How to Care for a Small Money Tree: How to Grow a Money Tree Well in a Pot
The money tree (Pachira aquatica) - just hearing the name makes people want to grow one nearby, in case they strike it rich someday! Whether a money tree can actually make you rich, we at TheNaturePlanet don't know, but a money tree can decorate a room, purify the air, and make you feel happy just looking at it! So does everyone know how to care for and manage a small money tree? Let's find out together below!
How to Care for a Small Money Tree
1. Soil
Small money trees sold on the market are generally ones that have been pruned, including the roots. The roots need to re-root in the pot, and are relatively weak, so the plant requires loose, breathable soil with good drainage.
2. Water
Small money trees are afraid of waterlogging. So you cannot water too much; better dry than wet. Standing water in particular does relatively great harm to the money tree, as the roots cannot breathe and easily rot.
3. Temperature
A small money tree will suffer cold damage below a low temperature of 5 degrees. During care, it needs to be in a relatively warm environment; above 20 degrees it can grow normally, and normal room temperature in spring and summer is fine.
4. Light
When grown outdoors, a small money tree can take full sunlight, but when kept as an indoor plant, direct sunlight must be avoided, because after being kept indoors for a long time, direct sunlight will cause white spots to appear on the leaves - this is sunburn damage.
How to Grow a Money Tree Well in a Pot
1. Choosing the Container and Potting Soil
Because the money tree is a plant that needs water but fears too much of it, it is best to choose a pot with good breathability and water permeability, such as a clay pot. It is best not to choose a porcelain pot, which is not breathable or permeable and easily causes root rot. For the potting soil, you can choose leaf mold, add some human manure or chicken manure, and you can also use fertilizer water made from bean dregs. The money tree likes fertilizer, so the fertilizer in the potting soil must keep up.
2. Light
The money tree originally grows in the tropics and adapts to tropical hot weather. Placed in a small pot, it is the same - you must satisfy the money tree's demand for sunlight. Put it in a place with plenty of sunlight and let its leaf surface face the sun; otherwise, the whole branches and leaves will twist to face their leaves toward the sunlight, and then the money tree will grow "crooked." Of course, when the money tree is bathed in sunlight, sprinkling a little water on it can make the branches and leaves more beautiful.
3. Watering
Whether the money tree grows in the ground or in a pot, it needs a large amount of water. But pot cultivation has one drawback: watering too much at once, with poor water permeability in the pot, causes standing water, which may make the plant's roots rot and die; watering too little, and the branches and leaves stop growing. So the amount of watering must be controlled. When watering a potted plant, grasp the "two more, two less": water more in summer when it is hot, water less in winter when it is cold, water more during the key growth period, and water less when newly planted in a pot.
4. Fertilizing
The money tree originally grows in fertile soil, so the potting soil must of course also be full of fertilizer. In the composition of the potting soil, fertile soil should make up at least 1/3 of the proportion. There are many materials for making fertile soil: it can be leaf mold humus, chicken manure fertilizer soil, or bean cake residue fertilizer. In addition, between May and September, fertilizer must be applied once every half month, because this is the key growth period for the money tree; only when fertilizer keeps up can the plant grow deep roots and lush leaves.
What to Do If the Money Tree Grows Leggy
When a money tree becomes leggy, pruning is generally used to improve it. When pruning, you can cut back the leggy branches of the money tree; generally most of them need to be cut off, keeping only a few buds at the base, with the length basically maintained at about 10cm, and the upper branches are best all cut off. When pruning, note that all the branches on the whole plant must be pruned, and the weaker-growing branches are best all cut off to reduce nutrient consumption.
After pruning the money tree, note that you should not water it first, to avoid rot, and then place the money tree in a semi-shaded place for care. Before it sprouts, you can use a compound fertilizer, and it is best to spray some fungicide.
The Habits of the Money Tree
The money tree is a perennial evergreen shrub that likes warm, humid, sunny or slightly shaded environments. Its most suitable growing temperature is 20°C to 30°C. The hot, humid summer season is very favorable for the growth of the money tree and is also its fastest growing period, so at this stage fertilizer and water management should be strengthened to make it grow robustly.
In winter, it must not go below 5°C, and it is best to keep it at 18°C to 20°C. It fears cold and damp; in a humid environment, the leaves very easily develop ulcer-like cold spots, which detracts from their ornamental value.
Potted care of the money tree is relatively simple; generally use loose garden soil or peat soil, leaf mold, coarse sand, plus a small amount of compound fertilizer or chicken manure as base fertilizer and potting mixture.
As described above, although larger money trees look more spectacular, small money trees are more refined and compact. Placed in a bedroom, study, or balcony, they are both beautiful and elegant, and they also take up little space, making them very suitable for growing at home!