TRY A LITTLE TENDERNESS
Moving tropical plants to the patio
At this time of year, when we tend to spend many more hours outdoors, more folks are creating a tropical living space on their decks and patios.
It’s a fun trend and today there is a wide selection of tropical plants that are relatively easyto-care-for and love the sun and warmer summer weather.
The only caution is the need for acclimatization. Most of these plants have either been grown in warm greenhouses or are recent arrivals from Florida and/or California.
No matter which tropical plants you choose, once we reach a consistent minimum night temperature of 10 C, they can go outside, but they must be kept out of the sun and wind for about a week so they can adjust to our outside conditions. Once this period is over, they can be shifted into hot sun locations.
Bananas are the current favourites to instantly create the feel of a tropical zone, and they certainly make a statement.
The best variety is the ‘almost hardy’ Musa basjoo, a native of the northern islands of Japan. Everyone loves its fast-growing large green leaves that sway gently in our summer breezes. Because of their rapid growth, they need to be in a larger container, at the minimum something in the range of 45-76 cm (18-30 inches) for stability and support.
A banana-like perennial, the brilliant red Ensete ‘Maurelii’ is truly magnificent. This eyepopper is much slower growing, more compact and sturdy once it adapts to the outdoors. It’s not as hardy as the green ‘basjoo’ and must go into a warm location for winter. Both are widely available in smaller sizes this time of year.
Perhaps the most underused outdoor summer foliage plants are the colocasias. Usually sold as giant bulbs in early spring, they take at least a year to develop into a half-decent size. More and more growers are using small starter plants that, within four to five months, develop into threeor four-foot beauties — each one quite capable of creating a pretty impressive display.
Often called ‘elephant ears,’ these foliage giants take full sun and require little special care. Smaller leafed varieties are much more patio compatible and come in a wide range of leaf colours from pure black and black and green bi-colours to a whole range of in-betweens.
Once outside, they are easy to care for and look stunning in containers.
The real sleeper for an outdoor tropical look is the traditional Boston fern. So often used indoors to create a sophisticated classic look, these ferns add style and grace outdoors with their long cascading fronds.
Set on a fern stand or used as a hanging basket, they are happiest in partial shade but will tolerate more sun than we might expect. They are a ‘must try’ outdoors this summer.
By far, the most popular and sought after summer-flowering tropical is the Hibiscus rosasinensis.
Once fully acclimatized to the outside, it blooms almost non-stop. From small plants in six-inch pots to large shrubs and even standard tree forms, they are one of the easiest and most colourful summer plants.
They come in many flower colours and forms, but the singleflowering varieties are the most prolific. For best performance, they love to be root-bound in their containers and kept moist, especially in very hot weather.
Some of the most striking of all tropical plants are the vibrant bougainvilleas. Noted for their intense cerise, reds and hot pinks, they provide that ‘colour pop’ few other plants can match.
Most of our bougainvilleas are imported from California but a few years ago, I received a phone call from a grower in Ontario who grew varieties from Italy. After conducting some outside test trials, I found they were consistent bloomers all summer long.
Fortunately, one of our large B.C. growers now supplies them for our local market, and they are widely available. They come in only one colour — hot cerise pink — but wow, do they stand out and demand attention on a patio or in a summer garden!
Today’s new ‘hotties’ for outdoor colour are the mandevillas, formerly known as Dipladenia splendens. Available in a range of colours from pinks and reds to whites, these old-fashioned vines grow very quickly on a trellis and provide colour all summer long.
I’ll never forget the entrance to a large garden centre in Pennsylvania that was covered in this magnificent vine. It was flourishing in 35 C heat — I was not!
Today, there are mandevillas, branded as ‘Sun Parasols,’ in reds, pinks and whites that have smaller shiny foliage and masses of continuous blooms. They are vines as well, but more appropriate for small spaces and do best when supported by short trellises or low railings. Once acclimatized to the outdoors, they bloom non-stop in the hottest conditions.
There are many more tropical plants that can add a refreshing look and exotic feel to our summer patios, but these are some of the most impressive, easiest-tocare-for and most prolific.
Now is a great time to brighten up your summer deck with these special plants ... but remember to acclimatize them first. As for care, simply keep them moist and give them a little slow-release Osmocote 14-14-14 fertilizer for continuous feeding all summer.
In mid-September watch for an article on over-wintering summer tropicals.