Today’s video is about 5 tips to help you with your tropical style planting this year, whether you’re starting a blank canvas new garden project or adding some new exotic plants to your UK garden this spring. Rather than quick tips, hacks and shortcuts, these are more practical and long term considerations that will hopefully help you get more out of your exotic garden and tropical style plants long term (whilst spending less money, having to redesign your jungle and losing too many plants!). If you’ve got any questions or you’d like any further info then just leave a comment or check out the selection of garden tour videos below for more hardy tropical garden ideas and inspiration from gardeners in colder areas of the UK…
Dr Simon Olpin’s Sheffield Jungle Garden: https://youtu.be/yMVf3FwPMyc
Shane Bilson’s Jungle Stream Garden: https://youtu.be/yrO1xeTbxWE
Georgina’s Jungle Garden – A relaxing space with beautiful and hardy plant ideas: https://youtu.be/uku41EdnIvE
Tropical/Jungle Style Gardening UK Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/282958742948037/
Hardy Tropicals Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/HTUK01/
European Palm Society Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/palmsociety/
0:00 Intro
1:42 How cold your garden actually gets in winter – climate optimism won’t keep your plants alive!
4:29 Save money and start with small plants when it comes to fast growing & hardy exotics like Trachycarpus…
8:07 How big will your exotic plants actually get? Find this out BEFORE planting…
9:40 The evolution of an exotic garden – prioritise space for summer bedding!
12:07 Best performers – reliable plants grown well vs. chasing the rarities!
If you’ve got something from my videos and would like to say thanks for the price of a coffee then please head over to my Ko-fi. Any kind donations would be appreciated (even £3 is amazing!) and put towards equipment to help me produce more videos around exciting gardens and interesting plants: https://ko-fi.com/georgesjunglegarden
Thanks,
George
30 Comments
Great video, Very informative.
Just come in from cutting down my huge zebra grass, as the weather is fairly decent today, now I have the bonus of watching this video, while have a coffee and chocolate biscuit. Cheers Paul.
Hi george . That has to be one of your bestist vids yet. It was so interesting and informative. Looking at your garden totally amazes me by what you have acheived in such a short time.. Thank you for your last reply, my wife says that i worry to much and over react to some plants that can be dodgy! Yes your both right, and i should take it easy!! ( cant loose my hair as i havent got any😂😂!) All the best my friend , well done. Regards Steve.🌴👍
Same here, George, grew a date palm for many years in a wind tunnel, and although it was growing well, the winter of 22 thoroughly destroyed it and I'm in middle Wiltshire.
Just subscribed to your channel. Like you I went with what I wanted instead of what would grow and survive up here in Scotland. It was an expensive lesson. Great videos, George
I lost a lot of fairly young plants in December 22. It taught me a good lesson, keep them potted until fully established and also don't buy certain plants!
Er who is this sensible George? 🤣 I needed this video a month ago before I bought everything! Lol x (ain’t gonna change)
Great video as usual thanks George. I see many trachycarpus with the lower fronds trimmed off. Is this just so you can plant lower growing plants under them or for looks, or is there a more 'technical' reason ie so they grow taller?
Great vid George…until I came across one of your videos, over 2 years ago now, I had no idea about gardening or plants.
I have watched and followed everything you have said, and now have turned a small part of West Sussex into something I did not think possible, but maybe not on the scale of yours 🤣
that buzz is in the air for all tropical gardeners as spring wombles towards us and george comes out with his brill vids this time of year just seems to give me such happiness looking whats ahead in the garden ¬¬ enjoy your garden everyone Julian
Man flu? I at least expected malaria.
For the series, common sense is not all that common. 👍
We all need to be reminded of the basics every now and then. Thanks.
Sooooooo over this winter, what a struggle, it has been so cold you just don't want to leave the house, then the fog flu took us down for 3 weeks, just now recovering, but amid all the freeze, I'm munching on loquat fruits…many of my pineapples have been severely stunted, nearly all of my bananas, like brown umbrellas closed to protect fledgling pups I suspect will succumb to ongoing days of freezing mornings…I want my Florida back, not these polar vortex events that destroy everything that was already on their last legs of survival…geez, so now to welcome hurricane season…glad you have recovered as well, never say never…perhaps…lol, CHEERS…!
What about Fatsia japonica and loquat tree is it ok to buy it bigger? I planning to buy a more or less grown up loquat and fatsia in march
Excellent content George could have done with this advice a few years ago though! The colocasia example is our current issue, we have also tried all the different sorts and generally lost them trying to overwinter but getting the colocasia G isnt that easy, totally unable to find any and other large colocasia always seem to be plug plants which struggle through the winter.
500 mg vitamin D/ k2 / lots of C / and some zinc… Get well soon
Great tips as usual George, you mentioned Colocasia, I planted Maui gold in the summer just noticed there's no sign of them will they comeback .🙉
Great advice 👌🏼
Some good points. I do think it is necessity to understand the gardens we have . So, I know Phoenix Canariensis die in my garden, Brahea Armata die and I do think you need a real microclimate if you live in the north, as I do, to get these Braheas to survive. They hate the combination of rain and cold. I know I can keep Olive Trees but they require some wind barrier shelter during winter. Butia Odorata survive in my garden in sunny spots. So there are costly learning lessons there with the trial and error! But you can develop the garden you want. My Trachies I planted small just under 3 years ago and they have hardly grow. I will wait for them to take off like George said. Hopefully this spring!! Thanks
Your 2 best points are know your climate vs a plants cold tolerance and starting with smaller plants especially if you are on a limited budget with space to fill were so true based my experiences. I’ve had to learn to fill bones of my garden with bullet proof cold tolerant plants and put others in pots and planters and overwinter in the garage. Besides cost I’ve also been surprised how much better smaller plants do much better and are more hardy than buying a bigger one it just settles in better probably as you said due to severed root systems being dug out of ground vs getting grown in pots and repotted over time.
I will hate it when my palms get too tall to see without hurting my neck.. that's if they, or I, make it to that stage. My plan is to have at least a couple of smaller of each type in pots and be ready to plant if I lose any, I've lost a couple of potted CIDP which I didn't protect adequately. Starting plants that give offspring or propagate easily whether Hardy or nor means that you can still have plants that you like without ongoing expense. It's the difference between being a collector and a gardener.
Hi George – as always another great video, especially for those starting out. If I didn't have a conservatory I think I would have chosen a few things differently. I'm lucky I can bring in and take out. I'm reaching a point though where some plants are getting too big and too heavy to keep bringing in and out! it has become quite high maintenance. I've just bought a Clematis Armandii after seeing it in Marks Tiki Garden recently. The plan in my head is to try and future proof the main backdrop of my garden to be as evergreen as possible, and then I can tweak and accessorise with specimen plants and colour. Thanks, Rich.
Good tips! I had no idea some plants are better purchased small.
Great video and advice George. Spot on about certain species with sometimes it better to go for the more reliable but less flamboyant varieties that will thrive year after year and are far less hassle. And I couldn't of said it any better myself about the trachycarpus palms, year after year I try to explain that planting a smaller specimen will pay off more and grow into a much nicer palm in the long run, sadly some people see a certain shop selling large ones for cheap and jump at it even though they've been butchered out of the ground and will now sulk for a few years and hardly grow compared to if they had planted a smaller one. Thanks for the awesome video as always, may the sun keep poking it's head out a bit more 🙌🏼 spring is only round the corner thankfully 😁
Great video again George. I always get over excited about plants and never consider how big something is going to get down the line. I have to try and reel myself in now when I spot something new and interesting but I still get over excited so it feels like a losing battle with myself. 🙄 I hope you are feeling better now George. Sending you healing blessings. Xxx
Thank you very much for all these wise and precious tips!
10:44 Fargesia angustissima… 'Elegantissima'! Take care George! 🙋♂☀
Sound advice. Agree, don't spend lots of money on a Canary Island Date palm if you're inland UK (unless you plant it in my front garden)😅
Heya George, Really great tips! Thank you! I love how I can come to your channel and really learn about things that have not only already helped mebut will continue to help me create and develop my garden, which is still a newbie to hardy tropical style! I much appreciate your candid and genuine demeanor, as well. Your garden is 'living proof' of what we can look forward to in our own gardens. And one thing we can say about all of us who put our hard work and love into our plants, is that they thrive and grow, sometimes not al the time, but that is part of the learning process, as well. Thanks again for all the info! Cheers, Leesa
Although its slightly warmer and the staples plants like Bamboos, Fargesias and Fatsias are bulletproof bananas will take damage but are regrowing and have their height retained Trachys, Fan Palms and Yucca Green Cordylines are still great.
My Tasmanian Tiger Euphorbia is haggard and my Agapanthus refuse to flower.
I went back to Peonies and planting Roses at the bases of Palm Trees for that Mediterranean/ Hawaiian look. Also Rose Persica Eye of the Tiger looks like a hardy Hibiscus with a two tone look.
Once again lots of great advice for the new year ahead thanks