Aloidendron ramosissimum

[Tracy]

3 hours ago, Garcia3 said:

@msporty Thank you very much!  I try to follow that same advice but my garden has turned into a hodgepodge of plants I love!  Now I just try to group things if & when possible into a pleasing manner,  well... pleasing to my eyes at least, lol.  I've never done an official garden post but I'll definitely consider it.  And yes, pictured with the A Ramosissima above is Mangave - Lady Lavender and Agave - Montana.  @Tracy One more pic of a much older A. Dichotoma to give you a sense of what the trunk can get to on these guys.  This isn't my garden, it is a Nursery up in Cave Creek, A. Ramosissima will be a shorter form of what you see below. 

Last summer my wife and I were out walking through Solana Beach and spotted this older specimen.  I guess the follow up questions are how long to get to this size and space demand.  Beautiful garden by the way.  I have to admit. My planting style is more of an eclectic mix as opposed to groupings.  Perhaps I would be more creative with groupings if I weren't so space constrained.  I can still admire it in other's gardens. 

[Tracy]

Not enough space in the long run for this Aloidendron dichotomum, but I wanted to get it out of the pot.  It is one of the two in the second batch I originally purchased as Aloidendron ramosissimum but both are A dichotomum.  This is from autumn of 2019 so about 3 1/2 years from my original photos in this string, before I discovered the incorrect id.  It has definitely sped up after putting in the ground.  I have 13 year old Hercules, which is pretty massive now, so I'm glad this doesn't have the hybrid vigor that it does.

[Jubaea_James760]

@Garcia3, @Tracy, beautiful specimens! I love these. Going to get one & keep in a pot 😁

[Silas_Sancona]

Tohono Chul Park ( Tucson ) Specimen. Garden recently saw a couple inches of Snow there.

[Tracy]

12 hours ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Tohono Chul Park ( Tucson ) Specimen.

Wow that one has really long leaves if that is the appropriate name for them.  It is really interesting to see the different growth habits.  The fact that it grows at that elevation exposed to some snow is a good sign for James growing them successfully through winter in Hesperia.  The other good thing about this species, is that James can also grow it in a pot, and move it into a sheltered position when the worst winter temps arrive.  It will be interesting to compare the specimens growing at lower elevations in the Phoenix area to this one since there is a bit of a shift up in temperature ranges, both highs and lows.

[Silas_Sancona]

1 hour ago, Tracy said:

Wow that one has really long leaves if that is the appropriate name for them.  It is really interesting to see the different growth habits.  The fact that it grows at that elevation exposed to some snow is a good sign for James growing them successfully through winter in Hesperia.  The other good thing about this species, is that James can also grow it in a pot, and move it into a sheltered position when the worst winter temps arrive.  It will be interesting to compare the specimens growing at lower elevations in the Phoenix area to this one since there is a bit of a shift up in temperature ranges, both highs and lows.

I was thinking something similar ..It might do alright for him if sheltered from the worst winters / hottest part of summers up there..

As far as the garden, it sits in one of the warmest sections of Tucson itself ..Listed as 9b, though it could be a touch warmer there now.. and in the area of Tucson where Oranges / other citrus, i think.. were grown.

As noted in the past, they have a -scraggly ( growing up through denser canopy ) but alive Colvillea racemosa  in a different area  and while they do get nipped during colder winters, the Desert Ficus ( F.. palmeri and petiolaris ) in the " Nacapule Canyon " section of the garden have survived since being installed years ago.

Then, as noted in the past, there is this..  No idea how it survives there since they're " supposed" to be relatively cold sensitive. Wall / narrow bed help for sure, but would expect to see scars from previous damage to the tops.. Have yet to see any growing here -though  i'm sure someone -somewhere around Phoenix is growing them.



This as well.. Assuming it isn't covered during the coldest part of the season, curious to see how it looks after this winter.

[Tracy]

The biggest Aloidendron ramosissimum I have really needs to get out of this pot, but I'm probably going to wait now until the pot cracks open under the pressure of the roots and trunk.  I can't lift the pot anymore since roots are going out the bottom and into the surrounding soil.  The little one in the terracotta pot was starting to look more like the way the ones that I got and turned out to be Aloidendron dichotomum, but I'm seeing signs now that encourage me to think it will be the smaller species, A ramosisimum.  Anyone else see why I think it may be A ramosisimum  after all?

[Silas_Sancona]

4 minutes ago, Tracy said:

The biggest Aloidendron ramosissimum I have really needs to get out of this pot, but I'm probably going to wait now until the pot cracks open under the pressure of the roots and trunk.  I can't lift the pot anymore since roots are going out the bottom and into the surrounding soil. 

 

Rock it until it comes loose ( ...Or loose enough, from the ground ) and tap that pot like a Pinata w a hammer until it cracks..   Simple enough.

[Tracy]

11 minutes ago, Silas_Sancona said:

Rock it until it comes loose ( ...Or loose enough, from the ground ) and tap that pot like a Pinata w a hammer until it cracks..   Simple enough.

I hate losing the pot which is why I'm just deferring the day until it does it on it's own.  The other problem is location for replanting it.  I probably won't replant where the pot is today because there will be a fight eventually between my Encephalartos inopinus and the Aloidendron ramosissimum.   Both are prized plants, so I will need to referee and call it a draw, relocating the easiest of the two.  Since the Aloidendron will eventually have to exit its pot, it is the one that will get moved.  The best spot to replant it is in the front yard, but I won't risk putting it out there.

Thank you for the advice on getting the pot out Nathan.... but I'll wait until it is even more rooted in and more difficult just to defer the problem.

[Rivera]

@Tracy

The state of confusion over Aloidendron ramosissimum and Aloidendron dichotomum seems to be an ongoing issue in cultivation.

I have a supposed Aloidendron ramosissimum that I now believe may be otherwise. It has grown pretty quickly from a 4" pot size to a 3g. It's still small, but it's unbranched and the leaves are enlarging. 

I recently planted it out, but it's not a very good spot for an A dichotomum if that's what it is...

[Tracy]

8 hours ago, Rivera said:

@Tracy

The state of confusion over Aloidendron ramosissimum and Aloidendron dichotomum seems to be an ongoing issue in cultivation.

I have a supposed Aloidendron ramosissimum that I now believe may be otherwise. It has grown pretty quickly from a 4" pot size to a 3g. It's still small, but it's unbranched and the leaves are enlarging. 

I recently planted it out, but it's not a very good spot for an A dichotomum if that's what it is...

That looks like Aloidendron dichotomum or a hybrid as opposed to Aloidendron ramosissimum. Based on the mislabeling, I suspect the two must hybridize easily and it isn't intentional. Another friend mentioned that he has grown some specimen that are clearly hybrids.   Perhaps they are promiscuous. 

[Tracy]

On 2/28/2023 at 4:45 PM, Garcia3 said:

Also, forgot to add Aloidendron hybridize easily! Especially A. Dichotoma & A. Ramosissima.  Most of what I've been told is that when specimens are young, early branching tends to be the most distinguishing characteristic between the two.  That said I have a couple of hybrids (Dichotoma/Ramosissima) in my yard that show the bigger leaf size of Dichotoma paired with the early low branching typical of Ramosissima.  

I suspect this one is a hybrid.  This is one acquired as Aloidendron ramosissimum but since I got it started showing larger leaves than the other one I got at the same time, same source.  It recently started to branch, which is why I'm thinking it is an Aloidendron dichotomum x ramosissimum or A ramosissimum x dichotomum.  The latter is more probable since it was labeled as A ramosissimum, I would expect that the grower knew the mother plant but didn't realize that another species father had gotten into the mix.

[Billeb]

Here’s my Aloidendron Ramosissimum I got from @EAD a few months ago. Terrible timing to attempt a cutting but oh well. Hopefully it pulls thru. Good shape on this guy. 
 

-dale 

[Rivera]

19 hours ago, Billeb said:

Here’s my Aloidendron Ramosissimum I got from @EAD a few months ago. Terrible timing to attempt a cutting but oh well. Hopefully it pulls thru. Good shape on this guy. 
 

-dale 

Nice. Maybe it's not a bad time since these are winter growers? My plant seems to not be a pure A. ramosissimum, but it is much more active in winter in terms of root and leaf growth.

[Tracy]

Since my largest has outgrown its pot, I decided to put it in the ground.  I had to remove a clumping Aloe, which was getting out of control, to create an appropriate planting place.

Like my other Aloidendron species in the ground, I used decomposed granite to create a well draining mound.  It will be fun to see if it picks up speed with more space for roots.