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afa2

Help me save my African Baobabs (Adansonia Digitata)?

afa2
12 years ago

Hi all,

First time I've joined a forum, so I guess that means I'm fairly serious about finding some answers Let me give some good detail below about my dilemma:

I love baobabs and always have. I've successfully raised some specimens in the past for many years, until they were destroyed by unknowing family members who thought they were dead (they were dormant!) whilst I was working overseas... very sad story.

My partner has since gone to GREAT lengths to import for me two new specimens from Africa which are already developing some nicely bulging trunks. They were kept in quarantine for several months, which can be a little risky, but they seemed to turn out alright and were looking fairly healthy upon collection. One tree was more 'robust' than the other but they both appeared to be doing all right.

Long story short, the specimens are not yet ready for bonsai-ing since I want to develop trunk thickness a little more. They were unfortunately kept in really really small pots in quarantine, and as it is now their growing season, I needed to get them into some more appropriate containers to allow for some growth. It's obviously not an ideal time to repot anything in growth stages, but it didn't seem suitable to keep them as they were either.

I re-potted them with a mix of 50% course river sand with a bit of small gravel for faster drainage, with the other 50% being organic compost/potting mix. They seemed to do ok in their new pots for a couple of days. Although I didn't really need to cut any significant rootage away, I didn't water them straight away in their new pots since I've read to avoid doing so. Then, I went away for about 3-4 days. Upon my return, the leaves have drooped quite somewhat and even the robust plant looks now a little sickly. The less-robust plant (with less growth) had lost 2 small lower leaves which had turned yellow.

I don't lavishly water baobabs. Although on this matter, there is a wide variety of opinions, with many growers suggesting only small amounts of water, others suggesting copious amounts of soaking but no more than once per month. I've never had watering problems with my past specimens. However, I did notice that when the leaves on these baobabs drooped on a different occasion a while ago, a bit of water woke them up again nicely. I did so again this time, but they haven't picked up!

The other basics i'm aware of: full sun and hot climate. I keep these on my balcony in a great sunny position, and take them inside behind a bright window whenever there is cold/rain. I know they need fast-draining soil, and not to be over-watered, especially as dormancy comes on. I know they don't seem to have many pests either, though I've noticed recently that some white specking on the leaves have appeared which I thought could be spider mites, though I can't really see any other indicators of mites. I've wondered if this is also some sort of other health indicator? I am based in Sydney where, although the weather hasn't been great lately, the plants haven't been exposed to any cold.

All in all, I'm a touch worried since I've not had baobab problems in the past! These specimens are also personally important since they were an expensive gift, and I would very much like them to thrive, let alone keep them alive!

Any suggestions or insight from your vast experience would be a wonderful help!

Thank you!

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