I have an understanding of how to “clip and grow” alternating leaf trees. How do I prune a paired leaf tree like my Gmelina? Do I just clip back to my intended silhouette and use wire to direct growth? Do these trees backbud? I’ve found surprisingly little information on this subject, so any help would be appreciated
Pruning Gmelina?
- Thread starter Mycin
- Start date
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
I am growing mine using clip and grow and pretty much prune to intended silhouette. They back bud like crazy, and constantly. I wait until my branches need about 4 inches reduced because this is a handy size for cuttings which root extremely easily in water.
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
I am seeing a dozen nice cuttings there.
No kidding? That’s great news to hear. So I’ll clip to match my silhouette, trim all but the top 2-3 pairs of leaves, and place in a cup of water indoors on a windowsill with indirect sunlight?
This tree gets better the more I learn about it. It doesn’t seem to be a popular choice for tropical bonsaI though, so it’s hard to find information pertaining to its care
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
I think it warrants more attention. Mine is a very small one but it is one of my favorite tropicals. I am using a cloning collar floating in a fish tank and my cuttings are doing great. No hormone needed.
penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
Here are some picts.
You can see my plant with long shoots to cut and root.
Floating in the aquarium with goldfish. Not a true coning collar, just a piece of foam with slice halfway through.
About 3 weeks worth of roots.
Anthony
Imperial Masterpiece
Parrot's Beak
On the advice of @penumbra i took my cuttings and placed them in water to root. About one month later I have small root bumps. Of 8, 3 died. I potted three in small pots with sphagnum moss and left two in the water to see which does better.
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So of the three I potted, I’m down to two. The one that died developed some kind of chlorosis that caused the leaves to drop and die. Now this second one is doing the same thing.
Any suggestions? It’s in loose sphagnum moss, watered w reverse osmosis water, covered w a gallon mason jar opened a crack, set in a window with bright indirect light.
Any suggestions? It’s in loose sphagnum moss, watered w reverse osmosis water, covered w a gallon mason jar opened a crack, set in a window with bright indirect light.
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roberthu
Chumono
Try foliar feed maybe? Also use half strength acid loving fertilizer should help too.
roberthu
Chumono
I took some cuttings too and after putting them in water for five days, I am seeing a lot of white bumps on the stem. Something with the green island ficus cuttings I put in the same cup. Is that root forming?
Here, you can see the right most cutting has a ton of roots and has grown a good 3-4”
the sole survivor of the potted cuttings has been uncovered for a few days straight and seems to have rounded the curve.
I attribute the slow development to little light exposure (north facing window), so I wouldn’t be surprised if you had better luck.
the sole survivor of the potted cuttings has been uncovered for a few days straight and seems to have rounded the curve.
I attribute the slow development to little light exposure (north facing window), so I wouldn’t be surprised if you had better luck.
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roberthu
Chumono
Our temperature is going to drop below 80F starting from tomorrow. So I am going to keep these cuttings indoors until next summer probably, if they root.
Thanks for sharing these pics. I just really love the shape of the leaves. Like trident maple but smaller and stiffer.
Few updates on the cuttings:
the lone survivor of the three that I potted is doing well enough, with the first lateral branch seen today. Oddly enough,about four of the leaves in the middle have gone totally yellow, and I expect them to fall off. Maybe iron deficiency and/or chlorosis? I thought The sphagnum would buffer the alkaline tap water but maybe not. Either way, light feeding corrected it. I’ll probably up pot it once I have solid root ball.
The ones that have remained in the water seem to be doing better honestly. They have grown taller with better looking leaves. No lateral branching though. I potted the biggest one in a patented Sorce Training Pot in 8822 and I’m gonna pot the other two later. The last photo is a comparison of the early potted cutting and the water-rooted cutting
the lone survivor of the three that I potted is doing well enough, with the first lateral branch seen today. Oddly enough,about four of the leaves in the middle have gone totally yellow, and I expect them to fall off. Maybe iron deficiency and/or chlorosis? I thought The sphagnum would buffer the alkaline tap water but maybe not. Either way, light feeding corrected it. I’ll probably up pot it once I have solid root ball.
The ones that have remained in the water seem to be doing better honestly. They have grown taller with better looking leaves. No lateral branching though. I potted the biggest one in a patented Sorce Training Pot in 8822 and I’m gonna pot the other two later. The last photo is a comparison of the early potted cutting and the water-rooted cutting
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penumbra
Imperial Masterpiece
I bet where the leaves yellowed you will have branches form. If it was a deficiency, which it is not, the entire plant would be yellow.
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