Care for the Rulingia?

[Stroudy]

Hi

I recently purchased a nice young Rulingia, and my google skils failed. Anyway, to the point: Does anyone know of a sort of care guide for these fellas? Can they be indoor with a fluorescent light, decent humidity and next to a window? or should I keep it outside. Also, regarding watering. Should I follow the general bonsai lines of watering when the compost is dry? how moist should the compost be?
Any answers will be appreciated cheers.

[shibui]

I have not had a lot of luck with rulingia so far Stroudy but I can tell you some things I think it does not like.
Light - seems to need plenty of sunlight. Shaded areas quickly die back. I'd say this is the biggest reason to keep it outside. Most places indoors have low light levels, even though they seem bright to us.
Fertiliser - mine slowly deteriorated like a number of other natives and I suspect that a lot of it was due to starvation. Now that I am regularly fertilising my natives they are growing much better. No special fert needed for rulingia. Just use any fertiliser.
Water - not certain on this one but I'd say they want fairly well drained mix like most others and don't over water. The best one in our garden is on a bed that only gets rain.

It is a lovely species so good luck with the attempt. Please keep this thread updated (even if the plant fails) so we can all learn something from it.

[Boics]

Mine died too.
Very disappointed!
Loved the flowers!!

[Stroudy]

Thanks mates. I think my one may have been a little (somewhat) neglected at the garden centre, so idk if it'll make it through the month. Fingers crossed!

[Stroudy]

Bad news lads. Died in 3?! days. Queen of gardening (Mother in law) noticed some sort of insect and fungal infection. Had to return him with a receipt to the garden centre. Got a Botany bay fig instead. Sad days

[espeka]

Got a small Rulingia Hermannifolia about few months ago.
After it went through wonderful flowering, the leaves dried and now there're only about 3 green leaves...

First it was outdoor within patio, but now its been indoor by south-facing window for about a month. Watered regularly (every 2 days - as with my other indoor plants); but I haven't tried any fertilizer yet. Googling around, there seems to be conflicting information.

The post here said it needs lots of sunlight, so i've moved it to east facing windows where it's equally bright but with probably 5hrs direct sunlight at this time of the year. But I saw other sites saying it's best in partial shade to deep shade.

Anybody can help how's the best way to care for this plant?
Thanks a lot.

[EdwardH]

I had one a few years ago. It was kept in full sun and thrived. It likes plenty of water though good drainage is essential. Shoots back from old wood after pruning. I never bare rooted mine but slaughtered the roots with no ill effects.