Chilean fire tree a great tree in zones 8 & 9

[Palm crazy]

Chilean Fire Tree. One of the most dramatic plants for zone 8-9 area’s. It grows in the temperate forests of Chile and Argentina.These requires moderate climate where it can become a 50' + narrow tree that is usually multi-trunked. In late May and June, this is a tower of blazing red-orange tubular flowers and you will get little else done other than answering questions from the neighbors about just what is that tree? Best protected from freezing winds, mine is fully exposed. Being in the Proteaceae, they don't enjoy phosphorous so be careful what you fertilize them with. Rather than think too hard on it, I just ladle some leaf mulch around my tree.

It is grown as an ornamental in Great Britain and the U.S., and as far north as the Faroe Islands at 62° North latitude.

Here some pics from my little tree. Not yet in full bloom so many more flowers to enjoy.

[Alicehunter2000]

Researching Now.......hmm...doesn't look like it would work in the southeast. To hot and humid. Anybody grwoing these down here?

[_Keith]

Researching Now.......will report back when I got more info...ok boss

Please let me know, cause I already gotsta have one.

[Palm crazy]

David & Keith, I did a little checking and it looks like it hates nighttime heat. The one I have is called, Embothrium coccineum var. lanceolatum which is more tender to cold but still a big maybe in your hot summer climate.

Here some feedback from some of the west coast nursery’s that sell the different spp.

http://plantlust.com/plants/embothrium-coccineum/

Desert northwest nursery- “It is at its best in cool, coastal climates; and tends to be challenging in climates with hot, humid summers.”

Edited May 22, 2014 by Palm crazy

[_Keith]

David & Keith, I did a little checking and it looks like it hates nighttime heat. The one I have is called, Embothrium coccineum var. lanceolatum which is more tender to cold but still a big maybe in your hot summer climate.

Here some feedback from some of the west coast nursery’s that sell the different spp.

http://plantlust.com/plants/embothrium-coccineum/

Desert northwest nursery- “It is at its best in cool, coastal climates; and tends to be challenging in climates with hot, humid summers.”

Ruh-oh. Figured there might be a reason that I have never seen one.

[Palm crazy]

Theres still lots of exotic plants I cannot grow that you guys can.

Gardening is learning, learning, learning. That's the fun of them. You're always learning.

Helen Mirren

[Silas_Sancona]

Awesome tree.. just not for FL. Determined to find a source for Alloxylon flammeum, AKA Queensland Waratah. That one should fare better here.

-Nathan-

[_Keith]

The saga of the northern Gulf Coast, just a little too warm for this and a little too cold for that.

[Tropicdoc]

You got that right, Keith

[Palm crazy]

The Chilean Fire Tree Embothrium coccineum http://plantlust.com/plants/embothrium-coccineum/ are spectacular this year. A few pics from my little tree. Hummers are going crazy for this cool tree.

[JasonD]

Magnificent! We need to get more-northerly evergreen selections here in California. The hardy deciduous ones don't last long in the landscape here.

[Palm crazy]

Here is this years blooms 2017.  I planted three more this spring of Chilean fire tree Embothrium coccineum. Hummers are happy to see it. 

 

Edited May 22, 2017 by Palm crazy

[Hillizard]

Palm Crazy: Thanks for sharing those epic images of Embothrium coccineum!! Really enjoyed them. I'm on my 4th attempt to grow one here in Sacramento (NorCal interior). Attached is my latest try, bought via mail order from a Washington nursery several months ago. It has put out a bit of new growth this spring (and already been chewed on by insects). My previous attempts with this species in pots usu. collapsed during our summer heat waves. I'm hoping this one, with its roots in the ground and shaded much of the day, may have a better chance.

Also, still trying, via my Australian contacts, to get some seeds of Alloxylon flammeum.  Supposedly there's a nice specimen in Balboa Park, San Diego: http://www.geographylists.com/alloxylon_flammeum.jpg.

 

[Palm crazy]

Hillizard, it took me three time to get one to grow. Killed the first two by fertilizing which they don’t like! They do need some regular watering fall-winter spring… once they take and get some growth in a few years they are more drought tolerant. Very easy to grow up here. I think your new sitting will prove to be good. The growth on yours is about the same as my new baby ones.  I saw a really nice Telopea oreades in bloom at Windcliff nursery, I took many picture of it only to have my camera act up and lost all the photos. 

Good luck with yours and I hope you find Alloxylon flammeum it a beauty. 

Edited May 23, 2017 by Palm crazy

[Hillizard]

Just now, Palm crazy said:

Hillizard, it took me three time to get one to grow. Killed the first two by fertilizing which they don’t like! They do need some regular watering fall-winter spring… once they take and get some growth in a few years they are more drought tolerant. Very easy to grow up here. I think your new sitting will prove to be good. The growth on yours is about the same as my new baby ones.  I saw a really nice Telopea oreades in bloom at Windcliff nursery, I took many picture of it only to have my camera act up and lost all the photos. 

Good luck with yours and I hope you find Alloxylon flammeum it a beauty. 

Palm crazy: I appreciate your encouragement and thanks for sharing the backstory on your attempts with Embothrium. I just put some sulfur tablets around mine to help acidify the soil and will only fertilize the plant with blood meal, if ever.

BTW, I've only managed to keep small Telopea speciosissima alive for a year or so before they decline, as my largest one apparently has during our 95deg.F weather this week. In California this particular genus probably does better in more coastal locations. 

[Palm crazy]

10 minutes ago, Hillizard said:

Palm crazy: I appreciate your encouragement and thanks for sharing the backstory on your attempts with Embothrium. I just put some sulfur tablets around mine to help acidify the soil and will only fertilize the plant with blood meal, if ever.

BTW, I've only managed to keep small Telopea speciosissima alive for a year or so before they decline, as my largest one apparently has during our 95deg.F weather this week. In California this particular genus probably does better in more coastal locations. 

Don’t feel bad, my telopea dies one summer. It didn’t like 104F we had two years ago. LOL! 

Edited May 23, 2017 by Palm crazy

[gardeningben]

i have tried to grow this plant from seed so many times , i get them to grow through the winter and spring but the summer heat always kills them off
i am in Perth western Australia with the summer getting to 116f for a day or 2 most years
i will try again as i so want to have this plant in my garden , i will try in a more shaded spot this time
your photos look great

[Palm crazy]

Thanks!  The hummers are crazy for it. 

[Cindy Adair]

Gorgeous tree that I will leave to those with climates like yours to grow! Thanks for the eye candy!

[Palm crazy]

22 hours ago, Cindy Adair said:

Gorgeous tree that I will leave to those with climates like yours to grow! Thanks for the eye candy!

Thanks Cindy I bet it would grow in your area also…maybe? 

[Pip]

For warmer climates Stenocarpus sinuatus would give a similar look. Not quite the same but won't suddenly die due to a run of warm nights.

[Hillizard]

In the spirit of "Never give up! Never surrender!" (to my growing zone), I'm all in on trying E. coccineum again this year. Today I received 2 small plants from an Oregon nursery (one was a freebie!) at the same time as the seeds I'd ordered from England arrived. I have the perhaps misguided belief that there might be enough genetic variability in these seeds to find some (or at least one) plant(s) that can tolerate the climate where I live.  We'll see.

In the garden at my previous house I did get a Stenocarpus sinuatus to bloom, so that's always one I can consider for my current place.

[Palm crazy]

Good luck with it Hillizard. The flowers are worth the effort. 

[Georgia Peach]

Palm Crazy, your Embothrium are so beautiful in bloom.  I ordered two from a nursery in Oregon last year, which both quickly grew new leaves and branches, and even gave me a beautiful bloom, but then quickly died by the end of June.  I'm in northern Georgia, which appears to be within the tolerable grow zone for Embothrium, but I suspect it can't take the heat + humidity.  This year I'll attempt to grow it again, but I'll put it near my A/C condensate drain in the hopes that the constant moisture will keep its roots nice and cool.  I might be smoking hopium, but the thought of this gorgeous tree in bloom is enough to keep me trying.

[Georgia Peach]

Well it worked!  The AC condensate drain has managed to keep the soil cool and moist enough to ensure the Embothrium I planted in spring survived and thrived.  I made sure to work a lot of sand into the red clay it got planted in.  Surprisingly, it was able to grow a full 12 inches this summer, despite being in very humid Georgia.  We're now at the end of December, and the tree has dropped most of its leaves for winter, but the top few leaves are still hanging around.  The top has a crown of very small green leaves, ready to keep growing when spring rolls around.  Excited to be growing this beauty in Georgia.  I doubt there's another of its species in the entire state, but I'd be overjoyed if others in my area would give it a try as well.  It seems to be a picky tree when it comes to location, but worth all the effort.

[Darold Petty]

Georgia Peach, Welcome to Palmtalk !  

[Cindy Adair]

Great to hear of the successes with this special tree!!

Congratulations!

[Paradise Found]

Good for you Georgia Peach, I hope you get to enjoy your new treasure for years to come.  Come Next May will have to do another photo shot, lol.

Paradise Found, aka... palm crazy!

Edited December 26, 2021 by Paradise Found

[Cberg]

Hilliard: It's been 3 years since your last post. Can you give an update about your attempts to grow Embothrium in Sacramento? I've just been given 2 starts from the California north coast but am concerned about our hot, dry summers.