Maintaining the Exotic Plants

For the first few years, especially in hot or dry weather, observe your exotic plants closely for any signs of moisture stress. If you find the leaves drooping or hardening of the topsoil, it's time to water the plants slowly, allowing the water to percolate to the bottom. This will encourage the roots to grow deeper and stronger. Some evergreen exotic species may need protection against frost, high temperatures and high-speed wind.

To prevent the evaporation of essential soil moisture and the freezing of roots, cover the area around the plant with mulch, a protective covering of organic matter such as leaves, straw or peat. One can also use spray solutions to prevent drying of foliage during the winter. Fertilizers are usually not needed in the initial stages of plant growth, however may be beneficial later depending on soil and growth performance. Young exotic plants need protection from frost cracks and sunscald. These are also susceptible to attacks by gnawing menaces like Mice, Rabbits and Weed whackers.

These Rodents frequently chew away leaves and stems of small plants and bark of trees. This makes the nutrient-conducting tissues, located under the bark exposed and eventually the tree dies when the growth season arrives. Large plastic sheets or bags can be used to shield the plants and trees against such threats. Frost cracking, results from the tension created because of the differential rate of expansion of the sunny side and the cooler side of the tree. Sunscald usually results when young trees are suddenly moved into direct sun from a shady spot. When placing plants in direct sunlight use light colored tree wraps to prevent the trunk from scalding. Pruning For Exotic Plant and Trees

Usually, young plants don't need to be pruned. As the plant grows, lower branches may be pruned to allow surfacing of new stems or for getting rid of dead or damaged limbs or suckers that shoot out from the trunk. Larger trees might need pruning to allow light to penetrate the thick canopy. Small branches can be pruned with little effort, while a pruning saw should be carefully used to remove large branches. All cuts should be made vertically which allows the tree to heal quickly without the use of any sealing material. Late winters or early springs are a perfect time for pruning, with plants being likely to " bleed sap”, the liquid that helps preventing attack from disease-causing organisms. Heavy pruning during late summers may make the tree less winter hardy.

As excessive and reckless pruning can serious harm your plants and trees, always consult an expert. Exotic trees should never be topped, for not only does this spoil the natural shape of the tree, but also increases its susceptibility to diseases. Also, the angle between the trunk and the side stem known as crotch angles becomes narrow, increasing risk from winds and frost. When in doubt, consult a professional who's aware of methods for selectively pruning large trees without compromising its health.

Proper Lighting For Your Exotic Garden
Filtered sunlight is the best for most exotic plants. To begin with, placing the plants in partial shade, which allows sufficient sun in the morning and late in the afternoon, is suitable for most exotics. Plants are highly adaptive in terms of their light requirements and can grow in varying intensity of light.

The only way to ascertain the plant's light requirement is to observe it for a few weeks. Then you can revise the amount of light received, but always do it gradually. Mostly the change of light level is towards higher intensity, leading eventually to full sun. If your plant looks healthy, bearing well-developed and richly colored leaves and flowers, you have probably placed it in the most suitable spot. If the plant seems to be stretching with say an increase in leaf size, it's ideal to increase the amount of sunlight exposure a bit.

In the growing phase if the light level is insufficient, the plant might produce fewer flowers or in the worst, might not bloom at all. If the leaf colors looks a little bleached out and you start to find tan blotches on the leaves, you have probably given it too much sun. By the way, always avoid placing a small potted plant in direct contact with the ground (dirt), which may bring diseases that will kill a small plant in little time. Always place them on benches, on top of a empty pot facing upside down, or a concrete block.

Give Appropriate Temperature To Your Plants It's obviously difficult to control climatic temperatures to suit the plant's needs. Exotic plants can grow quit easily in cold climates if provided with suitable amounts of sunlight. However, it's a greater challenge, to grow plants native to cold regions in tropical conditions. If you are unsure about the extent of cold your plant can withstand, try to maintain moderate temperature conditions, always avoiding the extremes.

Save Your Plants From Frost Damage Frost action involving its alternate freezing and melting causes the cell walls of plants to rupture, especially in the case of tender plants. In fact, flowers, shoots and leaves of hardier plants may show blackened signs of rotting. Heavy frosts, may even cause the bark of woody plants to tear apart. Tender plants and large-leaved or variegated decorative plants are likely to be impacted most seriously. Frost can cause damage to fruits and leaves, forming brunette corky patches at the flower ends of fruits and at the center of flowers. Proper placement of plants is important to avoid being affected from ‘frost pockets', a situation wherein arctic air settles at the base of a slope. It's best to place plants in a spot that allows adequate sunlight in the mornings. Avoid fertilizers especially those that are rich in nitrogen as these might make the plant floppy, making it more defenseless against cold. You can give a covering of several layers of fleece to your plants when frosts are forecasted. If heavy frost is predictable, prune the damaged and decaying shoots and foliage, restricting the plant structure to a couple of shoots. If you have been late in pruning and preparing the plant for frosts, postpone it for the time when the weather settles down. Subsequent to pruning, apply a general-purpose fertilizer to the topsoil as per the rates recommended by the manufacturer so that the plant can recuperate quickly.

The Dendrocalamus Barbatus are starting to germinate!!!!