Kevin the Brazilian Rain Tree

Messages
117
Reaction score
94
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
Question on air layering; is this how it’s supposed to look or did I do it too early? I pruned and applied the air layer when I moved it outside and the air layer branch budded and grew but the leaves never really did much.. probably too much all at once plus it trying to bid out? Should I have waited until it was comfortable in its new environment?
 

Attachments

  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    192 KB · Views: 59
  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    285.3 KB · Views: 47

Paradox

Imperial Masterpiece
Messages
9,339
Reaction score
11,413
Location
Long Island, NY
USDA Zone
7a
May might have been a tad too early.

What concerns me is all the leaves on the air layered branch seem to be dying
 
Messages
117
Reaction score
94
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
May might have been a tad too early.

What concerns me is all the leaves on the air layered branch seem to be dying
Yeah I think that too. They were always a brighter more lime green and didn’t seem to grow all that much but that was a week or so after I put the air layer on so I figured if the top was growing the bottom should be growing as well, must’ve been stored energy in the branch? Is this a sign that the branch is dying or will it still root with dormant buds on the branch?
 

Paradox

Imperial Masterpiece
Messages
9,339
Reaction score
11,413
Location
Long Island, NY
USDA Zone
7a
Yeah I think that too. They were always a brighter more lime green and didn’t seem to grow all that much but that was a week or so after I put the air layer on so I figured if the top was growing the bottom should be growing as well, must’ve been stored energy in the branch? Is this a sign that the branch is dying or will it still root with dormant buds on the branch?

It's not a good sign for sure.
I have a few BRT, but I've never air layered one so I can't be absolutely sure.

You did cut a section of bark right, like a collar?
What did you use for media in the foil?
 
Messages
117
Reaction score
94
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
It's not a good sign for sure.
I have a few BRT, but I've never air layered one so I can't be absolutely sure.

You did cut a section of bark right, like a collar?
What did you use for media in the foil?
Yes cut a collar of the bark off including cambium with a sharp sterilized edge between two nodes, not right to the nodes I think it was a 1.5-2cm space and scraped the peeled section to make sure I didn’t miss any cambium.

Soaked sphagnum moss for a couple hours, I think I had to go somewhere, squeezed most the water out but still kept it moist and wrapped it around the node on the branch side, wrapped that with plastic seran wrap then again with tin foil.

I thought the leaves were drying up a week or two ago so I got a fresh needle and syringe (beef farmer) and gave it 3ml of water to make sure there was some moisture in the layer. I haven’t checked to see if there are roots because it’s tight between it and another branch and I don’t want to accidentally spin the layer and disturb what roots may or may not be there
 

Paradox

Imperial Masterpiece
Messages
9,339
Reaction score
11,413
Location
Long Island, NY
USDA Zone
7a
Yea probably too soon for roots.
Sounds like your technique was correct.
Only thing I would have done differently is put some rooting hormone at the top of the cut but what Ive researched, BRT shouldn't be hard to air layer.
I would leave it for now and if the leaves continue to die and no new buds come out by the end of July, Id open it up and look
Keep making sure there is moisture in there though.
You dont want it sopping wet, just damp
 

WNC Bonsai

Omono
Messages
1,867
Reaction score
2,049
Location
Western NC
USDA Zone
7b
I think you should have waited until July. Give it time to gain back its strength after wintering in your house and putting out a new set of foliage. Tropicals like the warm weather. Also did it go from inside the house to direct sun outside? You should always transition a houseplant from indoor growing conditions to full sunlight. You’re really stressing Kevin a lot.
 
Messages
117
Reaction score
94
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
I think you should have waited until July. Give it time to gain back its strength after wintering in your house and putting out a new set of foliage. Tropicals like the warm weather. Also did it go from inside the house to direct sun outside? You should always transition a houseplant from indoor growing conditions to full sunlight. You’re really stressing Kevin a lot.
Nope always gradual transition from indoors to outdoors, I start it in a nook that gets maybe 4-6 hours of direct sunlight then outside the nook to like 7-8 hours and now out on the back porch getting 10-11 hours.

now I know for next time to wait until july... I figured since it threw a set of new leaves indoors a month prior it should be ok to go ahead and air layer it but it dropped its leaves a couple days after going outside and brought another set of new leaves out
 
Messages
117
Reaction score
94
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
Can’t be doing that bad if the air layer is pushing new growth while dropping old(ish) leaves?
 

Attachments

  • CFCC0151-0895-4F9E-83EB-7C6264044852.jpeg
    CFCC0151-0895-4F9E-83EB-7C6264044852.jpeg
    162.3 KB · Views: 22
  • 6D412F13-C46C-4EA0-8AA1-B3ACFFCB16A7.jpeg
    6D412F13-C46C-4EA0-8AA1-B3ACFFCB16A7.jpeg
    160.6 KB · Views: 15
  • 3A725B8D-2D25-459B-AF32-F3223C0B5B3F.jpeg
    3A725B8D-2D25-459B-AF32-F3223C0B5B3F.jpeg
    290.7 KB · Views: 12
  • E65A4101-06F3-44D5-BC26-6C9C28A8B11D.jpeg
    E65A4101-06F3-44D5-BC26-6C9C28A8B11D.jpeg
    154.1 KB · Views: 19
Messages
117
Reaction score
94
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
Well by golly guys I think I did it! Cutting is growing in soil outside the Starbucks greenhouse!!

as for the air layer it’s pushing lots of new growth! No new shoots but leaves… I thought she was done for 🤷‍♂️ Haven’t opened the foil to see if there are roots, too afraid of twisting and breaking roots, it was applied late spring just after the first flush of new growth so there should be something, tempted to cut it now and plant it in soil, or should I wait until spring??

should I be cutting back the long shoots now to give it its shape back or let it keep growing?? Have saved a couple Starbucks cups in hopes of more propagation attempts

all in all he’s doing pretty good, it’s cool to see the difference between summer growth and winter growth, I brought it in and it dropped half its leaves and then pushed lots of new growth which is pretty rad, I like to see happy plants 🪴
 

Attachments

  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    173.7 KB · Views: 9
  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    217.4 KB · Views: 11
  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    258.1 KB · Views: 13
  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    188.5 KB · Views: 23

leatherback

The Treedeemer
Messages
13,939
Reaction score
26,882
Location
Northern Germany
USDA Zone
7
should I be cutting back the long shoots now to give it its shape back or let it keep growing
The cutting or the layer?

In either case, I would personally allow them to do their thing till spring and allow roots to develop.
If your layer has been on since spring, I would have expected some roots by now?
 
Messages
117
Reaction score
94
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
The cutting or the layer?

In either case, I would personally allow them to do their thing till spring and allow roots to develop.
If your layer has been on since spring, I would have expected some roots by now?
Just the long shoots off the tree itself, third picture, I would assume the layer has roots by now. I should peel back the foil and check..
 
Messages
117
Reaction score
94
Location
Ottawa, Ontario
Just a quick update, been a minute.

Growth getting leggy but I think I’ve overcome the reverse taper that was starting (photo makes it look still kinda reverse).

Definitely have to repot this year, going to wait until I move it outside full time and it pushes new growth (feel free to tell me that’s a bad idea, I don’t know). Can I do a hard chop at the same time as the repot or would that be too much all at once??

Only thing I’m afraid of is the sacrificial branch I’ve grown has become quite thick at the trunk and will leave quite the scar, I’m sure it’ll eventually cover over but still…

I’m overall content on how it’s doing, wishing I took more time cutting leaders to thicken growth.

Air layer is still alive too haha it seems to do weird things but I guess that’s because it’s a young plant still
 

Attachments

  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    252.6 KB · Views: 10
  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    263.4 KB · Views: 8
  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    232.8 KB · Views: 8
Top Bottom