Paws to Reflect

Having been gifted with the precious opportunity to maintain a garden filled with Australian native plants, one of the highlights of a trip back Down Under last year was bringing back loads of seeds that I hoped to grow and plant.

Most of the propagation worked, but once the seedlings were transplanted, the experiment turned into a mess.

Of all the seeds I brought back, though, the one I really wanted to succeed–kangaroo paw–worked astoundingly well!

I think it was because I planted the seedlings in a large pot as opposed to the smaller pots I’d used with all the other plants bar some hardenbergia componiana, or native wisteria.

And they have grown well.

Too well, perhaps, because now I need to transplant them again into larger pots and I fear this may lead to their demise.

Anyway, I got the first of the transplants done this morning.

This was of perhaps the most surprising set of kangaroo paw seedlings, of which I tried three types.

The first was growing the seeds in a seed starter tray, keeping them under constant light and warmth from February through to May, when I transferred all the successful seedlings into the same pot, and where they continue to thrive.

The second experiment, the seedlings transplanted today, have not grown as strongly, but have been outside since February and grew from a seed pod placed in dirt in a small planter.

Another planter with no artificial assistance also sprouted weakly in April, but died off shortly and was a failure, though the planter soil was used in today’s transplant.

More soil is coming this week, so I hope to get the chance to transplant the remaining seedlings.

And I hope it works.

As I’ve mentioned before, if I can get some kangaroo paw flowers out of the seed experiment, it would make the whole thing a wonderful success.

Of course, growing from seed for the first time in my life has been a wonderful experience regardless of the outcome.

But seeing some sort of fruition would make it that little bit more special.