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gardener972

Top my Indian curry plant?

Gardener972
13 years ago

Should I cut the top off my Indian curry plant? It's about 3 spindly feet tall and only has leaves at the top. It also has plants at the base coming up. Should I transplant those?

Comments (9)

  • melvalena
    13 years ago

    I have no idea. :)

    Is yours in a pot or in the ground? I ask because I have one in a pot that I inherited.

  • Gardener972
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    In a pot. They won't survive Dallas winters.

  • melvalena
    13 years ago

    That's what I thought. Mine is about maybe 2ft tall with lots of new growth on the tips.

    I wish I knew what to tell you. Have you fertilized it to see if you can get more new growth on it? I keep mine in the kitchen in front of a sunny window. Gets a small amount of direct sun in the morning hours.

  • Gardener972
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    Yes, it gets fertilizer but as I use the lower leaves, it only has a "topknot" so to speak.

  • melvalena
    13 years ago

    If I recall its a small tree. Most of its growth is going to be on the top.. if you cut that off, what happens? Might be best to let it grow some more?

  • mangobaby
    13 years ago

    You can prune the top and it will start branching out ( have done it to many of my curry leaf plants) You can also grow them outdoors. In the winter they will die back to ground level but they will grow back in spring (atleast that's what happened to mine in the houston winters in the last 2 years - even the small tiny baby plants grew back)

  • Gardener972
    Original Author
    13 years ago

    I'm not so brave to put it in the ground as I'm 5 hours north of you. I also don't want to loose it.

  • nana_7b
    13 years ago

    I would cut it. It will create multiple shoots where you cut it. Mine was about 3ft also and it was leaning. I chopped it around 15 inches from the bottom. Now it looks nice and balanced.

    You can separate the little plants at the bottom but to do it right you have to pull the whole root ball out and loosen the soil. this way you can make sure that each plant you separate has enough roots. Otherwise if you just pull from the top it may snap and you may not get any roots with the plant. After you are done harvesting the 'babies' pot up the mother plant in the original container. If it is root bound it would be a good time to get rid of extra roots. Then pot up the babies.

    I grew one plant in the ground for 2 years. It dies to the ground in the winter and comes back. On the third year it did not come back. If you have a sheltered spot and mulch heavily in the winter you may be able to grow one in the ground for many years.

  • savy4
    12 years ago

    How do I know if my curry plant died or go through dormacy? All I have is the trunk of the tree and a few branches. But it look kind of green but dried. So can anyone give me some advice on what to do next to my curry plant. I bought the plant from Logee's nursery. The plant is about 1 and half years old. And I'm scared that the plant might be completely be died.

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