Hi guys,
I have ordered a baby Norfolk Island Pine and hope to grow it indoors. I have a great 3x4 southern facing window that gets plenty of afternoon sunshine and a room humidifier set up next to it. I have tried to grow these beautiful trees in the past, but I've never had much luck. I'm hoping to grow it something like/to the size of the enclosed picture someday (if I can keep it healthy haha). Does anyone have any recommendations or advice? Any would certainly be appreciated! Thanks
Can you say a little more about the conditions you kept it in before when you weren't successful? That might help someone advise you what to do differently. Without knowing anything else, overwatering is probably the most common thing that people do to kill houseplants so I'd be careful about that--make sure you plant it in a pot that has drainage holes. If you put a saucer/dish under it to catch excess water, make sure to empty it promptly after watering. And when you're trying to decide whether to water or not, don't just look at the surface of the soil (it can look dry while just underneath is still sopping wet). Instead try sticking your finger down a few inches into the soil to see how it feels--if it's still wet then hold off.
@ ecrane3 Thanks for your post! Those are some good tips! My biggest problem was the needles drying out; starting on the lowest branches and then moving upward to the upper branches. They would first get dull, then brittle, then fall off. I would mist it at least once a day, and set it in a western or southern facing window. They would look great for a few weeks, then start to decline rapidly. Seems to me I used miracle grow and misting, but other than that, no special attention.
Although it looked like the needles were drying out, that could have been a sign of overwatering (although there are other things it could have been too). I would watch your watering, and if you start to notice any symptoms of distress post pictures here right away and hopefully someone can help you figure out what's going on before it's too late.
Here are some articles you may find helpful:
http://www.hort.purdue.edu/ext/norfolkislandpine.html
http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortnews/2006/12-6/norfolk.html
http://forestry.about.com/od/silviculture/p/norfolk_pine.htm
@ecrane3 Thanks! This is really helpful! I appreciate it
Hi guitardude,
Do you have a porch that gets only bright light, not direct sun, where you could set the tree out for the summer? I see you're in the same zone as me. I always put mine out for the summer and it loves it. The problem I have is that mine always grow TOO well. They get huge and I end up having to give them away because they finally reach a point where they won't fit back in my door.
@NatureLover1950 that's great! I do in fact have a screened in porch that gets tons of morning and late after noon sun, but also quite a bit of shade. How do you keep your Norfolk Island pines happy?? Especially in the winter time when it's so dry, that's when I alway seem to loose mine.
Hi guitardude,
In the winter I keep it in a cool room (I keep the door to our guestroom closed). I also have a tray with a layer of pebbles in it so I can have water beneath the tree without the pot actually sitting in the water (to provide some humidity). On warm days I take it out on the porch and, using a gentle setting on my hose, spray it real good not only to give it a little additional humidity but to wash the dust off of it. Lastly, I back off on water during the winter months---I only water it lightly about every week and a half whereas in the summer I water it more generously (until the water runs through and then drain off the excess water) once a week. I give it fertilizer according to directions late in the spring only because I want it to put on healthy new growth but not grow too fast. BTW, my porch faces south so I put my tree where it only gets bright indirect sunlight since even the east sun can get real hot down here in MS. It thrives real well without any direct sun for the entire summer and puts on gorgeous new growth. Hope this helps.
Hi NatureLover1950,
Thanks so much for the info! This is really helpful. In my previous attempts to grow a one, during the winter the lower branches would discolor and loose their flexibility then drop, and eventually the whole plant would decline. From everything I've read, this can be largely due to low humidity and overwatering. So you only lightly water so that no water drains from the pot during the winter? That sounds much better than my previous method of watering. I also have a room humidifier running in a south facing room, the cool thing is I can set plants near it and quite literally keep them misted all day. I guess there's not really a chance of "over-misting" right? haha One more question, how do you transition your NIP from the indoors to outside and back again?? Thanks again!
Sincerely,
guitardude
Hi guitardude,
I don't think your humidifier will cause any harm to your NIP since one state where they can be planted outside is Florida :-} It's interesting--you should run a search to see how huge they get down there! I do make sure there is always just enough water to barely cover the pebbles in the tray I keep under my NIP during the winter but your humidifier may negate the need for that. When you water, it's alright to let the water run through and accumulate in the dish your pot sits in but, after all excess water has drained through, empty the plate so the pot isn't standing in water since this can, over time, cause the roots to rot. As for transitioning, I wait until the temps are fairly warm and there's no risk of more cold temps, especially at night, and move my tree out to the porch. When I'm ready to bring it back in however, I put it in my garage first, then I shut it in my laundry room for a few days to ensure that it isn't bringing any unwanted bugs indoors. I've never had any problems at all with insects attacking my NIP but I like to be real sure.
And you're very welcome.
Nature
Hey guitardude, I was given a Norfolk Pine at XMAS. I've been keeping it by a eastern faceing window that gets plenty of morning sun. Living in an apartment it's the only window that gets any sun. I've noticed dry branches at the bottom but the plant looks great. Seems I've over watered other plants so I've been careful and can't wait for summer for some growth. Good luck with yours.
@NatureLover1950 haha Florida that's a good point! :p Thanks for all the info, that's really helpful! I just got my little Norfolk Island Pine in today It's a little roughed up from shipping and some exposure to the cold, but I think it should pull through just fine. When it comes time to re-pot, I think I'm going to use a really good draining potting mix, like Miracle Gro Citrus/Cactus Potting Soil or something along those lines. I don't mind having to water a lot, but I'd really hate to have it sitting in a soggy soil. That sounds really straight forward! I'll definitely have to try that approach this summer.
@swampwizard Thanks! Same to you! I've done much the same with some of my other plants as well, I'm trying to be much more aware of how much I water them. I'll let you all know how everything goes
Hi guitardude,
Glad you got your tree. I'm like you--it will likely be fine in spite of being a little roughed up. They're pretty tough trees. Good luck--hope you end up with one that gets too big to fit through your door too :-}
Nature
@NatureLover1950 Thanks! I appreciate all the help :) Best wishes!
--Guitardude
This plant as you probably know is not a pine at all, it is related to the Monkey Puzzle tree, real name Araucaria, (Exelsa) these plants are grown in greenhouses in lot's of areas, they grow up to 6-7 feet and 3 feet wide, they like a well ventilated room with good light but not long periods of direct sunshine, in summer either put outdoors or add shading to room if too much direct sun gets to plant, give air movement if in a closed room, but not with a cooling system blowing directly onto it, winter just water enough to keep the plant from drying out completely, if inside in winter where a heating system is used, you may have to mist the foliage to prevent it from turning brown or dropping off, but in spring feed every second week and water more often in spring through to autumn when you water less for winter. Sit the plant pot onto a base with castor's so you can wheel it outside in summer where any new growth will get hardened off in the warm fresh air. For indoor grown plants, pot on every second year and try keep it to the 8-10 inch pot or it will get too big for inside the house. Once it reaches that size of pot, the next potting on you do is, by gently teasing out soil from around the roots and replace this with fresh new soil into the same size of pot, water as before.
Hope this helps a bit and you have great success, WeeNel.
Yes, you are right guitardude! I love this tree especially because of its color. I have tried to grow these beautiful trees in the past, but I've never had much luck. Thanks!
