CHARLES REYNOLDS: Suckering plants have roles to play

''Never Give a Sucker an Even Break,’’ a 1941 movie starring W.C. Fields, sums up how many people feel about plants that sucker. A basic definition of ‘’sucker’’ is ‘’an axillary shoot emanating from a root,’’ though average gardeners don’t differentiate between rhizomes, stolons, water sprouts and suckers. I recall the late garden writer Hamilton Mason describing an encounter with a homeowner who was thinking about cutting down a beloved Senegal date palm. ‘’I can’t stop the damn thing from suckering,’’ the frustrated gardener said. But like a great many plants, much of that palm’s appeal is due to its clumping habit. In fact, plants ranging from tiny succulents to good-size trees sucker, often to good effect in the landscape.

For example, a myriad of beautiful shrubs sucker freely. They include Clerodendrums such as pagoda flower, Indian glory bower and — the most eye-catching — starburst clerodendrum, a species (C. quadriloculare) with spectacular clusters of pink-and-white blossoms in winter. The plants’ lateral spread can be controlled simply by removing unwanted suckers; their flowers make the extra effort worthwhile.

Among my favorite suckering shrubs is sleeping hibiscus (Malvaviscus pendulifloris), a rambling plant that’s terrific for butterflies and hummingbirds, yet woefully underused. Up to 12 feet tall, this Tropical American shrub flourishes in full or part-day sun, displaying red, pink or white blossoms from mid-autumn to mid-spring.

A few plants begin to sucker vigorously only when their demise approaches. The most famous is century plant, from Mexico and Texas. Popularly thought to live 100 years before blooming and dying, their lifespan actually runs 20 to 30 years. At that point they generate a flower stalk up to 25 feet tall and produce multiple suckers (sometimes called pups). In addition to the suckers, the towering inflorescence bristles with seeds and plantlets. When it ultimately topples, they’re scattered over a considerable area.

Among natives commonly used in landscapes, few plants sucker as relentlessly as wax myrtle, which is typically used for screen and background plantings. But wax myrtle’s growth habit is largely beneficial because they tend to become leggy and bare at the bottom, a tendency mitigated by abundant root suckers. Another suckering native — one that should be planted more often — is elderberry, a great wildlife shrub. But the king of suckering natives has to be Chickasaw plum, a shrub or small tree that’s ideal for large spaces. This trio exemplifies the saying “There’s a sucker born every minute.”

Charles Reynolds, a Winter Haven resident, has an associate’s degree in horticulture and is a member of Garden Writers Association of America. He can be reached at ballroom16@ aol.com