To grow a trunk that size would be quite an accomplishment. Do any of you growers have a brug that size? Trunk diameter.
Lots of bio-stimulants perhaps? Does anybody else out there use bio-stimulants in growing brugs?

That is one huge brug!!!

I have several brugs that size. You can grow your brugs to that size too. I wish I could recall how old some of them are 5-7 yrs perhaps.

You really do not need to use bio-stimulants. Patience, tlc and amend your soil. A friend of mine uses mushroom compost and she grows the largest brug forest you can imagine.

I have a few of her brugs and I'll tell you the largest this year was 11' - from the top of the soil to the top of the growth. Can just barely haul it into the basement.

I use brugs to add interest in the garden - with respect to their shapes, then blooms and smell.

:)

I don't have anything that size. My tallest brugs are about 10' and the trunk isn't as thick but I don't think it would be difficult if I wanted to use greenhouse space to grow them. In frost free climates they get quite a bit bigger then that. They are pretty much trees in tropical zones.

Karyn,
would you not say that that brug is between 8- 10'?

that's minusing 18" for the pot.

I wasn't taking in to consideration the height of the greenhouse - no idea how high that is.

I was judging by the thickness of the trunk -

:)

I'm guessing that's much taller then 10'. My largest greenhouse (it's a commercial 200' x 75') is 15' at the highest point and that one looks to be a similar size.

That's gorgeous. We do have some around here that tall, but they are more free form.

I don't have any pictures of them. Now, I wish I had taken a few but when I was in Puerto Rico, they were the size of trees! HUGE!! The flowers were also mammoth. That trip, about 5 years ago, I brought backa ton of plant material with no troubles. Now, it is almost foribidden!
Andrew

Why do you have problems bringing in plants from Puerto Rico? I trade with friends there all the time. As long as there's no soil it's not an issue. It's much easier to get plants in and out of PR then California! I used to hide plants in my luggage when I went to Central America but wouldn't even try it now. We're going to PR over spring break and I've already been in touch with the horticulturist/curator at TARS.

Hi Karyn,
I have not been there since but I know a bunch of guys that went last year and they could bring stuff back but it had to be shipped. I also had a friend that tried to bring back quenepa fruits for us and they wouldn't allow it. I talked to customs and they said that there have been changes in bringing certain things back now. I know for example avocado cannot be brought in because it also suffers from one of the same diseases that the citrus suffer from here.
I am really jealous Karyn! What does TARS stand for? I would love to get my hands on some of the orchids I had brought back last time. Also the flamboyan. Now, I could really grow it but before I didn't have the right envoroment for the winter. What part of P.R. are you visiting? I wish I had grabbed a pudica plumeria too. I can get it here though. My biggest plant obsession is tropical fruit trees. They have some great mango varieties there!
Andrew

Transporting produce across state (territory) lines is another story. Before 9-11 I used to pack a suitcase full of artichokes and avocados whenever I was in CA. Don't do that anymore : ( I love quenepas! I can get them for a couple weeks at the Korean grocery store, usually around late Aug. There it's labeled mamon or mamoncillo. I was bummed that they won't be in season while we're in PR.

TARS is the Tropical Agricultural Research Station. It's part of the USDA. We'll actually be all over PR but will spend most of the time on the outskirts of San Juan. Since we are bringing the kids we have to be somewhere that has activities for all of them (ages 6-17) and there's a lot to do near SJ. If it was just DH and I we'd probably stay on the other side of the island. You should try a Royal Poincianna. It's actually pretty easy to winter over even without a GH or grow lights. They drop foliage but as long as they don't freeze they'll be fine. The only problem is size. Pride of Barbados has similar blooms but is a smaller tree. I agree, the RP is spectacular in bloom. I like P. pudica and it's so easy to root. I've rooted it in water. I just wish it had a scent.

Karyn,

Are you able to get the royal poicianna to bloom?

It took about 5 years from seed to bloom but I think that's longer then average. It only had a few flowers. I would have love to have kept it but it's super fast growing and once we stopped heating the big greenhouse I no longer had room. The seeds remain viable for a long time and are easy to germinate. They can reach 5' in a container in no time. I have pride of barbados growing now. It's similar but smaller and even that's a fast grower. They are deciduous but can't take cold temps. They are a zone 10 tree, I think. There's several growing near my Mom's place in FL but I'm usually not there when they are in bloom (late spring, early summer). I wonder if it could be trained as a bonsai? That would be amazing looking.

Bo, I'm also in Washington state. Can I ask where that one is?
-Tom

Hi Tom, this brug is in Vancouver, WA @ Shorty's Garden and Home(on mill plain, close to walmart).

-Bo

At Timberline Nursery in Arvada, CO there is a peach versicolor planted inground inside the nursery greenhouse which is HUGE! They trim it every fall for cuttings which they sell (that was my first brug), then it grows again and in winter I go there to enjoy the blooms amid the snow. I would guess the trunk is 6-7" diameter or more, and it's probably 15-20' tall.
Diane

That is a beauty. Traveling to different islands I have seen how beautiful the tropical plants are when grown in that climate.

karyn1 when are you headed to Puerto Rico. For my job I have to go the first two weeks of December every year. The first year I loved it now 12 years later I hate to go. Like everything when it is a job you start to not like it anymore. LOL. We stay at the Marriot San Juan it is a great location to get around the island.

My son and his family just got back from a vacation in San Juan, PR yesterday. They had rented a condo in a gated community. A PR gang kicked in his door at 2;00 in the morning and drug him outside and kicked and beat him severly. Black eye, broken ribs, etc. The police watched until they finished and then arrested my son for agressive behavior. Nothing was said or done to the gang. It seems that he had complained to the gate guard about their noise. Not somewhere I would probably be going to.
Bill

I think we're leaving 4/15 or 4/17, I can't remember. We were considering the Marriott SJ but decided on the Hyatt, close by. Since we're taking the kids we needed somewhere that would have activities for all of them and I didn't want a long flight. PR was just about the only place that fit the bill. Most of the places I like aren't child friendly. My neighbor's kids had a great time in PR last year so we'll give it a try. I just want anywhere warm. lol I've been spending part of the winters in FL for over 40 years and still don't mind going. It's not really a vacation, more of an escape from the cold! lol

Bill sorry to hear what happened to your son. Unfortunately that can happen anywhere. One of my favorite places to vacation is Belize but you have to be careful. My BIL was robbed by armed men in Costa Rica but that certainly wouldn't stop me from going.

Karyn, the Hyatt is a beautiful property it is a little isolated.. I loved the black swans. I know how you feel needing a warm up break.

Bill I am sorry about your son. I would not hesitate to go to PR for vacation if I was not road weary. LOL. You really have to know where you are staying just as in the states.