I have 5 Bird of Paradise, orange, in various locations in my landscaping. A couple of them are getting very large, blocking our view. How do we prune them? Will it harm the plant if we cut off leaves all the way to the base? Can they be divided?
My white bird of paradise leaves have many tears on a leaf. How can I help the plant to unfold its leaves without any splits?
The white BoP has notoriously fragile leaves. You can put it in a place where it gets more light, to give it more energy to push it's leaves out all the way. You can also wipe along the edge where the new leaf is "glued" to itself. Use a little warm water, or (better still) some spit on the end of the finger. You can get the "glue" to come loose, so that the leaf can open evenly, without getting caught part way, causing the leaf to tear.
Has to be moved, going to pour a slab where it is located. There are possibly 2, maybe even 3, separate plants, hard to tell if they're all the same plant or not.
Here's some general information on transplanting bushes: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/trees/tgen/transplanting-trees.htm
You might want to prune the foliage very gently when you move it, and make sure it has plenty of water while establishing itself in its new location.
I have a seed pod and would like to try growing it on my own but have no experience at this type of plant or in getting seeds to germinate.
Caesalpinia is apparently quite easy to grow from seed. This article is about a slightly different species than red mexican bird of paradise, but I think the process would be the same. http://www2.hawaii.edu/~eherring/hawnprop/cae-kava.htm
Does a Mexican bird of paradise freeze in the winter?
Mexican bird of paradise is a tropical plant, so the farther north you go, the less happy it becomes. It is considered a "returning perenial" in zone 8. It can be damaged by freezing temps, and the damage increases as it gets colder. This article has more information: https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/ornamental/flowers/bop/mexican-red-bird-of-paradise.htm
Tips on how to start a red bird of paradise plant from seed pods and which seeds are best to use.
Here's an article that should be of help to you: https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/OF-27.pdf
I had a good composting system working. I had heard that Bird of Paradise leaves were not good for composting. Is that true?
I had never heard that, and in my (rather short) research, I couldn't find any mention of it. A couple people thought bird of paradise hard to compost because it doesn't break down easily, or tends to take root instead of composting. However, I didn't see any mention of the plant as alleopathic (https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/info/allelopathic-plants.htm
Also, if a compost heap is working properly, the plants will neither root nor fail to decompose:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/composting/basics/ultimate-beginners-guide-composting.htm