Question
QUESTION: Hello,

I purchased a Money Tree from Target about 7 years ago. It has been moved from dorm to apartment to apartment literally about 10 times in these 7 years. I have never, ever had any trouble with it.

I re-potted it about 2 years ago, as it was completely rootbound. I am guessing that it was probably in about a 6" pot at the time of purchase, and the new pot was 12" wide. It has the built-in drainage tray with a spout for adding water so that the roots can absorb it.

Over the years, I have had the tree lose some leaves, but the trunks (or stems?) were always healthy and within a week any environment-shock from moving it was replaced by new, deep green growth.

In the current situation, the money tree has been in the same place in my apartment since April 2nd. About 1 week ago, two of the three trunks (it is a braided "trunk") VERY suddenly lost all of the leaves and began to brown, curl, and wither at the very top! The third trunk seems to be completely unaffected, but I am at a loss to explain why the other two, after 7 years and tons of moves, several in the winter, would suddenly and so quickly die. I am so very fond of this plant that I'd feel terrible if there was no way to save it.

Let's see, location: As of April this year, the plant has been sitting about 8' away from a south-facing window. The leaves have grown bigger, so I'm sure it's not being burned by the sun. It almost never gets direct light; however even in my previous apartments, it always seemed to adjust to lighting levels no matter where it was placed. It has recently been taking longer for the soil to dry, so I water when the top 1" or so is dry. This has translated into once every week and a half or so, but I check the soil every 3-4 days, so I am certain I was not giving it too little water. As the leaves fell, they were a light green/yellow color, so I cut back watering even more. It still seemed to be just fine until 1 week ago, and within a matter of 2 days, all the leaves from the two affected stems were gone.

I've checked for fungus and insects, and have found no trace of either. I realize that daylight is getting shorter (ah yes, I'm in Minnesota very near the St. Paul/Minneapolis area) but again this never seemed to be an issue before.

I do not know if this plant can be encouraged to grow new leaves by nicking the old nodes...is this an option, or will it do more damage than good?

I kept the tree small for many years, but finally allowed it to grow taller without any pruning about 3 years ago. It stands about 3' tall now.

I apologize for such a long e-mail, but I wanted to include any information I could give you, to make your job easier :)

If there is anything else you need to know, please don't hesitate to ask - I assume that the sooner I can intervene, the better.

Ah yes, forgot one more thing - I have fertilized the tree about once every 5-6 months, or whenever the leaves started to get yellow and sickly looking in the past. I only use a fertilizer with 30% nitrate (is that correct? My mind is suddenly failing me - it's the nutrient that is supposed to be specific for green plants with no blossoms or fruit). Again, as always, I've done this for about 5 years now. The soil mixture I used when re-potting the plant 2 years ago was roughly 1/4 peat moss, 1/4 vermiculite, and 1/2 basic houseplant Miracle Grow soil. I did include a layer of pebbles at the bottom for drainage.

That's really all I can think of - thank you for tolerating such a long e-mail! Any help is much appreciated.

Thanks!
-Diana Roen

ANSWER: Hi Diana,

Thank you for all the detailed information. What stands out here is what you mentioned only in passing. Two years ago you repotted from a 6" to a 12" diameter pot. When any plant needs repotting, it is important that it gets moved up one size only. In this case, a 7" or 8" diameter pot was appropriate.

In a pot that is too large, lots of added soil acts like a big sponge by absorbing and retaining moisture for a very long time. In this constantly damp environment, the roots gradually rot. Yes, it can take a couple of years for the symptoms to appear, but once they do, it is often too late. Typically, one or two of the stems are affected first. Unless the situation is remedied, the remaining stem will also die back.

I suggest that you carefully un-pot your plant. I am quite sure you will find few, if any healthy roots wrapped around the rootball. You may find a soggy mass in the lower portion of the soilball. Slowly remove the soil that you added when you repotted, removing any soft, mushy roots and surrounding soil. Look for some healthy, firm roots in the original rootball. If you find none, then your only hope is to take a cutting from the remaining stem and try to propagate it.

If you find some healthy roots, leave just enough soil around those roots so they are barely covered when you move it into the SMALLEST pot that these healthy roots and minimal soil will fit into. DO NOT RINSE AWAY ALL THE SOIL because that will damage the few remaining root-hairs that do most of the work. The goal is to get the roots in an environment where the soil will dry out a quarter of the way deep into the pot every few days. Drying out is all about allowing oxygen back into the soil surrounding the roots. Without oxygen, roots slowly rot. At best, your plant will be on life support for a couple of months before healthy new roots start to grow and take hold. The margin for error is very small.

Pachiras do best when light is a constant very bright indirect sunlight. A north windowsill is best and within 4-5 feet of a south window window is okay. Keep it warm so that the soil dries out more quickly.

Fertilizer of any kind is not medicine and should be used to replace deleted nutrients only with plants that are healthy and growing vigorously. For foliage plants, a nitrogen-phosphorous-potassium ratio of 3-1-2 is best.

A more suitable potting mix for most foliage plants is 4 parts peat moss and 1 part perlite. Miracle-gro potting mixes tend to lack proper porosity and are ofter contaminated with fungus gnat larvae. Vermiculite is porous, but tends to compact after a while. In fact, after two years, it may be that the compaction of the soil you used may have finally pushed your plant over the edge.

Putting pebbles at the bottom of pots is an out-dated and discredited practice. It does not improve drainage. For proper drainage you need a porous potting mix and a drainage hole in the bottom of the pot. It is unclear to me if the pot you used has a drainage hole, but if it does not than that has also contributed to gradual rotting of the roots.

This is a long answer, but I wanted to be sure you don't make similar potting mistakes in the future and also understand the dynamics of soil and roots. Unnecessary and incorrect repotting are the most common causes of plant failure.

I have written articles on repotting and on Money Plant (Pachira) care that I will email for free to you (or anyone else) who sends a request to me at [email protected].

Please let me know if any of this is unclear or if you have any additional questions.

If this information has been helpful, please click the Rate Volunteer bar below and enter a rating and nomination for me. I am a volunteer on this site so Ratings are the only compensation I receive for answering plant questions.

Need more information? Visit my website at:
A link to HorticulturalHelp.com

or email me at [email protected] or call me at 917-887-8601 (EST)
 
Regards,
Will Creed, Interior Landscaper
Horticultural Help, NYC

Visit my website at: A link to HorticulturalHelp.com




---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Will,

I cannot thank you enough for your swift and detailed response!

When I first submitted my question to you, I had not viewed your credentials; I merely assumed that you were a friendly, anonymous voice from a local florist chain.

When I received your answer, I was amazed. I don't know if you are able to actually view the ratings and comments given by your pupils here on this site, but I expressed my delight in the detail and the knowledge put forth in your reply.

After submitting the ratings and comments, I noticed the website link included in your reply, and decided to follow it, out of curiosity.

Now, I am both humbled and amazed! I had no idea that I was contacting an independent, TRUE expert in the field; in fact, I feel rather foolish for having wasted your certainly valuable time with such a silly question about one little Pachira from Target.

I write this only to further emphasize the depth of my gratitude and respect for your help; although I am an anonymous fool who mistreated an innocent houseplant, you responded as though I were as important as one of the large companies who seek your expert consultation. This sort of selfless gesture is so rare, these days, that I felt it necessary to acknowledge it.

After perusing your website I am indeed interested in subscribing to your Bulletins. I will follow the links for the donation and subscription on your website, but wanted to be sure that I could thank you here.

Sincerely,
Diana Roen

Answer
Hi Diana,

I do see the comments and ratings that are left for me on this site. Your extremely kind words have made my month! I do have expert professional knowledge of indoor plants that I know few people have access to. There is no reason for me not to share my knowledge to help others. While it is true that large companies pay my bills when they contract with me to take care of their plants, the satisfaction that comes from helping others like yourself is more satisfying and that is why I keep doing it.

Your repotting problems are not foolish, except after you learn otherwise. As I mentioned, this is the most common of all plant care mistakes and there are lots of plant books and amateur plant aficionados who encourage this unnecessary repotting. So your have lots of good company and you are not foolish!

I look forward to your contacting me directly so you can subscribe to my Indoor Plant Bulletins.

Appreciatively,
~Will Creed