How do you prune a schefflera (umbrella plant)?

tapla,

I have an umbrella plant that is the same type as you display in the September 12, 2009 post which is in your office. Is your plant that full from only two branches?

TC - it's a single stemmed planting that has been heavily pruned back each summer for many years. This causes it to break back hard (back-bud) and produce many branches that just keep presenting additional pruning/pinching opportunities.

Al

Thanks Al,

I have three stemmed plantings in one pot. They are growing fast. I need to transplant them. In my old office, there was no natural light and the plants seemed to reach for the artificial light source. My new offices has two windows, one on the Southside and one on the east side. I've noticed more growth since the move. They have quite a bit of foliage at the top, but long trunks. How do I prune them to start the process of getting them to back-bud? They average 2 1/2 feet in height each.

Thank you for your answers.

Move them outside when night temps are reliably above 50-55* and let them gain some strength (energy reserves). Shortly after Father's Day, cut them back to within a few inches from the soil line. They will back-bud profusely. It might be appropriate to repot/root-prune at that time as well. Use the cuttings to start new plants at that time if you wish.

Al

Hi,
I live in San Diego, CA and have schefflera planted in my yard that has become overgrown. It stands about 15' tall and is at least that wide, and has 13 trunks. I have read in previous posts that now is the time to prune it, and that making the cuts anywhere on the trunk is ok as the cuts heal quickly. However, I'm still concerned about goofing this up. We want the plant to remain "bushy", but not so tall and not so wide. To get an 8' tall by 8' wide plant, where should we cut? While some of the trunks are easy to identify as growing out of other trunks, I cannot pick out the "mother" trunk. Could there be more than one? I have added a photo that shows the trunks.
I'd appreciate any recommendations before this thing becomes any more unruly!
Thank you!
MB

If you want the canopy 8x8, cut the trunks in a rounded form at about 5-1/2 ft at the middle, tapering to about 4-1/2 ft at the perimeter. This allows 2-1/2 - 3-1/2 ft for the canopy to fill in.

You might want to do a search for 'rejuvenation pruning' and/or 'maintenance pruning' for an alternate approach.

Al

Al,
Thanks very much for the clear and concise guidance!

MB

I have been reading this thread with great interest,and its given me the confidence to prune my own two Umbrella plants,which are at present touching the ceiling,and I really want them to bush out.

If your tree is in good health, and it's the right time of the year, your trees can easily be reduced from this

to this

and it will bud back like this

Did I ever tell you how this tree ended up in NY with a new owner? ;o)

Al

Wow!,thats what I'm aiming for,I have two plants,one plain green and one variegated,I will be over the moon if they turn out looking like that one.

The one with the lady standing next to it is the one that was newly repotted & cut back very hard. I imagine, by now, it probably looks like this one of mine I tend at work.

Al

Oops, I'm sorry. I already posted a picture of that plant upthread, but here's another. You can just tell it's variegated, but the variegation is weak because of the low light.

Great pictures,Al,and what lovely plants,I never would have guessed you could get an Umbrella tree to look like those,the ones I see are always just one tall single stem,thats what mine are like,I will have to take some pictures of them.They don't look too bad when they are small,just having the one stem,but as they grow taller,they begin to look a bit ridiculous,is there still time to cut mine back this year,or should I wait?.Thanks.

Here is a picture of one of my Umbrella trees,that I want to prune back.

From the long internodes, it looks like it wants more light, but go ahead and prune it back very hard if you want a small, compact tree, or prune it at 2/3 the height you want it to eventually be.

Everything ok with the soil and state of the roots - not too congested?

Al

Yes you're probably right on the lack of light,but because of its height its difficult to situate,once I cut it back I can find a better place,and it does need repotting,but I was scared if I repotted it,it would take off somewhere into the roof space,lol,should I repot,or just change some of the compost?.its in an 8" pot.Thanks.

I would go for broke & cut off the bottom half of the roots, bare-root it, and repot into a good soil - preferably one with lots of conifer bark in it - if you can find it there. The soil is the key to root health & root health is the key to a healthy plant.

See a repotting sequence here: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/houseplt/msg0320455819774.html?14

Al

Thanks for the link Al,interesting information,I didn't realise you could really prune them as hard as that.
I'm sure I will be able to get hold of the pine bark from a decent garden centre,but it may not be incorporated into the compost,so what percent do you recommend I mix in the compost?.Thanks for your help.

5 parts pine bark fines
1 part sphagnum peat or compost
1 part perlite
1 tbsp dolomitic (garden) lime per gallon (4 L.) of soil

The bark should look like what you see at 3,6, and 9. The added porosity and superior drainage of bark-based soils makes a significant difference in your plants ability to grow at/to its genetic potential, and makes that easier for you to achieve while providing a much wider margin for grower error.

Al

Thanks for your help Al,I will copy all that down,next step,visit to the garden centre,I'm sure my umbrella tree will be much improved. Forgot to comment on the lovely Bonsai in your earlier post.Thanks again.

Al,

The info you have posted is invaluable. Thanks so much for your feedback. I have a Schefflera that is doing fantastic. It is now my favorite plant. It has some little white/gray mushrooms that sprout from the soil every couple of days and I prompty pick them off. I am wondering if I should repot it with fresh soil just to be safe.

Is your recipe (5 parts pine bark fines, 1 part sphagnum peat or compost, 1 part perlite, 1 tbsp dolomitic lime per gallon of soil) for potting mix a good starting point for any Schefflera houseplant?

Thanks so much. I am a complete plant newbie!

Well that was very kind of you, 1leaf. ;o)

I wouldn't repot because there are 'mushrooms' in the soil, but I would repot if the plant was root-bound or the soil wasn't appropriate - especially if it was water-retentive. Mushrooms are just the fruiting bodies of various fungi. That you see them popping up in your soil means nothing more than conditions are right for them to 'fruit'. The fungi would still be present in the soil, going about their work, even if you saw no evidence of the mushrooms. Plants are in contact with thousands of species of fungi every day. They even form directly beneficial relationships with many of them, and others benefit indirectly by their contribution to the mineral soil food web. Their benefit in containers is not nearly as significant as it is in mineral soils. Only a few present an issue when it comes to plant health/vitality, so fret not! ;o)

You described the 5:1:1 mix, which is a much better choice for houseplants than peat/compost/coir-based soils, but I still use the gritty mix for all my houseplants and other long term plantings. Either works well; the gritty mix just works better, longer.

Take care.

Al

This message was edited Aug 12, 2010 1:56 PM

Thanks Al,
Glad the mushrooms are unlikely a problem! I will hold off on repotting until next year since the soil seems to drain well. It dries out within a week and I give it a very thorough watering every weekend outside.

I did a search for your gritty mix and will try to locate the materials before next year's repotting (which will likely consist of several plants). Thanks so much!

Well update on my Scheff.

I decided after a month of close attention on the watering that the soil was holding too much moisture. Even in the summer, with vigorous growth (you can see new leaves every other day), it was still quite wet after 8 days or so. In order to let it get dry, I'd be watering every other week at most.

So I repotted it and did a full on root prune. Sawed half the roots off, removed as much of the old soil as possible and trimmed the remaining roots. Really had to get aggressive on the roots to get rid of the soil! But as suspected, the center was still very wet after a week since watering.

Put it into a Gritty Mix and gave it a thorough watering with about 8 gallons of water. It is fast draining alright as the water just went right through it without having to slow down my watering!

Looking forward to seeing how this Schefflera does. I know this is not the best time to repot, but I thought I'd do it now rather than later considering the inappropriate soil. I'm guessing I will be needing to water every few days now.

Good luck! Start fertilizing when you're sure the plant is pushing new growth. I'm very partial to Dyna-Gro's Foliage-Pro 9-3-6.

Thanks Al, I did get the Foliage Pro per your suggestion. What is the verdict on the need for gypsum (and epsom salt during watering) if we exclusively use FP? I did not put gypsum in the mix.

Oh man, i think i have mealy bugs :(
Noticed white stuff on the leaves. Gonna do the rubbing alcohol and see how it goes.

The plants I've tried in the gritty mix with no gypsum or Epsom salts are all doing well, so I would try the FP alone. Just in case others are thinking the same applies to their fertilizer ..... FP 9-3-6 has both Ca and Mg in a favorable ratio; whereas most soluble fertilizers (MG, Peter's, Schultz, others) contain neither element. Your plants need Ca and Mg to grow normally, so please be sure they are getting these elements - ALL of the essential elements, actually.

Sorry about the mealybug infestation. Neem oil works well when you combine it with ......... Here's the recipe:

To 1 pint of hot water, add 1 tsp cold-pressed neem oil (I use Dyna-Gro's product. The cold pressing doesn't diminish the effects of the most important ingredient [azadirachtin], like steam and solvent extraction methods do) and a few drops of Murphy's Oil Soap (or dishsoap). Shake well and add 1 pint of rubbing alcohol. If you don't use the alcohol, add a pint of room temp water in its stead, but the alcohol provides the instant knockdown the oil doesn't. Spritz/spray until leaf surfaces are wet, bottom and top, being sure to also hit leaf axils. Shake very often while using to keep it emulsified. Use all you mix or dump it out - start with fresh next time. Spray at 2 week intervals until the problem is gone.

Al

Thanks Al!
Is 50/50 rubbing alc/water OK while I wait to order the Neem Oil? The infestation is not too bad. Would a healthy plant be able to fight it off or is mealy bugs something that needs diligent removal methods?

The alcohol/water is pretty effective as a topical, but it only kills those bugs it contacts, which is why the alcohol Q-tip method so often suggested is so ineffective - it only gets the few you can see, while hundreds of crawlers go unchecked to turn into adults and breed another day. Be sure to spray all surfaces - and add a few drops of dishsoap to the spray.

The likelihood of a plant sustaining insect attack, is dramatically affected by the plants state of vitality. It takes energy for a plant to resist insects, and the by-products of an active metabolism. When plants are stressed and weak(ened), insects often take advantage of their compromised defenses.

From an old post:

When insects attack (sounds like it would make a good TV show) ;o) .......... plants mount a number of genetically encoded responses to wounding, ALL of which require energy allocation. In plant cells, there are genes that control proteins functioning in actual defense, sending defense signals/ chemical messengers, altering metabolism, controlling cellular maintenance, and regulating photosynthesis - and many more genes of unknown function. In short, plant energy reallocation is prioritized in the plant's own defense, & other things, like every day metabolism and photosynthesis are put on the back burner.

When wounding occurs (insect attack) there is a "wound response" that occurs both at the site of injury as well as distally (in other plant parts away from the wound). Plants can even differentiate between the wounds of a pin and those of insects, and react in different fashion to the "attack". Without getting more technical, the plant produces various anti-feedants, anti-metabolites, and toxins that make the insects feel pretty unwelcome - as long as the plant is in good vitality, which means growing strongly, or has high energy reserves - IOW, as long as the plant is in good health. The speed with which the response occurs, and the effectiveness of the defense response are also both energy driven, so it should be no surprise that plants grown indoors under constant stress are highly susceptible to insect marauders.

If you want to keep the bugs away - it sort of goes w/o saying that your first line of defense should not be to reach for a systemic or other harsh poison, but to keep your plants growing with as much vitality as possible as a preventive measure, which is a cultural - not a chemical thing. When problems do arise, first use an innocuous remedy, like the alcohol/water - or hort oils, neem oil .....

Al

Thanks Al,
The next day I found a few more mealies, so I did another alcohol/water spray (and added some liquid soap) and did it more thoroughly this time (over and under and in between and everywhere!). This morning, I checked and it seems to be doing OK now and I do see some new growth. I will keep an eye on it but it looks like the plant is still healthy.

Is it normal for a repotted plant to be suddenly so vulnerable to attack?

Also, thanks for confirmation that you are using FP without gypsum/epsom successfully. I am glad that things can be so simple. :) Most of the places I saw that carry gypsum have huge bags.

The good thing that came out of the mealy infestation is that it led me to prune a lot of the leaves that had heavier infestation, and the plant looks better now!

If you noticed an infestation of any kind soon after repotting, it's very probable that whatever little beastie that's causing you fits was firmly entrenched before the repot. The repot can temporarily stall a plant while it recovers from the work, but then you can expect it to take off and grow with much better vitality than if you'd left it to it's root-bound plight. The key is to keep your plants growing with good vitality at all times. Repotting BEFORE the plant is weakened by decline keeps the plants defenses strong and helps keep bugs at bay.

Pruning the leaves isn't the answer to eliminating an infestation. That just removes the evidence you can see. For every little scale bump or puff of mealybug cotton you cansee, there could be dozens of crawlers/larvae you can't see. Keep after 'em with the neem oil & you'll have them under control after a few applications.

Al

Can cut these plants down to the ground and they will come back with many heads...may need to thin them out. Do not like to be over watered.......if the soil is damp do not add more water. 90% of indoor plants die from too much watering

Stella is correct, but in many more northerly parts of the US, timing of a hard chop like that is a consideration. Confirming what she said about drought tolerance: I'm almost abusive of these plants in that I sometimes let them set for a week or more after the soil feels dry, with no problems at all.

Al

I did the Neem oil a few days ago. WOW that was stinky. :)

I have not seen any infestation since the last alcohol treatment but as the Neem came in the mail, I thought I'd give it a once over. Hopefully the mealies are gone but i will do another treatment in a week and a half just for safe measure.

Still no new growth since the repot about 2 weeks ago. However, despite the mealies, the leaves seem to be in good shape. The plant looks beautiful. Once it starts to have some new growth I will start the fertilization again. Thanks again for all the advice!

Lol - remember that tree time is different from people time. Root growth precedes top growth, so your tree is just getting its feet under it. When the root system is 'confident' it can support new top growth, it will send chemical messengers that will stimulate the canopy. It won't push top growth it can't support, so just be patient. ;o)

Al

Hello, I have adopted one of these from my old office. It had been surviving on tea, coffee and milk, so it stank of rotten milk, and it was also extremely root bound.
Since January when I kidnapped it, it has increased drastically in size, been repotted 2 times with the roots being blasted with a hose on its highest setting to get rid of as much of the old soil (and rotten milk) as possible.
It is now about 3ft wide by 5ft tall, and I have started to prune it to get into a better shape. My main concern are the roots. Its gone from an 8 inch pot, to 10 and now 15inches. The roots are now growing out this pot pretty quicky, and also to the surface (I understand this is because they can't get what they need?)
I've been seeing mention of root pruning, but nowhere seems to give an indication of just how much can be taken off the roots of one of these plants? I'm really worried about killing the thing.
I'm moving it to my office this week as it has outgrown my tiny kitchen, so I'm going to give it awhile to settle in.
When is the best time of year to tackle the roots, how ruthless can I be and how do I go about cutting it?
This is the first plant I have ever had that required more than watering every other month, so I'm completely out of my depth and would greatly appreciate any assistance!