How to Grow a Tall Money Tree

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Things You'll Need

  • bucket

  • Shovel

  • 5-10 gallon pot

  • Perlite

  • Regular potting soil

  • General all-purpose fertilizer

The money tree will grow much taller if released from its container.

The money tree (Pachira aquatica) is also known as the Malabar chestnut tree. It grows in wet and tropical conditions and produces long pods that contain edible nuts. The cultivars that growers train to be sold as money trees will grow up to 15 feet in height if released from the constrictions of a small plant pot. The leaves are a glossy evergreen and palmately compounded, making money trees a nice patio plant for warm climates.

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Step 1

Remove the Pachira aquatic from its plant pot and shake the soil loose from around the roots. Place the plant in a bucket of water to keep the roots from drying out while you prepare a planting site.

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Step 2

Choose a permanent site for your tree where it will get six to eight hours of sunlight per day. Dig a hole as large as the root ball with a shovel or fill a large 5- to 10-gallon plant pot with a mixture of half perlite and half regular potting soil for good drainage.

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Step 3

Set the money tree in its prepared planting site and cover the roots with soil, tamping it down slightly once you have leveled the hole with the surrounding area or filled the plant pot to 1 inch of the top rim.

Step 4

Water the tree to settle the soil around the roots until it runs from the bottom of the container, or with about 2 gallons for the ground-planted tree. Water daily until new growth appears and then water as necessary to keep the soil damp.

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Step 5

Fertilize your money tree with a general, all-purpose fertilizer according to the manufacturer's directions every month during the summer growing season.

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