Kangaroo paw fern has no known toxicity for cats or dogs. If either cats or dogs chew on the fronds, they will probably throw up the plant parts, just as they would after eating grass. Overeating any plant can cause digestive problems, and pets could have allergic reactions. Will kangaroo paw grow in shade?
Tall Kangaroo Paw The flower-stalk can grow to 2 m tall. The flowers usually appear yellow-green, but a wide range of colour forms are available. It is best to buy this species in flower to determine the flower colour. Plants grow well in full sun or dappled shade.
Why do kangaroo paws go black? A big issue with Kangaroo Paws is a thing called 'ink spot. How do you care for a kangaroo paw plant? To get the best out of your kangaroo paws grow them in full sun with good drainage. You can also add a small amount of organic matter to the soil to help improve growth. They do have a slightly higher demand for water during early spring and summer, which helps maintain the longevity of the blooms.
Can you grow kangaroo paws from cuttings? Anigozanthos flavidus is easy to grow from both seed and rhizome cuttings, and is considered the easiest of all kangaroo paws to grow. Rhizome divisions can be taken in March — May, simply by cutting the rhizome with a sharp knife or spade, ensuring each section has a healthy bud on it. They tend to produce taller cultivars with spectacular flower displays that are highly resilient when combined with other varieties.
Breeding from the Macropidia genus is more challenging thanks to its very restricted natural environment. It likes very dry gravelly conditions and so tends to struggle in most gardens. Even so, you may still get a couple of years out of Kangaroo plants in northern Queensland and a little longer further south. In general terms, the short-stemmed varieties tend to be more short-lived than the taller stems cultivars. Kangaroo Paws do best in slightly acidic soils with good drainage and full sun exposure.
They do not like wet feet but they will cope with a range of soils if there is good structure in the soil. Very high phosphorous levels may also be detrimental to some Kangaroo Paw species.
Most Kangaroo Paws will die back and become dormant over winter. You should take advantage of this characteristic to cut back most of the leaves and old flower stems to ground level see pruning section. Make sure you remove all the cuttings and any dead leaves from around the plant to minimise the transfer of disease. Be aware that regular heavy frosts, especially from mid-winter to spring may hinder flower development.
Wet feet and excessive humidity levels will encourage fungal diseases and shorten the life of most Kangaroo Paws. They work well in raised beds and are ideal for low maintenance gardens.
Planting can take place anytime from March through to October or early November. If needed, you can add a slow release fertiliser in spring. Thanks to the underground rhizome root system you can divide your Kangaroo Paws quite easily if they get too big. In fact, dividing large clumps is actually good for plant health and fosters strong vigorous growth. Kangaroo Paws do very well as pot plants. Ozbreed cultivars have been designed for low maintenance with reduced pruning requirements compared to other varieties.
In fact, they thrive with a good cutting back at the end of summer or in early autumn after the flowering has finished. You can be quite harsh, cutting old flower stems down to the ground. You still need about a third of the plant above ground but its underground rhizome will ensure the plant will shoot back with vigorous new growth in the spring. Pruning during flowering season can also pay dividends. Remove flower stems as soon as they are no longer looking their best. A handy tip to prolong the flowering season of the taller kangaroo paws is to cut out the top half of the flower stem as soon as the first flower opens and use it indoors as a cut flower.
Its removal stimulates the growth of the dormant flower buds that remain on the bottom half of the flower stem, the part still on the plant. These dormant buds develop into side branches that extend the flowering period usually from late spring to mid-summer by at least a month or two. The two pictures below show this, the blue arrows are where the old finished stem was cut, and the red arrow shows the new stem shooting. With the smaller hybrid cultivars, it takes a bit more work to maximise their relatively short lives, but the longer flowering periods make the maintenance well worth while.
The main thing to remember is that generous flowering takes a lot of energy from the plant, so extra care in feeding and watering will ensure better performance. Also, removal of dead and dying old flowers will encourage new shoots and better air flow in your plants. Each flower stem arises from a fan of leaves usually six , which gradually die and turn black as the flowers finish.
A savage cutback will often kill the smaller hybrids, so rather than chopping the whole plant down to ground level, it is best to remove the spent flower stems one at a time. As you do so, make sure you take the old leaves that are associated with them. With the exception of the tall kangaroo paw A. Give them a well-drained position with as much sun as possible, such as in a rockery.
Otherwise they can be grown quite happily in containers, where I have had them flower well for ten years or more. A good tip with pots is to use a free-draining mix but apply plenty of food and water while the plants are actively growing and flowering. The flower stems are very succulent while they are developing and do not react well to lack of moisture. Anigozanthos flavidus is a much more adaptable kangaroo paw, and will suit a wider range of soil types including clay loams, and will handle wet spells.
They now come in a wide range of colours. There are good commercial fertilisers available which are specially formulated for native plants which have lower phosphorous levels, but kangaroo paws do not resent phosphorous, so most fertilisers can be used. The key to getting the most out of feeding kangaroo paws is in timing.
Cutting back also helps reduce the incidence of disease. The dreaded ink spot that people often mention with kangaroo paws is something that attacks the leaves. It can be caused by fungal diseases, but it can also be caused by snails and frost damages - anything which kills the leaf tissue will blacken it. So by cutting all that leaf off, you get beautiful, fresh new leaves which gives the plant a really vigorous green appearance.
This time of year, just after you've cut them back, a good handful of slow release fertiliser just sprinkled around the base is ideal. If you do that again in spring, when they're in the middle of their growth flush, you'll be richly rewarded.
Something else you can do at this time of year, summer and into autumn, is divide the plant. When the clumps get really big it's time to sink in the spade to divide the plant into pieces and then you've got new plants. Like a lot of garden plants, the kangaroo paws can look a bit tired after they flower, so this maintenance helps revitalise them, encouraging nice healthy new growth and lots more flowers for next season.
They're a fabulous bird-attracting plant, drought tolerant as well, and they're an icon of the native garden. Fri pm, Rpt Sun pm. Share Facebook Twitter Mail.
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