Tree Echium

Tree Echium Care

Echium Pininana

Other names: Giant Viper's-bugloss

What is the plant

Echium pininana is a stunning biennial plant from the Canary Islands. In its first year it forms a low rosette of silver, hairy, spear-like leaves, and then in the second year it sends up a huge spike loaded with small blue flowers. It makes a dramatic statement in a sunny, sheltered garden, and is extremely attractive to bees.After flowering, Echium pininana scatters seed and dies. It self-seeds readily in mild, sheltered parts of the UK, but seed is unlikely to germinate in cooler regions. It has been given the Award of Garden Merit (AGM) by the Royal Horticultural Society.

Invasive in Australia, South Africa, and United States.

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Lighting

Full Sun

Hardiness zone

8a - 10b

Difficulty

Easy

How to Care for the Plant

Water
The plants are drought-tolerant only need watering when the soil is dry. Once the seedlings or seeds have been in the ground for a few weeks, you should start watering the plants less frequently. If you live in an area with regular rainfall, you don’t need to water the plant unless dry spells occur.
Pruning
Echium will not accept hard pruning, but the perfectly rounded shape of young plants can be maintained by annual light tip pruning. If you let them go too long without tip pruning plants will become lanky and wildly irregular in age.
Fertilizer
The Echium plant doesn’t need any sort of feed to flourish as long as it has good multi-purpose potting compost to grow in.

Disease diagnosis

Check your plant’s health

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Sunlight
To grow Echium plants well they need a good amount of full sun, at least 6 to 8 hours daily. It is vital for growers to observe the amount of sunlight the garden receives before planting Echium. Ideally, you should plant the Echium in an area that receives sun from morning till early afternoon for at least 8 hours. For hotter climates with intense late afternoon sun, it is better for the plant to get a little shade, or the foliage will burn.
Soil
The best hardiness type for the soil is half-hardy. The soil needs to be well-drained to prevent the roots from rotting. You will not need to prepare the soil too much before adding a seedling or new seeds. Echium plants are known to survive even in well-drained barren soil in the wild and grow well even with sandy soil in gardens. It is better to avoid heavy clay soil since it needs a lot of preparation and drainage management. If you have heavy clay soil, it is better to grow the plants in containers.
Temperature
The tower of jewels plant can survive temperatures below 20 F. (-6 C.) if given some protection but is generally a warm to temperate weather specimen. Cooler areas should try to grow the plant in a solarium or greenhouse.

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Additional
However, we do not advise nibbling on the seeds or the leaves of pride of Madeira. According to the California Poison Control System,209 all parts of the plant are considered poisonous and ingestion may cause serious effects to heart, liver, kidneys or brain.
Popularity
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