Tropical plants are excellent additions to our Illinois gardens. Each year that I go to Alabama I plan extra cargo space to be able to bring home exotic and inexpensive plants from the southern garden centers.
Last year I purchased a small $7.00 pot that held one banana tree. I placed it on the corner of my deck along with pots of elephant ears, nasturtium, and hot pink Wave petunias. (This provided the Tall, Fill and Spill portions of the recipe for a successful planting....the banana tree is tall, elephant ear fills that middle otherwise empty area and nasturtiums and Waves spill over the side to cover most of the pot surfaces.) The plants grew like crazy and looked great, unlike the rest of the gardens.
Before the first frost, I brought the pots into the sun room. They still look healthy and lust. I water infrequently and will hold off fertilizing until spring, just before the last frost.
The geraniums and impatiens that I brought in are just limping along, becoming leggy and weak. Luckily the tropicals are lush and beautiful still. With their help, I will be able to control my mad gardening urges.
If you haven't tried growing a banana tree or giant elephant ear, you should do so. Winter days aren't quite so dreary when you have the tropicals around!
Hope you're all safe and warm.
shel
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