[Arid_gardener] Ocotillos transplanted in October

[Tyler Storey]

Hi Doug,

When ocotillos are planted bare-root, as I'm assuming yours were, they
generally won't leaf out until they've had some time to develop some root
growth, which is generally only going to happen once the soil warms up.
When ocotillos are dug up and then re-planted, they generally lose almost
all of their roots, so until they can replace those roots, they're pretty
much just sitting there.  Ocotillos can take up to two years to recover and
begin leafing out.  

Bear in mind that not all bare-root ocotillos survive the transplanting.
Some just dry up, and others, particularly when they get too much water or
are planted too deep, just rot. You can check the "canes' of the ocotillo to
see if it's still alive.  Examine the canes down towards the base.  You
should be able to see green through the woodier outer layer of the cane, at
the base of the thorns; as long as you can see green and the canes are
flexible, then the plant is still doing OK.  

Also take a look to be certain they weren't planted too deep.  Generally,
ocotillos branch from a short base, or trunk; if the canes go straight into
the ground, or if there is no base at all, then it was probably planted too
deep.  There is a great temptation to plant too deep during installation in
order to keep the plant upright.  My own experience is that ocotillos need
minor staking, or heavy stones around the base, to keep them upright at the
beginning; if your ocotillos are standing upright on their own then, again,
it's worth seeing if they were planted to deep.

I hope this helps.

Tyler

 

 <mailto:tyler at tylerstorey.com> tyler at tylerstorey.com

 <http://tylerstorey.com> http://tylerstorey.com

602-738-2978

  _____  

From: arid_gardener-bounces at CALS.arizona.edu
[mailto:arid_gardener-bounces at CALS.arizona.edu] On Behalf Of Doug Spurlock
Sent: Sunday, March 02, 2008 2:02 PM
To: arid_gardener at Ag.arizona.edu
Subject: [Arid_gardener] Ocitillos transplanted in October still show nosign
of life

 

My landscape contractor planted two large ocotillos in October. Neither of
them show any sign of life even though on a desert hike (near Cave Creek)
yesterday I saw them all leaved out.  I have noticed that none of my
neighbor's  (all of whom have newly planted landscape) ocotillos are doing
any better than mine.  Any suggestions?

Doug Spurlock
Studio West Fine Art Printing
www.studiowestgiclees.com

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