my first real foray into Caudex 😊 Dioscorea elephantipes and Drimia intricata. I’m in eastern Australia and I’d love any tips on keeping them alive indoors. I know the pots are likely too big but those were the smallest I had unfortunately.
I potted them both in a fairly airy potting mix and essentially just watered the tops without saturating them, but now I’m wondering if I should’ve soaked them?
Last year during the summer heat here in the uk, all the leaves on my Dioscorea started getting fried. They weee by my southern window sill. I was only gone for 3 days and came back to half the plant with browning leaves. I panicked, moved the Dioscorea to a shady place and watered it a few times during that week.
All of my 5 Dioscorea plants died of overwatering. At the time I thought it was because it watered too many times. But over the year I’ve realized that it was because I watered them at all. They were just going into summer dormancy and shedding their leaves and getting ready for dry months and I l killed them by immediately watering them non stop, which would not have happened in the wild.
mrinsane19
Depending on where you are – these are likely both about to go dormant – especially with the repot.
I’m in Brisbane and all my dioscorea seedlings have just finished dropping leaves. My drimia intricata likewise has just finished popping its seed pots and should be asleep soon.
Go easy on the watering, stick them somewhere a bit cool and shady. Given them sporadic light watering but dormant period is when you’re most likely to rot them.
Then after summer you should see them coming back to life!
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Last year during the summer heat here in the uk, all the leaves on my Dioscorea started getting fried. They weee by my southern window sill. I was only gone for 3 days and came back to half the plant with browning leaves. I panicked, moved the Dioscorea to a shady place and watered it a few times during that week.
All of my 5 Dioscorea plants died of overwatering. At the time I thought it was because it watered too many times. But over the year I’ve realized that it was because I watered them at all. They were just going into summer dormancy and shedding their leaves and getting ready for dry months and I l killed them by immediately watering them non stop, which would not have happened in the wild.
Depending on where you are – these are likely both about to go dormant – especially with the repot.
I’m in Brisbane and all my dioscorea seedlings have just finished dropping leaves. My drimia intricata likewise has just finished popping its seed pots and should be asleep soon.
Go easy on the watering, stick them somewhere a bit cool and shady. Given them sporadic light watering but dormant period is when you’re most likely to rot them.
Then after summer you should see them coming back to life!