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Originally Posted by TexasTycoon
Has anyone tried growing a curry tree (also known as curry leaf plant, not to be confused with Helichrysum italicum)? I make South Indian curry (a friend's family recipe) fairly often and would love to have curry leaves readily available so I didn't have to run to the Indian market every time I need them. Is the plant something I can find at a regular nursery, or should I look into ordering online? I wouldn't want to start from seed as I want to be able to harvest as soon as possible. I'm also interested in zoning information, though I'm pretty sure it would do fine here in central TX in a container.
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Tycoon, I ran across this thread while doing some unrelated google searches. There is a nursery in South Austin (Manchaca precisely) called 'It's About Thyme'. They have curry leaf trees for sale. He is propagating them from seed and has a very regular supply. Not expensive -10 or 12 bucks for a 1 gallon pot and a 12-18+ inch tree.
I also got one from an Indian grocery in San Antonio a couple years ago. Slightly different variety.
I also have 25-30 small-medium trees I have propagated from a parent plant smuggled on an airplane from Kerala. Yet another variety.
They will grow just fine in Round Rock TX. protect them from freezes and shade them in the afternoons during summer days over 95 degrees.
I feed them blood meal (nitro), sulfer (acid), and green sand (iron) during warm months and just a little water in the winter. If you want them to flower I found using liquid Medina 'Hasta-Gro' 6-12-6 will get flowers started in no time.
The tree in the white pot is over 8 feet tall and it's about 4 years old. We pluck leaves on it regularly.
Here are my three varieties: Left is the one from Kerala. The leaves have almost smooth edges and they tend to be fatter, pear-shaped. Very fragrant and very flavorful.
The middle is a tree I got from a grocery in San Antonio. It was half dead and growing in a very hard piece of black clay. I paid 2.50 for it. It's healthy now. The leaves have a twisty tip, pronounced saw-tooth edges and there is a reddish tint in the leaves this photo doesn't quite capture. Lots of flavor but not terribly fragrant.
The right is a tree from the nursery in South Austin. I have two of his trees. leaves tend to be long and slender compared to the Kerala tree. Saw-tooth edge and somewhat fragrant. Good flavor. the leaf stems seem to grow longer on this tree as well. If you buy fresh leaves at the local Indian markets in Austin you are likely using this tree. They buy from him frequently.