Pedilanthus: home care and breeding methods
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Many flower lovers appreciate potted plants with beautiful blooming or amazing flowers and leaves, but there are also connoisseurs of exotic specimens. And the most unusual, of course, is the pedilanthus, a flowering that will attract everyone's attention. The plant is also called the "devil's backbone".
What does a pedilanthus look like?
The pedilanthus flower belongs to the Euphorbia family. Usually these are densely branched shrubs that grow mainly in the natural environment of Central, North and South America. The unusual shape of the flower in the form of shoes is a characteristic difference between pedilanthus and other plants, which is why they have become so popular among amateur flower growers.
Flowering pedilanthus
The height of the bushes often reaches two meters. Shoots are fleshy, slightly zigzag. Small, oblong, slightly wrinkled leaves, depending on the species, can have a different color (rich green or greenish with a light border), even look a little like artificial ones. The indoor flower pedilanthus produces flowers in the shape of an umbrella of bright pink color.
Common varieties
Florists today count 15 varieties of pedilanthus. Its representatives can have different structure and color of flowers. Below are the most popular species that are grown by Russian flower growers.
- Large-fruited pedilanthus - indoor flower with fleshy stems. The gray-green succulent growth can store water. Almost atrophied leaf plates look like small rounded scales. Red flowers with glossy petals are formed at the tops of the processes.
- Pedilanthus is titimaloid. A non-capricious houseplant is a branchy shrub that is covered with ovoid petiolate leaves. The length of the leaf reaches 10 cm, and the width is 5 cm. They are painted in bright green, pinkish, white or milky-cream shades. The color of the same species directly depends on the amount of light in the room and other living conditions. With the appearance of young shoots and foliage, the stem is slightly curved and gets a slightly stepped shape. Small inflorescences of 5-7 buds appear on the tops of the branches. Pedilanthus titimaloid, home care for which is easy and simple, produces red or orange flowers. The maximum height of the bush is 2 m. Very few lateral shoots are formed.
Pedilanthus titimaloid
- Pedilanthus Finka. The first descendant of the humid tropics in the form of a small tree has a beautiful spreading crown. Due to its interesting appearance, this variety of succulents is loved by many growers. Small oval-shaped leaves have a glossy surface and rich green color. They grow larger in the upper part of the plant, while the bare stem acquires a zigzag shape. To grow a flower, you will need a light substrate, which ensures free air access to the root system.
- Pedilanthus koalkomanensky. A flowering succulent plant stands out for its appearance from other varieties. Its shoots are practically naked and grow only in groups. Because of this, a dense bush is formed. The leaves of the plant are very small and practically invisible.This succulent plant absorbs and stores moisture well. Even in arid climates, the koalkomanensky pedilanthus will feel good. In the flowering phase, the succulent has bright pink or red inflorescences-shoes. They bloom only at the tops of the shoots.
- Pedilanthus spur. The eternally green giant spurge is considered the tallest tree-shaped plant among all pedilanthus species. Its height can reach up to three meters. The leaves have a glossy surface and a deep green color. On the shoots of a succulent in a rich green color, slightly wavy, elongated leaves are formed. Even though this plant variety is considered evergreen, under the influence of low temperatures and with a lack of moisture, it can shed foliage.
Pedilanthus Finca
Features of home care
Home plant care does not require a lot of time and any skills in floriculture.
Pedilanthus care
Temperature and lighting
For pedilanthus to grow normally, home care should be based on providing proper lighting. It is essential to protect the flower from direct sunlight. Otherwise, there should be as much light as possible throughout the year.
Like most tropical flowers, Pedilanthus loves warmth. In the spring and in the summer season, at the time of the growth of shoots and leaves, it is better to maintain the air temperature in the range from 23 ° С to 26 ° С. In winter, it is necessary to create dormant conditions with a decrease in temperature to 15-17 ° C. This is an important condition for the further release of flowers.
Watering
The indoor plant pedilanthus must be watered with extreme caution. Lack of moisture directly affects flowering, or rather, its absence, and excess watering can cause rotting and falling of the leaf mass. During the growing season, watering should be carried out regularly, avoiding the moment when the soil dries out or is completely flooded. Water more often in summer. The soil should always be moist, but it does not tolerate waterlogging. In winter, watering is reduced. If the leaves fall off the pedilanthus, what to do is to water the indoor flower more carefully. The plant may begin shedding leaves to retain moisture in the stems.
Humidity
The main features of this indoor plant are considered to be easy to care for and its unpretentiousness to the humidity of the ambient air. Pedilanthus feels good in dry rooms.
Priming
As you know, the main condition for good growth and development of any plant is the soil mixture. Titimaloid pedilanthus is no exception, although it is not a capricious plant, but it is better to choose a loose and moisture-consuming soil. The composition may vary, but excess humus is discouraged. You can use garden soil with a third of the sand added. Ideal for indoor flowers is ready-made succulent soil that can be purchased at the store, but at the same time adding sand to it. To form a flower correctly, the soil must be light and airy.
Top dressing
Florists are advised to feed fertilizing in the spring and / or autumn periods once a month. For this, fertilizers for pedilanthus with a low nitrogen content are used. If there is a lot of nitrogen in the soil mixture, then the root system, stems and even the leaf mass begins to rot.
When and how it blooms
Only that pedilanthus blooms, the care of which was correct.In indoor cultivation, in most cases, pedilanthus blooms in November - December, delighting with its spectacular inflorescences, shoes. When the flowers wither, cut them off with sharp scissors.
Pedilanthus color
Why does not it bloom
To understand why a plant does not release flowers, it is important to analyze all the negative factors that affect this process:
- damage to the plant by insect pests;
- fungal diseases;
- hypothermia;
- excess nitrogen;
- dry air.
Pruning and replanting
An indoor flower requires transplants as the voids of the pot are filled with roots. This does not happen so often, because the root system of the pedilanthus grows very slowly, so there is no need to worry about a transplant. In addition, the roots are placed compactly.
Flower transplant
The diameter of the transplant container should be approximately equal to its height. At the bottom of the pot, a layer of expanded clay must be placed. If you neglect the drainage layer, then most likely parts of the plant will begin to rot quickly. This is because the flower is sensitive to potted water stagnation.
To increase branching, a young plant must be systematically pruned. If you want to grow a beautiful ornamental plant, you need to constantly carry out gentle pruning of pagons in the spring and keep the flower pot in a dry and well-ventilated room. The constant removal of shoots is necessary to give the shrub an attractive appearance, due to which active branching will be observed.
Reproduction methods
It can reproduce well both by seeds and cuttings. The first option most often does not bring results when compared with cuttings. In more detail below, how to propagate pedilanthus by cuttings.
Germinating seeds
In the nature of pedilanthus, reproduction occurs by seeds and vegetatively. Seeds are ovoid and up to 8 mm long are formed only after pollination of red or bright pink flowers. When they are ripe, the pod of the flower bursts, scattering seeds in the surrounding area.
Flower propagation
At home, independent reproduction of pedilanthus by seeds is practically not practiced due to their high toxicity, the difficulty of pollination of flowers and the duration of the germination process.
Rooting cuttings
It is necessary to cut an indoor flower in the spring and summer. It is important to pinch off parts of the plant, the length of which should not be less than 8-10 cm. Initially, the cuttings are placed in water for a day, where you can also add honey (1 teaspoon per 1 liter of water). Before planting the cuttings in the potting mix, it is necessary to dry them for several days. Rooting is performed in practically dry sand or perlite. It is best not to cover the cuttings pot with plastic or other material to avoid rotting parts of the plant. To grow a new pedilanthus, propagation by cuttings is the best way to do this.
Possible diseases
In addition to the fact that the plant may darken or fall off the leaves, all kinds of insect pests can attack an indoor flower:
- aphids (tiny greenish insects that settle on young leaves, as a result of which their development stops and dies off);
- spider mite (the leaves of the flower begin to turn yellow and a white spider web appears on the back);
- whitefly (leaves turn yellow and begin to stick, white midges settle on them).
Falling leaves
A common problem is that pedilanthus variegated and other species of this plant begin to lose leaf mass. The main reason is improper flower care - too frequent or rare irrigation of the soil, scorching sun.It is necessary to find the cause of the disease and eliminate it.
Leaves turn pink
Common diseases of pedilanthus are fungal diseases, as well as root rot. The first symptoms are the appearance of dark pink spots on the leaves and darkening of the stems. If such signs arise, immediately you need to change the potting soil mixture, and rinse the root system thoroughly with warm water and treat with special antiseptics.
Plant diseases
If in winter it is noticed that the pedilanthus stem has begun to grow rapidly, this means that the plant is very hot and dark. If the flowering phase does not occur at the same time, this indicates that the wrong conditions were created during the dormant period. Dry brown leaf tips are a signal of low air humidity, and very light ones are a signal of insufficient lighting.
The indoor flower has medicinal properties. It is used in medicine as an antimicrobial agent. However, if you decide to take care of the flower, then you should be careful. The sap of the plant is toxic and leaves minor burns on contact with exposed skin. Otherwise, there will be no problems with pidelanthus.
