My Strelitzia are now a year old and growing like weeds. I am happy. I have read that they like to be root bound to flower. But I also know that they will not flower for at least 2 more years - probably a lot more than that - and so I have no particular need to keep them in small pots. On the contrary, since I want them to grow as rapidly as possible, I am motivated to put them into larger pots in order to give their roots lots of room. Is that wise?
Putting it into a larger pot will give the roots more room, but they can also rot if it's too big. I wouldn't go any larger than between 1" & 2" of root room. I have Strelitzia nicolai, (the white flowering one) for over ten years and still no flowers but the leaves alone are fantastic and that's why I bought it, for the leaves, although flowers would be a huge bonus, but I think it's kinda rare for these plants to flower indoors unless you have something like a greenhouse, or conservatory.
if you can put them outside for at least a little bit during the warmer months (as long as it gets warm enough for them) then that should help with the flowering. definitely don't go too big with the pot - rootbound is much better for these plants.
If you do put it outside, DON'T put it in right out in the hot sun or the leaves will burn to a crisp. When moving plants from indoors to outdoors, move them closer and closer to brighter and brighter light and then a little more and more sun (if they can take sun) but do it gradually.
Joclyn and Bluewing are right, if you are going to put this in full sun do it gradually. Mine is probably 2 or 3 years old and started flowering last year. Mine are in full sun and in the ground. I am in sub tropical, so climate, I suspect has something to do witht he flowering Ed
Alas, I think that the climate here is far too cold for these plants. I plan to put them outside for a few months of the summer, but otherwise they will have to be inside. Unfortunately, once they get much bigger - they are about 16" tall right now - they will have to be moved from my limited well-lit area and moved into a near-a-window area where they will not get the light that I would like. We will see how they do. Last summer when they were about 4" tall I put them outside, burying the pots in the ground and placing them behind some taller plants. Took them inside within a week when they showed signs of distress. Why would putting them in larger pots increase the chance of rotting? . And why do any plants ever prefer to be root-bound? I assume that, except in the most extraordinary environment, no plant is ever root bound in the wild,
Too much excess soil that would not be used by a smaller root system causing suffocation and rot by long term wet soil. Potbound plants can flower better and send out smaller plants (like the spider) when on the rootbound side. Less soil used, cutting down on the chance of rot root. Outdoor garden plants aren't encased in pots, the rain water can soak down and off to the sides, plus they receive more outdoor heated temperatures pushed by wind.
The plants have themselves decided their pot size: two of them have burst the bottoms of their pots and a third is starting to do so. When I took them out of their current pots I found 1/2" diameter roots curled around and around filling the bottom third of each 4" pot. Into 6" pots with them, and perhaps their two smaller siblings, at once.
Never had a Strelitzia bust a pot, just an Asparagus densiflorus (asparagus fern) It wanted a new bigger pot every year but one year I was too busy and it rewarded me with a dirty, plant on the floor, broken pot mess! Your "Stre" must be happy!
The surface of the soil had raised about 1/2" about the top of the pot, which should have been a clue. The pots were wobbly because their bottoms had become convex, which should also have been a clue. But it was only when I turned one upside down in order to remove the plant to check how it was doing that I saw that the bottom of the pot had cracked all around and was almost separated from the sides ...
My Strelitzia has bloomed a few times now, and I live in Victoria. I used to put it outside for the summer, but the pot I have it in is too big. It is mature, around 17 years old, and situated in a very bright kitchen. So it is possible to get them to bloom here without being outside...
I think they will bloom outside here during that brief period after global warming starts to raise the temperatures here remarkably, and before the high temperatures wipe out all human life.
Well, I left them outside this past summer. First I left them in a bright-but-out-of-the-sun area for a month. Then for the rest of the summer I put them in an area that got sun for about 4 hours a day. I took them inside several weeks ago. The leaves are all, starting with the smallest, drying and dying. But new leaves are growing and they are OK. So each plant is about 24" high but, as I gradually cut off the dead leaves, consists of only 3 or 4 leaves. It seems clear, in light of my experience this summer and last summer, that they cannot tolerate any sun at all. Even if they are well prepared for it. But that is contrary to everything that I have read. Any comments or suggestions?
I was never able to put mine out in sun (Victoria) while I was putting it outside. Strange since they are apparently the civic flower of Los Angeles (from what I've heard). I know all about 'acclimatizing' plants, and still no sun for that guy. Tried to 'acclimate' a jade this summer and ended up losing all of the leaves that had grown before putting it outside. New ones got crispy. On a more positive note, it (strelitizia) started blooming last December and has been sending up groups of flowers on and off since then. About 6 blooms in August to October, and now another one. Pot bound is what is needed all right. Good luck!