“Hey Ma, money actually does grow on Tress!”
I wish I had this plant for every time my mom would tell me that money doesn’t grow on trees! The money tree is a beautiful plant to have in any space and like the lucky bamboo I mentioned in my last post, it is a very well known plant in Feng Shui to attract wealth and abundance. Now, not only do you want to attract these things to you, but you also want to maintain it. It’s of no use attracting things if you can’t nourish it, maintain it and keep it.
Money Tree plants are typically 5 trunks that are braided and intertwined together and its green leaves sprout into 3, 5 or 7 leaves. Its scientific name is Pachira Aquatica with over 20 species, native to central and South America and its a plant that loves humidity due to its original habitat such as swamps and rain forests. Its other species is known to also be native in many other parts of the world such of Africa and Asia and typically mistaken for a Bonsai tree.
Money trees are very easy to care for and require minimal watering, but there are some basic guidelines to keep in mind to keep your plant alive. When you first get your Money Tree plant you want to plant it into another pot with fresh soil into a slightly larger pot so that its roots can grow comfortably. You also want to add fertilizer ever so often to insure it’s soil is healthy in preparation for its dormant period during the winter months (this is dependent on where you live of course).
Preparing your New Money Tree
- First you want to pick your plant. Make sure that the soil looks healthy as well as the leaves and that it’s bark is healthy. The bark should not be too brown or with white spots around them as it may be an indication of mold.
- Repotting your plant into a slightly larger pot will introduce it to its new home as well as allow the roots to spread out more comfortably. When re-potting your plant make sure that the pot has enough drainage holes that allows the water to flow through the bottom of the pot when watering. Keep in mind to slowly and carefully pull the plant from the old pot when transferring to the new one. You don’t want to damage any of the rooting system during the transfer.
- Before you add it to its new pot, add a little bit of soil as a cushion. Any soil will do, I usually like Miracle Gro (All purpose soil), but any soil for plants will work, just check your local store’s gardening section and find one that feels best for your plants.
- Once you place your plant into the soil, you want to then add more soil around the plant’s existing soil and root system all the way to the top, leaving about an inch of space on the top. You don’t want to compact it with you fingers as I see most people do, just add the soil and let it loose. With time the soil will compact itself.
- Once you’ve added the soil up to the top of the pot you can add rocks or pebbles that you can find at your local dollar store or craft store. The rocks and pebbles act as stabilizers for the plant especially when watering your plant as the soil can shift and cause your plant to move within the soil. The pebbles or rocks also serves as a nice decorative touch too.
- And that’s it! All you have to do is follow the below basic tips for maintaining your Money Tree healthy and beautiful.
Taking Care of your Money Tree
- Do not over fertilize or over water your plant. Even though this plant loves humidity, over watering or fertilizing your plant too much can make its leaves turn yellow or worse cause it to get mold and die. I personally water my plant every 2 weeks and fertilize it maybe once every 3 weeks to a month. It really depends on your plant so you want to gauge the soil to see what it likes by observing it and keeping track of how frequently you water it. To fertilize your plant just simply add a little bit of fertilizer to a gallon of water and use that gallon periodically to water your plant.
- To keep it within a good humidity level place a plate underneath the pot so that the evaporated water can keep it moist. Depending on where you live you want to stop fertilizing your plant during the fall/winter months. During the Winter your plant goes dormant and does not require frequent fertilization. Once the Spring comes back around you want to fertilize it every 3- 4 weeks. As with most plants, do not use tap water to water your plants. Preferably use distilled water at room temperature.
- Minimal Lighting. Money Tree plants don’t require too much light so keeping it within indirect sunlight (near a window) should be sufficient. Direct sunlight can bee too harsh for them so try to keep them in a partially shaded area where they won’t be exposed to the sun too much. Since these plants are mostly indoor plants they also do well with fluorescent lights as well. Just make sure they’re not kept in too dim or dark places.
- Re-potting Frequency & Trimming. It is recommended that you re-pot your plant every 2 years or so to maintain a healthy root system. Other than that Money Tree plants don’t require too much change as far as their pots size. When you do re pot it you want to go one or two sizes up. I typically like to trim my plant every spring by clearing away any dead or yellowing leaves. When trimming it is best to use sharp gardening shears so you get a precise cut and not damage your plant.
Bonding and Magically Charging Your Money Tree
In Feng Shui, Money Trees represent wealth, abundance and success. It’s five leaves are said to represent the 5 elements of nature such as Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. The more this plant grows and you bond with it with your intentions, the more blessings you will have in terms of financial wealth and personal success.
Once you have set a place for where your plant will be, you want to sit with it for a few minutes and charge it with your intentions. Speak to the plant and explain its purpose in your home and what you would like its energy to manifest for you (wealth, abundance, prosperity and opportunities).
Normally when you first purchase your Money Tree, it’s bark will already have a red tie around it. I like to take it off and add my own by getting red twine or cloth and tie it around my plant making sure I do 5 knots. The red tie will represent the fire element. In addition to the pebbles I like to add crystals to my plant such as quartz or the crystal of success such as citrine.
To represent the element of metal, I add 5-7 pennies or copper pieces to my money plant to attract money as well as prevent any illnesses from my plant. The copper acts as a conduit and represents the easy flow of abundance into the home.
My money plant has a $2 bill wrapped on its leaves and it is a well know bill to attract luck and as a money drawing charm. $2 bills can be found at your local bank, just ask the teller if they have any available and depending on how many you want you can buy it from your local bank. Simply wrap it where you can use it to tie on one of your Money Tree’s leaf stems.
