heliconias for the desert

[leomx]

Can Heliconia "marie" survive to 8ªC during winter time? others heliconias?

how long H. marie from transplanting to first bloom? any useful advice about this one?!

saludos.  

[Dave-Vero]

I'm a beginner at heliconias.  A grower in nearby Fellesmere (Indian River County, Florida), J.G's Tropical Plants (sells on EBay) puts up with fairly frequent freezes--it seems the muck farm area gets colder on still nights than the coast.  I think the growth habit of these plants, with substantial rhizomes, gives them the resources to recover from cold, hurricanes, and whatnot, provided they have a long hot season, with plenty of water and nutrients.  

I'm having a good time with Heliconia collinsiana and H. stricta "Iris red," both of which have put up with temperatures down to freezing and prolonged cool spells, but of course they much prefer steamy summer weather.  My plants are in their fourth season, and I'm expecting the first good crop of flowers this year.  

I haven't seen H. mariae.  It might be possible to check on its habitat preferences by checking herbarium specimen data using the New York Botanical Garden or Missouri Botanical Garden databases.

[leomx]

thanks Dave, my plants still very young and perhaps will need some chill protection, at least a couple of years.

Woaw, they sure take a while to get blossoms.

Saludos.