Plant Finder

Other Names:  Money Plant, Guiana Chestnut, Saba Nut

Description:

This attractive plant is often grown as a houseplant but can become tree size in a frost free climate; interesting spider-like white flowers with red tipped stamens, followed by edible nuts; large palmate leaves makes it an perfect landscape accent

Ornamental Features

Money Tree is draped in stunning white spider-like flowers with red anthers in early spring. It has attractive green evergreen foliage. The large glossy pointy palmate leaves are highly ornamental and remain green throughout the winter. The fruits are showy tan pods carried in abundance from late summer to mid fall.

Landscape Attributes

Money Tree is a multi-stemmed evergreen tropical plant with an upright spreading habit of growth. Its relatively coarse texture can be used to stand it apart from other landscape plants with finer foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance tropical plant, and can be pruned at anytime. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Money Tree is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Shade
• Hedges/Screening
• Container Planting
• Bog Gardens

Planting & Growing

This plant is native to the tropics and prefers growing in moist environments with evenly warm conditions all year round. In our climate, it is usually grown as an outdoor annual in the garden or in a container. If you want it to survive the winter, it can be brought in to the house and provided with special care, and then returned to the garden the following season. In its preferred tropical habitat, as a tree it can grow to be around 15 feet tall at maturity, with a spread of 15 feet. However, when grown as an annual or when overwintered indoors, it can be expected to perform quite differently, and its exact height and spread will depend on many factors; you may wish to consult with our experts as to how it might perform in your specific application and growing conditions.

This tropical plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It is quite adaptable, prefering to grow in average to wet conditions, and will even tolerate some standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is quite intolerant of urban pollution, therefore inner city or urban streetside plantings are best avoided. This species is not originally from North America..

Money Tree is a fine choice for the yard, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. Its large size and upright habit of growth lend it for use as a solitary accent, or in a composition surrounded by smaller plants around the base and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.