I've had a Pachira (Money tree) for many years now. Mine has a single trunk, that is about 3" in diameter now. It grows 6 to 7 feet per year, and obviously I have to cut it back every year. It is in a 10" pot, which is plenty big. You would be amazed at how small a rootball can support a big money tree. Mine sits in front of a southwest window, getting a lot of sun. Last year I moved it into a corner with little direct sun to try & curb the growth, but it still took off, but had slightly smaller leaves. As for watering, I treat mine as a tropical, NOT a semi-succulent. These trees grow in marshes and wetlands, so they like moisture. Just like any other plant though, they do NOT like to be wet, so a well drained mix is essential. If you let it dry up too much, you'll end up with browning leaves, which eventually drop. Basically I'll let mine dry up an inch or two on the top, then water. If you're using bagged peat based soil, you are prone to rotting issues, because odds are, the bottom and middle of the rootball will still be wet, while the top is dry. I have gotten a great response by using the 5-1-1 mix with my pachira, and a maintenance dose of foliage pro 9-3-6 every time I water. Sarina, can you describe your plant a bit more? Is it one of those cute little bonsai ones, in a pot with no drain holes?? Also, are you sure about the potting mix? Usually they fill the pot with peat mix, then top it off with gravel for looks. It can't be growing in all gravel, because it would either get NO water, or it is sitting in water filled gravel, which will rot it for sure. Garden Girl, I would advise against any misting. It actually does more harm than good by promoting fungus on the leaves, and if you are using tap water, the water evaporates, leaving behind all the minerals that are in the water. If you use softened water, there is salt that will stay on the leaves. If you have rot issues, and want to save the plant, now is the perfect time to act. Take the thing out of it's pot, and wash all the soil off of the roots. Cut any roots out that are brown and rotted. Look at the size of the rootball. Like Toni said, put it in a pot that is 2" bigger in diameter. The goal is to have an inch of free soil around the rootball. I would advise you to search up "5-1-1 mix", as this is ideal for money trees. Gritty mix would work too, but the watering is tricky, so I'd go with 5-1-1 to start. You'll also need to have a fertilizer program, if you don't already, because they'll fade away due to lack of nutrients. Good luck! Joe

Hi again, Micke! Well, it's been a week now, and everything is still looking tip top. I would think that it would have browning leaves or lack of new growth by now if it was a recent injury. It put out two more umbrellas over the weekend, and one of them has 6 leaves! As for the ficus fusing, we have a large braided-ish (looks like it started out that way, but either the stems died that they needed to work with or it's a failed bonsai attempt), ficus benjamina at work, and the bottom of the trunk, where the stems are twisted together has melded and become one fat, lumpy trunk. I also can't keep anything other than ficus elastica, which I have 3 different varieties of. I think that the others are just too picky for my drafty old house...and all of those %#*@ leaves everywhere, no thanks! Bummer that your mom's got attacked, but I'm glad that it has recovered and is doing even better. I'd be really interested to see pics of how the hole is healing...

Hi, do you ever fertilize? BTW, it's a Money tree, not a Monkey tree (Monkey trees are very different).

I just removed 2 dead trunks out of the 5 that came in the pot when i bought it. I was inspecting the plant and noticed bark missing on one of the trunks, so i felt it and it was mushy. I just carefully removed the wire holding the braid and pulled the dead trunks out without disturbing the roots from the other trunks(I hope). I kinda just snapped it off at the bottom. I did it today so we will see how it does in the coming days/weeks. I'm wondering if it was a mistake to just snap the trunk at the bottom and pull out the dead wood pieces?