much better chance of success overwintering them.

Funkthulhu
07-30-2013, 11:18 AM
I appreciate the information, Bryan. I've decided to split the difference. This monster has been split out, I ended up with 4 groups of 3-5 stalks that I've planted in the ground.

The plan now is to keep them happy for the next couple months and watch the weather reports. As soon as I see the first frost warning I'll dig up half of them and put them in the basement. One just stored, one potted under lights. The rest I will leave outside with various levels of mulching.

Hopefully come May next year I'll have a firm grasp on what's going to work on these every year and I can concentrate on that method for my area.

Worst case scenario, I'll still have my "smaller" Zebrina blood-leaf to keep me happy inside. (which I just had to repot. . . again.) ((and more varieties to order for next year!))

LilRaverBoi
07-30-2013, 12:58 PM
That sounds like an excellent plan....see what works best for you, at least for this year. Like I said, once you have large plants, you stand a much better chance of successful overwintering outdoors with mulching and that sort of thing.

As far as my growing goes, I continue to try new varieties, see what works well for me in my area, the way I do things. If things don't work, I move on and try a different type. In a few years, I'll probably have much more success once I've weeded out types that don't work for me.