Money plant recovery

[PB888]

Hello,

I inherited a money plant and it is not thriving to say the least. From what I understand they do not like dry, drafty air. Not sure what else they prefer. Also, is there a way (once it is healty I assume) to restart the dormant/dead trunks? I have attached a few pictures of its current state, any advice to make this a happy plant is greatly appreciated.

PB888

 

[oneeye]

Take your finger nail and gently scratch the stem and see it there is green. If you see green then just wait and your tree will put out some new leaves when the light photoperiod gets long enough.

 

[Palmlin]

Hi, PB888, I hope you have success with this plant. I've had two and the experience wasn't good as they both died. To my knowledge, they don't like (or need) much water so please be careful when you do so. Since your pot is small, you might only need a half cup (if that much). Try not to water close to the trunk as it will easily rot. With my first one, I think I watered it too often so when I got the second one, I took baby steps in trying to figure out how to best care for it. I'd always stick my finger in the dirt to ensure it was dry and give it water based on that, however, I would still wonder if I should have watered or not. It lasted longer than the first one, but I never fully felt comfortable with how to care for it. Ultimately, it looked as if it was drooping so I gave it a little water. To my dismay, the leaves began to fall off and the rest is history. When the base of the trunk becomes soft, it's likely to have had too much water so I reiterate, please try to keep the water away from direct center of the pot. It's a lovely plant and I adore--just wish I knew the secret to keeping it alive. Please post your success from time to time.

 

[oneeye]

The trick with growing money trees is to leave them in the nursery pots and only water with 1/4 of the nursery pot capacity after completely watering the soil the first time. If you have a 4 liter nursery pot then you would only water with 1 liter of water at a time after first wetting the soil. Money trees need a lot of oxygen in the root zone. Money trees like humidity in general, but you should let its soil dry out between watering. A good schedule for most growing areas, is to water when the top 2-4 inches of soil are dry. Almost all the deaths of Money trees occur from keeping the soil too wet.