I headed to Swanson's Nursery in Seattle today to spend the holiday dollars I've been saving since this past summer. This is always a bad idea because I always end up buying way more than the holiday dollars are good for. I know, it's all part of their brilliant scheme to get me to drive from Normandy Park to their nursery in North Seattle several times a year. It's working really well for them.
I was hoping Swanson's would have red bananas (Ensete
ventricosum 'Maurelii') because I saw a series of You Tube videos from a
guy in Canada who turned one red banana into a hundred in a couple
months and wanted to try it. Here are links to the three videos:
Part 1 - October 28th - Preparing the red banana for propagation
Part 2 - December 30th - Rooting & offset formation
Part 3 - March 31st - Separating the new offsets
Sadly, they didn't have any red bananas but they did have some other great plants that could not resist going home with me:
Clockwise from back left:
Nolina microcarpa (Bear grass) - A yucca relative that forms a huge grass-like crown
Sciadopitys verticillata 'Sternschnuppe' - An umbrella pine with super duper thick needles
Yucca desmetiana 'Blue Boy' (aka Yucca aloifolia 'Purpurea') - Tall grower with fleshy, purple leaves
Phormium 'Taya' (New Zealand flax) - This has very rich purple leaves (see below)
Pachysandra axillaris 'Windcliff fragrant' - Don't get this confused with Pachysandra axillaris 'Windcliff'. That one gets huge leaves but no fragrance; this one produces fragrant sarcococca-like flowers in early spring.
Here is Phormium 'Taya' compared with the standard, Home Depot bronze phormium.
Isn't it fabulous we can shop for new plants in December? That Sciadopitys verticillata 'Sternschnuppe' has great form. I've been pondering that purchase myself.
ReplyDeleteYes, you should get one!
DeleteGreat new plants! Now you've made me want to visit Swanson's during Christmas Break! Merry Christmas, Justin!
ReplyDeleteThanks Peter. They obviously don't have a lot of stock since it's winter but they do still have a couple of those sternshuppe umbrella pines.
DeleteHope you had a great holiday season, Justin!
ReplyDeleteI should have saved a red banana for you to play with.