I live in Florida. My heliconia has grown massively and there is a lot of dead growth now in mid-February. Should I just cut out the brown stalks or cut the whole thing way back? If so, how far? P.S. love your site.
Go ahead and remove all the dead leaves and stems. You can cut the living stalks down to an inch or two above the ground; when the stubs have dried up, you'll be able to just pull them out of the ground.
Here's an article about this fascinating plant:
Thanks for your time and consideration!
All the references I found only said to fertilize regularly so I would go with a balanced fertilizer such as 10-10-10.
I live in Nairobi and have a heliconia patch outside my bedroom window.
Yes, but if this plant is dying from disease, then you will need to treat the disease, first. After, you can cut the leaves and dispose of them away from the plant to avoid spreading the disease back to the plant again.
Here are some articles that will help:
https://www.gardeningknowhow.com/garden-how-to/info/using-fungicides-in-garden.htm