The process of cycad relocation has taken location considering the fact that early botanists and cycad lovers first recognized that cycad pups and mother or father vegetation could be correctly taken off from habitat and reestablished in a unique site. This system continues currently for a wide variety of good reasons, which require both business and conservation reasons.
As a common rule when I relocate cultivated cycads from the industry, I get started by getting rid of 10-50% of the more mature (lessen) leaves. This will acquire some of the burden off of the plant when the root program is compromised by the transplanting approach. Then I tag a remaining leaf that indicates its directional orientation, e.g. leaf pointing east. Just after that I dig a circular channel as seen from overhead all around the caudex (trunk or bulb) to the diameter equivalent to roughly 3-4 moments the diameter of the caudex. For example, a caudex with a 10 inch diameter would start off with a channel gap becoming dug at about 30-40 inches in diameter, with the 10 inch caudex in the centre. I proceed to dig down to approximately 3-4 occasions the diameter of the caudex, steadily undercutting the root ball.
As this approach continues, and the root ball results in being far more described, I attempt to selectively trowel off or hose off more soil all over the root ball, when hoping to preserve as considerably root mass as attainable. The target is to eliminate as a great deal of the body weight of unneeded soil in the root ball as is possible. Slicing some of the root process is vital. As the root ball is carefully diminished in sizing, you must determine your capability to extricate the root ball comparatively intact with your available manpower or mechanical aid. This very important step will be still left to the ingenuity of the perpetrators. I have witnessed quite a few strategies operate successfully. After the cycad has been taken off, I analyze the root ball and lower cleanly any ragged roots, which are obvious on the outside the house of the root ball, and treat them with fungicide and/or rooting hormone. A dolly, rolling cart, or other mechanical unit can be used to transportation the plant to its new area or for potting or boxing up. If transplanting in the floor, I try to pick a area that has a slope or a mound type of terrain element. Cycads desire very good drainage, so a properly-draining sandy loam or decomposed granite in mixture with a mounded or sloped location will accommodate people desires.
When the area has been decided, I dig my hole to about 1½ times the diameter of the root ball. Then I diligently reduced the plant and root ball into the heart of the gap, having treatment to orient the plant according to the tag that was hooked up to a person of the leaves prior to going. Reorienting the plant to its unique route can eliminate a person of the slight features of anxiety that the plant endures during the relocation method.
When the plant is centered and correctly oriented, then I start to backfill the indigenous soil close to the root ball, very carefully tamping it as the hole is currently being stuffed. It is vital to keep the exact same soil stage on the caudex as it experienced at its authentic location. In buy to focus food items and drinking water all around the freshly establishing root procedure, I propose building an earthen basin surrounding the caudex that will increase a bit outside of its root perimeter. Then I water the plant extensively to damp out all of the soil of the root ball and its new encompassing soil.
Immediately after all the soil has been drenched, I like to finish by filling the entire basin with a 5 gallon bucket of water with liquid rooting hormone additional in and permitting it soak in. Then I recommend permitting the rooting hormone do its career for about 2 to 3 months in advance of watering yet again. It would not damage to adhere to up with the liquid hormone on 2 or3 of the successive watering periods.
Although this process can be carried out successfully virtually any time of the 12 months, I come to feel that the optimal time is in the early to late spring. This presents the plant the best time of the growing year to regenerate roots and at some point produce a new flush of leaves. Don’t be stunned if your plant provides a cone or leaves that are more compact and/or less in quantity than common. This is a normal reaction to a plant that has gone by the shock or relocating or transplanting. Inside a period or two, as the root program reestablishes, the plant will eventually generate leaves and cone(s) that are usual for its caudex size. If your transplanting has taken position in early to late spring, I propose that you maintain off feeding for 2 to 3 months to make it possible for the root method to start out to recuperate. Then water and feed as you would commonly.
Mature and prosper,
Keith
