How to Grow a Cinchona Tree

The bark of the cinchona tree has anti-malarial compounds.

The fever tree or quinine tree cinchona (Cinchona spp.) grows readily in South America and the Asian Pacific. It requires a tropical or subtropical location and fares well in rainforests. In the United States, it's found only on Hawaii. Cinchona bark produces quinine, a natural malaria remedy, and also reduces fevers. The bark is harvested from trees between six and eight years old, at which time the tree is cut down and stripped of bark.

Things You'll Need

• 4 inch pot
• Rich sandy soil
• Spade
• Landscape rake
• Slow release balanced fertilizer
• Pruning shears

Instructions

1. Fill a 4 inch pot with a rich, part sandy soil. Place a cinchona seed on the top of the soil, then sprinkle with dirt to cover.

2. Moisten the soil and maintain a moist soil until your cinchona seed germinates.

3. Place the pot in a shady location when the seed germinates. Water the soil when it dries out, adding liquid to wet it. Don't overwater as this can harm the young tree. Continue to water and care for the tree as it grows, slowly exposing it to less shade. When the tree reaches 9 inches tall, it's ready for transplanting.

4. Select a site suitable for cinchona. Mature trees can reach 50 to 100 feet. These trees do best in full sun and grow well in mountainous regions.

5. Turn the soil over with a spade to break apart soil clumps, and remove rocks, weeds and roots from the area. Smooth the soil over with a landscape rake.

6. Dig a hole that's 8 inches wide by 4 inches deep.

7. Remove the young tree from its container and place in the prepared hole so it sits vertically straight and just as deep as it was planted. Push soil around the roots to plant your cinchona.

8. Fertilize the tree each spring using a slow release balanced fertilizer, such as 10-10-10. Apply the proper dose range for your size tree.

9. Prune the cinchona to control its size and shape. Remove dead or damaged branches when you notice them and trim back long branches to keep the tree at a desired size.

Tips & Warnings

• Collect seed from cinchona trees to sow your own, since this tree isn't sold commercially.

References

• Southern Illinois University Herbarium Ethonobotanical Leaflets: Cinchona and its Product -- Quinine
• Herbs2000: Cinchona