Image - Flickr / Teresa Grau Ros
Native to South America, where it can be found in Argentina and Uruguay, the ombu it is a very decorative and practical plant: in summer it protects you from the sun, and in autumn and winter it protects you from the cold wind. In addition, it is a very grateful, being able to grow in all types of terrain.
It is one of the most simple to grow, as you will discover below, and one of the most interesting for large gardens.
Origin and characteristics of the ombú
Image - Wikimedia / David J. Stang
The ombú or bellasombra, scientifically known by the name of Phytolacca dioicaAlthough it may seem otherwise, it is actually an herb. Its trunk and branches are fleshy, and they do not have growth rings, something that we can see in trees. It reaches a height of about 15-20 meters, and its trunk once it reaches adulthood reaches 3-4 meters. Its leaves are kept all year round on the plantThey are green and measure 20cm in length. The flowers are female or male, and its fruits are fleshy, greenish and toxic.
It is widely used in medium-large parks and gardens. This wonderful plant needs a lot of land to develop, so it is not recommended to plant it near swimming pools, floors, houses and pipes since its roots could damage them in its incessant search for water. The minimum recommended distance is 10 meters.
What are their cares?
If you want to have an ombú specimen, we recommend taking care of it as follows:
Location
As we mentioned above, it is a plant that needs a lot of space to grow without causing problems. That is why it is advisable to plant it in the ground only if the garden is large enough to be able to place it at a distance of ten meters from pipes, walls, paved floors, etc., as well as other large plants.
During its youth, growing in a pot is allowed, but it must be borne in mind that in a few years, as soon as it measures 1 meter or more in height, it will have to be transferred to the ground unless you want to work as a potted shrub or as bonsai, something that it can be tricky.
Earth
Image - Wikimedia / David J. Stang
- Flower pot: fill with universal culture substrate mixed with 30% perlite.
- Garden: grows in all types of soils, although it prefers those rich in organic matter and well drained.
Irrigation
We will water it twice a week during the warmer months, and once a week the rest of the year. This will prevent rotting of the ombú, and growth will be better controlled.
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Can be paid from early spring to late summer a little bit of mulch or manure, but if it is in the soil it is not something that is of vital importance for the plant.
Multiplication
Image - Wikimedia / Ercé
Breeds by seeds, which have a high percentage of germination. Whenever possible, it is preferable to take them directly from the plant, or buy them in a store. Once at home, they will be soaked for 24 hours. The next day those that have sunk will be sown, putting a maximum of two in each seedbed that we will place in an area where it receives direct sunlight.
Planting or transplanting time
The ombú must be planted in the garden or moved to a larger pot in spring, when the risk of frost has passed. Let's know how:
Plant in the garden
- First, a planting hole of about 50 x 50cm will be made.
- Then it will be backfilled a little with garden soil mixed with 30% perlite.
- Afterwards, the plant will be extracted from the pot, being careful not to manipulate the roots too much, and it will be introduced into the hole.
- Then, if it is found to be too low or too high, dirt will be added or removed.
- Finally, it will finish filling and proceed to water.
Pot change
- The first step is to choose a pot that is at least 10 centimeters wider and deeper than the previous one.
- Then, it is slightly filled with universal culture substrate mixed with 30% perlite or similar.
- Afterwards, the ombú is carefully removed and placed inside the new pot. If we see that it is too high or too low, it will be removed or more substrate will be added.
- Finally, fill it up and proceed to water.
Plagues and diseases
Does not have, it is a very resistant plant. But you have to be careful not to over water it.
Rusticity
Resists cold and frost up to -7ºC.
Uses of ombú
It has several:
- Ornamental: used as an isolated specimen, as well as sometimes as bonsai.
- Medicinal: with its leaves and the bark of the root an infusion is prepared that has emetic properties (causes vomiting) and purgative.
Image - Wikimedia / Lanntaron
The ombú is a very beautiful plant that, if planted in a place where it can develop and grow freely, will give us its beautiful shade.
You know I am from the city of Durango, here we also have an ombu more or less than 100 years old, the problem is that it is rotting and I wanted to see if you could give me some advice on what to do or what its diseases are and how to protect it.
Hi John.
Could it have been overwatered? Although these plants need frequent watering, they cannot stand waterlogging.
It is usually very resistant to pests and diseases, but when it is weak the fungi can cause serious problems. To avoid this, I recommend that you treat it with a broad spectrum fungicide.
I hope I've helped.
A greeting.
Hello Monica, I am writing to you from Argentina, I would like to know if you can advise me, we have an ombu in the backyard near a wall and the house and everyone says that we have to remove it because it will break everything, I want to know if there is any way to slow the growth of the roots without killing it, I would not want to have to remove it, you know what we can do?
Thank you
Hello Augustine.
The ombú is a tree whose roots are very invasive.
The only thing I can think of is to make deep trenches (60cm or more, as much as you can deepen) and put blocks glued with cement, as if it were an underground wall, and in front (that is, the part where the tree) an antirizome mesh. But this might not be a definitive solution, although it would prevent the roots from growing too long.
And, of course, do not fertilize at any time, and water it only just enough.
A greeting.
Agustina, my ombú who was spectacularly cute, suddenly lost all her leaves this winter and I thought she was dying. I pruned him some branches, cleaned his cup, hugged him and told him that I would take care of him so that he would not die. I added 500 grams of humus (excellent and natural fungicide) and three weeks later it is full of sprouts and growing happily. Hopefully yours recovers. From Santiago de Chile a gardener hug.
At what depth should I plant an ombú that was bonsai and stopped being so. It is in a small pot and I will plant it in the ground. Thank you very much and congratulations on your page!
Hello Maria Ester.
How tall is the pot? Depending on what you measure, it should be planted at one height or another. For example, if it is about 20cm tall, a 21 or 22cm planting hole should be made.
I'm glad you like the blog 🙂. If you have any questions ask.
A greeting.
HELLO !! I'M GOING TO PLANT OMBUSES AND I DON'T KNOW IF I HAVE TO BUY MALE AND FEMALE, SINCE I CAN'T FIND COMMENTS ABOUT THIS, AND I KNOW THERE ARE SPECIES THAT DO NOT COME IF THEY ARE NOT IN A COUPLE.
BEAUTIFUL AND INTERESTING YOUR PAGE
!!
Hi Nidia.
The ombú is a dioecious tree, which means that the female and male flowers are found in separate specimens. I'm glad you like the blog 🙂.
A greeting.
HELLO MONICA, THANK YOU FOR YOUR ANSWER ...
THE PLANTS FINALLY ARRIVED, IN FACT THEY SENT THEM TO ME AS A COMMISSION AND TREATED THEM VERY BADLY!
MY CONCERN IS: 1-DO I HAVE TO PASS THEM TO EARTH IMMEDIATELY? OR WAIT FOR THEM TO DESTRESS FROM SO MUCH HUSKY ??
2 - THEY TOLD ME THAT IT WAS ADVANTAGE TO MAKE A LAND SLIDE AROUND THEM, IS THAT OK?
I THANK YOU FOR TAKING OUT QUESTIONS !! I HAVE A COMPLEX CALLED "LOS OMBÚ" AND THOSE I HAVE WHO ARE OLD AND HUGE ARE DYING SINCE THE PLACE WAS FLOODED FOR MORE THAN 7 MONTHS LAST YEAR.
THANK YOU AGAIN FOR YOUR HELP!!
Hi Nidia.
I answer you in parts:
1.- It is best to leave them in the pots until you see them growing.
2.- What is an avalanche? If you mean a kind of low-rise »barrier» made with earth so that the water does not leak out when you water, yes, it is advisable to do so.
Luck 🙂
Thanks Monica !! hahaha I put you an avalanche and it is a slope .. I think ???
Hi Nidia.
If you mean to put it on sloping ground, it may be smooth, but it better be on straight ground.
a greeting
Hi! I was born an ombu in a pot (I still don't know how). It is quite high, about a meter, but it was filled with a plague that I cannot fight. Can I prune it a bit, to give it more strength? Thanks!
Hello Silvia.
Do you know what plague it has? You can treat it with a universal insecticide, following the manufacturer's instructions.
If you want to lower its height you can do it without problems when it improves. Now it is better not to risk it.
A greeting.
The pest is a few dark husks on the back of the leaves. I'm putting Systemic Capxan capsules, buried near the trunk, but I don't see any improvement. As it has quite "messy" branches, I thought about pruning it a little to give it strength. Thanks for your answer!
Hello Silvia.
From what you count, it looks like it has mealybugs. This being the case, it is better to use insecticides that are applied by spraying directly on the leaves. Chlorpyrifos 48% is highly recommended; yes, it is important to wear gloves.
Greetings 🙂.
Hello, I have ombu plants in my patio and I want to transplant them to a larger place, but I do not know the right time. They are about one meter high. I would be grateful if you could help me the idea is that the trees do not suffer. Thanks.
Hello Natalia.
You can do it in late winter.
A greeting.
Hello, how about a consultation, at what time of the year is it better to plant them, at this time it is summer and it is quite hot but I wanted to plant a couple of ombues in the field. Thank you!!
Hello Facundo.
When it comes to the tree that it is and how strong it is, you can do it now, although the best time is in spring.
A greeting.
Hello, I am from Argentina and I have an ombunico bonsai that is about three years old. My question is that its leaves have white spots on the edges, rather a creamy color, is it a fungus? I prune its leaves and when it sprouts after a short time those spots reappear. That I have to do? Thanks.
Hi Viviana.
From what you count, yes, it looks like it has fungus. I recommend treating it with a spray fungicide.
A greeting.
Hello, I would like to know how long an ombú reaches the size of a tree. Thank you very much and greetings.
Hi Susan.
Well, I can't tell you for sure, but if it has the right growing conditions, maybe in 2-3 years.
A greeting.
Hello Monica:
I just discovered the blog, and I find it very interesting, as well as this article about ombú. However, I found an answer from a year ago that I would like you to review, because it is wrong, and surely due to a distraction. You answered Nidia the following:
Hello Nidia.
The ombú is a dioecious tree, which means that the female and male flowers are close together, and therefore are self-pollinated.
I'm glad you like the blog ? .
All the best."
Well, we agree that the ombú is a dioecious tree, but that means exactly the opposite of what you say. Indeed, in dioecious plants, the male flowers are found on one foot (a specific specimen) and the female, which will produce the fruits, on another foot (another different specimen). So yes, there are certain plants that bear only male flowers and other plants that bear only female flowers and fruits, and the plants are not self-pollinated, but fertilization is crossed between two different plants.
I am sorry to have raised this discrepancy, but it seems important to me to correct it, if you finally agree. Thanks and regards.
Hi Luis.
Thanks for your comment.
It is already corrected 🙂
A greeting.
Hello, from what I read in the comment that ombú is dioecious, it means that if there is an isolated plant it will not produce seeds, correct?
Unfortunately where I live they are about to cut down a specimen and I would like to be able to obtain at least one specimen before they make it disappear. Tried making cuttings, is this a viable path? After almost a month of making them, although the stem remains green, there are no signs of life. Could you give me some tips? Here in Argentina it's the middle of summer, I don't know if it's the right time either.
Thank you very much!
Hello Seba.
The only possible way to multiply the ombú is by seeds 🙁
Cuttings are not usually viable. You can water yours with homemade rooting agents Let's see if we are lucky.
A greeting.
Thank you very much Monica, I'm going to try it and then I'll stop by to comment on the results!
Good night they gave me ombu stakes, and I don't know how to make them root can you help me thank you very much, we are in Argentina in summer, can you give me some advice, thank you very much, I loved your page, thank you
Hi Claudia.
We are glad you like the blog.
Unfortunately, the ombú is not multiplied by cuttings. It's very complicated. But you can try by impregnating the base with homemade rooting agents, and then planting them in pots with soil, in semi-shade.
Luck.
I have had an ombú for 20 years, the problem is that it acquired a gigantic size, calculated about 30 meters and it unhooks due to the weight being very dangerous due to the weight of the logs. Its roots must have deepened to the water tables because it grows vigorously.
I don't know what to do .. if cut it with a chainsaw and leave it a few meters high or eliminate it….
Hello Hugo.
Being a very resistant and adaptable tree, I recommend pruning it before removing it.
Greetings.
Hello, I have an Ombú who is about 18 years old. It has yellow spots on the leaves. What disease would it be and how can it be fought?