Melissa - that would have made me cry.....

OH my that is a crime!! i would have just about rung there neck!!

Did you tell him, he was a Moron?????

I would be livid. Sorry about that and the ants, somehow I believe it must be the ants fault.

UGH... sorry you had that happen. I can't imagine what your initial thoughts were, short of looking a baseball bat. ...

I've had my share of ant problems but I found a very inexpensive powder that REALLY has worked ....
Bengal Utltra Dust x2
Kills FireAnts on contact
Kills the Queen
Kills the mound overnight
kills for up to 8 months
KILL KILL KILL!!!! I see no ants

I'm very pleased with the results...

RobertB

Thanks, RobertB, but I fear poisons. Crazy ants don't have an easily found home like the fire ant's mound. I just see the beasties all over the place outside. So far, cinnamon, soapy cloroxy spray, and peppermint have worked. I know, Clorox is poisonous, but I know where it is and it won't poison ME.

At the Bot Gardens, I guess everyone will know who sold the plant except me. That's OK. It's my fault anyway, that's what makes me so sad. I should have put a tag on the plant, but kept getting distracted, gotta do this, gotta do that. The nursery is chaotic with volunteers doing things in all directions and without order. Here's a better photo of the flower, it was SO RED!!
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And, I might stop growing Adeniums anyway! The gov't is considering legalizing the growing of "Industrial Hemp" Wheeee, I could make money growing legal pot, tho' I don't smoke the stuff. hahaha. Just joking about not growing Adeniums...

Here's my newest bloomer, with the beginnings of a GREAT caudex!
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My DR has been through a lot this summer & has come back beautifully!! Thanks to so many great people helping me not have a breakdown & totally give up and just throw the thing into the creek before going to buy another plant!!!

I did go buy another plant but it was because the leaves on it were different than my first Adenium.I had seen these plants when they first came into the store,they were all blooming.My plant i thought i would have to get really lucky to get a bloom after everything that plant went through.I am happy to wait until next summer for blooms.

What is their normal blooming period? How often should they be watered? okay that's not a good question,should they dry out completely before watering or not?If they can go dry how dry,for how long without the plant stressing and letting me know to water it?

Now that i have 2 healthy Adenium's i want to make sure i am treating them properly!!!
How often do they like to be fertilized? Usually with my flowering plants i fertilize with 15-30-15 about every 2 weeks or so.I also feed all of my plants with super thrive.

Thank you all in advance for the advice!!!

watering adeniums there is no direct answer the best is to say when they are growing and or blooming (warm/hot summer) you can water much more. If it is getting cool (70 and below) you better start cutting the water AND fert.

feeding to much is not good period no madder what anyone said it actually ends with a weaker plant that can not fight off pest and disease. This is said by Professional growers in India and Thailand PERIOD.

you can feed more when they again are growing and flowering. Melissa said and i agree if your stems are getting real green and kind of tender you are feeding to much nitrogen ( first #) that is one reason she has found a 1-2-3 like 10-20-30 is better (with feeding easy to remember first is for foliage, second is for flower/fruit, third is for root strength)

I feed all my plants with ( everyone be prepared to be shocked ) the cheapest fertilizer i can find at home depot and it so happens to be 15-30-15 time release BUT i feed according to what the plant is needing i dont just do it every 2 weeks or even every month. i do mix with water and dilute it for small tender plants and use that way for seedlings. but with over well lets just say 2 or 3 BOAT loads of plants I can not afford expensive fert. i DONT ADVISE PEOPLE TO USE IT BUT I DO...you know the saying do as i say not as i do

I do like to let my adeniums dry 90% before i water but here in Florida in the summer Mother nature is doing most the watering i just watch for un desired results and for me the key is full sun and very fast draining soil mix like very fast

this is my thought
others will also chime in with theirs
mike

That makes a lot of sense; I agree that the 'bloom booster' type fertilizers should only be used on annuals for which they were designed. A healthy, strong plant will bloom.

I understand & agree with all you said Mike When it comes to fertilizing i have what i think covers all the plants i own.I will buy Expert because the price tag is cheaper & it's the only one i find easily that's 15-30-15.I usually shop at wal-mart,i have to drive almost 40 miles to lowes where home depot is across the street,it takes 10 minutes to get to walmart from my house! :shrug:They have M-gro in the house plant formula that's 24-8-16 i think,i have that for the plants that will benefit and i keep 20-20-20 and mix it at different strengths for large foliage plants & beds outside.I have tried the slow release and will buy it in the spring to mix in the ground before planting.

I admit i still need to figure out what works best for which of my plants! I was given some advice a while back when i first started really getting into plants and had a good many by then,that hasn't let me down yet and that's the use of super thrive!!!

have a nice time growing your plants and watching them reward you by blooming!!

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Nitrogen.

That first number means nitrogen.

If you're growing lettuce or collard greens, you want plenty of nitrogen. Such as 20-20-20.

24-8-16 will get you Adenium vines that will never flower, and will fall over and rot easily. "House plants" are normally just foliage, leafy things, hey? Ferns, vines, coleus.

I use a bloom booster type of fertilizer with the big middle number. I add about an equal amount of Muriate of Potash. Five pound bag is a bit pricey, maybe $12, but by the spoonful, it'll last years. I'll make a gallon, then put just a little, two cups? in another gallon jug and top that off with plain water. So, almost every time I water, I'm lightly feeding, also.

See if you can find a fertilizer with micro nutrients, Boron, zinc and copper. Deficiencies can make flowers that have ribbons instead of petals.

Feed and water when you see new baby leaves. LOOK at your plants closely, regularly. 3/4 of a plant grower's talent is observation. If you don't have new leaves growing, just water sparingly. Flowers don't count, they don't respire (breathe and loose water) like leaves do.

Whew, a lot of typing and thinking all at once!

I downloaded a picture that i hope everyone who helped me will see,my problem is i downloaded it on another thread and can't get it to download again.I will post the link to it.I am so thankful to everyone who helped me,the advice was priceless and it's obvious in the picture,please do take the time to click this link please
The thread "How Much is Too Much Rain?" in Adeniums forum

Oops, I posted since the link, scroll up for the photo!

i just put a link to this thread on the thread you posted.i think we are cross posting

I do have a question i noticed some of my leves look like something is starting at the stem of a leaf and eating their way to the tip making a curved leaf.Look at the leaf under the biggest bud it has been do like this.I hope you can see it in the picture.Any idea what is doing this i can't find anything on the plant when i look?

Ya. some of mine do that sometimes. Maybe some bug came by and nibbled, and said UGHHH!!!" and moved on. Have you bumped in to how incredibly bitter the sap is? For good reason, too. This is one of the most poisonous plants on Earth. But no problem, it's amazingly bitter. I am surprised that there's an aphid, and one type of caterpillar that will eat Adeniums.

The caterpillar is from a Oleander moth---

http://www.google.com/search?q...

Wowee, that's a link hey? The moth looks more like a wasp, has red wings and a blue body, very pretty, but goes around laying eggs on Adeniums.

I got a dwarf desert rose as a gift about November. I keep it in a sunny window, and give it about an ounce of water each week. Recently, the cauldex has become shriveled, and the roots (I pulled it out) are all real short, like one centimeter, so it's pretty loose in the pot. The tips of the leaves are turning brown.
Should I get a new growing medium, or is there something else I should do?

Hello hkalu78!

Adeniums typically go dormant during the cold season. Either it keeps some leaves, or it may start to get brown leaves and eventually drop all of them so it goes bare, or it may be in bloom but still dormant.

When my Adeniums start to manifest dormancy I start reducing watering to none. Much younger Adeniums may need more. But if it is a matured one with well formed caudex it can go dormant with no water. I just keep mine by our south facing window. It does not go out again till our outdoor overnight temps return to sustained 50F and higher. When the sustained overnight temps it needs is back, it is brought out slowly, in part shade/sun till it acclimates again to outdoor conditions, and once new leaves start to grow, then watering resumes.

Try to get a photo and also feel the caudex. If it is shrunken but staying firm, then it is okay, just in dormancy mode. This plant is happiest with the warmest temps and direct sun of summer, so it is understandably just resting when temps are not to its preference.

Thanks, yes, the caudex ix shrunked but firm.

Oh..you got a new name now So where is your growing location Banana?

Northern Indiana. Land of TOO MUCH CORN!