I saw a picture of a dragon fruit tree online and decided to make my own. The first photo is my plant in a hanging basket. Second pic shows the cuttings. I'm letting them callous before I plant. Tomorrow, I'm preparing the put for the cuttings. I'll update progress as I go.

I had to go find a picture of a Dragon Fruit Tree online and now I want to know how you make a Dragon Fruit tree? Is it graphed to something big with a trunk?

Here's a pic I found online. I will be planting mine next to a trellis. The cuttings will root and the aerial roots will attach to the trellis. No grafting needed!

That is indeed a nice goal Julie! Interesting!

what is holding it up? (I must be feeling dence tonight.)

This is how they are grown commercially too.

@tarev Yes, it is a nice goal to set for myself and the plant! I needed to repot the hanging plant because the soil had compacted, so i decided to try making a tree!

@daisyl When the aerial roots attach to the trellis, the cuttings will grow upward. When they reach the top of the trellis, I'll attach an old bike tire. The cuttings will continue growing over the top of the tire and form an "umbrella." I'll be going through all the steps as I make the tree.

@dutchlady1 You are so right! That's how I found the idea to make a tree!

Got it. Thanks Julie. I am looking forward to photos as your 'tree' progresses.

Daisy

WOW....OOOH...AHHH. I'm impressed with your plants folks.

Uhm here's my big thrill in regards to a piece of Dragon Fruit someone gave me. LOOK it really isn't plastic. BTW does anyone know what the little yellow-green 'wing' like things are on the sides?






AG

I think that is the adventitious roots..it wants to grab onto something. Wow! fat roots!

@agavegirl1 those are the aerial roots that will attach to the trellis I'm training the cuttings to grow on!

I'll be posting some pictures soon!

With those roots...do I need to put something in the pot for it to attach to or is it o.k. as is?

It's ok as is. Mine survived in the hanging pot and thrived for two years!

Ok. Here are pictures of the rooted pieces tied to the trellis. I used burlap sting and tied it just tight enough to hold it in place. I'll plant the remaining cuttings tomorrow.

I'm having fun with this!

I will watch your project Julie! Looks so exciting!

A few tips if you want to try this:

1. I used a 3-gallon pot because it had to be manageable for me to move throughout the seasons. I used an unfinished trellis (do not use pressure treated wood! You could use any kind of wood stake add long add it's not pressure treated).

2. I used screws to attach the trellis to the bottom of the pot. I'm planning to reinforce to trellis at the soil line (still pondering this).

3. I used a mixture of cactus soil and a potting mix. Pot needs good drainage but the plant likes organic mix.

4. I used burlap strings to tie the cuttings to the trellis. You can use whatever you have as long as it won't hold water for an extended period of time (don't want to rot the cuttings) and don't tie too tight.

Hope this helps, Julie

Here is the finished put worth all the cuttings tied to the trellis. Now I can sort back and watch the growing begin!

Wow, this will be fun to watch with you!

That's interesting, Julie but I rooted my dragon fruit cuttings laying flat on the ground. It probably doesn't matter as long as you have some part of where they make roots in contact with the soil.

Are you going to separate those four plants once they start growing? It might get pretty crowded in that one pot! The stems get big and fat once they start elongating. Main stems of mine are over 2in. across.

Here it is climbing to the top of my 6ft. fence. Second shot is another one climbing up the trunk of an oak tree (it needs more light). Third shot is a stem node with aerial roots coming out. I could just break off that piece and start a new plant by laying it down so those roots touched soil or a tree branch, even. I had another shot that was too blurry, of a piece of that same plant that broke off in a wind storm and sat on top of the fence, where it has taken root and started growing all of its own accord.

I'll separate as needed. I've seen pictures of some grown commercially in pots like mine and they were about a foot tall and bearing fruit. Love your pictures! Can't leave mine outside all year round because of frost!

I'll keep updating as things progress!