Some people have all the luck. So it is with Brian and Carri Schmidt, who planted one rice-paper plant a little more than two years ago and now have a small forest. Maybe not everyone would welcome so many of these prehistoric-looking plants. Some people may even think of such reproduction as excessive.

In the Schmidts' case, however, Tetrapanax papyrifer works magic in the mostly ignored side yard of their Lake Oswego home. "That area is one we neglect, to tell the truth," Carri told me. They spend more time gardening in their backyard, which shows it.

Their rice-paper-plant adventure started with a trip to Cistus Nursery (as is sooo often the case).

"We had heard it was a fabulous nursery," Carri says. "We were looking for 'Sky Pencil' (Ilex), and Brian said, 'I'll bet Sean Hogan (owner) has them. We went out there and were mesmerized."

As the Schmidts were paying for their other treasures (Carri remembers going quite wild), they spied a Tetrapanax in the display garden. "We were 'Wow! Do you have one?' " Of course they did, and the Schmidts eagerly bought one. A tiny 3-inch pot, as it turns out.

The first year (2007), they cut the "mother ship" down to the ground, not thinking it would leaf out; actually, not knowing if it would come back at all. But it did -- and how. It grew up to 10, maybe 12 feet.

But it was this year that things really started happening.

"The trunk stayed, but nothing grew up from there," Carri says. "Then we saw new life coming all around the base. We got our first baby after all that snow and cold."

All of a sudden, a handful of pups appeared. Then more. "It exploded," she says. "We've got up to 25 now."

I can attest to that. Carri and Brian are neighbors of Mike Darcy, who took me to see their little forest (little in area, but certainly not size of plants) a couple of weeks ago. Jealousy is not an attractive trait, but when it comes to plants, I can't help it. I have a Tetrapanax, and I've got to say it's pretty impressive -- at least 12 feet tall. The weird thing is that I have it in a pot, a pretty small one, not more than 42 inches. It looks kind of out of proportion, but it's so cool that I leave it. People are amazed.

OK, but not as amazed as they'd be seeing the Schmidts' grove. "It's so neat to walk under them like an umbrella, says Carri, who gives her husband all the credit. "They're Brian's babies." Very well taken care of babies, I'd say. New pups are still coming up. "We could probably start selling them back to Sean Hogan," Carri jokes.

If you worry about rice-paper plants being too aggressive, don't plant them. But you should know that they're not difficult to pull up. At least that's what I've been told. I've finally planted one in the ground, so I'll let you know. Maybe I won't even get a baby, though. Mike Darcy hasn't ... and it's driving Mr. Competitive crazy.

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