hello all i have had a grass tree for 4 years now and wrapped up in fleece each winter with no probs however noticed today the leaves had dropped on removal of fleece i found the leaves had rotted at base and all had been lost, have removed and refleeced but will it sprout again or is it dead, thanks in adavnce
You may do better asking on a forum with specialists on this plant such as growingontheedge.net or hardytropicals.co.uk. Rot sounds very bad. They are known to be difficult to grow. The trade in mature specimens got a poor reputation as many of them just slowly died because they didn't re-establish easily after being dug up. An important part of winter protection is to keep them (nearly) dry, so people who do keep them alive outside often use a rain roof or polytunnel as well as insulation. If you keep them dry enough in winter they can cope with about -6C or a bit lower even, I read.
It would help if you said what your climate was like or where you are.
They need excellent drainage, in nature they often grow on sunbaked hillsides, frequently in poor soil. They are adapted to very hot (often dry) summers and cool winters where it doesn't freeze or snow but there can be hard frost. They can withstand bushfires but not prolonged wet feet. Given the choice of cold or damp my guess is that damp will do for them first.
David
Where in the world are you trying to grow this Xanthorrhoea?
Ole Blighty in the Fog, which is just down the road from Little Storping in the Swuff.
D
Congratulate yourself on keeping it for four years and move on. Unless you can reroot the top it is probably dead
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.