Zone: 10, 11
The name of this one attracted me more than anything. I am not even sure if I can grow this successfully, it's a tropical plant that is native to South American rainforests but it's worth a shot. The bonsai version of this tree looks pretty cool (we'll see about that 5 years from now...) as do the full-size trees.
Here's what Whatcom Seed Company had to say about the Monkey Pod:
Here's what Whatcom Seed Company had to say about the Monkey Pod:
"In the rainforest, the leaves of this magnificent tree close up on cloudy days allowing the ensuing rains to rush through. Indoors too, it goes to sleep at the approach of night. Bears beautiful glowing pink flowers followed by attractive green and black pods that contain a sweet pulp that is eaten b
y monkeys in its jungle habitat. Native from the Yucatan Peninsula and Guatemala to Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil. A large, tropical tree to 80' but known for its huge spreading canopy which can be even wider. Makes an unusual bonsai and is very easy to raise from seed."
And here are a couple pictures of the seed. I got 10 seeds with my order and I planted 6 of them, two to a pot. Two pots were 2 inch biodegradable pots (kind of like these) and the third was a larger plastic pot. The sowing instructions called for bright light, so like a lot of my
other seeds/seedlings/plants, they are on the windowsill that gets the bright morning sun. Since they are tropical plants, I was inclined to put them in a clear plastic shoe box to keep it humid. Plus, there was a cold spell in New York after I planted a lot of my seeds and I was worried that some of the tropical plant seeds would be affected in some way. But after a few days the cold spell passed and I placed the pots on the windowsill.
A few days ago, I spotted the seedling in the larger plastic pot. Take a look:
And this morning before I left work, I snapped this picture:
That's a nice looking seedling. I will post the sowing instructions in a day or so.
Update 5-27-10
Update 5/31/10
During the day:
The Monkey Pod leaves, true to the description on Whatcom Seed Co. and even as a seedling, will fold up, even in the late afternoon when it is no longer getting direct sunlight. At first when I got home from work one day and checked out my seedlings, I thought the Monkey Pod was dying. But the next morning its leaves were open and soaking up the sun.
At night:
y monkeys in its jungle habitat. Native from the Yucatan Peninsula and Guatemala to Peru, Bolivia, and Brazil. A large, tropical tree to 80' but known for its huge spreading canopy which can be even wider. Makes an unusual bonsai and is very easy to raise from seed."And here are a couple pictures of the seed. I got 10 seeds with my order and I planted 6 of them, two to a pot. Two pots were 2 inch biodegradable pots (kind of like these) and the third was a larger plastic pot. The sowing instructions called for bright light, so like a lot of my
other seeds/seedlings/plants, they are on the windowsill that gets the bright morning sun. Since they are tropical plants, I was inclined to put them in a clear plastic shoe box to keep it humid. Plus, there was a cold spell in New York after I planted a lot of my seeds and I was worried that some of the tropical plant seeds would be affected in some way. But after a few days the cold spell passed and I placed the pots on the windowsill.A few days ago, I spotted the seedling in the larger plastic pot. Take a look:
And this morning before I left work, I snapped this picture:
That's a nice looking seedling. I will post the sowing instructions in a day or so.Update 5-27-10
Update 5/31/10
During the day:
The Monkey Pod leaves, true to the description on Whatcom Seed Co. and even as a seedling, will fold up, even in the late afternoon when it is no longer getting direct sunlight. At first when I got home from work one day and checked out my seedlings, I thought the Monkey Pod was dying. But the next morning its leaves were open and soaking up the sun.At night:
