This is my adenium, received two months ago. I'm in zone 7b, Bayonne NJ and it's currently under 3 spider farmer SF-1000s enclosed in mylar curtains with Mylar on the walls and surface. Plan to move outside once it warms. Have a lot of questions so any advice I greatly appreciate.
When I first received it was one very long stem with roughly 7-8 buds. Since there appear to be two new stems growing and last I counted 31 buds. The caudex is skinny and my goal is to fatten it up and I want to chop it so multiple shoots grow with multiple blooms on each. I don't know where exactly id chop it and when the best time to do so. My GF got this for me and she'd like to see all the buds bloom. First question is where would you chop and when would be the best time to do so?
2nd question is it came in garden soil. I have 50+ lbs of Diatomaceous Earth, pumice, lava rock, fir bark etc. I really want to move it to better draining soil and was wondering if I could just switch the soil out? I've repotted my other 11 Bonsai trees and there was a day or two where some leaves would drop but they're all since thriving. In my setup it's roughly 80 degrees with a humidifier. Also I've read the pot should be no less than 1 1/2" from the caudex and as u can see the pot it came in is tall but not wide.
3rd question is if I do cut how would I propogate?
4th question is I recently planted 20 adenium seeds and was wondering how long to leave the humidity dome on for and would a low powered grow light up close be better than having it where it is now (about 3 feet under SF-1000)? Also in regards to pruning, is it necessary and what's the best way and why?


Thank you everyone for all the help, have a safe and wonderful day.

what you have there is a grafted plant - review copied picture with red arrow indicating where the graft took place

a long stem was used for the flowering upper part of the graft

am guessing - the reason the plant was grafted was for the "exotic" flower / color

if you cut the stem anywhere below that graft - the plant will revert to the root-stock (the original plant) and you will loose the "reason for the graft"

if you cut the stem anywhere above that graft - you preserve the "reason for the graft" and its"exotic" flower / color

if you want a fat caudex, more flowers / buds and eventually more seed pods ... you prune / cut the stem ... in this case I would prune / cut the stem somewhere in the middle of that long grafted stem ....
this year the plant will begin to bush out

the flats of the cut and resulting new stems ...will merge in about 3-4 years

bear in mind it may take several years to get the shape you want ....

cutting the stem will force 1 to 5 new stems to emerge ..... as new stems emerge it is important to pinch out leaves that are shading out, or covering other stems

to get a fat caudex ...give it room to expand .... the caudex expands by storing water & nutrients ...but it needs space to do that .... skip the part "pot...no less than 1 1/2" from the caudex"

adenium can grow in very little soil ..... use a shallow pot ... azalea pots work well ...
whatever the pot, insure there is a hole for drainage

repot your adenium with about an inch or 2 of rocks in the bottom of pot (i like to use volcanic cinders for this, because volcanic rock is lightweight & wont add a lot of weight) ....this bottom rock, will force the caudex to expand outwards, rather than downwards

I lift plants every 3 years or so .... also give it fresh potting mix .... this will not only improve the plant but it saves pots ...as adenium roots have no respect for pots ....expect to buy pots in the future

I would wait until all buds have bloomed ....the plant is outside ....watering & fertilizing has increased ....then do the prune in early spring along with a repot .....then it will have all summer to recover

you want your potting mix chunky & gritty ...more rock than organic ...can not stress that enough

you can propagate using the removed stems ....but stem cuttings will never have or nor develop a fat caudex

therefore start all plants from seed

for starting seeds ... if your seedlings have developed its first or second pair of leaves - it is safe to remove the humidity domes

once the seedlings have developed its "bottleneck" shape ...then repot individually in its own pot ...
use a finer soil mix with lots of sand ...keep sand moist - but not dripping wet

Pruning is done to improve the look of the plant .... also increase branching making the plant more pleasing to look at ....... you want to remove any stems that rub against another, cross another stem, or to eliminate stretching and make the plant more compact

cutting the stem tips off - sometimes, not always - forces branching further down a stem - other wise the branching occurs where the cut was made

from cut surfaces, new stems emerge, this produces more stem tips ...more stem tips = more buds / flowers

lifting or raising adenium and inch or so during a repot - exposes more of the root system .... the newly exposed section is almost always yellowish ...overtime the color blends with the rest of the plant

the exposed roots gives adenium a bonsai the "look of considerable age", without the decades needed

under lights .... if lights are in the 6500k range (white light) - then the distance a plant(s) is from a light source isnt really important ...what is important is how hot it gets between light source and top of plant -
use a thermometer ...a range in the 70's and 80's is more than enough .....

deepsouth said:



what you have there is a grafted plant - review copied picture with red arrow indicating where the graft took place

a long stem was used for the flowering upper part of the graft

am guessing - the reason the plant was grafted was for the "exotic" flower / color

if you cut the stem anywhere below that graft - the plant will revert to the root-stock (the original plant) and you will loose the "reason for the graft"

if you cut the stem anywhere above that graft - you preserve the "reason for the graft" and its"exotic" flower / color

if you want a fat caudex, more flowers / buds and eventually more seed pods ... you prune / cut the stem ... in this case I would prune / cut the stem somewhere in the middle of that long grafted stem ....
this year the plant will begin to bush out

the flats of the cut and resulting new stems ...will merge in about 3-4 years

bear in mind it may take several years to get the shape you want ....

cutting the stem will force 1 to 5 new stems to emerge ..... as new stems emerge it is important to pinch out leaves that are shading out, or covering other stems

to get a fat caudex ...give it room to expand .... the caudex expands by storing water & nutrients ...but it needs space to do that .... skip the part "pot...no less than 1 1/2" from the caudex"

adenium can grow in very little soil ..... use a shallow pot ... azalea pots work well ...
whatever the pot, insure there is a hole for drainage

repot your adenium with about an inch or 2 of rocks in the bottom of pot (i like to use volcanic cinders for this, because volcanic rock is lightweight & wont add a lot of weight) ....this bottom rock, will force the caudex to expand outwards, rather than downwards

I lift plants every 3 years or so .... also give it fresh potting mix .... this will not only improve the plant but it saves pots ...as adenium roots have no respect for pots ....expect to buy pots in the future

I would wait until all buds have bloomed ....the plant is outside ....watering & fertilizing has increased ....then do the prune in early spring along with a repot .....then it will have all summer to recover

you want your potting mix chunky & gritty ...more rock than organic ...can not stress that enough

you can propagate using the removed stems ....but stem cuttings will never have or nor develop a fat caudex

therefore start all plants from seed

for starting seeds ... if your seedlings have developed its first or second pair of leaves - it is safe to remove the humidity domes

once the seedlings have developed its "bottleneck" shape ...then repot individually in its own pot ...
use a finer soil mix with lots of sand ...keep sand moist - but not dripping wet

Pruning is done to improve the look of the plant .... also increase branching making the plant more pleasing to look at ....... you want to remove any stems that rub against another, cross another stem, or to eliminate stretching and make the plant more compact

cutting the stem tips off - sometimes, not always - forces branching further down a stem - other wise the branching occurs where the cut was made

from cut surfaces, new stems emerge, this produces more stem tips ...more stem tips = more buds / flowers

lifting or raising adenium and inch or so during a repot - exposes more of the root system .... the newly exposed section is almost always yellowish ...overtime the color blends with the rest of the plant

the exposed roots gives adenium a bonsai the "look of considerable age", without the decades needed

under lights .... if lights are in the 6500k range (white light) - then the distance a plant(s) is from a light source isnt really important ...what is important is how hot it gets between light source and top of plant -
use a thermometer ...a range in the 70's and 80's is more than enough .....

Wow really can't thank you enough sir, much appreciated. In regards to repotting the cutting, what's the best procedure? Soil medium, watering, cutting paste etc? And for seeds (mine just sprouted) when do I give a thorough watering? For now just misting keeping soil moist.

Getting the cutting started -

I would wait until spring to start a cutting ... it will need the warmth of the sun

first things first - allow the cut to callus over - keep cutting dry for about 7 to 10 days ...

have a pot ready with a drainage hole - fill with sand ...saturate the sand - allow to drain ...use a stick / pencil to puncture the wet sand ....(optional- but may increase chances of survival - coat the bottom end of cutting with rooting hormone powder)
then stick the end of the cutting in the hole, about 3-4 inches deep ... firm-up wet sand around cutting ...

keep warm ...keep moist - but not dripping wet, for about 10 days to 2 weeks ... do not disturb ... watch for new growth -

after 2 weeks - carefully pull from pot - then repot in a chunky / gritty potting media


cutting paste ...as long as cut has callused over and kept as dry as possible, cutting paste is not necessary, and may hinder, or stop any new stem emergence


Seedlings -
if your seeds have at least 2 sets of leaves and have developed its "bottleneck" shape ...saturate once now ...then hold off watering until plants have moved outside (or about 14 to 30 days whichever comes first)

deepsouth said:Getting the cutting started -

I would wait until spring to start a cutting ... it will need the warmth of the sun

first things first - allow the cut to callus over - keep cutting dry for about 7 to 10 days ...

have a pot ready with a drainage hole - fill with sand ...saturate the sand - allow to drain ...use a stick / pencil to puncture the wet sand ....(optional- but may increase chances of survival - coat the bottom end of cutting with rooting hormone powder)
then stick the end of the cutting in the hole, about 3-4 inches deep ... firm-up wet sand around cutting ...

keep warm ...keep moist - but not dripping wet, for about 10 days to 2 weeks ... do not disturb ... watch for new growth -

after 2 weeks - carefully pull from pot - then repot in a chunky / gritty potting media


cutting paste ...as long as cut has callused over and kept as dry as possible, cutting paste is not necessary, and may hinder, or stop any new stem emergence


Seedlings -
if your seeds have at least 2 sets of leaves and have developed its "bottleneck" shape ...saturate once now ...then hold off watering until plants have moved outside (or about 14 to 30 days whichever comes first)

Out of curiosity what makes you think it's a graft? Just asking, to me it looks like another shoot.

the collar is what gives it away

notice a color shift ... above and below that collar ?

https://garden.org/ideas/view/...

deepsouth said:Getting the cutting started -

I would wait until spring to start a cutting ... it will need the warmth of the sun

first things first - allow the cut to callus over - keep cutting dry for about 7 to 10 days ...

have a pot ready with a drainage hole - fill with sand ...saturate the sand - allow to drain ...use a stick / pencil to puncture the wet sand ....(optional- but may increase chances of survival - coat the bottom end of cutting with rooting hormone powder)
then stick the end of the cutting in the hole, about 3-4 inches deep ... firm-up wet sand around cutting ...

keep warm ...keep moist - but not dripping wet, for about 10 days to 2 weeks ... do not disturb ... watch for new growth -

after 2 weeks - carefully pull from pot - then repot in a chunky / gritty potting media


cutting paste ...as long as cut has callused over and kept as dry as possible, cutting paste is not necessary, and may hinder, or stop any new stem emergence


Seedlings -
if your seeds have at least 2 sets of leaves and have developed its "bottleneck" shape ...saturate once now ...then hold off watering until plants have moved outside (or about 14 to 30 days whichever comes first)

Out of curiosity what makes you think it's a graft? Just asking, to me it looks like another shoot.

deepsouth said:

the collar is what gives it away

notice a color shift ... above and below that collar ?


Lol I knew it, argued with my GF for ten minutes this morning haha

deepsouth said:Getting the cutting started -

I would wait until spring to start a cutting ... it will need the warmth of the sun

first things first - allow the cut to callus over - keep cutting dry for about 7 to 10 days ...

have a pot ready with a drainage hole - fill with sand ...saturate the sand - allow to drain ...use a stick / pencil to puncture the wet sand ....(optional- but may increase chances of survival - coat the bottom end of cutting with rooting hormone powder)
then stick the end of the cutting in the hole, about 3-4 inches deep ... firm-up wet sand around cutting ...

keep warm ...keep moist - but not dripping wet, for about 10 days to 2 weeks ... do not disturb ... watch for new growth -

after 2 weeks - carefully pull from pot - then repot in a chunky / gritty potting media


cutting paste ...as long as cut has callused over and kept as dry as possible, cutting paste is not necessary, and may hinder, or stop any new stem emergence


Seedlings -
if your seeds have at least 2 sets of leaves and have developed its "bottleneck" shape ...saturate once now ...then hold off watering until plants have moved outside (or about 14 to 30 days whichever comes first)

So I planted 20 seeds and so far only 7 sprouted (today is day 5) it's under a humidity dome. Not getting enough light or just be patient?

google "adenium grafting" > Images ....you will see a lot more like yours

be patient .....might not be warm enough ...might be too hot

deepsouth said:
be patient .....might not be warm enough ...might be too hot

Have a heating mat, currently the temperature is 85-86 degrees and I've read it should be between 77-95 degrees. Would opening the lid so it gets more light work?

getting a 100% germination rate would be a miracle - even under the best / ideal conditions

with seeds covered, light plays no role in the germination of seeds ...but warmth and moisture do

light is only required once the seeding germinates and breaks through the soil

deepsouth said:
getting a 100% germination rate would be a miracle - even under the best / ideal conditions

with seeds covered, light plays no role in the germination of seeds ...but warmth and moisture do

light is only required once the seeding germinates and breaks through the soil

Ok copy that, how should I water and when? Also, just repotted my desert rose into a better medium (DE, pumice, lava rock and fir bark) I've read you should water initially and then leave be for a week? It's crazy how much the roots grew, put into a wider pot. What's your experience regarding repotting and watering? Can't thank you enough man for taking the time to give such detailed answers. Could listen to you talk about this all day. Only got into bonsai in late November but I'm totally consumed.

very sparingly

after a re-pot ...wait a few days ...then do a saturate watering ... saturate meaning at least the volume of the pot ...with that said ....you want most of that "saturation watering" to drain out .....your potting media will hold some water ...and that is all the plant needs .... never ever allow adenium to sit in water

after saturation watering - as long as plants are indoors - do not water again for at least 30 days ...(mine are due for a very sparingly once every 60 day watering on April 3) ...remember: the winter months are the plants "dormant period" = dormancy = dry season = little growth = water very sparingly

when plants are re-potted and outside under full sun - then (and only then) water plants to saturation ...

so ...only when its like 80° ...do plants need to be watered once a week .... once every 7 to 10 days

when outdoor temps are in the 90's or 100's plants need to be watered once every 3 to 5 days

try to water in the morning ...try to keep water off flowers

adenium make really cool bonsai plants without the years and years needed for true bonsai ....to get the bonsai look, lift or raise the plant to expose more of the root structure ....every few years pull the plant from pot ...knock off all old potting mix .... throw a few handfuls of potting media in pot - then repot 1 to 2 inches higher in the pot, than where it was ....several years later, repeat ...in no time you'll have a flowering bonsai

deepsouth said:very sparingly

after a re-pot ...wait a few days ...then do a saturate watering ... saturate meaning at least the volume of the pot ...with that said ....you want most of that "saturation watering" to drain out .....your potting media will hold some water ...and that is all the plant needs .... never ever allow adenium to sit in water

after saturation watering - as long as plants are indoors - do not water again for at least 30 days ...(mine are due for a very sparingly once every 60 day watering on April 3) ...remember: the winter months are the plants "dormant period" = dormancy = dry season = little growth = water very sparingly

when plants are re-potted and outside under full sun - then (and only then) water plants to saturation ...

so ...only when its like 80° ...do plants need to be watered once a week .... once every 7 to 10 days

when outdoor temps are in the 90's or 100's plants need to be watered once every 3 to 5 days

try to water in the morning ...try to keep water off flowers

adenium make really cool bonsai plants without the years and years needed for true bonsai ....to get the bonsai look, lift or raise the plant to expose more of the root structure ....every few years pull the plant from pot ...knock off all old potting mix .... throw a few handfuls of potting media in pot - then repot 1 to 2 inches higher in the pot, than where it was ....several years later, repeat ...in no time you'll have a flowering bonsai

So like I said I got into this in late November and got a lot of tropicals, found great deals on developed trees for 9-15 dollars so I kept adding. I have a south facing kitchen window that is really potent and a west facing balcony. So I bought 3 sets of grow lights and put up mylar curtains. I know in the winter plants go dormant but the only one of mine that did us my juniper. I got the Desert Rose Feb 11 so it's been under a very strong grow light. Not questioning you at all but once every 30 days? My desert rose would dry out after a week, plus it went from initially only 9 buds all the way to 31 with two separate shoots developing at the top. I check the caudex it's always rock hard but in my setup it's around 81 degrees all the time so I water more. Even my portulacaria afra, it's in the same mix minus the fir bark and I find myself watering very frequently and so far every tree has responded wonderfully.

If it works for you - then continue whatever you are doing ....

deepsouth said:
If it works for you - then continue whatever you are doing ....

Copy, thank you so much man.

No problem .....if any issues or questions pop-up, post back