Hello, I am new to this forum. I have been looking online to try to find out how to propagate a Pachira Aquatica plant (Money Tree). I bought it a few weeks ago for my office and decided to bring a clipping of a leave home because I heard the plant is easily propagated. I have done some research and everyone seems to have a different answer, so I decided posting here would be the best place to get an accurate answer. I have the clipping in a glass of water, as with certain plants, I remember growing up, my mother would place them in water, and they would begin to sprout roots. I have read that people have attempted this tactic and have waited MONTHS for absolutely no progress. Others have said that the clipping must be placed in soil and be well watered over time. I also found that the clipping needs to have specific characteristics to be propagated. Can anyone help me propagate this plant? Thank you, Glenn
Re: Pachira Aquatica Propagation Pachira Aquatica, an extremely showy tree, is commonly grown in the warmer parts of southern Florida. It blooms in the spring with wonderful pink/red purplish large flowers. . In New Jersey you must be growing the tree as a containerized tree. I've always heard P. Aquatica referred to as Guinea Chestnut, not Money Tree. Anyway, the tree can be propagated easily by seed, and also by cuttings. Place the cutting in a medium of 50% peat moss and 50 percent perlite. The use of a rooting hormone greatly helps the cutting to develop roots. Use a 4-inch container for rooting, and insert the cutting no deeper than 2-inches deep. Be sure not to place the cutting deeper than 2-inches or it will be in the perched water table portion, at the bottom, which can result in the cutting rotting. Keep moist but not wet, should root rather easily. I would also strongly assume that the tree could be propagated by air layering. Actually, the seeds of P. Aquatica are good to eat, either raw or roasted. Great tree. You should not have much of a problem propagating it. The success rate from seed should be near 100 percent, and from cuttings about 50 to 75 percent depending on the care you give it. - Millet
Re: Pachira Aquatica Propagation Thanks, Millet. I hope we are talking about the same plant though. I did quite a bit of research and found that this "money tree" that I bought at Wegman's grocery store for 20 bucks, is known as Pachira Aquatica. Other sites called it a Malabar Chestnut. Here is a link to wikipedia so you can see what i'm talking about and make sure we're on the same page here, as I may have the scientific name confused. It is in a small container, maybe a 6 inch pot. The plant is about 10 inches tall from base of trunk to the top leaf. I will be keeping it indoors year round. I'm not sure how long it will take for it to mature to the point where I will get seeds, so I would like to propagate it from a clipping. Can you go into more depth as far as the propagating from a clipping process is concerned? I am an amateur and am not familiar with the process. Also, I've been hearing the term "air layering" a lot on here. What exactly is that? Thanks again!!!
Re: Pachira Aquatica Propagation http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pachira_aquatica not sure if it will mature enough inside to fruit unless maybe you can get a cutting from a mature one. i live in fla so i planted mine in the yard and it is about 18 feet tall i think it may have flowered once but did not set fruit and i was on vacation seen a remnant of a bloom when i got back. but it has not bloomed since i have been home. i may at some point air layer the top and than cut it down i donot have the room for a plant that has grown about 14 feet in about close to 2 years it was 4 feet when i planted it there are supposed to be some varietys of pachira that are grown for the flowers that can only be grown from cuttings because they donot set fruit but not sure of the name of that pachira. and i have heard tell that the white flowered one and the pink flowered ones that fruit may be different species of pachira.
Re: Pachira Aquatica Propagation you would need a small branch piece with leaves on it i have never heard of anyone rooting the pachira leaf only just reread you're post and it sounds like you are trying too get a plant from just the leaf. works with some secies of succulents and african violets unless you get into tissue culture and than pieces of leaf can be used on allot of species for propagation. heres a link that shows one type of air layering http://mrfc.org/articles/airlay.asp
Re: Pachira Aquatica Propagation Hey Mikey, Thanks for the advice. I do remember now that my mom used to propagate from the leaves of mostly African Violets, spider plants, and I think maybe Gardenias. Definitely not working for the Pachira Aquatica. I scrapped that experiment about a week ago. A buddy of mine also said that in order to try that method, you need to cut it at a particular point on the branch, I forget the name he called it, but I only had a leaf which would do absolutely nothing. I mean, it stayed alive and green for a few weeks, but got no roots. I asked him about the air layering and he explained it to me, but the site you linked me to definitely helps clarify the steps for me. My tree is in my office, quite small, maybe a foot tall, so I would rather not air layer in my office. I may buy another one to keep at home to do experiments with. Are there any other alternatives for propagation for these? I know they originated in Asia, a small farmer found one and propagated them to sell at the market and found that they were so easy to propagate. Maybe it's because I have them inside in a pot and they cannot spread and multiply? Anyway, maybe I'll buy another one next month and try air layering at my house. Thanks again! Much appreciated!
Re: Pachira Aquatica Propagation I purchased a pachira aquatica, 4 feet high, 2 years ago. I kept it in a subdued light hallway and it grew slowly. I watered it weekly and let it dry out. It branched out slowly. Last year I put in in a sunny corner of my flat, and repotted it, and it trundled along, but burst up to 8 feet. I repotted it and water more, and about 3 months ago, it sent up spikes on one of the trunks. Of four I managed simply to plant one and it is doing well. It likes lots of water. The plant keeps sending up spikes - about 1 per month - that grow to 3 feet high unless I clip them off. I tried rooting powder to improve my luck with the spikes, but so far, no change. The main plant cannot get enough water, and sends off a sap onlong the underside of the leaves and along the leaf stems. This sap is harmless, but drips onto all plants in the vacinity, and covers me whenever I water the plant. The young transplant sends off no such sap. Neither plant blossoms. If you want to propogate, I would suggest lots of bright light, warm moist air, and root bound pottings. Whenever I clip the spurts of growing stems, six new stems appear. It`s lovely and green in a flat. I use filtered water. the more water I give it the bigger the leaf size. I plant squash in the top of the pot to get big blooms. Pachira seems a resilient and sociable plant. Apparently, its habitat in the wild is swamp, so I expect the sap creates an eco system. regards edith
Propagating a Pachira Aquatica leaf in water. #1 grasp leaf by it's stem or also called the petiole, and gently pull downward until the bulb that attaches to the main branch comes away clean with the stem, or petiole and of course the leaves. #2 lay the leaf in a dark cupboard for 2 days to allow the bulb to callous, this prevents rot. #3 Get a goldfish bowl, a cheap aquarium heater that you can set to 85 degree F. #4 Purchase a bottle of of reverse osmosis drinking water and fill a jar just big enough so the bulb at the end of the petiole does not touch the bottom. #5 Fill said jar with the R/O water about half way up. #6 Fill fish bowl with water, and find another small bottle to be inverted in the bottom of the fishbowl onto which stack the jar with the Pachira Aquatica stalk in it. #7 Leave heater unplugged for 10 minutes and fill fish bowl with water. ONLY after ten minutes plug in heater.In about an hour the whole thing will be 85 degrees F. Mine is inside a grow aquarium with a very bright grow light for 18 hours a day. In the first two weeks 3 of the 5 leaves will turn brown and fall off, usually the 3 largest. When that happens keep your eyes on the bulb under the water. Within a month you will have 3" long very healthy, plump white WATER roots. At some point when it seems the 2 roots growing in the same direction as the remaining leaves have stopped getting longer, change the water. You will now change the water every 7 days! IMPORTANT. Soil roots needs oxygen. Soil roots will develop perpendicular to the water roots on their tops. Once these are an inch long you can plant the Pachira Aquatica in good draining soil. I know it sounds like a lot of work, but it really isn't. In the winter I keep my Pachira Aquatica inside the warm aquarium with all that humidity and it never slows down. BTW you will be stuck with the 2 lobed leaf for a while. When a fully formed 5 lobed leaf opens up, take a tiny scissor, and cut the 2 lobed leaf off as close as you can to the top of the petiole, under the leaves as possible. LEAVE the petiole intact, this tells the plant there is damage and it will send out another 5 lobed leaf to replace the 2 lobed leaf you just cut off. I have been doing this for many years with Pachira Aquatica , and have had only one failure. I didn't change the water enough, and lost the roots due to stagnation.Before you know it, you'll have more Pachira Aquatica than you'll know what to do with! Tom
