Cabbage Tree (Cordyline)
One of the first Cordylines (or Cabbage trees) I planted in my garden is seen here, tattered but triumphant, silhouetted against the winter sky. Ha! The blue sky in this picture is proof that I do have nice gardening winters!
Cabbage Tree (Cordyline) - 2004
This Cabbage tree (Cordyline) marks the beginning of the Apple Tree Garden. Various plantings have been tried around its base - miniature Agapanthus, Epimediums, Ajuga - with little success.
Favourite Cat Climb
The fibrous trunk has always been a favourite tree climb for my younger cats. Successive Moosey kittens have discovered their climbing claws zooming up it - and down it, carefully backwards. Cabbage tree trunks give good traction. In this picture you'll meet Little Mac, the youngest cat in 2012.
Kitten Climbs the Cordyline
Cordylines always shed the old leaves from their trunks, particularly when the wind has been blowing, so the ground beneath is continually messy. The leaves, tied in bundles, make brilliant fire-starters.
cordyline in 2000
Lawn mower, beware!
But they mustn't go anywhere near garden shredders or lawn mowers. The leaf fibre is so tough that it jams the blades up. Undoing a Cordyline leaf tangle can take ages and leave the operator in a very grumpy mood.
Often it's only when taking photographs that a gardener notices how much growth there's been. Even back in 2004, in order to take a successful photograph of the top of the Cabbage tree I had to point the camera at the sky. Now it's far too high to get those spiky leaves into frame. That's progress!
Why 'Cabbage Tree'?
The reason Cordylines are called 'Cabbage trees' comes from New Zealand's colonial history. Early settlers boiled and softened the young leaves to eat - they tasted like overcooked cabbage. I've never tried out this idea!
The iconic New Zealand cabbage tree is the species Cordyline australis. Many non-gardening New Zealanders don't know or use the word 'Cordyline' at all. And in parts of Scotland they sound peculiarly exotic, being known as 'Cabbage Palms'. Wow!