

Golden Elephant Bush
Taxonomy
Portulacaria afra Gold
Portulacaria
Didiereaceae
Caryophyllales

How to care for Golden Elephant Bush
How often to water your Golden Elephant Bush

every 12
Golden Elephant Bush needs 0.5 cups of water every 12 when it doesn’t get direct sunlight and is potted in a 5" pot.
Use our water calculator to personalize watering recommendations to your environment or download Greg for more advanced recommendations for all of your plants.
Water 0.5 cups every
12
Finding light for Golden Elephant Bush in your home

a window
Golden Elephant Bush love being close to bright, sunny windows 😎.
Place it less than 1ft from a south-facing window to maximize the potential for growth.
Golden Elephant Bush does not tolerate low-light 🚫.
Select your region to see how the current weather in your area affects the placement of Golden Elephant Bush in your home 🏡.
How to fertilize Golden Elephant Bush

Most potting soils come with ample nutrients which plants use to produce new growth.
By the time your plant has depleted the nutrients in its soil it’s likely grown enough to need a larger pot anyway.
To replenish this plant's nutrients, repot your Golden Elephant Bush after it doubles in size or once a year—whichever comes first.
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Newbie here. I have a non draining pot. How often should I water? I’m in TX. #ElephantBush
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I just got this plant from a show. It gads started dropping some leaves. Just got a grow light today as it is not getting much sunlight from the window. Any other suggestions? #ElephantBush
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My elephant bush is losing leaves and it is spring almost summer time- it is by the window but there is no sun. Can this be the reason? #ElephantBush
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Is my Maraca doing okay? There’s a major difference between how it’s doing now and how it was when I got it. It’s constantly losing leaves, and never seems to be getting any better. Is it on its last legs? 😢
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Do these look over- or underwatered? These two plants seem very etiolated, and lately I’ve also noticed that their leaves are getting wrinkled. Are they over- or under-watered? Unfortunately I don’t know what species they are.
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My variegated elephant bush rapidly turned yellow and dropped all its leaves I am suspecting a pest as nothing has changed in its care or positioning for months. As you can see its neighbor also has a couple newly yellow leaves. #ElephantBush
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elephant bush question Hi im new to plants and planting in general and for this Christmas I got a bonsai tree- specifically an elephant bush. I got it from a botanical garden store so they potted it and put the soil in, and the lady said that the pot is good for the next few years. Other than that, most of its leaves quickly fell off , but there was always some sort of new leaves growing. However it hasn’t ever had the amount of leaves that it had when I got it..now I think because spring is coming a lot more leaves are slowly growing back, but im not educated on what to do next and how to make my plant happy and healthy. Any tips for me ? Any and all help is appreciated thank you!!! I’m going at attached one photo from when I first got it and from today for reference!
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What do people do with their #ElephantBush ? I got this plant from a friend a few years ago and I never knew what it was (wasn’t curious are into plants yet). I just discovered #Greg about a week ago and as I was adding my plants, I discovered it was an elephant bush. Do people shape them? Or do you just let it do what it wants lol #Newbie
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Is the plant dying? I recently re-soiled it and transferred it to the clay pot. The main stem seems to be getting dry and leaves are also falling. It stays indoors near the windows getting sunlight for like ~15 mins everyday. I water it every ~10 days. #ElephantBush
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Elephant Bush bonsai with withering leaves Hi everyone! I'm new here and would love some help. I have this small, beautiful elephant Bush that is starting to show signs of stress or decreased health. I'm not really sure. I live in a tough climate in the high Rockies (9000 ft / 5a / Breckenridge, CO). His leaves are starting to wilt a little and has some brown spots. He's been living outside in full sun and I'm wondering if the sun is too strong here and he needs less sun? Or if it's a watering issue? Any help would be greatly appreciated #elephantbush #rockies #help
Care Summary for Golden Elephant Bush
Golden Elephant Bush
Greg recommends:

0.5 cups every 12 days

< 1ft from a window

Repot after 2x growth
Based on the 4” pot your plant is in, and that it doesn’t get direct sunlight.
