Looking for recommendations to plant a tropical plants?
I would like to plant a tropical plant in front of the house which will not grow more than 4 feet high and 3 feet wide for hardiness zone 6.
What can you recommend?
I would like to plant a tropical plant in front of the house which will not grow more than 4 feet high and 3 feet wide for hardiness zone 6.
What can you recommend?
A plant truly suited to the tropics is not likely to survive your winter, in a zone 6 garden.
However, you could plant many species, giving them winter protection, or keeping them in pots, planted into the ground, and lifting for winter. Many die back in fall, and so they don’t need light during winter, just keeping away from freezing weather. Other plants, cousins of plants from tropical lands, will grow and give you a stunning display. I’ve included some of my favorites here.
Some fairly easy tropical effect plants include dwarfer palms, such as the European fan palm’s variety vulcano – http://good-times.webshots.com/photo/2885879460052041582jKDcYC
A Louisiana Sabal minor palm, which doesn’t form a tall trunk. http://image05.webshots.com/5/2/77/21/172627721oNNFCz_ph.jpg
Some of the giant Elephant Ears plants, which can be dried for over-wintering http://www.virginiagarden.com/elephant/circle.jpg
The hardy palms gain hardiness with age, and benefit from winter protection whilst younger, and in the severest weather.
Cannas are also stunning summer flowering plants, growing to around 5′. Some of them have red or variegated foliage. Best with some deep mulching, or preferably lifting and drying out in winter, when they’ve died back. http://www.dutchbulbs.com/store/cannas/60090
http://www.missouriplants.com/Redalt/Canna_peg.jpg
There is a semi-hardy banana plant, musa basjoo. and I think for zone 6 this would be better given some indoors protection. With tons of fertilizer, will grow higher than 4′ after a couple of years though. http://houstoncountrygardens.com/images/Perennials/Musa%20Basjoo.jpg There’s a gardener here who grows these in zone 6, with some information – http://ezinearticles.com/?Musa-Basjoo—Growing-a-Hardy-Banana-Tree&id=1455301
Hope this helps. Good luck! Rob
zone 6 and tropical don’t mix
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