Perennials, annuals, garden plants, Plants of India, Mogra, North Carolina Gardening, Cary, NC, zone 7, zone 7b

Tuesday, December 02, 2008




This is courtesy of University of Oklahoma Department of Botany & Microbiology

Murraya koenigii
Curry-leaf Tree
Rutaceae

Murraya koenigii

Murraya koenigii or Curry-leaf tree, a native of India and Sri Lanka, is a small tree with very pungent aromatic leaves. The leaves are used in curries.

Blooming Time: Late spring to early summer. The small white flowers are 5/16 of an inch across and are sweetly scented.

Culture: Murraya koenigii need warm temperatures with full sun to partial shade. We grow ours under 28% shade all year. We use a soil mix consisting of 1 part peat moss to 2 parts loam to 1 part sand or perlite. The soil should be allowed to thoroughly dry between waterings. Fertilize weekly during the growing season. Winter temperatures should not fall below 65°. Water very sparingly during the winter months and do not fertilize. Since it is a small tree it doesn't need repotting very often. Ours is 5 feet tall in a 2-gallon container at 8 years old.

Propagation: Murraya koenigii are propagated by growing the small suckers from the base of the tree, by root cutting, or by seed.

Murraya koenigii was featured as Plant of the Week June 8-14, 2001.

Sunday, October 05, 2008


Butterfly Bush, Butterfly at JC Raulston Arboretum
(Perennial and Insects)

Wild and Original Orange species - has lots of sugars.

Perennial Dahlia


A Dahlia that looks like a Rose
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Sunday, July 06, 2008




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Thursday, June 05, 2008

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Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Friday, May 09, 2008

A question for master gardeners. Why does the 'Red Hot Poker' have a small plant like growth on the flower stalk? It almost looks like it is ready to drop this growth to the ground to make a new plant. Can anyone explain the importance or role of this in the plants life cycle or does it have any evolutionary significance?
I have tried planting these but so far none has survived.
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