Wow those are sunny warm conditions. Of outside you might be able to do it every other day. Really depends inthat mix. Unless anyone has better advice just do it enough to keep the soil moist to dry side of moist, not wet. Digg 2-3 inches down with ur finger to really tell. Te top might be bone dry but it could still be moist half way down where the roots are. If in doubt, go dry.

you might also try the houseplant forum .. and maybe there is a fern forum ... this is the bug and disease forum ... and though we welcome you.. you might find other experts in other forums .. and i am trying to lead you to them .. not chide you for posting in the wrong place ... do not apologize ... when it comes to watering.. insert finger.. and find out.. what is going on in the root zone .. no one but you gardens in your yard.. and though we can give general ideas ... how it all works out for you.. it will have to be figured out by you ... good luck!!! ken

That PLs are usually found in riparian settings (streamside or in boggy environments) where they naturally occur is absolutely no cause to believe they will do well in boggy soils. They adapt well to various types of water culture, and perform very well in fast-draining, well-aerated soils, but should be expected to perform poorly when asked to make the transition in soils from lengthy periods of significant saturation to times when the soil has dried down and become reasonably well-aerated and more hospitable to the plant. The reason, as has been pointed out, is the fact that the plant will grow roots structured to allow the plant to deal with one or the other set of conditions, but not both in a cycle that starts with a long period of saturation transitioning to the more appropriate moist (rather than wet or soggy) medium. How well a soil drains is determined almost exclusively by the size of the particles it is comprised of. While the arrangement you have with the pot sitting above the effluent in the collection saucer is commendable, it has no impact on how well the soil drains or its level of aeration. 1. How often should I water? Intervals will vary with season, light load, amount of air movement, ....... Unless you use a soil that allows watering on a schedule as opposed to on an 'as needed' basis, and yours doesn't, you should absolutely stick to watering only when the plant gets dry to the point it needs water. In fact, in spite of the stress it would create, it would actually be better if you waited for this plant to exhibit signs of the first stage of wilt before you water than to water before the plant need it. I'm not advocating using drought stress indicators to signal the plants need for water - just trying to establish a feel for the idea that a little under-watering is less limiting than over-watering. For this plant, marking your watering date on the calendar and OCCASIONALLY waiting for the first signs of wilt to establish appropriate intervals between waterings is a reasonable strategy. If you'd rather, buy a wooden birch dowel rod (1/4 or 5/16") from a hardware or big box store. Cut into appropriate length pieces for your plants, sharpen the ends with a pencil sharpener, and use the pieces stuck deep into the pot as 'tells' that will let you know the moisture conditions deep in the pot. If they come out wet or stained dark from wet soil, withhold water until they come out clean. MUCH better than "watering gauges/meters". 2. What else can I do for this plant? The answer to that could easily fill a book. You could try reading this (click on link). I read someplace that liquid fertilizer once a month is good too. Yay or nay on that? To be meaningful, any advice regarding frequency of fertilizer applications has to take into consideration your soil choice and watering habits. For example, if you water in small sips to avoid your MG soil remaining soggy too long, a one month interval at the regular rate is an automatic problem for more than one reason, and the type of fertilizer as well as its NPK %s both play a part in determining the criticality of the issue. If you're using a soil that allows you to water at will w/o the need to fear consequences centering on the fact the soil will be saturated for a length of time measured in weeks, you can actually fertilize at low doses every time you water, which is how I choose to fertilize all my plants during the winter. One type of soil (those that are very water-retentive, like yours) make it almost impossible to maintain control over effective nutritional supplementation; other types of soil that support little or no saturation make establishing and maintaining a sound supplementation program monkey easy. Al

Definitely take Loves Trees' advice. Planting a tree this late in the year is pretty tough, and that's even mostly true for a native tree (which I'm pretty sure none of the Diospyros are). One additional thing I might change with the current setup is move the shade so it's shading the lower part and the ground of the tree rather than the upper. I think the goal with shade is the reduce the heat around the tree, not so much block light from the leaves, and I find the sun on the ground to be a huge heat source in the summer. This is something I'm trying for the first time this year on some of my new trees, but I've done similar things that have worked well: This was taken earlier in the year and now some of the leaves get sunlight for most of the time the shade is hitting the area, but the ground is shaded enough that it stays relatively cool. It provided more than 6 hours of sunlight to the area even when it completely shaded the tree. Just in case someone wants to make one, it's pretty easy. I just got 2 10' 1/2 pvc pipes for each side (4 total), glued them together with 1/2" pipe couplers, then stuck them in the ground with 1/2" rebar (all from home depot). I used pvc clamps to attach the shade cloth to the pvc. I used a cheap clothesline attached to 2 stakes and tied it across both pipes to stabilize it in the wind.