Hi,

Yes you can use tap water to water it. Some plants are sensitive to the chemicals in tap water and develop brown tips, though I don't think Pachiras are one of these. Lots of members on here water using rain or snow melt (You probably won't be using snow melt ;) ) or distilled water, but you don't have to, necessarily.

I'm confused by the second part of your question...?

Misting doesn't really do anything to the plant really. Though I would wipe down the leaves with water to get rid of the dust. Watering should never be done by misting, but by a thorough watering of the whole soil. Thus it ensures the whole root zone gets water.

I'm not experienced at all with what helps humidity and what doesn't so take this as a grain of salt. I did virtually the same thing when I first bought my majesty palm. I kept it suspended over a bucket filled with water for quite a few months. I've since changed it for a long time now but have not noticed any difference. I live in a very dry climate as well, the RH can get to 15% on some days and I don't use any method of humidity booster things. Back when I had my Pachira we kept it right next to a vent and did nothing special to it at all. And it thrived for many years and still lives on in my neighbour's house (long story). Though, that's definitely not an optimum way to keep them. Someone else will chime in about that!

I'm guessing your window faces East then right? Since it's only getting morning sun and the film covers the window, I'd place it right next to the window. Morning light is the weakest light and the film would drastically reduce that even further.

You can slowly acclimatize the plant to higher light levels by moving it closer to the window each day, but I don't think that's necessary here. If it was a south or west window then I'd definitely acclimate it to the higher light levels to avoid burning.

There's someone on this forum who seems to be the Pachira expert....Can't remeber who exactly but I think it's Josh? It's been a very long week!

Good luck

Thank you so much for answering my questions! Haha I wish I was able to use snow melt here. :)

And to clarify my question that you didn't understand, should I take my plant and run it under the running water so that it's thoroughly soaked or should I grab a cup and pour it over the pot until water starts passing? Does it even make a difference?

I hope I become more knowledgeable about money tree soon so I can help others in the future as well. Thanks again!

It doesn't make a difference really. Some plants I water using the tap and others I use a watering can.

The benefit of the tap is that you have an endless supply of water and it all drains away down the sink. But I find it sometimes mucks up the soil due to the pressure and sometimes over fills the pot with water before it can drain away. So it's a constant stop go stop go, which I guess is what is to be expected.....

Using a cup has its benefits too, but the only downside I can think of is multiple refills.....

It's down to personal preference really, just make sure it is never sitting in water and the whole soil gets hydrated.

Also make sure you discard any water collected in the saucer. Never leave the plant sitting in standing water.

other than that, it's not a 7-10 day thing. Just water as the plant needs it. When the first couple inches have dried will be fine.

Thank you so much :)

Hi I have a few questions about my moneytree I got it as a gift about 3yrs ago it had a beautiful braided trunk with lots of beautiful leaves I transferred to a bigger pot because it out grew the small one it came in to make a long story short I had it outside one day in the spring the temp was perfect and about six evening the temp dropped drastically and my poor plant froze and all the leaves died off I brought it back to life and the leaves started growing back recently all my trunks rotted except for 1 so I removed the dead ones and kept the good one it sprouted out the side a nice long stalk with beautiful leaves a few weeks ago my 8yr old twins were running around playing and they dropped my baby I freaked the stalk broke but didn't break completely so I left it and out of the crack started sprouting 2 new stalks so then I was happy that my kids dropped it lol!!! Now my question is now my plant is growing to the left and seems like it may be to heavy for the stalk can I cut the stalk and make it still continue to grow in its own pot??? And can I start a new one from one of the leaves??? Here are some pics of what I'm talking about any help would be so appreciated thanks in advance!!

I don't know about propagating them, but you can use a stake to straighten out the top trunk. You can also pinch the new growth to make it branch more.

Thank you Mentha but what do you mean pinch the new growth like literally pinch it and if so where??

Right about where the mark is, there should be a little bit of new growth between the trio of petioles. Just pinch the new growth between where the petioles meet the stem.

It should then put out growth in the places marked.

or not. Now that I look at the pictures, you might just want to cut off that branch completely, it looks a little elongated. Maybe somebody else will chime in. But for now wait until it warms up outside to do anything.

Just to help, the petiole is the stalk (or small stem) that attaches the leaf to the main stem. Pinching doesn't actually mean just to pinch, but to remove.

Just in case Angie was unaware as I did see her ask if you "literally pinch it." Just trying to clear anything up.

Thank you for clearing up the pinch Dave and I will wait til it warms to do anything thank you so much for the advice Mentha very appreciate it! Also if anyone knows anything else I can do about my side growing stalk lol or if I can propagate will be also appreciated thanks

My baby is growing! Just an update with a picture. :)

Left picture is last week. Right picture is this week. Getting plenty of sunlight these days so I think it's happy!

Angie, yes you can root the tip of the long stalk and grow it as a cutting. I have done it several times, and it always works. You can also grow them from the leaf, as long as the leaf is healthy and you get the entire petiole (leaf stem). In fact, I grew my Pachira from a leaf.

Josh

Thank you so much Josh. Would you be able to tell me how can I grow from a leaf where should I cut and how do I do it I will attach some close up pictures of the leaves again thank you so much for all your help!

No, Angie, there is no guarantee that you will get new growth if you cut that little point circled in red. In my experience, growth lower on the trunk comes from a significant chop down the trunk, in combination with good outdoor light (bright filtered sunlight).

As for propagating from leaves, I'll share pics of the process, which I've done successfully three times.

Great thank you so much.. Should I wait til the weather gets warmer to do this and also what type of soil should I use to propagate successfully??

You can do this whenever, although warmth does help. I make my own gritty mix, no soil, for maximum aeration.

Josh

pretty

Thank you so much Josh I really appreciate your knowledge and help I think I might wait til the weather warms to do anything I'm a little afraid I'll do something wrong but I do think I'm going to take it all the way down I will make sure I keep updating I may need more assistance when I do it lol!!! Until then I decided to add to my pachira family and today I got 2 new ones they are so beautiful with lots of new growth everywhere... But I am wondering if I should repot because the roots are coming out the bottom of the pots?? I don't want them to get sick.. Here are some pics of my new addictions!

Hey Josh my baby's tips are drying and turning brown do you know what it can possibly be I haven't done anything different besides put a stake in to stand it up I have been threw so much with my baby I can't see it go threw this

Do you think I should replant when I put it in this pot it was in the middle idk how it got over there??

These plants need more light, as close to a bright window as possible. Even with proper potting mix and fertilizer, they will lose leaves if they don't have enough light.

If you can wait to repot, and limp them along, you will get much better results around May or June.

Josh

Hello! I have returned with more questions. I have a green thing tied to hold my pachira's braid. However, as more leaves are growing, it's getting really crowded. I'm concerned that leaves under the other leaves are not getting enough sunlight (does that even matter?) because it's covered. I included pics below.

If I do not want to keep my tree braided, can I untie the thing holding my braids together? Is it better or worse to keep the braids together? Will that give more room for my tree to grow?

If that's not the option.. should I be cutting the leaves to create room?

Oh and look at my newest growth :) so cute.

Thanks in advance for your help!

You can certainly loosen the tie that binds the braids.

However, I would not cut off a single leaf. The more the merrier, as they are what creates food for the tree and returns energy to the roots.

Josh