Cyathea medullaris
12th September 2006
The Black tree fern is a wonderful plant, but it sits right on the edge of hardiness here. I think that the large fronds are woirth protecting in the greenhouse, but it grows outside on Tresco
and I am strongly tempted to give it a try here, if I can find a little sheltered spot. Probably another one where I am going to get a duplicate to try outside so that the big one can be preserved
in the greenhouse.
11th August 2006
3rd April 2014
This is the last picture I have of the plant. At this point it had about three feet of trunk, but its vigour was declining. It had been pot-bound for too
long and no amount of feeding or watering was able to overcome the stunting effect. With a last few fronds hanging on by a thread, I made the decision to give it
to the garden at Tremenheere, near Penzance, where it is mild enough to allow it to grow outside free of restriction. I miss it, but a visit a year later
confirmed that it was the right thing to do