"Dave Poole" wrote in message
...
Charlie Pridham wrote:

David, if I wanted to try them outside in the ground as a throw away
plant
next season (I have plenty) how much shade will they do well in. my
present
plant in a pot is lovely but its hard to keep fed and watered.

They'll do extremely well in shade Charlie, so well in fact you'll see
vast, pruned-Paulownia-sized leaves and very few flowers! Seriously
though, even in the south, they need direct sun for at least 4 or 5
hours a day for good flower bud initiation. They also need sun to
warm up and overcome the cool nights we often experience in spring.
More of this later.

The only species that will happily live in dappled shade and provide a
good show of flower is Brugmansia sanguinea. It is by far the most
cold tolerant and resents persistent high temperatures, so much so
that it will not flower when it is hot and spends it time in a more or
less permanent state of wilt.

A few years ago, I had one planted in medium shade at the base of a
young Cornus capitata. The Cornus being evergreen (for those that
don't know it, it is a small to medium sized, spreading, evergreen
tree from the Himalayas carrying very showy creamy-yellow bracts in
June followed by strawberry-like fruits in autumn) gave good overhead
protection on clear winter nights. As a result, the sanguinea
retained its leaves all year and flowered most heavily from October to
March.

Going back to the more conventional species and hybrids. Given a
reasonably sunny spot in free-draining soil, they are at least
root-hardy in mild regions of the south west and in some cases may
even be totally stem hardy. They resume growth rather later than
under glass and at first exhibit cold-induced chlorosis because they
cannot utilise nitrogen properly under very cool conditions. By mid
May, average temperatures are high enough and away they go, producing
their first flowers by early-mid July and carrying on well into
November in most years. Brugmansias that die back to the roots in
winter take longer to get going, but are usually in full flower by mid
to late August.

Dave Poole
Torquay, Coastal South Devon UK
Winter min -2°C. Summer max 34°C.
Growing season: March - November
Hi again,
I have never tried growing them outside all year (I'm in the southeast) but
as they grow so quickly from cuttings it seems a good idea to try.
I would normally cut most of them down and store them in a coolish
greenhouse (kept just above freezing for the winter) & bring them out again
in late May.
Regards & thanks GrannieAnnie