Here's my 3 yo desert rose, NOID. I did some pruning on it this year, following the advice at Buried Treasures - http://www.buriedtreasuresnursery.com/info.php. The pruning really seemed to help with more blooms. My plants is about 2' tall. Every year, I repot it a little higher.
Very nice! Beautiful plant! I just love the large caudeces (xes?). Is there a trick for getting them to be the biggest possible? The link for the pruning seems to be dead, just to let you know.
flowerehj, You're right - the link doesn't work & I don't know why. But if you go to the Buried Treasure homepage - http://davesgarden.com/products/gwd/j/2462/ - and click on Useful Info at the top pf the page, you'll get to the video about pruning.
The only thing I've done to make the caudex larger is to repot each year, & raise the plant up a few inches higher. If you look closely at the pic I posted, you can see the difference in the color of the caudex. That's the only thing I've done to make it larger.
Jo-Ann
That sure is a beauty!! Just to let you know, if you go on youtube and type in Adenium, there are plenty of great little videos with tips about growing and the one from Buried Treasure is on there to. You will also see some great videos from Siam Adenium over in Thailand. They have some HUGE adeniums over there. Check it out sometime, if you love adeniu,ms, you will love the youtube videos :)
Dave
Thanks for the info on youtube. I'll take a look. I really think the pruning helped with the amount of flowers. I've never had this many blooms before. Here's the same plant 3 days later.
Your Adenium is stunning! I pruned mine and raised it earlier this spring, and hope for similar results, although it isn't nearly as grand as yours. It is just now leafing out. Is there anyone who does not love these pants?
Not here :D !!
jo, you say it's three years old...would you oblige us with a description of its size and "structure" three years back? Specifically, I'm curious to confirm whether its magnificent Botero-esque lobes were originally roots, and whether it's grown from seed, cutting or a grafting.
Does the plant go through any period of annual dormancy?
When I purchased it, the seller said it was 1 year old, although it looked older than that. I've had it for 2 years.
This is what it looked like when I got it in May, 2007, May, 2008 & May, 2009. I didn't realize how big it's grown. The first year, I kept it in the same pot it. Year 2, I moved it to a larger pot & raised it about 2". Year 3, this year, I repotted into the same pot & raised it about 3". Depending on what it looks like next spring, I may or not raise it even higher. Although I've been seeing some large adeniums in relatively shallow pots, and I may try that next year.
There is definitely a dormant period each winter. When the temps start getting into the mid-50's at night, it starts dropping it's leaves. That's when I bring it indoors and set in in a not-too-bright spot. When all the leaves have droped, I just put it in the back of a closet in the dark & maybe give it about 1/2 cup water every 2 weeks or so. It look so bad!! Then, when my nighttime temps get into the 60's, I take it back outside to a bright, but no direct sun, location. When the leaves start budding, it goes into full sun. This year, I did prune it when the first leaves started sprouting and I'm having a wonderful display of flowers.
Thanks for the pics --very nice!
What and when do you feed it? What kind of soil mix have you used?
I'm a rather haphazard fertilizer person. When I repotted, I added a little time release fertilizer, one with a high middle number. Plus some worm castings. My soil mix is just a regular potting soil without added fertilizer or moisture additives. I do add a lot of perlite for fast draining. Other than that, it gets Peters 10-30-20 every few weeks or once a month. Sometimes, it may get some sprayed fish emulsion or liquid seaweed or EM1 along with the rest of the garden. It's in full sun and I do water frequently. other than that, I just let it do it's own thing. I'm debating whether or not to prune it again once it's completed this round of flowering. I think I want the branches a little longer. It's starting to get a little disproportionate with the caudex larger than the branches. I'll have to wait & see how it does.
I just realized I need to trim some of those smaller roots that are on the caudex.
This message was edited May 21, 2009 10:49 AM
