hi guys - know nothing about gardening and plants and please excuse the spelling - planted 3 cordyline australis palms in the 3 corners of the garden of my new build - 2 are coming on really well - growing nice and tall probably 2 metres high - but one has stopped growing thought maybe that i did not dig a big enough hole abd its rooted out but now whats happened is from the centre of the palm leaves, an ugly trifid type stem has emerged - it looks like its going to have flowes on it and its now grown quite long and its not straight its probably a metre long - help ??? do i need to cut it out ? the rest of the palm looks like the 2 i have - leaves are the same and the bark but its just this ugly thing is growing from the centre - all info would be much appreciated

On 07/05/2012 08:52, dave007cars wrote:
hi guys - know nothing about gardening and plants and please excuse the
spelling - planted 3 cordyline australis palms in the 3 corners of the
garden of my new build - 2 are coming on really well - growing nice and
tall probably 2 metres high - but one has stopped growing thought maybe
that i did not dig a big enough hole abd its rooted out but now whats
happened is from the centre of the palm leaves, an ugly trifid type stem
has emerged - it looks like its going to have flowes on it and its now
grown quite long and its not straight its probably a metre long - help
??? do i need to cut it out ? the rest of the palm looks like the 2 i
have - leaves are the same and the bark but its just this ugly thing is
growing from the centre - all info would be much appreciated

Many people grow Cordyline australis for years and never get it to
flower (NB the flowers are scented)! You are doing something right, but
if you don't like the flower spike you can always cut it out.

Not sure why it's stopped growing, but it always wise to leave a plant
for a season or two to see how it progresses.

--

Jeff

In article , dave007cars.a1d3fd6
@gardenbanter.co.uk says...

hi guys - know nothing about gardening and plants and please excuse the
spelling - planted 3 cordyline australis palms in the 3 corners of the
garden of my new build - 2 are coming on really well - growing nice and
tall probably 2 metres high - but one has stopped growing thought maybe
that i did not dig a big enough hole abd its rooted out but now whats
happened is from the centre of the palm leaves, an ugly trifid type stem
has emerged - it looks like its going to have flowes on it and its now
grown quite long and its not straight its probably a metre long - help
??? do i need to cut it out ?

I don't. It's what many healthy happy cordylines do every year. Each
flowerhead produces a huge cloud of tiny individual flowers which are
very sweetly scented; nectar food for bees and other insects and quite an
eyecatching display; adds to the jungly look of the cordylines IMO. The
flowers eventually turn into tiny white berries much loved by birds. When
the berries are stripped by birds then I cut off the skeleton of the
flowerhead.

Janet

Hi Dave

It's flowering and I agree the flowering spike is a tad uggers. Maybe it had a bit of root shock and sent out its flower early. If, like me, you don't like the flower, just cut it back and the plant may regain it's energy. You won't do the plant any harm. They do like full sun and spread lots too getting much wider at the base.
I don't have mine any more as I had to make room for a vegetable patch and they were hogging it all. Took some hefty digging.

All plants need a feed too. Just potting compost isn't enough, so perhaps use a slow release fertiliser such as miracle grow or Osmocote which will do for the whole growing season. Scatter a scoop round the ground at the base of each plant and rake it in a bit. They'll really appreciate it. Give them a good watering every day until they are settled in, especially if its very dry. Then, they'll just need a good feed each spring and won't need so much attention.

Keep the secateurs handy as they will produce those ugly flowers (once a year if I remember correctly).

On Mon, 07 May 2012 11:10:31 +0100, Jeff Layman
wrote:

On 07/05/2012 08:52, dave007cars wrote:
hi guys - know nothing about gardening and plants and please excuse the
spelling - planted 3 cordyline australis palms in the 3 corners of the
garden of my new build - 2 are coming on really well - growing nice and
tall probably 2 metres high - but one has stopped growing thought maybe
that i did not dig a big enough hole abd its rooted out but now whats
happened is from the centre of the palm leaves, an ugly trifid type stem
has emerged - it looks like its going to have flowes on it and its now
grown quite long and its not straight its probably a metre long - help
??? do i need to cut it out ? the rest of the palm looks like the 2 i
have - leaves are the same and the bark but its just this ugly thing is
growing from the centre - all info would be much appreciated

Many people grow Cordyline australis for years and never get it to
flower (NB the flowers are scented)! You are doing something right, but
if you don't like the flower spike you can always cut it out.


Next door had one that grew to about 5 metres high before it flowered.
When in flower it looked really good but then it slowly lost it's
leaves and became just a tall stump. There has been no of any recovery
for two years and I think it's dead.

Steve

--
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"dave007cars" wrote


hi guys - know nothing about gardening and plants and please excuse the
spelling - planted 3 cordyline australis palms in the 3 corners of the
garden of my new build - 2 are coming on really well - growing nice and
tall probably 2 metres high - but one has stopped growing thought maybe
that i did not dig a big enough hole abd its rooted out but now whats
happened is from the centre of the palm leaves, an ugly trifid type stem
has emerged - it looks like its going to have flowes on it and its now
grown quite long and its not straight its probably a metre long - help
??? do i need to cut it out ? the rest of the palm looks like the 2 i
have - leaves are the same and the bark but its just this ugly thing is
growing from the centre - all info would be much appreciated


Are you certain it's a Cordyline australis not a Yucca?
For C australis a flower spike of a metre is quite long, they are many
branched with tiny flowers, and they don't so much as come straight up from
the tip but flop over sideways.
Yucca do have tall flower spikes which are quit beautiful. Google for
photos.
--
Regards. Bob Hobden.
Posted to this Newsgroup from the W of London, UK

thanks for the info guys

but it looks like this stem is coming from the centre of the palm so surely if i cut it out it will stunt the growth ??? as it is not as tall the other two i can clearly see where it is coming from - really looks like from the centre and i would say the stem which has the flowers on it is at least an inch and a half to two inches thick ???? is that normal ???

"dave007cars" wrote


dave007cars;958141 Wrote:
thanks for the info guys but it looks like this stem is coming from the
centre of the palm so
surely if i cut it out it will stunt the growth ??? as it is not as tall
the other two i can clearly see where it is coming from - really looks
like from the centre and i would say the stem which has the flowers on
it is at least an inch and a half to two inches thick ???? is that
normal ???


I still think that plant may be a Yucca not a Cordyline. To a non gardener
when young they would look identical just that the Yucca would not grow into
a tree and unlike a Cordyline the flower spike grows straight up from the
centre quite tall then bursts into beautiful cream flowers.
see...
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi..._australis.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Yu...lamentosa1.jpg

--
Regards. Bob Hobden.
Posted to this Newsgroup from the W of London, UK

"Jeff Layman" wrote in message
...
On 07/05/2012 08:52, dave007cars wrote:
hi guys - know nothing about gardening and plants and please excuse the
spelling - planted 3 cordyline australis palms in the 3 corners of the
garden of my new build - 2 are coming on really well - growing nice and
tall probably 2 metres high - but one has stopped growing thought maybe
that i did not dig a big enough hole abd its rooted out but now whats
happened is from the centre of the palm leaves, an ugly trifid type stem
has emerged - it looks like its going to have flowes on it and its now
grown quite long and its not straight its probably a metre long - help
??? do i need to cut it out ? the rest of the palm looks like the 2 i
have - leaves are the same and the bark but its just this ugly thing is
growing from the centre - all info would be much appreciated

Many people grow Cordyline australis for years and never get it to flower
(NB the flowers are scented)! You are doing something right, but if you
don't like the flower spike you can always cut it out.

Not sure why it's stopped growing, but it always wise to leave a plant for
a season or two to see how it progresses.

--

Jeff

As Jeff says, the flowers are nice, just give it a chance, if you don't like
them then cut them off in future, it is likely to flower every year now.

They stop going straight up once they start flowering and the stem will
divide after the flower goes over and the plant will form a branched head,
so that's why this plant appears to have stopped, the other two will do the
same once they start flowering. Height overall will continue to increase but
not so fast and not straight up.


--
Charlie, Gardening in Cornwall
Holders of National Collections of Clematis viticella
and Lapageria rosea cvs
http://www.roselandhouse.co.uk