First Winter
 

Hi All, from cold Long Island. I planted 2 basjoos on my lawn last May. They grew to 6 and 8 feet high. In early October I stripped off the leaves. I wrapped one in burlap and the other with burlap and tar paper. Both bases were loaded with mulch. In January the tar papered tree fell over, followed 2 weeks ago by the other. Now I will wait and see if either or both come back in the spring. I also built a cage stuffed with hay and covered with burlap and half with tar paper for my agave of 35 years which was not doing well. I have another in my living room that is over 6' high in the pot. I also did the same with a windmill palm, but added Christmas lights for warmth. I hope some or all my "winterized" plants come back. I hope I am not like Charley Brown waiting for the Great Pumpkin. Enjoy the rest of the winter.

Re: First Winter
 

I thought usually in your area, people take chicken wire and bend it in a circle around the plant then fill with clippings etc. That creates a massive barrier and the ground warm as well. I don't know if yours will come up, but those are tough plants

Re: First Winter
 

I think the odds are in your favor for the basjoo to put up new pups from the corm. I usually cut my p-stems to 1-2 ft. Good luck on the Windmill; I have some still going with just thick mulch, or mulch and burlap for the taller ones.

Re: First Winter
 

Well it won't be long before it warms up up there. I wish all the luck of not have to replace anything. Keep us posted on the outcome :^)

Re: First Winter
 

Another 6-8 weeks and I plant my basjoo sitting in my garage since January. :woohoonaner:

Re: First Winter
 

Just to let you know, mine did the same thing last year and I cut them down to the ground, it was all mushy and I thought they were gone forever! They sent up new shoots and were just fine, but I was worried!!!

I have the same problem this year with my backyard plants (northside of house) My frontyard ones are about 4 ft tall with new light green leaves growing. It wasn't as cold here this year as last though, (not good for the Oylympics here though lol.)

I used chicken wire covered in house insulation, wrapped with a tarp for waterproofing on the backyard ones and used chicken wire filled with hay to the top of p-stems and covered with a tarp for the frontyard ones. That is what I will do with them all next winter!

Re: First Winter
 

Good luck Bananas! Looking forward to knowing how everything fared.

Re: First Winter
 

I did that with a windmill palm and added Christmas lights. We'll see in April. I may try the cage next winter, or bring them into the garage.

Re: First Winter
 

Hey bananas/ neighbor- Good luck with your two. This is the second winter mine have been in the ground. First winter I did the setup with chicken wire/mulch/hay/ leaves & covered it with a tarp. Uncovered it in the spring & the 4' of stems were mush to the ground. Cut it down to the ground & they came back great. This winter I took a 36" wide plastic drum, the type you see landscapers use. I cut the bottom out & placed it around the 3 or 4 stems that I took the leaves off. This time I filled it completely with mulch & wraped a tarp around it. I can't wait to see the outcome this spring. I also dug up 3 IC's. They are sleeping under a blanket in the basement. Last I checked they looked good.
My windmill has about 4' of trunk. This is the second winter I wraped it with frost cloth. They are hardy.
Good luck!

Re: First Winter
 

Since I didn't protect my basjoo mat at all this past winter, I have been very anxious as to whether they would be back. A pup from the same mat I transplanted last year into a front bed has now come up and is a foot tall. And today I saw the first growth in my mat, so I did a victory jig around the garden! Whew!!