Galletti - Farfugium Japonicum

[ladybird]

Hello All,

I followed the discussion about Galletti with great interest as I am very fond of this plant.  I had always thought that this was a Maltese plant, but have in fact recently visited Japan and seen it growing wild along river banks.  It is a very common plant there, although the leaves of the plants I saw tended to be slightly smaller than the mature ones we see here.

I have a simply enormous one in an internal courtyard.  I bought it with about 6 leaves and now it has more than sixty huge ones.  I attribute this to having placed in in a northerly facing spot - therefore shady.  There is also a fountain just near it, which perhaps helps keep the atmosphere moist and certain insects (like red spider mite) away.  In summer I water and spray it every single day, which is a bore, but keeps the plant really healthy.  It is in a very large round pot, and in compost which I top up with a bit of top dressing every year. 

Come October or November, the flower spikes appear.  Now it is important to remove these or else the plant dies down.  That is what I have been told.  I left the spikes on one year, since the plant looked so pretty, and nearly lost the plant.  Now, I tend to remove all of them and leave just one so that I can try growing it from seed.  No success so far, though.  I have been told that the best way to propagate it is to split it.

I hope the above is helpful.

Ladybird

[composter]

Galletti bring me childhood memories when my nanna used to grow them in the shaded side of the garden. Once a year she used to take them out on display on the street when the Purcisjoni passes infront of her house!!

[rennabe]

I raised some galletti from seeds. I have transplanted them separately in a 3 inch-pot.

When will I  trasnsplant them in their final position?