Image – Wikimedia/Paxson Woelber
Can you grow a rainbow eucalyptus in Spain? When we see so many specimens of other eucalyptus species grow without any problem in different parts of the geography of this country, we may come to the conclusion that it will not be difficult for us to grow a Eucalyptus deglupta -which is how the botanists call our protagonist- on the outside.
And well, their needs are somewhat special, which is why it will not always be an easy plant to maintain. In fact, we could almost compare it with the coconut palm, which is beautiful during the months when the weather is good, but then when the first cold weather arrives it begins to suffer. The same thing happens with this eucalyptus, since both the coconut tree and it need similar climates.
Where does the rainbow eucalyptus come from and what climate does it need?
Image - Wikimedia / Forest & Kim Starr
It is always important to know where a plant comes from to better understand its needs. In the case of rainbow eucalyptus, it must be said that it lives in the forests and tropical jungles of Papua New Guinea, the Moluccas islands as well as in Celebes, the latter two belonging to Indonesia. In any of these places, the weather is hot all year round, humid and it rains frequently.
This means that el Eucalyptus deglupta does not know the cold because it has not had to adapt to it, since in its habitat the lowest temperature is around 10-15ºC. And since water is always available, he hasn't had to take steps to withstand a drought either.
Another important fact is that It is a plant that grows always exposing itself to sunlight. Like the rest of the eucalyptus, this is a plant that in order to be really well needs to feel the sun's rays directly on its leaves and branches. For this reason, when growing it, it should never be placed in the shade or in areas with little light.
Would it be worth growing it in Spain?
Based on my experience growing tropical plants with similar needs -among which are the coconut tree, by the way- in a small town in the south of the island of Mallorca, I will tell you that it would only be worth the effort if the temperatures are not very extreme and if the air humidity is high throughout the year. And even so, if it drops to 10ºC or less, you would have to put it inside the house until spring returned.
And of course, indoors, a eucalyptus is a complicated plant, because it requires a lot of light -natural-, high air humidity, and pleasant temperatures, around 10 and 30ºC. Who can provide this for you? Today, with the growth of towns and cities, it is becoming more and more difficult to have a house with a room through whose windows a lot of light enters, because it is normal that there is a block of flats right in front of it, for example.
Now, there are solutions to this. There are growth bulbs for plants that consume little and that they can help the rainbow eucalyptus to grow -or at least to stay green- until we can get it out again, like this one for example:
How to take care of it in Spain?
Focusing more on care, I am going to explain to you now what you can do to keep your tree healthy:
Irrigation
Image - Wikimedia / David J. Stang
Irrigation is something that must be done yes or yes throughout the year, unless while you are outside it rains at some clear time. The water to be used will be rainwater, but if it is not available, then you could use any other that is suitable for human consumption. Water when the soil dries up, pouring the water onto said soil (that is, you do not have to wet the plant).
Humidity (of the air)
In the event that you live near the coast, or on an island, you do not have to worry about this. But if, on the other hand, you are far away, where humidity is low, you will have to spray your rainbow eucalyptus with water once a day. This way you will prevent its leaves from falling prematurely.
Fertilizer
So that you can make the most of the good weather, You have to pay it in spring and until the end of summer. Do it with quick-efficiency fertilizers, such as guano (for sale here), and follow the directions for use. In this way, you will be able to see that as the years go by, it grows more and more.
Transplant – pot change
It is important that you look if roots come out of the holes in the pot, since it is in the interest that it grow as much as possible so that it becomes stronger. Therefore, when the time comes, and whenever it is spring, you have to plant it in a container that measures about ten centimeters wide and high than the one you are already using, and fill it with universal growing medium.
As you can see, it is a complicated tree in our country, but it is so beautiful that it can be interesting to grow it in a pot.