Eucalyptus deglupta

[John in Andalucia]

I cultivate the tropical Eucalyptus deglupta in Spain, where currently it does not exist. As far as I know, I am the only grower of this species in Europe. I have approximately 700 seedlings ready to be potted up, and a constant product line of plug trays of new seedlings. Once they reach this size, they quickly take up any size pot you put them in, and will make wonderful terrace plants as they grow to maturity. I don't have any outlets for them yet, but I do know that a lot of European growers would be happy to see them in their local nursery.

[bubba]

John, I predict that will be a major success throughout Europe!

[Moose]

John - isn't this the rainbow eucalyptus? If it is it grows to be a monster and flowers at a young age (at 5ft. in Florida).

Best regards,

Ron.

[John in Andalucia]

Ron, yes it is the "Rainbow Eucalyptus". In Spanish, el eucalipto del arcoiris - though more commonly it is referred to by its native, Papua New Guinea name, "Kamarere". In the Philippines, where a lot of timber and pulp production takes place, it is called "Bagras".

Thank you bubba! Our climate in Europe generally, is somewhat less than perfect for Eucalyptus deglupta. Here in Spain however, where it is relatively warm and frost-free, they are the fastest growing plant in our garden at the moment. Only the weeds in the barrancas grow quicker!

[fastfeat]

Hey John--

Those are looking great-- VERY well-grown.

Hope you find buyers there. Maybe you can interest municipalities or golf courses (large areas with irrigation) to purchase/plant some?

Best of luck.

[John in Andalucia]

Hey John--

Those are looking great-- VERY well-grown.

Hope you find buyers there. Maybe you can interest municipalities or golf courses (large areas with irrigation) to purchase/plant some?

Best of luck.

Good idea Ken, thanks. There is a new golfing complex on the coast in our town. In fact, there are golf courses all along the south coast of Spain.

[FRITO]

John, great looking plants, looks like you know what you are doing

I really like this Euc, I recently recieved some seed (VERY TINY) and couldnt get them past the first small leaf before thye damped off.

do you have any tips to share?, I saved some seed and its in the refrigerator until I attempt again.

Luke

[John in Andalucia]

Luke, I've had many damp off in my early attempts, whereby everything was too confined. I now use a couple of opaque, plastic boxes (26" x 15" x 6") placing one inverted on top of the other, to act as a lid. This way, it is much easier to expose them to fresh air, mist the soil, and cover them again to keep the humidity in. The seeds should be sown in a minimum of 3" of soil, and ideally covered with about 1/8th" of the same mix. (I sieve the mix to make sure the seeds are covered evenly, and to eliminate large mulch debris from the compost.) Regular potting mix with vermiculite or sand, and a handful of humus works well.

Keep the box where it can catch the rising sun, with full sun all day. If it gets too hot around noon (i.e. in summer) cover the box with a piece of expanded styrene. The soil mix can be heavily moist, but not so wet that the surface never starts to dry. That's when you learn how often you need to mist, and thus control the soil moisture content to its optimum level. Misting the soil periodically as it dries, is the key to avoiding damping off, whilst ensuring the seeds sprout. Germination takes only 4 or 5 days, so it's really about giving them all the time you can during the first few weeks.

Once you see those little green specks, don't be shy to blast them with a mister once or twice a day when you see the soil drying. Do this when the temperature in the box is up, and with plenty of light. A soil mix that will absorb water easily and not crust is crucial. The other goal should be to have the soil at its "least wet-looking" by early evening.

The one tip I can recommend having discovering this by chance, is to use a much bigger box than you need, with an area of soil that has nothing growing in it. Then you can poke around to see how much moisture is actually in the soil. Also, don't attempt to space the seeds evenly, just throw them in. Let the seedlings grow in a clump, and then water the clump. If you only have a few seeds, the other tip is to cut the rim off a flimsy plant pot to place over the area where the seeds were dropped.

When they are 2" high, you can pluck them out. At this size, with two sets of full leaves, the roots will be as long [2"], if not double that length, but if you pluck them carefully and they have at least a half inch of root, they will grow without missing a beat.

The first photo here, shows you how they can be plucked out. You see it has several, short, thicker roots still attached, whilst plenty of the long, wispy roots will have been left behind in the soil. I replanted these seedlings in the same box to see if they were affected by the shock, but they continue to grow. In the second shot, you can see the Eucalyptus deglupta seedlings in plug trays. Once they have developed a firm root plug, I bump them up in to tree pots. You don't need to do that if you have a greenhouse and are only growing a few plants. Pluck them out of your growing chamber and you can put them straight into 1/2 gallon containers. They will branch early, like the first photo in this thread, and instantly give you an attractive potted plant. At this size they can also be bumped up to a 3 gal. container, and they will take off!

This technique is quite different to my first attempt, whereby I had good results, but lost a few batches at the small leaf stage. Give these minuscule seedlings plenty of light, heat and humidity, with space for air circulation. Ventilate and feed them several times a day by opening the box and hitting them with a mister! In my experience, the moisture stimulus and change of air is what keeps them going.

[FRITO]

John, Great information thanks!

I just sowed some more in a plastic bin and will try to duplicate your technique.

[ariscott]

I am in the process of germinating them. We have plenty of heat and humidity here in Darwin, even though the nights are still a bit cool at the moment. I grow them under the shed veranda where they get morning sun. I water them once a day... Do I need to do something different? I did notice my first spec the other day... and hopefully more to come.

Regards, Ari

[Cycadcenter]

Could someone PM me with a source for seed.

Thanks

Bruce

[Moose]

Here are some photos of Eucalyptus deglupta's (Rainbow Eucalyptus) dainty white flowers with tiny developing seed pods. Should have taken pictures a few days ago as it had alot more flowers before the rain came.

Ron.

[Moose]

Here is a photo of the Eucalyptus deglupta (Rainbow Eucalyptus) overall view. I got it from Action Theorey Nursery (305-970-5018) in a 7 gallon container. The trunk was one inch in diameter, staked with bamboo and 5 ft. tall. A year later it is now 12 ft tall and the trunk is 3 inches in diameter. It was planted in my neighbors yard across the street. I do not have the space in my yard for such a large tree, so I planted it across the street so I can enjoy it each development. Also here is a close up of the developing seed pods. The seeds are reportedly tiny, looking like ground black pepper. I did not harvest the seed pods last year since their viability on such a young tree was questionable.

Ron.

[John in Andalucia]

Thanks Ron for posting your shots, and the info. It'll help me work out soil and space requirements.

[Jose Maria]

Eucalyptus deglupta is the "Kamarere" from PNG , it is the fastest growing forestry tree here in Costa Rica, but...the wood is not so good as most other species that are a bit slower growing.For this reason it is not planted much anymore, just as shade in coffee and along roads...

Why dont you try Gmelina arborea or Tectona grandis? these are also interesting as a patio potted plant.Or the Balsa tree(Ochroma) has nice big leaves and grows very fast.

[ariscott]

I grow them because I like the bark.

As for Tectona grandis, I haven't managed to get them germinated. Someone told me to use a blowtorch. I might try that next.

Regards, Ari

[Dypsisdean]

For those that may have missed it, there is an opening photo of the nice bark of this tree followed by a short 2 minute slideshow of an extensive private Hawaiian garden here.

(Don't forget the Full Screen Option)

HO'OWAIWAI GARDEN TOUR

[ariscott]

Do you have any with more trees on it, Dean??

Regards, Ari

[Alicehunter2000]

Dean...Dean.........that garden is just too pretty to be true........must be some kind of digital trickery ..........Stunning!

[Geoff]

wow... that is amazing... where is this place?

[John in Andalucia]

Why dont you try Gmelina arborea or Tectona grandis? these are also interesting as a patio potted plant.Or the Balsa tree(Ochroma) has nice big leaves and grows very fast.

Thanks, Jose I will look into those plants. Are seeds hard to come by? I chose E. deglupta because seeds are almost impossible to acquire in any quantity in Europe, and of course, because it is a fast growing species. The "rainbow" bark is an added novelty. I found a nice collection of close-ups of the bark on this Spanish blog site: http://aldea-irreductible.blogspot.com/200...-arbol-del.html

[Dypsisdean]

Ari, David, and Geoff,

No trickery - just another beautiful garden on the Hilo side of the Big Island above Onemea Bay and the Hawaii Botanical Tropical Garden.

I do need to concentrate more on some of the trees and other flora when I visit these places. I'll try to do so, as long as nobody asks me to ID them.

[Moose]

I have been contacted by several inquiring about how hardy and what USDA zones this can survive in. My research has found that its native habitat is tropical, but could not find how hardy. Any one with experience with Zone 10a or 9 ...?

Thanks - Best regards,

Ron.

[fastfeat]

I have been contacted by several inquiring about how hardy and what USDA zones this can survive in. My research has found that its native habitat is tropical, but could not find how hardy. Any one with experience with Zone 10a or 9 ...?

Thanks - Best regards,

Ron.

Ron--

Tropical in origin, not in terms of temps. For a USDA Zone, I'd use 10a. Probably OK into some 9b, but young trees get some damage around 29-30F, older trees can take 25-26F if hardened off.

[Justin]

Anyone know of a source for SoCal?

[fastfeat]

Anyone know of a source for SoCal?

I think the nursery on Vista Wy X Gopher Canyon Rd (NE corner; has sausage tree in the ground there, lots of oddball stuff. Can't recall name of it though...) used to have it. Or they did about 3 years ago, when I was last there.

Or grow from seed if you've got a little time, patience. Get seed off Sports Arena trees (see above post.)

[Jose Maria]

Why dont you try Gmelina arborea or Tectona grandis? these are also interesting as a patio potted plant.Or the Balsa tree(Ochroma) has nice big leaves and grows very fast.

Thanks, Jose I will look into those plants. Are seeds hard to come by? I chose E. deglupta because seeds are almost impossible to acquire in any quantity in Europe, and of course, because it is a fast growing species. The "rainbow" bark is an added novelty. I found a nice collection of close-ups of the bark on this Spanish blog site: http://aldea-irreductible.blogspot.com/200...-arbol-del.html

Yes, the colors of the bark are very inspiring. But if you need wood, better Teak or Melina, very nice wood for all uses. Seed of both of these abound at the end of the dry season, they fall underneath the trees, but Balsa(Ochroma )is another story, the seeds fly away in the wind...

An the seeds of Eucalyptus deglupta are very small , like tobacco seeds, also after the dry season.

This tree was planted years ago all over my town, in school playgroungs, gardens, etc... and later provoked difficulties and costs to have them cut down an carried away, so large they got.... nobody will plant these again!

[fastfeat]

Why dont you try Gmelina arborea or Tectona grandis? these are also interesting as a patio potted plant.Or the Balsa tree(Ochroma) has nice big leaves and grows very fast.

Thanks, Jose I will look into those plants. Are seeds hard to come by? I chose E. deglupta because seeds are almost impossible to acquire in any quantity in Europe, and of course, because it is a fast growing species. The "rainbow" bark is an added novelty. I found a nice collection of close-ups of the bark on this Spanish blog site: http://aldea-irreductible.blogspot.com/200...-arbol-del.html

Yes, the colors of the bark are very inspiring. But if you need wood, better Teak or Melina, very nice wood for all uses. Seed of both of these abound at the end of the dry season, they fall underneath the trees, but Balsa(Ochroma )is another story, the seeds fly away in the wind...

An the seeds of Eucalyptus deglupta are very small , like tobacco seeds, also after the dry season.

This tree was planted years ago all over my town, in school playgroungs, gardens, etc... and later provoked difficulties and costs to have them cut down an carried away, so large they got.... nobody will plant these again!

I suspect that the Mediterranean climate of Spain, regardless of how frost-free, would be difficult conditions under which to grow Ochroma, Tectona, and Gmelina, though I'd suspect the last would stand the best chance.

I wouldn't expect volunteers to be problematic; no issues in FL or CA (or HI, I believe).

[Dypsisdean]

If you want to see the most beautiful E. deglupta I have ever seen, check HERE

[Geoff]

can't look without logging in... sigh. Cant recall my user name or password

[fastfeat]

If you want to see the most beautiful E. deglupta I have ever seen, check HERE

Sweet!

[Dypsisdean]

can't look without logging in... sigh. Cant recall my user name or password

Sorry Geoff and others,

I forgot you couldn't view photos without registering. I opened it up so everyone can view everything.

Geoff,

I don't know why, but I can't find you in the members list. You will need to register again. Please do, don't be a stranger.