Has your D. elephantipes ever flowered? Mine has put out a really odd looking shoot that I've never seen before! Hard to get a good photo of it but have a look at this. The bottle is for scale: Is that a flower spike? I thought the flowering shoots came off the main vines? I could be wrong though. Excited if it's flowering!
Hehe well it is known as the Elephant's foot yam! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dioscorea_elephantipes
That's weird as the stems don't normally look like this when they re-grow. They're normally a much lighter green and thinner. I wonder if it's because the plant is out of infancy or something? I will see how the stem gets on and report back!
In other news, my Adenium arabicum is in leaf! It didn't flower though sadly. I think it needs to be even warmer than the English summer!
I don't I'm afraid. I would like one but I love having my plants all around me in the house. I wouldn't spend as much time with them if they were in a greenhouse.
I agree with you, Joe, that we don't spend as much time with them in the greenhouse but when they come alive, "with leaf", we put them out in front of the greenhouse in the Summer. If they decide to grow or bloom in Winter, well, we visit them while they are in the greenhouse. They are not allowed in the house except on holidays. Sometimes plants go WEE WEE in the house and I don't like that. They get too dried out when in my house.
I'm very good with watering so they are well looked after. The only plant that makes a mess is my Petopentia natalensis. It's sticky sap seeps from it's leaves and drips on the windowsill and on the window! I forgive it though as it's a great plant. My girlfriend is not so forgiving, however.
This is my largest one but at rest at the moment. I have had this one as well as the first one for over 20 years. You can imagine what this one would be priced at, in the market today.