Vagner is in Barzil, that might affect someone's thinking on this.

I know nothing about Adeniums but some general thoughts spring to mind.

Organic fertilisers in pots are tricky. Pots are not a natural ecosystem, organic fertilisers may not releases their nutrients effectively. Use the Osmocote at a suitable dilution for your plants. "Natural" fertilisers which would be useful in a pot will include an NPK list and you can check to see if it includes a good selection of micro-nutrients.

Randy says "Overpotted adeniums in a marginal soil mix will rot in cool wet weather". I would add that applies to plastic pots. Unglazed clay pots will dry out better and provide a useful safety valve for sensitive plants.

For the sake of having fun with both sides of the issue, I'll play plastic pot advocate:-). Keep in mind I can only speak from my personal experience of growing tropicals in containers here in Oklahoma over the last 30 or so years. What works for you somewhere else in the world may trump anything I might say.

All plastic pots is a stretch :-). I use the Rootmaker inc. plastic pot which probably is the best plastic pot in the world. The one gallon pot has 28 holes (actually 56 with 2 side by side) in it and it dries out faster than your clay pots.

I've done side by side tests with a decent number of plants to see. The black plastic Rootmaker 1 with the predrilled holes all around the container dry out faster than a red clay pot of similar size in full sun.

I grow almost exclusively in plastic. Big plants weigh too much on their own even without the clay pot. I will put some specimen Adenium down the road in very nice very shallow ceramic pots.

If I want an adenium to develop a more shallow and wider root span, I'll take a 10 inch hanging basket (I have a bunch of used ones laying around) and drill 1/4 inch holes in it for faster drainage. The 20-30 holes will be on the bottom and on the sides maybe an 1/8 inch above where the bottom of the pot is. With bulb pans I dont bother.

I can make a plastic pot drain much better and faster "easier" than I can modify a clay pot. A modified plastic pot can give you a good run for your money.

I've got literally hundreds of clay pots I bought at a garage sale about 15 years ago that I don't use.

As far as adeniums overpotted, no matter the pot make up, they will rot if grown in marginal soil. Crappy soil is crappy soil. A pot will not make the difference.

Personally I think soil is the most important part of what we do with plants outside of care. Containers or container sizes are probably next.

3 years ago I skimped on soil with a bunch of adeniums because money was tight and I paid a huge price. Over half rotted and many were slow to recover. A few with nice blooms I rerooted after I lost most of the root system. I just don't loose adeniums with good soil. Never have and hopefully never will :-).

I can put a nice adenium in crappy soil and kill it over the winter unless I'm totally focused on that plant and watch it very close. I can put a another nice adenium in a great soil mix and rarely have to focus as intensely on it as I do the one in crappy soil. Bad soils can hide rot problems sometimes until it's too late. Good soils with good care hide nothing. There's nothing to hide.

randy

Vogcel, I don't know where you live. These are often called Desert Rose, and can and will grow quiet large compared to many succulents that are shown on this formum.
A good clue when to fertilize is after it flowers and not when it starts to drop leaves, this is the middle of Sept, depending where you live it may go dormant in October. I would wait until new leaves start to grow if this is correct. Depending on the species, it may form a caudex as well. Norma

Hey guys I am new to Adeniums and want to do whatÂs right, could you give me a good brand of soil to use and where to get it, as well as what would be a good fertilizer for them. Reading this I am guessing a decorative glazed pot is not a good thing, and should opt for a red clay pot. I am here in Tucson, will the light be to strong if I left it outside?

I just got this one and from what is written t sounds really good - http://m.ebay.co.uk/itm/ADENIUM-PLANT-COMPOST-WITH-CHARCOAL-FOR-ADENIUMS-OBESUM-DESERT-ROSE-ORGANIC-/251845934027

i would not use the organic slow release fertiliser as it is chicken pellets which will drop the pH level of the medium.

faelle

Thread you just posted on is very old - from 2006!, last entry 2007. You may be better off ton start a new thread, not sure if the ppl posted above are members anymore (Norma is :)

Ziasgo4...whilst I appreciate you could well get advise here, you may not have realised that there is an Adenium forum within this site so why not try there! :-) Plus as already mentioned, this is a very old post, so people do not generally answer them.

Gill