Sunlight for my Mesquite Tree?
I tried to find a way to put my Mesquite tree baby in a south facing window, but I don’t have a good way to do that. The plant shelves we have near it are too full. It currently sits in a northwest facing window with a big tree in front of it. The other options I have for putting it are sitting on a bookshelf 10-15 feet away from the south facing window or sitting in a hot tub room with windows on three sides. Which option is the best? #NewGrowth #PlantMoms
0ft to light, indirect
4” pot with drainage
Last watered 1 day ago
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@ThePurpleMando what kind of environment do you live in? Can you plant the tree outside? While you can grow indoors for maybe a few years, it will eventually need to be moved outside since they have long taproots that have been known to grow hundreds of feet straight down underground, and require a high amount of light, unless you are planning to bonsai this one. Do you have any spot that has intense southern exposure all day? If not, it will not survive indoors without a strong grow light.
@DreamMachine I live in southern Idaho.
The room I mentioned with the southern window and bookshelf might have the most sun exposure, though I there isn’t currently a place I can put it that is very close to the window.
I do want to plant it outside at some point, but it is a very small sapling and very delicate right now.
The room I mentioned with the southern window and bookshelf might have the most sun exposure, though I there isn’t currently a place I can put it that is very close to the window.
I do want to plant it outside at some point, but it is a very small sapling and very delicate right now.
@ThePurpleMando ruh roh 🫣 Well, you’ve inherited a challenge 🫠 As mesquite trees are adapted to hot dry desert conditions, it would not survive outdoors, if, I’m assuming you usually have snow every winter? Since it is a tree that usually reaches about 30 feet or more, you might have to bonsai it. But if you don’t have a good southern window spot, a grow light will be necessary. They need extremely high light, high temperatures, and they don’t want much humidity at ALL.
@DreamMachine oh dear, this does sound like it will be quite challenging. Yeah, we usually get some snow, and always get bitterly cold in winter. How does one go about bonsai-ing a tree?
@ThePurpleMando that, I’m afraid, is not something I have experience in 😔 But there are TONS of YouTube videos, books, and blogs about bonsai! It could be quite a fun challenge ☺️
@ThePurpleMando also, if I recall correctly, did a teacher give you this tree? Maybe you can ask their advice in growing it, if they have experience!
@DreamMachine I see, thank you for your help! What are the chances my tree will survive for another week until I have the proper time to learn about all this?
@DreamMachine oh, that’s true! I will have to ask him about it, too! He told us that he procured these mesquite tree seeds (he used a specific word I can’t recall) the year he first had our graduating class as students, so it sounded like he knew a thing or two about it 🙃
@ThePurpleMando I’ll bet he’s got some tips then! That’s very charming 😊 I’d say if you put your tree in the brightest spot possible, it has a good chance of surviving while you get more info ☺️
@DreamMachine okay, perfect! Thank you so much for your help! I don’t have much plant experience and this one seems more difficult than the aloe I had years ago, so I’m trying to learn as much as I can to keep this little tree alive!
@ThePurpleMando it’s my pleasure, wish I could have given you better news, but I’m really hopeful your teacher has some tips and tricks for growing it in your environment! 🤞
