Rosewood tree, rosewood, jacaranda mimosifolia – planting and care

Planting the exotic wood in the garden would be a fatal waste, because as soon as the temperatures drop permanently below 10 ° Celsius, the tree dies. Therefore, a ground planting is only possible in a large, heated winter garden.

The most common rosewood is therefore to be found in the tub:

• Bright, sunny location without blazing sunlight.
• Lime-free substrate, enriched with compost and horn shavings.
• Azalea is well suited as well as peat culture substrate TKS 2, highly fertilized.
• Add expanded clay, pumice, lava granulate or seramis to the substrate.
• The planter must have at least 1 cm water drainage holes.
• Choose a high-walled container so that the roots can spread out easily.
• The ideal bucket is a third higher than it is wide.
• The rosewood can later be potted more easily from a conical pot.
• Bulbous buckets are decorative, but usually have to be smashed when repotting.
• Put a clay pot in the water for at least 1 hour before planting.
• The pores are soaked up and no more water is drawn off when pouring on.
• Also place the root ball of the rosewood tree in a bucket of water.
• In the selected planter, create a drainage over the water drainage hole.
• Ideally, cover the drainage with a water and air permeable geotextile.
• Fill in a first layer of the substrate and press on.
• Place the root ball in the middle of the bucket.
• Fill in the potting soil in portions and press on with your fist in between.
• Failure to press on causes voids due to wedged crumbs of earth.
• Such cavities cannot be penetrated by roots, which weakens the plant.
• Avoid pressing too hard on the substrate because the young roots will not penetrate it.
• Leave a few centimeters between the substrate and the edge of the tub.
• Pour carefully and thoroughly.
• If the earth sags because cavities are filled in, substrate is refilled.

A layer of mulch, the advantages of which the gardener learned about when cultivating his beds, should also be used in the bucket. During the summer, pebbles are suitable for a rosewood tree or pieces of shell collected on vacation as a mulch layer. Any weeds are suppressed, the substrate remains moist longer and the heat stored in the mulch during the day is released back to the tropical tree overnight. In addition, insects are prevented from laying their eggs in the potting soil. Such a mulch layer is dispensed with in the winter months, because in this phase the water requirement of the Jacaranda mimosifolia is determined with the help of the thumb test.

maintenance

The rosewood tree is not only demanding in terms of the substrate, but can also react very unpredictably to careless watering. The water balance is very important when it comes to proper maintenance:

• Water only with room temperature rainwater.
• Only if the thumb test indicates a dry surface is watered.
• The required, tropical high humidity through regular spraying.
• Alternatively, set up a humidifier, especially during the heating season.
• If there is no rainwater available, the tap water is softened.
• To soften it, hang a linen bag with peat in the watering water for 12 hours.
• Replace the bag after every fourth watering can filling.
• Never pour ice-cold water from the tap.
• If it is too dry, the rosewood throws the leaves off without further ado.
• Young Jacaranda mimosifolia are repotted annually.
• Older rosewoods are only put in a new tub every three to four years.
• It is better to water abundantly at greater intervals than a little at short intervals.
• Apply liquid fertilizer every 14 days from April to August.
• Fertilize heavily diluted in the heated winter garden from September to March.
• Prefer low-calcium preparations such as rhododendron fertilizers.

More and more hobby gardeners are choosing to use organic fertilizers not only for reasons of cost, but also for environmentally conscious reasons. There is nothing to counter this either. Horn meal, horn shavings, primary rock and bone meal provide the rosewood with a sufficient amount of nutrients without the risk of overdosing. When using compost, you only have to make sure that it is completely mature, otherwise the roots will be damaged by continued rotting processes in the substrate.

Overwinter

If the rosewood tree has spent the summer outdoors on the balcony, terrace or in the front garden, it is time to put it in its winter quarters as soon as the temperatures are permanently below 10 ° Celsius. Because of its subtropical origins, it just hasn’t learned to adapt to the cold. The water in its cells would freeze and the cell walls would burst, with the result that the entire plant is doomed to die. Experienced experts advise not to give the Jacaranda mimosifolia too early, because the slowly falling temperatures contribute to its hardening. From the beginning of October, however, it will be time to move the rosewood to a bright winter hostel where temperatures are around 15 ° Celsius. A winter garden or a heated greenhouse are ideal. Of course, there is nothing wrong with placing the rosewood in the living room or hallway, but not in the immediate vicinity of the heater. In addition, a place is chosen where the tropical tree receives as much light as possible so that it does not shed its decorative leaves. The mulch layer is dispensed with during the winter in order to determine the water requirement with the help of the thumb test. No fertilizer is used at all. In its native regions, the rosewood tree sheds its leaves in summer when it is dry. In the local regions this can also happen in the dark season. This process is not a reason to panic, because the wood will sprout again next spring. From mid-May the Jacaranda mimosifolia moves back into the fresh air.

Multiply

Fortunately, rosewood can be easily propagated from seeds. Especially in February and March, even beginners among hobby gardeners can tackle this work:

• Fill a seed tray with coconut fiber or potting soil.
• Coconut fiber is particularly air-permeable, low in nutrients and not fertilized.
• Soak the rosewood seeds in room warm water for 24 hours.
• Sow the seeds and cover only very lightly with soil.
• Moisten with a spray bottle and cover with a glass lid or foil.
• Place in a warm, bright but not full sun place.
• The germination time is 1 to 2 weeks.
• Keep moist during this time and ventilate again and again.
• Use only lukewarm, lime-free rainwater.
• Prick out the seedlings after about 6 to 8 weeks.
• The cover can be omitted after the separation.
• Continue to cultivate in individual pots and supply with the first dose of fertilizer.

As knowledgeable hobby gardeners report, sowing should not be started too early in the year because the seedlings are then exposed to the heating air for too long, with the result that they turn yellow or moldy. The period from the end of February to the end of March is better.

Propagation by cuttings is not quite as promising, but can also be carried out without any problems. As part of the pruning measures, suitable plant material automatically accumulates in abundance. Strong, non-woody shoots with at least three pairs of leaves are best suited. More buds and stipules are removed. A cutting should be about 15 cm to 20 cm in size and is placed in a pot filled with nutrient-poor potting soil. After the cutting and the substrate have been moistened with lime-free water, a transparent plastic bag is put over it. In this way, the skilled hobby gardener creates a tropical microclimate that promotes rooting. Placed in a bright, not full sun place, where the cuttings are also supplied with foot warmth, A strong root system develops within a few weeks. During this time the substrate must not dry out. At the same time, the evaporation protection is ventilated regularly so that no mold develops. As soon as the seed pot is completely rooted, the young rosewood tree is placed in a larger container and is then cultivated like an adult plant.

To cut

Jacaranda momosifolia are remarkably fast growing. It is therefore convenient for the busy gardening enthusiast that these trees can withstand a cut very well. The lighter they are, the bushier they grow. In order to support this decorative habit, they should be regularly de-pitted from an early age. Since one of the outstanding characteristics of rosewood is the unconditional striving to develop a trunk, an initial pruning should be made after 2 or 3 years at the earliest. Trees naturally form a well-formed crown only in the rarest of cases. This also applies to the palisade tree. The enthusiastic hobby gardener can therefore courageously grab the secateurs to give the tropical wood the desired shape. The best time for the main cut is early spring,

• Cut the outer shoots a little shorter than the inner ones.
• Always start the cut just above an outward-facing bud.
• Always align the scissors at a slight angle in the direction of growth.
• Remove sick and damaged branches and leaves.
• Cut inward branches radically.
• Remove the oldest branches once a year to make room.
• Cut off shoots that are too weak.
• Cut one of the intersecting branches.
• Regularly shoot strong shoots to stimulate branching.

To give the vigorous rosewood a beautiful crown, a single cut per year is nowhere near enough. There is nothing wrong with shortening unwanted branches during the summer. A slight pruning is not only used for shaping and maintenance, but also promotes branching and keeps the growth height under control, which is particularly important for a houseplant. Even during the main growth, the experienced gardener does not shy away from using scissors to remove a misplaced shoot. He is aware that this not only sabotages the appearance, but also consumes an unnecessarily large amount of energy. If the cut does not close quickly, it is closed with charcoal ash or tree wax.

Conclusion
With its fern-like pinnate leaves, the rosewood from the trumpet tree plant family is a decorative feast for the eyes as a houseplant, on the balcony and terrace, even if it does not allow the sky-blue bell blossoms to appear in this country. Growing from seeds is completely straightforward. In terms of successful care, however, there are a few important factors to consider so that the exotic tree develops in the desired shape. If the water and nutrient supply is right, the Jacaranda mimosifolia is well-suited to gardening enthusiasts and does not mind being cut several times a year.