Esperanza (Texas Bells, yellow bells) anyone know? (Post: live, store)

[fierce_flawless]

I know, I know, it's not the gardening forum.... but who DOESN'T have this plant here in SA, right?

I have long bean-like seed pods hanging off my Esperanza plant... I've read that they should be removed to encourage blooms, but my question is can I use the seed pods to start new Esperanza plants? If so, how would I do that? Do I just dry out the pods and remove the seeds or plant the whole thing or something else?

Anyone?

THANKS!

edited because I figure out how to get them off... have to cut them, they don't pull off easily.

[Sweetie Pie]

Good question that I'd like to know, also!

[fierce_flawless]

Well I wanted to make it clear (lest y'all think I'm a dummy) that I HAVE Googled this and cannot find the answer. I found pages that say "the seeds germinate easily" and "remove seed pods to use for planting" but not a single one that details how to do it.

[SilverCreek78250]

Supposedly, the birds will redistribute these things all over the place. That's what I'm hoping for mine.

Sorry, I couldn't be more helpful.

[Birdz]

Esperanza will usually come true from seed, though the resulting plant can look a bit wild.

Collect the seed pods when dry and store them as is; when you're ready to sow the seeds, remove them from the pods, but not from the white, paper-like covering that encapsulates each seed, and sow them directly in the ground.

Information 'borrowed' from: Playing In the Dirt (http://plays-in-dirt.livejournal.com/tag/color - broken link)

[fierce_flawless]

Originally Posted by Birdz

Esperanza will usually come true from seed, though the resulting plant can look a bit wild.

Collect the seed pods when dry and store them as is; when you're ready to sow the seeds, remove them from the pods, but not from the white, paper-like covering that encapsulates each seed, and sow them directly in the ground.

Information 'borrowed' from: Playing In the Dirt (http://plays-in-dirt.livejournal.com/tag/color - broken link)

Many thanks. I think I took my seed pods off the plant too early then. Some are brown and dry and some were still green. Is this going to matter?

I'm not sure what is meant by "wild" either. My Esperanza already looks kinda wild if you ask me. Which is one of the reasons I like it!

By the way I visited the site. I read the following sentence from the site FOUR times:

"You can grow Esperanza justas well in a container as you can in the ground.."

And I kept asking myself, "What are Esperanza Justas???"

I need more decongestant, obviously!

[lloydofsa]

I'm going to try planting clippings, much like rose bushes. I've read where they grow easily.

[crittergal]

I think I want to plant these also. I have a yard that is 2 levels with a nice stone wall that goes across the whole yard. I thought that esperanza would look really nice on the ledge of the stone wall. Do you know if this is something that I can plant now or is it a plant that needs to be planted in the spring?

[SATX56]

Wait till the seed pods are brownish then pull them. Each wispy little seed will grow like crazy . I grew hundreds of them in 1 gallon pots a few years back. Have a few nice ones in my yard. Posted Photos here in SA of Neighbors 12' Esperanza a few months or so ago .