malpigghias

susieq

Last year I promised Carl L. Rosner that I would post some pics of my malpigghias so hear are some of them....Carl?

This one is a Barbados Cherry, Malpigghia glabra

It just had a HARD trim to try and get it back in shape so it looks like a scraped ape right now. It is about 16 inches tall. They don't ever quit growing here in Florida so it was very shaggy and out of shape. They get very stringy looking or "willowy" when not kept compact through trimming. This is also the parent plant for most of the other Barbados Cherries I have...a total of 28 of them, mostly still small and in training. That number is after I gave away about half of them. It just got to be too much trying to keep up with them all....especially the trimming.

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susieq

This one is quite nice but I haven't had the heart to trim it yet as it is still in full bloom although they are starting to fade now. Sorry it's so shaggy looking. It is about 12 inches tall. I really should do an air layer on it as the base has two large roots coming off the trunk, large as the trunk itself almost....makes it look 3 legged. A nice air layer right above that point should fix it....I just need to make time to do it.

These things sprout roots even on the trunk way above the soil line....should be an easy air layer. Well, I had a close up of the base but it's telling me that the file is just a tad too large....sorry....never mind, I resized it again using the smallest setting I have on that resizer.

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susieq

Here is a small one in a pot, height about 10 inches. Again, just had it's first hard trim of the season....

The other one, also just trimmed is in a cascade. I know there is a debate on whether or not you should use flowering material for cascades, but OMG! When these things are in bloom and still have the little blood red berries from the previous bloom all over them, they will stop you dead in your tracks they are so gorgeous!

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susieq

Finally, here are some Malpigghia Coccigera or Singapore Holly.
They have the same flower only lighter pink. They are much harder to get branching on and it takes forever to get any kind of trunk on them growing in pots. Also, those little prickers on the holly like leaves are the real thing....they will eat you alive while you work on them.

I think I am partial to them because this is the first variety of Malpigghia I ever owned. This particular one is probably 15 years old now. I found it at a flea market of all places. Hadn't see one in years and this lady had spread her blanket on ground and was selling about a dozen of the scrawny little things. $2 ea. This one is the stock plant/parent for all of the current Coccigeras that I have. Again, I gave away probably half of what I had about a week ago and am down to about 8 or 10. This one is probably 14 inches tall as well. I am tempted to do another trunk chop on it to get more taper for the girth that is there....but I probably won't. I have been doing drastic trunk chops on some of the up and coming plants in training and they are looking good.

I hope the close up of the base turns out. I had to size it smaller than the default setting made it, as it was just a wee tiny bit too big still....

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susieq

Last ones, I promise.....

This one is another of the (Singapore Holly) coccigeras. It is only about 10 inches tall and I have threaded some copper wire through some aquarium airline tubbing before tying down a branch with it. I know that I tend to keep lower branches that should probably come off and maybe one day I will remove them.....maybe. All of the Coccigeras have been trimmed hard too, although they do not get out of control as quickly as the Glabras (Barbados Cherries) do. They do not bloom as prolifically either....not for me anyhow.

So, there they are. I hope during the season to catch them at that ideal time where they still have a good shape from their last trim, are covered with flowers and red berries, and get some pics of them in that state for you.

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snsbonsai

We in the Caribbean say Bajan Cherry instead of Barbados Cherry. It is said to have the highest vitamin C content in the world, provided that the cherries are fresh. Just thought i'd share that.

susieq

Thanks, I had heard something to that affect, but with the stuff I spray on to kill bugs, I wouldn't try it. Maybe I should plant one in the ground and just leave it alone to see what happens and eat some of those...

cubbie

I LOVE malpighias!!!! so many beautiful blooms, you hate to prune them back. Surprised there isn't more "action" on this site for this great tree! but then again, it seems that tropicals and flowering trees are in the minority to the bullies (pines)

susieq

Well Cubbie, we live in Florida and malpigghias (and other tropicals) do REALLY well here. They grow like weeds....ditto the fukien teas. I have a whole row of those planted in the ground along side my house. They have been there for at least 5 years now. I never cover them in the winter. But, I don't take care of them like I should either and have sort of lost my tast for them.

This summer, probably in about a month or 6 weeks, I plan on digging them all up and if there are some that look like they have a lot of potential, I will save them. The rest are going to the garbage heap as I don't want to spare the pots, soil, time, to pot them up. You have to draw the line somewhere. I am cutting way back. I love bonsai but it is not my main interest. I just want to maintain a few favorites from now on and have time for other stuff.

It is real hard to give them up though....