Poor Little Guy!!!

Ok I have fussed over this plant every since I got in the mail in early spring. He shriveled up and looked awful but then he blossomed out and has been doing well. It rained today, not a flood but some. I didn't know because its so hot here the signs of rain had mostly disapeared by the time I got home from work so I watered potted plants. While watering I noticed he had one very small dark spot which looked like he had been knicked with something sharp. I was not mushy but was blackish so I took him out of the pot and cleaned out the "wound".
1. Should I let him sit unpotted for a day or two? It is 100+ here now so could he stay outside in complete shade as my house is cool?

2. What shape and size of pot do you think would be good? How much bigger than his caudex should it be?

I would appreciate any advice as I hate to have him die after looking so good.

The soil seemed to soggy so I will have to get some better draining mix together. Here are two potential pots.

A

B

side by side

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This message was edited Aug 23, 2010 9:52 PM

I will use the deeper pot then and repot tomorrow with some better soil. I think the darkness at the roots is from when his original roots, which were very small when he arrived, rotted. I poked around and he seems pretty firm. When you say mist do you mean just the leaves? Keep in mind its really hot here now and so he will be bone dry pretty quickly. Would you keep him outside during all of this or inside? My husband keeps the house temps around 70 degrees.
BTW, the pots have holes they just weren't visisble the way I took the pics.
C

better soil = much more porous.. more perlite.. etc..

when a plant is repotted, it's stressed.. the roots have been displaced from their previous "home". The only reason i don't suggest immediately returning to watering is the wound.. so you might want to keep it indoors and misted for a day or so.. then, consider using 3% Hydrogen peroxide at a ratio of 1 cup to 2 gallons for the next couple of waterings. That's what we use for all transplants to give them a jump start..

I'm not a professional, but I would put some rooting hormone (if you have some) on the cut and repot it in the B pot with 3/4 cactus potting mix and 1/4 perlite. I think MiracleGrow makes a cactus mix. They have it at Lowes and Walmart for about $4.00.

I like the look of pot A better, but the roots will do better in B.

I have never used rooting hormone but since I need to buy some soil amendments I will look for some.
C

as the roots grow it will fill and get stuck in the white bowl, thus requiring the breaking of the bowl to remove the adenium.
Most folks think that adeniums need desert mix type soils
However, they actually like rich humus soil and grow quickly in it.
acidity and moisture are the issues.
Regarding the wound, just repot it and push the medium away from the wound till it heals.
It will skin over in 2 or 3 days sufficiently.

I have a nice collection with several specimen size show plants
Ive killed many learning but lately havent lost any to the rot god >:'/
I cross pollinate and graft too.

Mark Dimmit is probly the best source for info on adeniums.
He has made them grow to over 8 feet in 2 years
heres a link

http://adenium.tucsoncactus.org/



This message was edited Aug 19, 2010 8:14 PM

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This message was edited Aug 23, 2010 9:53 PM

He has room to grow in the first one and its a cheap pot so no fears about it. I know they like good moisture in the growing season but I am not confident about putting it into moisture retaining soil. They dry out fast here but I am able to fuss and water them daily or every other day as needed. I only have a few plants and the oldest is 3 years old so I am still figuring out how to grow them well here. I read and reread the posts and links and have gotten some good help from people on here but still have a lot to figure out about growing and shaping them.
C

I agree, there is lots of good information in this thread, thank you all.
I've not ventured into the Adeniums yet but find I have a variety of the Caudiciforms.
Maybe someday...

Brian,
If you read Marks writings he makes that claim himself.
Ive used GA-3 on Plumeria and gotten 3 foot of growth in only 4 months.
I dont believe he uses GA-3 to grow his big.
Its been years since ive read his articles but I doubt the man is a liar.
He was disqualified from entering adenium contests for adeniums 3 years and younger because he brought his giants and noone believed him that they were so young.
Doesnt mean he didnt make it happen.
He has very interesting research, id encourage you to read it b4 calling him a bser ;)

I don't about producing "giants" but since I have been using a lot of low nitrogen fertilizer, my plants are growing much faster than ever before.
C

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This message was edited Aug 23, 2010 9:54 PM

A. Somalense is a really fast grower to begin with.
Thanks for the courtesy ;)

Newtonsthirdlaw, try putting them in the ground, they will double or triple in size.
Youll need a shovel to uproot them and be very careful as the roots spread fast when they r in the ground

Too much trouble, I don't want to be uprooting them each fall. Also, TX is flat and sometimes during a strong rain water logged soils occur.
C

I can tell you that Dr. Mark Dimmitt is one of the most respected people in C&S circles and has been for many, many years. I saw his huge Adeniums in person some years ago at the CSSA Tucson convention. His claims were also verified by his colleagues. Dr. Dimmitt is just about the last person whose veracity I'd ever question. If you're interested, here are his credentials: http://www.desertmuseum.org/center/scidept_cv_dimmitt.php

Oh my

Wow,
Now that speaks volumes!

Don't know what the roots are doing but he seems ok. The dark spot is where the cinniman was/is. Leaves are larger and stem appears more plump.

Oh, neat! So glad to see that it's doing well. Good for you!

Your plant looks great! Is it humid in Arlington?

It's not usually that humid but a little more so lately. I imagine humidity is relative (pun intended), compared to AZ its probably humid. I come from the midwest so to me this region has low humidity.
C

Cheryl: I'm assuming you don't keep your little adenium in front of your wine bottles all the time!!! Where is it located? I ask because I have one and it is out on my patio. I have spent the summer trying to find the right spot for it. I've been told they can take full AZ summer sun if adapted to it. However, I have tried to adapt it but the leaves burn no matter what I do if I put it in the sun. I'm jealous of your nice green leaves!

It's tricky. I have put them into nearly full sun and they did fine. Most of the smaller ones I have get morning sun and then are in bright light but not intense afternoon sun. I have the larger specimens in as much sun as my back yard gets and they thrive in it. I just think it takes time for them to adjust. I have been watering them daily in the hottest part of the summer. The seedlings I bought this spring are very green and they are in the part sun situation I described. I can't imagine your sun is more intense than in TX but its possible. We had a heat wave here, 100+ for like 3 months and they did fine in the sun. I also gave them fertilizer 2 or more times a week this year.
Here is what I keep reading: More sun and more water mean more growth and so far it has been true with the few adeniums I grow.
I keep the craziest hodge podge of plants and out of all of them I love the adeniums the most! Then the canivores, then the cactus...oh well you know what I mean!

Yes, I do know what you mean! I have a crazy mix also. Thanks for the info. I think next growing season I need to water and feed more. I know my plants are young ones so I will be patient and try to adapt them to the full sun. We have 100+ temps usually from mid-June through mid-Sept. This year we are still in the 100's. We had a record 111° last week. The adeniums don't seem to mind the heat though, thank goodness!

I think he's happy since he's next to the wine rack! The plant looks great!