Bauhinia blakeana
 

Anyone growing this outside in the UK?
I notice it grows in the USA in zones that get a few degrees of frost so
would appear to be able to take winters in the milder districts of the UK
although I don't know about the cold and wet combined climate we have most
winters.

--
Regards
Bob Hobden
just W. of London

Bauhinia blakeana
 

Bob Hobden wrote:
Anyone growing this outside in the UK?
I notice it grows in the USA in zones that get a few degrees of frost so
would appear to be able to take winters in the milder districts of the UK
although I don't know about the cold and wet combined climate we have most
winters.

Sadly, there is little if any correlation between "a few degrees of frost"
in the USA and what we might experience in the UK. The major difference is
what happens in the summers, if that doesn't sound too odd. Over there,
they often experience summers with many days above 35°C - sometimes above
40°. That apparently hardens the wood of certain trees and shrubs which
allows them to withstand winter cold better than here.

I have no if the winter wet we experience (rather than the dry cold they
have) makes any difference, but I suspect it would not help.

However, if you have enough plants, why not try one outside? I would go for
a south or south-west wall to begin with.

--
Jeff

Bauhinia blakeana
 

Jeff Layman wrote:

Sadly, there is little if any correlation between "a few degrees of frost"
in the USA and what we might experience in the UK. The major difference is
what happens in the summers, if that doesn't sound too odd. *Over there,
they often experience summers with many days above 35°C - sometimes above
40°. *That apparently hardens the wood of certain trees and shrubs which
allows them to withstand winter cold better than here.

Even when you get Bauhinias to over-winter successfully, they need hot
weather to flower well. I've had B. yunnanensis growing here for
about 10 years and it is an indifferent performer unless we have a
prolonged hot spell. I completely gave up with B. purpurea, which
survived winters well but only gave the occasional flower right at the
end of summer.

Bauhinia blakeana
 

DaveP wrote:
Jeff Layman wrote:

Sadly, there is little if any correlation between "a few degrees of
frost" in the USA and what we might experience in the UK. The major
difference is what happens in the summers, if that doesn't sound too
odd. Over there, they often experience summers with many days above 35°C
- sometimes above 40°. That apparently hardens the wood of certain trees
and shrubs which allows them to withstand winter cold better than here.

Even when you get Bauhinias to over-winter successfully, they need hot
weather to flower well. I've had B. yunnanensis growing here for
about 10 years and it is an indifferent performer unless we have a
prolonged hot spell. I completely gave up with B. purpurea, which
survived winters well but only gave the occasional flower right at the
end of summer.

I've been growing B. yunnanensis for 3 years from seed. Still pretty small,
and can't seem to make up its mind whether it's a shrub or weak climber!
Interesting that it needs prolonged hot spells to do anything, but typical
of "inland continental" plants.

But is your B. yunnanensis hardy enough to survive outside? I still keep
mine in a frost-free (1 - 2°C) greenhouse, and it is pretty much deciduous
even under those conditions.

--
Jeff

Bauhinia blakeana
 

Jeff Layman wrote:

I've been growing B. yunnanensis for 3 years from seed. *Still pretty small,
and can't seem to make up its mind whether it's a shrub or weak climber!
Interesting that it needs prolonged hot spells to do anything, but typical
of "inland continental" plants.

It does take a while and it is a very definite climber. A seedling
has a few years of very skinny stems and then suddenly, comparatively
strong thick shoots develop from low down on the plant. Growth then
becomes quite vigorous and 2m or so of growth can be expected each
year. Flowers form in clusters at the tips of axillary shoots and can
appear at any time from June to September. I raised mine from seed in
1999 and first flowers appeared in late 2003. Even when carrying a
lot of bloom, it's not exactly a show-stopper though and must rank as
one of the least showy of the Bauhinias.

But is your B. yunnanensis hardy enough to survive outside? *I still keep
mine in a frost-free (1 - 2°C) greenhouse, and it is pretty much deciduous
even under those conditions.

Yes my plant has been growing outside since its second year and with
the exception of this winter, is more or less evergreen. Here,
temperatures may fall to minus 2C for an hour or so a couple of times
each winter and there may also be a few short lived drops to minus 1C,
but it is more or less frost free for most of the time.