Boswellia

Growing in Pots, Balconies & Indoors

The frankincense tree (Boswellia) is not a houseplant – the grower confirms – and it ultimately becomes a small tree (2-7 m), so a container suits it only while young or kept as a specimen. Its great advantage in a pot is that it can be moved to shelter, as it needs warmth (above about 5 C) and full sun.

Quick Details

• Container Size: Deep pot while young; it will eventually want a large tub or the open ground
• Indoor Suitability: Not a houseplant; a full-sun tree that resents low light
• Best Spot: Full sun – the brightest position available
• Soil & Drainage: Very well-drained, gritty soil; keep it on the dry side, especially when cool
• Watering in Pots: Low to average – let it dry between waterings and keep nearly dry in cool spells

Indoors & On the Windowsill

• Why not indoors: The grower does not treat it as a houseplant – it demands full sun and a dry, airy position no ordinary room provides, and it grows into a tree.
• Under cover: Where winters drop near or below about 5 C, keep the pot in a bright, frost-free spot and water sparingly until warmth returns.

On a Balcony or Patio

• Light & wind: Give it the hottest, sunniest, most open spot; it thrives on heat and sharp drainage. Water carefully – far more Boswellia are killed by wet, cold roots than by drought.
• Practicalities: A gritty mix in a heavy pot keeps a young tree stable; ensure runoff drains away freely.

Choosing the Pot, Soil & Long-Term Care

• Pot & drainage: Use a deep pot with generous drainage holes and no standing-water saucer – this plant hates wet feet. Terracotta is ideal because it breathes and dries out fast.
• Potting mix: A gritty, free-draining mix – loam or potting soil cut with coarse sand, perlite or grit; avoid heavy, water-holding composts.
• Feeding: Feed only lightly through the growing season; container plants lose nutrients to leaching, but this one prefers lean conditions to soft, overfed growth.
• Repotting: Pot up or refresh the mix every couple of years once roots fill the pot; take the chance to check drainage and trim any dead roots.

Bloom & Flower Guide

Quick Details

• Bloom Season: Spring
• Flower Appearance: Small five-petalled flowers — white, green, cream, yellow or red — carried in loose sprays
• Edibility: Ornamental only — the frankincense tree is grown for its aromatic resin and form, not for eating the flowers

Detailed Blooming Overview

In spring the frankincense tree carries small, five-petalled flowers gathered into loose sprays, in shades of white, green, cream, yellow or red. Plants are dioecious — male and female flowers are borne on separate trees — so a mix of trees is needed for seed. The bloom is modest next to the tree’s prized aromatic resin, but it is a quiet, pretty feature on the pinnate foliage.

Flower Characteristics

• Small flowers with five petals, in white, green, cream, yellow or red.
• Carried in inflorescences (loose sprays).
• Dioecious — male and female flowers grow on separate trees.

Bloom Care & Thinning

• Managing the bloom: Little is needed; any shaping is best done in winter, and full sun gives the strongest flowering.