Down & dirty with... Don Ellison - subTropical Gardening

Desert Roses (Adenium obesum)Books near completion includeCultivated Exotic Plants featuringover 3,000 images and CultivatedVines and Climbers with over2,500 images. These are due tocome out in late 2008 and 2009respectively.With all that knowledge are youcalled upon for public talks?Most talks I give are aboutpromoting Australian native plantsto overseas locations and togarden clubs.Having seen so many plantsaround the world, which 5 plantsdo you believe will be the trendsetters in the next year?• Desert Roses(Adenium obesum)• Caladiums(Caladium xhortulanum)• Cordyline hybrids(Cordyline fruticosa)• Flame tree grafted hybrids(Brachychiton species)• New Thai Hybrid Frangipanis(Plumeria cultivars)What 5 plants are your favouritesin your home garden?• Colville’s Glory(Colvillea racemosa)• Wisteria Tree(Bolusanthus speciosus)• Silk-floss Tree(Chorisia speciosa syn.Ceiba speciosa)• Flaming Beauty(Carphalea kirondron)• Grevillea ‘Golden Lyre’For people moving to a warmclimate, what 5 plants would yourecommend that they try?• Frangipanis (Plumeriaspecies and cultivars)• Desert Roses(Adenium obesum)• Hibiscus(Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)• Tibouchina lepidota‘Alstonville’ and ‘Carol Lyn’• Crotons(Codiaeum variegatum)With all your travels, exportsand imports, what plant are yourSilk-fl oss treemost proud specimens to haveintroduced into Australia?• Duranta ‘Geisha Girl’ dueto its flowers and nonseedinghabit.• Tibouchina ‘Carol Lyn’ alsosold as Tibouchina ‘Jazzie’.Although in ‘semi-retirement’what are you currently doing?I continue to write books with myson Anthony, and grow over 50different Passiflora, such as theawesome 12cm wide edible ‘BigBoppa’ passionfruit.Can you name a plant you wouldnever grow again?• Clerodendrumquadriloculare variegatedform – this plant suckersexcessively and maybe weed-like in someconditions. It is best keptin a pot.• Ficus species – all haveinvasive root systems.www.stgmagazine.com.auSTG – Issue Twelve61