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Senna/casia hebecarpa

14 years ago

Have several bare root senna hebecarpa to plant from Musser Forest. Was attracted to them based on their support for butterflies. Cannot locate info as to invasiveness/best site/companion plants etc. Had wanted to plant them on the north east side of small birch planting area...so the butterflies antics could be viewed from a nearby patio. I would appreciate any details from your observations or experiences. Thanks.

Comments (3)

susanlynne48
14 years ago
Hi, there! I grow S. hebecarpa and have for about 5 years now. It doesn't seem to be invasive for me. The seeds do not reseed for me either. They might if I actually cultivated them, but I don't. I have had both Sleepy Orange and Cloudless Sulphurs lay eggs on it. I do nothing to support it in the way of pruning, fertilizing, etc. It gets kind of rangy looking after it blooms, but I wouldn't be without it.

Mine gets late afternoon shade and does great. Soil doesn't appear to be a factor in growing it. These plants are nitrogen fixing legumes, so not necessary to fertilize them.

Susan
blueberrier1
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks, Susan. Am looking forward to enjoying these as much as you.

I had soaked the bare rooted plants in a weak Fertrell 4-8-4 fish-kelp solution for a few hours. I then root pruned them to six inches, as some roots were 24 inches long and there was no other way to accommodate them in the rich clay site. Somewhere, I read to space them 2' apart, but only spaced at 15". They are alongside a mixed island bed that has three sapphireberry seedlings, coneflowers, irises, and reseeding annuals. Am hoping the Senna will bloom this summer. This bed is about 10' west of my largest raised veg bed and gets daily viewing/attention.

Have you ever saved seeds, scarified and planted to check germination? One site mentioned that Cassia/senna hebecarpa is the undiscovered treasure of the summer garden.
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Linda, what is the botanical name for Sicklepod? There are so many sennas and I was just wondering. Also, for some reason my Verbesina enceliodes just wilted and died. There are still some flowers on the top of it. I am trying to let them mature so I can collect the seed or at least they will self-sow. But, I don't know if the plant is going to make it until then. It's like one day it was absolutely gorgeous and the next day the leaves were just drooping on the entire plant. I suspect some kind of root rot, and next year, I may just plant it in a pot as it will probably survive the winter in a pot, no? Or, I need some more sand for drainage in the soil it is in. It is growing right behind the lavendar, though, and lavendar requires very sharp drainage. However, with all the rain we've had this year, parts of the lavendar are experiencing die back, too. It is also planted adjacent to lantana 'Miss Huff' and passiflora incarnata 'Incense'. Maybe there is something in the roots of these plants that the Crownbeard dislikes? I have plenty of sennas right now, between the Xmas Cassia (unless it gets killed B4 the seeds ripen. Also, the Partridge Pea (which is dying back also), and the Wild Senna (hebecarpa). I went out this morning and couldn't find the darned chrysalis amongst the stems of Xmas Cassia. I was panicking! The 3 other CS's are eating fine. Finally, I found it on the floor of the porch, undamaged. The fall it must have taken was only a few inches, so I'm hoping it was not damaged. Oh, no! Susan
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susanlynne48
14 years ago
No, I haven't. I have a small garden, and this Senna reaches about 6' tall and wide. That's plenty big enuff for me. I also grow Senna bicapsularis, which is not hardy here, but reseeds a lot. It is very attractive, too, and the Sulphurs give it equal opportunity.

They don't really need rich soil, since they are nitrogen-fixing plants and provide their own nutrients and also to plants around them. They should bloom this summer. Mine was a small plant in a 4" pot. It grew to about 3' tall that same year and bloomed a lot. The bumblebees also love it, but they're only interested in getting to the pollen.

I think you'll really like and enjoy them.

Susan

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