This plant does fine in sun to partial shade. If you’ve ever mistaken a plant for a bird, or vice versa, you may have encountered a Bird of Paradise plant. } Prune a bird of paradise plant by cutting back dead foliage, deadheading flowers, removing suckers, trimming unruly growth and selectively pruning its stalks. Measure out an 8- to 10-inch radius around the base of the bird of paradise using a measuring tape. The white bird-of-paradise (Strelitzia nicolai) goes by the alternate name giant bird-of-paradise, a name befitting its ability to grow up to 30 feet tall with a spread of 6 to 10 feet in an ideal … $(document).ready(function(){ var pid = mySplit[1]; Those two are the top producers. Leaves grow off the stem to create a fan. document.write(''); These tropical plants do best in Zone 10, though in Zone 9B you can grow them in a large containers that can be moved indoors during cold weather. It is a species of banana-like plants with erect woody stems … $.get('/frogs/ajax/print_comment.php', { pid: data} ).done(function(foo) { Questions About Bird Of Paradise Plants. Plant Blooming. The bird of paradise needs to be trimmed to remove any clumps from the base of the plant and to remove invasive leaves and flower blooms. Asked by katie on July 16, 2011. function Frog_Reply(pid) { $.ajax({ Let the water soak in for approximately a half-hour before digging. Where To Prune Bird Of Paradise - We covered our bird of paradise (orange flower) last winter with plastic, due to many freezes, and must have left… Q. Bird Of Paradise Bloom - How can you tell when a Bird of Paradise bloom is about to open? Also called crane flowers, choose from three types of Strelitzia species to grow in your garden. The goals of bird of paradise pruning are to remove old plant matter, thin the leaves, and take out damaged stems. }); When reading plant names, the first capitalized name indicates the genus and the second, lowercase name is the species. Cut off dead leaves as they appear. White Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia nicolai) White bird of paradise is a considerably larger species in the Strelitzia genus, with flowers that closely resemble the traditional bird of paradise plant, but with white sepals forming the crown and a bluish-purple "tongue." Q. Tools needed: pic-axe, chain saw, recipical saw (with longest blades you can get), spade shovel with strong handle, 4' 4x4 pressure treated post, come-along, 1' of heavy duty metal chain with stong "S" link for connecting chain ends together. Bird of Paradise blooms best when clumps are crowded, and the soil is watered deeply and frequently. It does prefer a loamy, somewhat rich mix however & needs good drainage. url: url, Plant care. White bird of paradise is a moderate grower to about 25 feet. I'd like to keep the plants but cut them down to a smaller size for both safety and appearance. if ($(window).width() < 1025) { As they age, many bird of paradise plants (Strelitzia reginae) cease blooming due to a lack of nutrients caused by badly compacted roots. They are getting too tall and they need to be cut back, what is best method of pruning these back? Keep bird of paradise (Strelitizia reginae) and white bird of paradise (Strelitzia nicolai) looking trim and tidy with regular pruning.Regularly tidying up the dead flowers and leaf debris also helps keep fungal diseases from getting established. A bird of paradise that is 3 to 4 feet tall grows well in a 10-inch pot. document.write(''); Join us Bird of paradise is a superb plant, boasting simply magnificent flowers and nicely dense leafage. }); Water the next morning for another 20 to 30 minutes to further soften the roots and surrounding soil. } $("#replyform-"+pid).slideDown(); The Bird of Paradise plant, or strelitzia, is a large and gorgeous foliage plant that looks just as majestic indoors in a pot, as it does outside in the garden.This plant is famous for its round palm-like leaves and its brightly-coloured architectural flowers that bloom to look like tropical birds – earning the strelitzia the household name of ‘Bird of Paradise’ plant. Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia reginae) produce long-lasting and quite striking flowers intermittently throughout the year, but bloom best during the cool season. Q. Bird Of Paradise Plant - Will the Bird of Paradise grow successfully in Zone 9 (Florida)? Terms of Service apply. More about this plant: The scientific name is Strelitzia nicolai. Cultivars of the Strelitzia genus of bird of paradise abound, but the Caesalpinia genus is nothing like the BOP with which most gardeners are familiar. My beautiful giant white bird of paradise plants were blooming this year! e.preventDefault(); Discard the pruned foliage in a green-waste can. © Copyright 2020 Hearst Communications, Inc. If you want to keep the bird of paradise plant from growing back, spray a glyphosate-based herbicide onto the soil where it was growing, especially if there were still root fragments in the soil after digging it out. $("#show_answer_form").slideDown(); Plants 101 Next Article Unusual, gorgeous, tropical. You can cut the spent flower and stalk down to foliage level to keep the plants looking neat and tidy. In the wild, birds of paradise flowers are pollinated by … } (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); if ($(window).width() > 1024) { Use these convenient icons to share this page on various social media platforms: You must be signed in before you can post questions or answers. $("form.frog_reply_form").submit(function(e) { success: function(data) { Have had wisteria for three years and it has not bloomed. Because the bird of paradise favors tropical conditions temperatures that don’t meet its requirements will have an adverse effect, therefore, it’s important that your plant is exposed to temperatures from 60-7o degrees F during the day hours and a little lower during nighttimes. If your plants are really overgrown, you may want to dig them up, divide them (making sure each division has both roots and tops attached), and then replant. Privacy Policy and Each have have 3-4 trunks with the tallest at around 20'. Bird of paradise is a rapidly-growing plant that needs to reach a certain size before it will bloom. It’s hardy to 25-30 degrees F. The Bird Of Paradise grows in USDA zones 10-12 & also in zone 9 with protection from prolonged freezes. They are over 5 feet tall and very healthy and full of flowers. Cut back all the bird of paradise's leaves, flower stalks and stems using sharp, sturdy pruning shears. In these cases, many owners elect to remove the plant from the premises much in the same way one would remove a tree (in fact, often with a … Step by step instructions for removing large bird of paradise. In this video, I am repotting overgrown and root-bound Bird of Paradise plant in a larger Lechuza self-watering planter so the plant can continue growing happily. Foliage – evergreen Flowering – May to September.. Also have a bird of paradise that just keeps getting taller and taller, not bushing out. Hardiness. type: "POST", Name – Strelitzia reginae Family – Strelitziaceae Type – perennial. We added soil amendments, and were lucky enough to get flowers the first year afterwards. If the plants are allowed to grow too large, they may actually start interfering with housing structures or take over a yard. Share videos, music and pictures, follow friends and keep track of what you enjoy! Fill in the hole left by the plant with garden soil. Another reason a bird of paradise plant may yellow is from insufficient light. Words by The Sill. Bird of paradise plants need at least 4-6 hours of sunlight each day. Apparent frost damage from the previous winter was observed, but plentiful new growth was imminent. $("#replyform-"+pid).hide(); The giant bird of paradise, Strelitzia nicolai, is one of the largest species and can grow up to 30 feet in height. } The bird of paradise flower (Strelitzia) is best known for its bright, tropical, spiked flowers that can resemble a bird sitting in the foliage. It is a species of banana … It will grow quite large outside, 20 to 30 feet tall and 10 feet wide, and will become ragged looking if not pruned often. I'm excited! Originally hailing from the African continent, the bird-of-paradise plant (Strelitzia reginae) is known for its broad foliage and vibrantly colored flowers that resemble the shape of a tropical bird. Grip the edge of the rootball and carefully lift it from the ground. Bird of Paradise blooms best when clumps are crowded, and the soil is watered deeply and frequently. $("#show_answer_button").hide(); If the rest of your landscape is overgrown and shading out your plant or if it’s in a dark corner of the home, you may have to move it to a sunnier location. You need pruning shears, a shovel and gloves to properly trim the plant. Pry apart the root crown with the shovel so it is in smaller, slightly more manageable pieces. If you’ve ever mistaken a plant for a bird, or vice versa, you may have encountered a Bird of Paradise plant. Pull the shovel's handle back toward your chest to pry the rootball loose from the surrounding soil. var thisid = $(this).attr('id'); Dig straight down to a depth of at least 18 to 20 inches, which is the depth of most older bird of paradise plant's roots. function Frog_Cancel(pid) { Insert the blade of the sharpshooter or trenching shovel vertically into the soil along the radial line. ... try to dig as much of the plant out of the ground as possible, it has very tough fleshy roots so you may have to get help and also a good sharp spade to help split the root ball up, as you said half the plant roots are already out … The Bird Of Paradise isn’t too fussy as to soil which is evidenced by the wide variety of places it grows in. function _ShowAnswerButton(pid) { If your plant is too dense and crowded with dead foliage and growth for you to reach the center, use a large pruning saw to cut the entire plant … The plant produces stems that grow in a clump. Ask a friend or two to help lift the bird of paradise from the ground rather than tackling it yourself since the plants are exceptionally heavy when mature. Do not attempt to compost whole bird of paradise plants since they will simply take root in your compost pile and spread. Don’t forget to subscribe to our YouTube channel today, so you do not miss any of my new videos about plant care, plant issues, self-watering planters, plant decor, and more. Cut back all the bird of paradise's leaves, flower stalks and stems using sharp, sturdy pruning shears. I am trying to cut back this bird of paradise to make it smaller. Strike the core of the foliage crown repeatedly with a mattock to break up the surface roots. }); « Return to the Garden Knowledgebase Homepage. Bird of paradise plants are beautiful, but they can get out of control. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google data: $("#"+thisid).serialize(), The plant can reach up to 6 feet tall and just as wide across, sometimes overwhelming your landscape. Repeat this at least four times around the bird of paradise plant to break the lateral roots that attach it to the soil. $("#"+thisid).attr('style',''); Etch out the radial line around the plant using the tip of a sharpshooter or trenching shovel to provide a guideline for digging the plant out. A 5- to 6-foot plant usually thrives in a 14-inch pot. The common name is the giant white bird of paradise. Prune them back to ground … Prune them back to ground level to make the removal process easier. }); }, © 1972 - 2020 National Gardening Association, Times are presented in US Central Standard Time, Today's site banner is by lauriemorningglory and is called "October Skies". The bird of paradise plant is an exotic beauty that flowers in winter. Samantha McMullen began writing professionally in 2001. Facts, Care and Tips for the awesome Giant Birds of Paradise (Strelitzia nicolai). Work the tip of the shovel at an angle under the edge of the rootball. Of the five, two are under a C. mexicana ("Mexican Bird of Paradise") tree, receiving morning sun and then partial shade. Bird of paradise grows in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 10 through 11, while white bird of paradise … Height – 3 to 10 feet (1 to 3 m) Exposure – full sun, part sun Soil – ordinary. A giant bird of paradise can reach up to 30 feet in height once it matures and the flower stalks … $("#show-reply-form-"+pid).hide(); Q. Overgrown Bird Of Paradise - Our plant has reached over 20 feet high with … Chip away at the roots until you can insert the blade of your sharpshooter shovel into the center of the plant. We also talk all about how I grow my huge Giant Birds of Paradise. Tame an out-of-control Bird of Paradise using a pruning saw. The bird of paradise is closely related to the banana plant, which is evident in its similar-looking large fan-like leaves. var mySplit = thisid.split("-"); I just noticed the flowers while I was watering them this evening. However, with the proper tools, it is entirely possible to remove the plants in just a few hours if you have some help lifting the heavy, unwieldy plants from the ground. my house is a brick home and the veranda pillar where the plant is has moved and cracked. Hi, I have a bird of paradise plant in my garden which Is very large and has been there for quite some time. The large gray-green leaves can easily be confused with … Planting bird of paradise Plant specs. Repot it every spring into a somewhat larger pot. It has taken over a section. $("#"+thisid).slideDown(); Wow, my giant white bird of paradise plants were getting quite overgrown now! Trickle a garden hose at the base of the bird of paradise for 20 to 30 minutes the night before digging it up. var url = "/frogs/ajax/post_comment/"+pid+"/"; Climate: tropics, … Bird of paradise can be cleaned up and trimmed at any point, but serious pruning should wait until early spring. What you need to know about bird of paradise Name: bird of paradise, strelitzia , crane flower, bird’s tongue flower (Strelitzia reginae) Plant type: evergreen, forms a trunkless clump Height: to around 1.2m tall by 2–3m wide with age Foliage: similar to a small banana leaf but on a stem, very rigid, green to grey-blue. Each plant puts out several flowers, some double blossoms. Cut up the root ball into equal parts and replant them as divisions, or discard the whole plant in a green-waste can. Many gardeners opt to dig out the plants to divide and replant them or to discard them altogether when they fail to bloom for several years. More about this plant: The scientific name is Strelitzia nicolai. Her nearly 20 years of experience in horticulture informs her work, which has appeared in publications such as Mother Earth News. Let’s take a closer look at this natural wonder. 1. Within both genera, there are numerous types of bird of paradise plants suitable for warm regions in which theyre hardy. Bird of Paradise Flower Facts. Need to know how to prune a bird of paradise? The white bird of paradise, or Strelitzia nicolai, is an ornamental plant related to the banana tree and can be potted and grown in sunny locations indoors or in your garden. The common name is the giant white bird of paradise. There is strelitzia reginae, strelitzia nicolai and strelitzia juncea, and the way to tell them apart is their leaves. Basic Bird of Paradise facts. } $("#"+thisid).hide(); $("#"+thisid).html(foo); My husband and I recently moved to a new home that has beautiful, but overgrown Bird of Paradise plants in the front yard. While simple in theory, digging out old bird of paradise plants can be somewhat difficult because of their dense, heavy rootball. Our house came with a few locations with well established giant bird of paradise plants.