Dioon Edule Question

[tinman10101]

Hello all

I just recently acquired this large Dioon Edule about one month ago. I actually had to dig it up with my friend and then we drove it back home, where I potted it up about 4 hours later. I am not very knowledgeable when it comes to cycads but wanted to know exactly what to do. The leaves are twisting(which I think is from shock) and it is now coning. As you can see from the pictures, the leaves are in terrible condition and I am assuming it is from the transplant. My questions are:

Should I cut all the fronds off and hack the cone? If so, how do I cut the cone off? Never done that before and equate that to hacking my hand off! Someone told me that would save the cycad from expending too much energy.

Is this twisting of the leaves normal when one transplants a large cycad?

Should I leave this one in the pot or stick it into the ground once my yard is fully amended and prepared?

I am going back to dig up one more. Should I have chosen to dig one up that is not flowering or coning?

Thank you all in advance for any advice you can give. I am absolutely in love with this cycad and would hate to see it die. It is, my first distinct cycad purchase besides the sagos.

Cheers!

Tim

[tinman10101]

[tinman10101]

[tinman10101]

[tinman10101]

[tropicalb]

My questions are:

Should I cut all the fronds off and hack the cone? If so, how do I cut the cone off? Never done that before and equate that to hacking my hand off! Someone told me that would save the cycad from expending too much energy.

I wouldn't hack off the leaves or the cone at this point...the plant is already stressed out enough from being moved and coning.

Is this twisting of the leaves normal when one transplants a large cycad?

The twisting of the leaves happens because the plant's orientation to the sun has changed.

Should I leave this one in the pot or stick it into the ground once my yard is fully amended and prepared?

I don't see a problem putting it in the ground.

I am going back to dig up one more. Should I have chosen to dig one up that is not flowering or coning?

yes, you should have chosen to dig the non-coning plant.

[tinman10101]

Burt

Thank you so much for answering all my questions. I guess with my ignorance, I went and chose a coning Dioon to dig up not knowing the consequence. I guess at this point, I will just drop it into the ground and hope for the best. Is it true that the bigger the cycad, the tougher they are as far as transplanting and taking on stress. I saw a thread on here that showed a transplant where all the fronds were chopped off and in one month of transplant, a new set started to flush. The cycad did have one yard of trunk on it though so it must have been quite old. In any case, thank you again!

Tim

[virtualpalm]

Tim,

Burt's suggestion regarding not cutting leaves or cone at this point is a good one. I would just watch the plant and see if the leaves begin to decline. If they do, then I would recommend taking the plant out of the pot or the ground and inspecting the roots.

The twisting of the leaves happens normally with this species from time to time, but with cycads I really have not seen them orient their old leaves toward the sun once they are hardened off.

I would recommend a good drench with an all-purpose fungicide (like Daconil or Bayer tree/shrub control). If you have any mycorrhizae or beneficial bacteria, you could drench the soil with that as well.

And I would encourage you NOT to baby it or treat it like a palm or other tropical plant. This species thrives best when left alone... so long as the soil drains well, which is the most important thing with growing cycads in general.

Jody

[tinman10101]

Tim,

Burt's suggestion regarding not cutting leaves or cone at this point is a good one. I would just watch the plant and see if the leaves begin to decline. If they do, then I would recommend taking the plant out of the pot or the ground and inspecting the roots.

The twisting of the leaves happens normally with this species from time to time, but with cycads I really have not seen them orient their old leaves toward the sun once they are hardened off.

I would recommend a good drench with an all-purpose fungicide (like Daconil or Bayer tree/shrub control). If you have any mycorrhizae or beneficial bacteria, you could drench the soil with that as well.

And I would encourage you NOT to baby it or treat it like a palm or other tropical plant. This species thrives best when left alone... so long as the soil drains well, which is the most important thing with growing cycads in general.

Jody

Jody

Thank you so much for your advice. I have been reading many of your other post and am greatly appreciative that you could offer me some advice. I just bought some Daconil so will proceed with your suggestion. I will continue to monitor the cycad's health and will post pictures if any changes are noticed, good and bad. I did notice that the cone is starting to lift upwards from the base of the caudex so I guess there are changes happening.

Thank you again. Cheers!!!

Tim

[Walter John]

Hi Jody and anyone else for that matter, can you help us out please, I picked up seedlings of E.kisambo and E.altensteinii recently, 3 leafers, it is late autumn approaching winter here, any tips for maintenance of these please. I lost a similar size/age seedling of E.sclavoi last winter, not drained enough after some heavy winter rains I suspect, I don't want to lose these guys so any advice is most welcome, sorry for hitching a ride on this thread.

[tropicalb]

Wal....

overwatering and poor drainage are about the only things that are going to kill your plants. 99.9% of the cycads i have lost are due to rot from one or the other.

[LJG]

Wal, E.kisambo will be easier to grow for you. I find it can handle a lot of water as long as it is in good draining soil. I am trying to get a E.sclavoi to come back after I placed it in a spot that got too much water. That one is much more picking about over watering. it is nothing but a caudex right now, but it is a better spot. So hope it comes back.

[virtualpalm]

Hi Jody and anyone else for that matter, can you help us out please, I picked up seedlings of E.kisambo and E.altensteinii recently, 3 leafers, it is late autumn approaching winter here, any tips for maintenance of these please. I lost a similar size/age seedling of E.sclavoi last winter, not drained enough after some heavy winter rains I suspect, I don't want to lose these guys so any advice is most welcome, sorry for hitching a ride on this thread.

Wal, no worries. I agree with Burt and Len on this one. Encephalartos sclavoi seems to have a greater need for well-drained soil than either E. kisambo or E. altesnsteinii -- at least in this hemisphere. In addition to the well-drained soil, you could also keep the seedlings inside or under cover during the heaviest of the winter rains.

Jody