We have a guest at the Dept of Parks/Rec and Virginia Cooperative Extension building.
What an honor to welcome Audrey, the philodendron, to our ranks. She is a beauty for sure and is the treasure of Byron Maddox, a fellow master gardener. We learned about her name in the November newsletter but did not mention the effort it took to get Audrey from Byron’s home to the building.
Hello! My name is “Audrey”. I am named for the blood sucking plant from outer space in the comedic play and movie, “Little Shop of Horrors”. My voice in the movie is spoken by LEVI STUBBS from the Four Tops. In real life, I am a Philodendrum Selloum. I am native to South America and prefer full sun and above 55 degrees. So, I am very grateful to have a place to stay for the winter. It is life saving. I can grow up to 15 feet tall and close to that wide. The roots that you see coming from my stalk are called “aerial roots”. They grow out and attach to other trees to stabilize my trunk as I grow in height up through the canopy. Thanks for stopping by and looking. As you know, if you have seen the movie…I LOVE PEOPLE!
The adventure truly begged questions from me so I got in touch with Byron and he shared the following about Audrey:
“This is actually about ‘Audrey the third or fourth’. He doesn’t remember when and where the original plant came from, but the current Audrey is an offspring. She was very small, but as you can see, she has grown over the years.
Audrey is a tropical plant, (Philodendron Selloum) and is native to South America. She usually resides in his yard during the summer, along with a couple of elephant ear plants and a banana tree. However, she must find a warmer location for the winter. The climate in Florida allows people to use them in the landscape of their yards. Previous winter homes have included the lobbies of banks, credit unions, auto dealerships, post offices, etc. She was evicted from last winter’s residence in a credit union lobby when regional supervisors decided she had gotten too big and was blocking security cameras.
Repotting her is a chore. Byron has been unable to find a larger plastic pot for her. While still in the bed of his truck, he turns her on her side and removes the pot. The root ball must be trimmed, and fresh soil put in the pot. He then slides her out of the truck bed and into the pot and packs fresh soil around the sides. After she recovers from the trauma of being moved and repotted, she is fed some 10-10-10, or water-soluble fertilizer. In the heat of the summer she requires almost daily watering.
The previous Audrey was somewhat larger, and Byron rented a moving truck with a hydraulic tail gate to lift her into and out of the truck for transport to winter homes. She finally got too large to manage, so he had to start a new one and let the old gal go!
Audrey is currently in the lobby at the VCE/Parks and Rec office, which is a great place to winter over. She is under the watchful eye of Scott Baker and Sandy Seals so she should do well this winter. She might get decorated for Christmas! Please stop by and say hello.”
~ Byron Maddox
Article by Byron Maddox and Marge Loomis, Master Gardeners and members of the Bedford Area Master Gardeners Association