| Houseplant
Cultural
information: All Polyscias or Aralia type plants prefer a warm sunny
location. Warmth is critical to all members of this family of
houseplants. Temperatures below 70 degrees can cause lower leaf drop...
although my Aralia has acclimated to 65 degrees just fine.
Balfour Aralia's will be at their best if they receive a half
day of direct sunshine near either a east, south, or west window.
Naturally lighted atriums, heated sunrooms, and greenhouses are
also excellent locations for Balfour Aralia's.
One of the biggest tricks to being successful with Aralia's is
knowing when to water and how much to water. Generally a Balfour
Aralia does not have a massive amount of roots in its container,
which equates to not giving the plant massive amounts of water.
Most larger specimens of Aralias have virtually no roots in the
top two or three inches of soil. When the soil has dried down two
or three inches from the surface on larger specimen plants water sparingly with
tepid water all the way around the plant. The trick is to water
only enough to get some water to the bottom of the pot where the
roots are with little or no water seeping from the drain holes.
Never allow a Balfour Aralia to sit in water.
On smaller Balfour Aralias allow the soils surface to dry down
an inch or so between waterings.
I feed my Aralia with Peter's Plant Food every other month
during the spring and summer. During the winter I don't feed it at
all, and it does just fine.
Propagation is very difficult in our dry climate.
Common houseplant pests include: Aphids, Spider mites, Foliar
Mealy Bugs, and on rare occasion scale.
Polyscias are
available from small starter plants to large specimen plants. This
family of high end plants are generally priced higher than most
houseplants due to the length of time it takes to produce the
plant, and its special production needs. So be prepaid to shell
out some serious dough for a fine Balfour Aralia specimen.
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