Parkinsonia aculeata

FAMILY: Parkinsonia

Maintenance: Low maintenance requirements unless used in formal areas. May require root pruning whilst in nursery pots. Requires formative pruning to achieve a strong scaffold branch system to suit either high or low branching effect and to improve wind resistance. Fast growth can create weak or brittle wooded trees, prone to limb failure with excess irrigation and fertilisation contributing to this problem. Bark is thin and subject to mechanical damage by strimmers and mowers. Removal of seasonal leaf, midrib and pod litter, which in large plantings can clog up drains and create a problem for under-storey plants. Removal of seedlings. Benefits from a reapplication of the mulch together with a slow release 20.10.5 NPK with trace elements annually in spring. Wash leaves occasionally.