Question
Hi there,

We live in New Zealand (North Island) and have several Orange Birds of Paradise (Strelitzia reginae) in our garden which have bloomed extensively for many months during our Autumn and Winter periods (April - November, now they're not blooming anymore, just making new leaves, I suspect because it's high summer ?).

My questions are as follows: should these plants be deadheaded and if so, what is the best way to do it ? The 'flower heads' (spikes) generally produce more than one flower (some up to three or even four !) one after the other. Should I remove the flowers that're done blooming and have turned brown and if so, how do I do this ? Just gently pull them out of the 'flower head' ?

Also, after the 'flower heads' are done with the blooms, the stalks seem to stay alive and green for a very long time. Is it wise to remove these nonetheless or should we leave them on the plant until they turn completely brown ? If we should remove them, should they be cut back at the base of the plant or higher up ?

Also, one of our plants is showing signs of distress and I'm not sure what the cause is. It seems like new growth (leaves) are coming out all skewered or damaged, any idea what could be causing this ? This plant gets all day sun and we tend to water it about once a week and check that the soil is not too wet.

Many thanx in advance for any suggestions you may have, your help is much appreciated !

Kind Regards,
Silver

PS I have a picture, but unfortunately don't see an option to add it here...

Answer
Birds can be very tempermental when it comes to flowering, they will flower splendidly for months and then just stop, there is no scientific reason for this behaviour, they are just one of those plants that do pretty much what they want! when the flower begins to look spent, is the time to cut it off, and yes, cut the entire stalk, unless there is another flower developing from the same stalk, I usually just cull the spent flower by itself, by doing this, it seems to stimulate new flowers, but if you just leave them to their own devices, development seems to slow. The plant that is ailing is a toughy, without seeing it, it is difficult to tell if its fungal, insect or something foreign in the soil around it; check for insects, and if all else fails, move it to a different location, this often turns ailing plants around. Fertilize you Birds once  every 2 months with a high potassium granular fertilizer and this will help them prosper for you. Birds don't really have many problems, they are very resilient plants. regards Nick