This week, I’ve been redirecting things. I’ll start with this recently purchased Ocotillo. I couldn’t resist it because it was actively growing in a pot which meant a higher likelihood that it would survive. See the green plant tape? It’s my attempt at coaxing the stalks to relax from vertical to a more natural position. Not very professional looking, I know 🙂

If you’ve ever bought an Ocotillo, you know the stalks are typically tied tightly together with wire and have probably been tied for some time. With dry bare root stalks, it can take a long time before they start to relax. However, in the case of this actively growing specimen with green stalks, I think my Bonsai-esque technique might just work to redirect them!

Another redirection job this week has been of water lines. Many had been put right next to plants and trees which has caused roots to wrap around them. Not good. By far, the most valuable thing I learned in Desert Landscape School was that you should move the water source out from a tree as needed to keep it just under the canopy edge. If you’re using spaghetti lines, all you need to do is just shorten it as needed. If water is only getting to the root ball, roots have no need to venture out so it’s probably not going to grow in a healthy manner. This explained why a couple of my trees have grown very little in two years.