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rabbithole2020

Oxalis Triangularis and Regnelli Help

15 years ago

Hello All! This is my first time working with Oxalis and I've tried to research how to properly care for the plant as well as understanding their timeline for growth but it is hit and miss. Here's my dilemma...

I live in CA zone 9 and purchased a bag of 50 Oxalis Triangularis and Regnelli corms from easytogrowbulbs.com. I wanted to use them as a ground cover in my front and back yard. I planted them all in January because the website said to put them in the ground right away. I potted a few indoors at the same time.

The Oxalis I potted indoors sprouted within a few weeks under a South facing window. Their only problem is that I think they are leggy. The leaves are about 2-3 inches across when open (they look normal) but they are about 5-6 inches tall. I'm not sure if that is normal. They certainly don't look full and short like the ones in the nursery this time of year. Fearing they were not getting enough light, I added a "grow light" (Exo-terra Repti Glo 2.0). So far it's been a week and I can't tell if this is helping or not. My indoor temperatures are 66 at night 70 in the day.

The ones I planted outdoors haven't done a thing. I noticed this week (3/23/11) that there are one-two 1/2 inch leaves popping up in my front yard where I planted the Regnelli corms but they look like slug food. The backyard Oxalis don't even show signs of growth. The only main difference between the front and the back is that the backyard soil drains slower. I used redwood bark to cover my landscape front and back, not very thick, just so I don't have exposed ground. Not sure if this is affecting the growth of my Oxalis (ie, keeping the ground too moist). Outdoor temperatures are from low 40s at night to mid 60's during the day and we get frequent rain off and on.

I did put a few corms in a pot outdoors in the front. Those look about the size of the ones in the ground in the front, about 1/2 inch wide but don't have any height. Just enough clearance for the leaves to close. No signs of slugs here.

I researched a natural way to rid slugs and found coffee grounds work. Applied it this week so it's too soon to tell if it's effective.

Now that you have an idea of what's happening, anything stand out? I was hoping for a nice bushy ground cover... Still, I'm happy to see some growth.

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