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Cassia trees are breathtaking, with their heavily decorated branches in bright yellow flowers. For anyone willing to bring something unique in their garden, cassias will definitely do the job.
They are commonly seen on the streets of tropical cities, and it is impossible not to stagger you with their beauty. Most probably you would like to know how you can grow one back at home!
Let’s see just how well a cassia tree can accommodate in a garden and the details regarding growing and carrying for such a tree.
First of all, you should know that growing a cassia tree will require some particular environmental conditions. Being a tropical plant, it can’t grow in a climate that is further away in the north, exceeding the 10 b growing zone.
That means it can only withstand positive temperatures, which usually do not drop below the freezing point. If you wish to grow the tree in colder climates, then you might need a heater greenhouse, where you can house the tree during the cold season. Otherwise, it will not survive freezing temperatures.
There are also many varieties of cassia, some being evergreen, semi-green or even deciduous trees. The most commonly met color is yellow, but they can also be found in bright pink, red, orange, or white so that they can be quite spectacular.
It is most recommended to grow a cassia tree using seeds. But it is not an easy task if you do not know some aspects of it. First of all, you will never succeed if you plant the seed directly into the soil.
They are incredibly hard and waterproof, so they will never germinate. In nature, animals eat the seeds of the plant, and the stomach’s acid will dissolve the hard shell, leaving the seed just ready to hit the soil, after being eliminated.
You can do that by either soaking the seed in concentrated acid or try to break the outer layer of the seed and get the core out.
After succeeding, you will need to put the seed’s core into the water and leave it there for about 24 hours. Take the seed, use a knife to nick it and put it in a pot with moist general purpose soil. Do keep the soil constantly moist.
An easier way to enjoy a cassia tree is to buy seeds from a local gardening store or right here below:
So the choice is yours. Going back to our seed, when the plant managed to produce about six leaves, it is time to move it. You can place it directly in your garden, but do pick a spot with full sunshine, if you wish to enjoy a large number of brightly colored flowers.
They are not that picky when it comes to soil, one with a neutral pH will do just fine, which also has a good drainage. When you prepare the hole to plant the cassia tree, make sure the depth is twice the dimension of the tree’s roots.
You will need to mix the existing dirt with peat moss, compost, and a slow-release fertilizer, before putting the tree in. The combination will make sure the cassia tree will start growing beautiful and healthy.
After setting and securing the tree in the ground, make a small ditch around it, where water can collect. You will need to water it in a regular manner until the roots manage to get fully established. Also, you may need to use a stake to support your young tree, as they look rather disorganized in their first five years of life.
And, if you wish to avoid a “weeping” appearance of your cassia tree, you may want to start pruning it, to get a fuller crown. They reach heights of 20 to 30 feet, so keep this in mind if you plan to plant it in a greenhouse.
A particular warning would be to be careful for children and pets not to ingest parts of the trees, as they can be toxic, especially the seeds.