Clusia rosea is an ornamental leafy houseplant that is remarkably sturdy and easy to care for. Its stiff, leathery leaves are a dark olive green in colour and are said to be so tough, you could carve your name into them – hence the popular name 'Autograph Tree'.
This is a plant that prefers the soil to be moist most of the time. But you can get away with short periods of drought as the plant matures. This isn’t ideal until the plant is at least 1 year old. If you’re wanting the plant to grow quicker after 1 year, maintaining frequent watering is advised. A mistake that people often make when watering this plant is over-watering. By doing this you’re opening up the doors to root rot, so it’s best to use a soil moisture indicator like this one. This is a disease of the roots of a plant, where they begin to rot and decay. Which is also helps attract unwanted visitors to your plant (pests!). Ideally when you water your autograph tree you should always opt for room temperature water. As this is a plant native to warm environments, cold water can send it into shock. This may cause leaves to fall from your plant. Another tip is watering your plant in the morning. By doing this the water will evaporate throughout the day. Consider this a preventative measure, it helps avoid various common diseases. For example, regular night time watering is known to cause brown spots on the leaves of plants.
To maintain optimal health, you should be fertilizing it 3 times per year. This needs to be done throughout the growing season, from spring to fall. It’s best done with granular fertilizers (pellet form) like this one on Amazon. However, if you want to do it more often then it’s best to go for a liquid fertilizer. If you decide to go for the latter, I’ve found that I tend to get the best results doing it every 2-3 weeks. Another option you have available is creating your own fertilizer. It’s not too difficult and as this plant thrives on organic matter, you should try pack as much as that as you can into it.
As these plants begin their life cycle as an epiphyte, growing on other plants, they do best in organic soil. The ideal soil for this plant is soft
To keep the size on the smaller side then you need to ensure you prune it on a regular basis. This will help you avoid the need for repotting and help to maintain it as a houseplant for a long time to come.
The Clusia rosea prefers a warm and humid environment as a tropical plant. Ideally with temperatures between 18-22 degrees.
A vigourously growing plant, Clusia 'Princess' is a smaller leaf variety of Clusia Rosea, with lush tough, dark green, round leaves and a bushy, rounded shape. Popular for its unusual leaves which can be scribed into, this plant is commonly known as the Autograph tree. A vigourously growing plant, Clusia 'Princess' is a smaller leaf variety of Clusia Rosea, with lush tough, dark green, round leaves and a bushy, rounded shape. Popular for its unusual leaves which can be scribed into, this plant is commonly known as the Autograph tree.
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