Poinciana

BOBBOWYER

I live in Perth, WA, and there are several beautiful poincianas growing in our suburb.
I would like to grow one.
When should it be planted? After it has lost its leaves?
What soil preparation should I do (in sand)? What fertilisers?
How much water do the need?

Davo The Terrible

Hi mate,

My opinion is that you can plant anytime - leaves or no, Poncianas seem to be fairly resilient with regard to transplanting.

Soil prep - if you are in a deep sand, I would not worry about mounding the soil up - however, adding a heap of composted organic matter would increase the water and nutrient holding capacity of the soil - so would highly recommend this as sand is generally terrible in this regard. I would also recommend ensuring you remove all grass in a 1m radius around the tree when you plant (if planting into lawn) as my general experience is that trees and grass do not play well together.

Fertiliser - I have heard a lot of good stuff about "tree tablets" like those made by Agriform,but have never used them myself. I have had success with mixing dynamic lifter into the soil, or throwing a handful or two on the soil surface after planting (none touching the trunk though).

Water - I would recommend making a shallow depression in the soil around the tree so that water does not just run off when you water. Water the tree often in the first 3-6 months, as this time will be most important. I wouldn't think you would have many problems with waterlogging in deep sand - but might be good to check this (you want the soil moist, but not waterlogged - roots need oxygen as well as water). Also, make sure you MULCH the area around the tree to limit evaporation (use something biodegradable - sugarcane trash is best over here) and mulch it to a depth of 75-100mm. Once established, this tree shouldn't need regular irrigation to survive in Perth.

General planting - Make sure that when you plant, you do not plant the tree deeper or shallower than it was in the pot - pot soil level should be flush with the surrounding soil. Also, I DO NOT recommend "teasing" or otherwise mucking around with the roots before planting - best results will be from a tree that does not have root problems - get the smallest pot size possible (maybe even consider direct seeding if you're into it? They do germinate fairly easily, just give the seeds a bit of a scratch up with sandpaper or a file first, soak them overnight and plant - keeping moist until they come up in a week or two).

CAUTION - when planting this species it is very important to consider its future size - this species can have some very damaging roots! Deep sand will limit the likelihood of this, but it can still happen. Normally I would not plant this species within 5 metres of any sensitive structures. You might be able to reduce this distance if you have a deep sandy soil, but definitely no less than 3 metres from sensitive structures.

BOBBOWYER

Thanks, that is very helpful.
Any Perth residents that may have seed?

Eric Frei

Seed?

Surely Bunnings etc sells some 200mm pot stock, set you back maybe $15, save you maybe a few years of waiting.

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Davo The Terrible

Gotta disagree with you there Ekka: seeds of this species are very easy to germinate - usually taking only 1-2 weeks to come up (as long as you file & soak the seeds first). Direct seeding is a worthwhile technique that is not often used these days, but has advantages over using pot grown stock as there is much less likelihood of root problems (such as "J-root" or "girdling roots"), and establishment is usually quicker as you eliminate transplant shock.

Bob, you mentioned that there are several large Poincianas in your neighborhood - maybe you could collect seeds from these? I would recommend planting 5 or so, then leaving the healthiest one when it germinates. If you would rather buy a potted plant - just choose one that looks healthy and has not been in the pot for too long.

Eric Frei

What do you disagree about?

The time span for a seed to get to 200mm potted size? That is all I discussed, speeding up time.

Transplant shock for a 200mm pot? Doubt it if done right.

Girdling roots, can be determined at purchase. Simply tap the sides of the pot and slide out the root ball, have a gander. You want to see fine white roots at the edge but not going around in circles. Not too dense and matted as if left in the pot too long.

Check out this idea.

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Davo The Terrible

They're good ideas, those you tube vids - I'll be interested to see if they catch on.

As far as the "direct seeding" vs. "pot stock" debate goes - I think there is enough evidence (do a google search) to say that direct seeding is the best way to go for a species with a high germination rate (such as Poinciana) (even when compared with seedlings in tubestock pot size).

And yes, I disagree with your statement about saving time with potted stock, and also your dismissal of using direct seeding - lol

sueann

I bought 2 off ebay just before Christmas and put them in bigger pots straight up till I was ready to plant them.
They are about 2ft tall or so and have tree guards to keep them safe, they cost me $3 each and $10 for postage, pretty cheap I thought.

They're looking great in the ground now, and just put a handful of dynamic lifter around them.

Eric Frei

You still failed to provide the time span saved, but to expand upon your idealogy it would mean no advanced tree farms or perhaps no advanced poinciana stock.

Sueann, they grow easily. If you want to speed things up even more apply this stuff. There's nothing like a good root extender is there? lol

Batphone (Australia) Pty Ltd ... On-Line !

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sueann

Viagra for trees! Amazing! You do think of everything dear Ekka.

BOBBOWYER

Thanks, Davo, Can I collect the pods before they are dry?

BOBBOWYER

Thanks, sueann. I am a bit nervous about ebay but will have a look.

glennak

We had a lecturer who bought trays of tube stock from different nurseries and tipped them all out and decided that only one in ten trees will reach maturity because of the way they were pricked out as seedlings. I think the best way to buy potted plants is to remember only one in ten is worth planting (this is for trees mainly) crab them by the trunk and pick them up if they feel like they might break grab another one.
It is so common for people pricking out seedlings to not put them in deep enough then just push the top down and kink the trunk.

sueann

Hey Bob, yer welcome but ebay is ok to buy plants from. Just check out the seller's feedback to make sure they're not shonky.

I buy heaps of plants from there as it's a long way to a nursery from here and I can just browse away at my leisure.

Davo The Terrible

I can't tell you the specific time saved Ekka, I think that would be fairly hard to pin down, and would require a few experiments; however, I can tell you that generally, a tree is better off if direct seeded into it's final planting location rather than being propagated in a container and then transplanted to that location. I would think this would be undisputed, and if anyone disagrees with this, I would be interested to hear their reasons. I can also say that from my experience, a direct seeded tree can be planted at the same time as a 200mm or even 45L container tree, and be the same height or larger 1 year later.

In response to the second part of your statement, I do not think direct seeding is the most appropriate method in all situations, in fact, in a lot of urban environments, I would say larger stock is more appropriate to give that "instant effect", and give the tree a chance against lawn mowers, cars and animals. So don't worry, the advanced tree farms are safe.

It seems like direct seeding could work in Bob's situation, so I suggested it as an option.

Bob, as far as the seeds go, you should only plant mature seeds, the pods will be brown at this time, and you should be able to hear the seeds rattle like a maraca when you shake them.

BOBBOWYER

G'day and thanks, you fellas are really helpful. I like the prospect of planting seeds and don't need instant gratification anyway. I just want a healthy tree and planting from seed will give me maximum satisfaction.