Watch out, she's leaping!!

Wow, that's a sight! Congrats! Mine has 1 eye, as last year and the year before...

i see what you did there peren .. lol

Happy to have given you a chuckle Ken.

Fantastic Dave, she is gonna be huge this year.

how old is your empress?..I have a new one planted fall 2016..the eyes (3-4?) are up but less than an inch..will post a pic when it's further along..I read they're slow growers..was yours slow?

My oh my, that Empress Wu is doing so well! Looks like it's going to be a really nice size once it has fully emerged. A single eye four years ago and now 24? That Empress Wu must really like it at your place!

Now I want to rake the leaves off my Wu and check her out. Yours is going to be huge this year!

Going to be huge!

I bought three single divisions in 2012 and they had individual pots. I planted that one on the bank in 2015 and the other two are now in 35litre pots.

I haven't counted the eyes on the other two yet for comparison but am pretty sure it won't be as many. They are only just showing through so a bit early for counting.

As this one gets full Welsh sun ( when it shines ) all day, lots of rainfall and is in moisture retentive soil it is doing way better than the others. This is proving my conviction that pot growing retards them to an extent. On the plus side pot growing means there is very little weeding to be done.

Dave

WOW! She may eat your yard!

Mine is like Karin's, only 2 to 3 pips for the last 3 years. I have always said all tc are not created equal.

I would love it if you were willing to come back to this thread and tell us how many eyes the potted EW has. I find the comparisons very interesting.

How moisture retentive is your soil, Dave? Is it naturally that way or amended? My Wu is pipping, but so far no where near as aggressively as yours.

I think the biggest contributing factor is the amount of rainfall we experience.

I am situated 300 meters up on a south facing Welsh hillside.

We have about ten inches to a foot of top soil then a layer of clay and slate.

Moss grows on the surface which helps retain the moisture.

Hostas love it but a lot of other plants struggle.

We also have very mild winters compared to most of you. Do long winter freezes take something away from the plant? Possibly.

That's as much as I can tell you.

glosgarden I agree completely with you on tc plants. I have a 3 year old Spartacus that refuses to grow whatever I do and could find several more the same.

NHL I will get back with a pip count for the potted ones.

Dave

How about an updated photo!

Chant...photo, photo, photo,. Photo, photo, photo ;-)