[Arid_gardener] Ocotillo transplant

[Mark Di Lucido]

Kathy:
 
Two excellent sources for Ocotillo information are the Desert Botanical
Garden Hotline (480-941-1225 between 10:00 & 11:30 am Monday thru Friday)
and the Uof A's Cooperative Extension Service's Bulletin # 8309.    If yours
has been in the ground 6 months during this summer's prodigious monsoon (in
Tucson anyway) without any indication of new growth it may be dead.  You can
check for viability by scratching under the surface of the bark of one of
your Ocotillo's canes with a knife.  You should see some green tissue
indicating that the cane is healthy but currently dormant.   If is is dead,
next time prior to purchasing one, do the knife test.   My experience has
been that Ocotillos succomb easily to overwatering.   When in doubt don't
water.  Established Ocotillos survive on yearly rainfall amounts as low as
3".   Drainage is also key--your planting medium should allow immediate
percolation w/ no standing water.  
 
Good Luck
 
Mark D
 
(not a Master Gardener)

-----Original Message-----
From: arid_gardener-bounces at CALS.arizona.edu
[mailto:arid_gardener-bounces at CALS.arizona.edu] On Behalf Of Kathy Talcott
Sent: Sunday, August 12, 2007 8:08 PM
To: arid_gardener at CALS.arizona.edu
Subject: [Arid_gardener] Ocotillo transplant


Hello
We had a landscaper plant an ocotillo in our back yard and at the time he
stated he would not guarantee it because it was a bare root plant.  It has
been planted about 6 months now and we do not see any growth. Is there
anyway to get it to grow?  We see them at Home Depot all the time and they
look pretty dead but yet people buy them to plant.
 
Thanks in advance.
Kathy Talcott
Tucson, AZ
 

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