How to grow guzmania at home?

Guzmania is a genus of evergreen epiphytic and terrestrial plants belonging to the Bromeliaceae family. The genus has more than 130 species that naturally grow in tropical forests and on mountain slopes in the West Indies, Brazil, Venezuela, South Florida and Central America, and are also grown in apartments, the guzmania care at home with due regard will not be labor.

The genus got its name in honor of the botanist and zoologist Anastasio Guzman from Spain, who first described these plants in 1802.

General information about the Guzmania flower

Gusmanias are thermophilic plants and a temperature of about 25 degrees Celsius is required for them to bloom. These rainforest dwellers grow like epiphytes on trees and also take root in the soil.

The plant has bright green or variegated leaves with a solid edge, forming a funnel-shaped rosette, which can reach up to 50 centimeters in height and have the same diameter. In the center of the rosette, before flowering, inflower leaves appear, which have a bright color and stand out against the background of the rest of the leaves.

Some species "throw away" inflorescences on long peduncles. Guzmania home care in which all recommendations were followed blooms only at the age of 2-3 years. The duration of flowering can be more than 3 months, but after that, the mother plant dies off.

This is a feature of all representatives of bromeliads, which bloom only once in their life, after which they give side shoots and die off.

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Guzmania species and varieties

Guzmania Zana or Tsana (Guzmania zahnii) is a plant with oblong-pointed leaves, the length of which can reach 70 centimeters, and the width is from 2.5 to 3 centimeters. The color of the leaves can be greenish-red or green-yellowish with a large number of red longitudinal veins. Stem leaves are red in color.

The length of the inflorescence is 18 to 25 centimeters. Bracts and flowers are golden yellow. There is a variety of this type of guzmania - variegated, which has longitudinal stripes on whitish leaves. The native land of this species is Colombia.

Guzmania Donnell-Smith (Guzmania donnell-smithii) is a plant whose leaves form a loose rosette and are up to 60 centimeters long and 3 centimeters wide. Leaf shape - lingual, pointed towards the top. Leaves are green with pale colored scales.

The peduncle of the plant is erect, tightly closed with tiled leaves. The inflorescence is short, dense, pyramidal-paniculate with a bare axis. On the inflorescence, the lower leaves are bent, have a wide-oval shape with a sharp end and a bright red color.

The resulting spikelets are dense, consist of 2-3 flowers with an axis 1 cm long. Bracts are much shorter than sepals, thin-filmy, glabrous, rounded and up to 10 centimeters long.Sepals are narrowly elliptical, forming a short tube. Flower petals are fused, with oval, obtuse lobes. The plant blooms in April-May. The homeland of this type of guzmania is the rain forests of Costa Rica and Panama.

Guzmania blood red (Guzmania sanguinea Mez) is a tropical beauty with broad-linear leaves, with a curved top downward and a solid edge, which form a goblet rosette. The leaves are up to 30 centimeters long and turn bright red during the flowering period. In this species, the peduncle is not developed, and the yellow flowers are on flattened short pedicels, uniting in inflorescences of 7-12 pieces.

The flower petals are spliced ​​and form a long, narrow tube. Bracts are larger than sepals. The flowering period is April and August. This guzmania is widespread in the wild in the forests of Colombia, Costa Rica, and Ecuador. It has several varieties:

• brevipedicellata is characterized by helmet-shaped, pointed bracts;
• sanguinea has rounded bracts with a sharp end, white or greenish-yellow petals;
• tricolor - there are longitudinal whitish stripes on dark green leaves.

Guzmania mosaic (Guzmania musaica) - plants with a spreading rosette of entire, rounded leaves with a sharp end, which have decorative dark green stripes on their light green surface. The leaves can be up to 70 centimeters long and 5-8 centimeters wide. The peduncle of the plant is straight, much shorter than the leaves.

The inflorescence of the capitate spike bears from 12 to 20 yellowish-white flowers, the base of which is covered with wide, leathery, obovate bracts of bright pink color. Leathery, fused sepals are twice as long as bracts and are yellowish in color. This species was presented by the nature of Colombia and Panama.

Guzmania Nicaraguan (Guzmania Nicaraguensis) - a plant with a dense goblet rosette of leaves, in which the inflorescence is immersed. The rosette consists of 10-15 lingual leaves with a sharp end, having a length of up to 6 centimeters and a width of up to 2.5 centimeters, which are covered from below, with time disappearing, small, pressed pale colored scales.

The inflorescence of this guzmania is not multi-flowered, simple on a non-pubescent peduncle, having a length of up to 10 centimeters. Thin-filmy bracts have a broadly pointed shape and are up to 5 centimeters long.

The flowers are placed on short, erect legs with yellow petals, which grow together to form a tube. The ends of the petals remain free. Thin, elliptical sepals, up to 2.5 centimeters long, grow together at the base. Forests of Central America and Mexico are considered the homeland of this species.

Guzmania one-headed (Guzmania monostachia) is a plant with a dense rosette of numerous narrow-linear leaves with a pointed end up to 40 centimeters long and 2 centimeters wide. The leaves are colored yellow-green, which is paler below.

On a straight, bare peduncle, there is a cylindrical, multi-row, simple ear, reaching 15 centimeters in length and 3 centimeters in diameter. Thin-filmy bracts have an oval, pointed shape. Flowers with fused white petals, up to 3 centimeters long.

There are varieties:

• alba - has one-color leaves and bracts of two colors - white on top and green on the bottom;
• variegata - the leaves of this plant have white streaks on a green background;
• monostachia - the plant is characterized by pale colored bracts of fertile flowers with longitudinal dark brown strokes.

This species is widespread in the forests of South Florida, Nicaragua, Peru, Northern Brazil and India.

Guzmania reed (Guzmania lingulata) - a plant that forms very beautiful, spectacular and decorative inflorescences, which must be removed after flowering. This guzmania grows epiphytically on the trees of mountain forests in Brazil, Honduras and Bolivia.The leaves are pointed, broadly linear, with a solid edge, forming dense dense rosettes. The length of the leaves is from 30 to 45 centimeters, the width is 4 centimeters.

On a straight, short and thick peduncle there is a corymbose multi-flowered inflorescence with a diameter of about 7 centimeters. Small yellow flowers are up to 4 centimeters long and are decorated with reddish bracts. The flowering period is winter or early spring.

This type of guzmania is very variable. The following varieties are known in nature:

• сardinalis - has a multi-flowered inflorescence with bright red spreading inflorescence leaves. Blooms in March and September.
• flammea - has shorter (up to 34 cm) and narrow (up to 1.7 cm) leaves. The flowering period is July, August.
• lingulata is a large plant with numerous flowers and inflorescences with erect leaves of red or pink color. Flowering time - December, March, August.
• minor is a one-color small plant with erect, red-flowered leaves. Blooms from February to July.

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Guzmania home care

Guzmania refers to plants that can grow in both shaded and bright places. When grown at home on sunny windows, it is necessary to provide protection from direct sunlight at noon by shading with a translucent cloth or paper. It feels best on windows facing west or east.

Nordic windows can be used to grow the plant, but the tropical beauty may not bloom. In summer, it is advisable to take out the pots of plants to fresh air, while protecting them from direct sun, drafts and precipitation. If it is impossible to keep guzmania outdoors, it is necessary to regularly ventilate the room.

From autumn to spring, guzmania at home does not need shading, on the contrary, a sufficient amount of light is needed. It is even recommended to create additional lighting using fluorescent lamps with a duration of at least 8 hours.

In this case, the lamps are placed at a distance of 60 centimeters from the plants. In winter, airing is also necessary, only you need to make sure that the plant does not fall under the influence of drafts.

Guzmania home care needs warm, as it is a thermophilic plant and prefers "living" at temperatures from 20 to 25 degrees in the spring-summer period. In winter, when the plant has a dormant period, it must be kept in a cooler room with a temperature of 15-18 degrees. The minimum tolerable temperature is 12 degrees Celsius.

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Guzmania flower watering and the necessary moisture

During the period of growth and development (from about March to October), guzmania home care needs abundant watering as the soil dries out. At the same time, water is poured directly into the outlet. It is advisable to water the guzmania in the morning.

The water in the sockets should always remain at a level of about 2.5 centimeters, and it should be renewed once a month. After flowering and before the beginning of the dormant period, the water must be removed from the outlet.

In winter, watering guzmania is carried out in moderation, after the soil dries out by about half the pot. If the air temperature is below 20 degrees, then the plant is not watered at all, but only sprayed. Water poured into the outlet funnel at the end of the flowering of the guzmania provokes decay.

If the guzmania is placed on a bromeliad tree, then every 10 days it is removed from the support and lowered into water until saturated, after which excess water is allowed to drain and placed back on the tree.

If in winter the plant is kept at temperatures above 20 degrees, then occasionally it is allowed to pour a small amount of warm water into the outlet.

Water for irrigation guzmania should be soft, well-settled and warm (about 3 degrees higher than the room temperature).

Like all tropical plants, guzmania loves air saturated with a large amount of moisture. She will feel best in humid greenhouses and terrariums. Guzmania home care in which you can place plant pots on pallets with wet pebbles, expanded clay or moss.

In this case, the bottom of the pot should not be in contact with water. Also, to ensure the necessary humidity, spraying is carried out several times a day, especially if the air in the room is dry.

Guzmania home care involves periodically cleaning the leaves from dust by wiping with a damp cloth. It is not recommended to use wax to add shine to the leaves.

From May to August, fertilization is carried out at intervals of once a month. For these purposes, it is best to use special fertilizers for bromeliads, but in the absence of these, ordinary fertilizer for indoor plants with a low nitrogen content, which is destructive in large doses for guzmania, is also suitable.

The fertilizer is dissolved in water for irrigation and poured into an outlet. When using conventional fertilizer, its dose must be reduced by 4 times than for other plants.

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Guzmania care and transplant

The guzmania flower is transplanted about once every 2-3 years, as needed. The procedure can be carried out only after flowering is complete, when the educated children grow up a little. When transplanting, care must be taken not to deepen the neck of the plant, which will inevitably lead to its death.

Caring for guzmania also implies the selection of not too large pots, it is better to take shallow and wide ones. Which 1/3 the pot is filled with drainage from pieces of wine cork or expanded clay. The substrate for guzmania needs loose. You can purchase a mixture for epiphytic plants at a flower shop, or you can prepare it yourself.

There are several "recipes" for its preparation:

• chopped pine bark - 3 parts, high moor peat - 1 part, chopped sphagnum moss - 1 part, leafy earth - 1 part, humus - 0.5 part. A little perlite and charcoal are also added here.
• Leafy ground - 1 part, coconut fiber - 1 part, pieces of pine bark - 0.5 part, sand - 0.5 part, sphagnum moss - one handful.
• Taken in equal parts, universal soil, sand and pieces of pine bark.
• Shredded fern roots - 3 parts and sphagnum moss - 1 part.

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Guzmania seed reproduction at home

In rare cases, seed propagation is possible. It is much easier and safer to reproduce by offspring.

Before sowing, the seeds are washed with a weak solution of potassium permanganate and dried. The sowing mixture is prepared from crushed sphagnum or peat and sand. Since the seeds germinate in the light, they are scattered over the soil surface.

The required temperature for successful germination is 24 degrees. It is necessary to carry out regular ventilation and spraying. Seedlings can be expected 10-20 days after sowing.

After another 2.5 months, young plants dive into a substrate consisting of 1 part of sod land, 2 parts of leafy soil and 1 part of peat. Six months later, the grown guzmania are planted in pots. Guzmania home care, even if it was followed with all the recommendations, flowering can be expected no earlier than in 3-4 years.

At the end of flowering, the guzmania dies off, "giving life" at the same time to numerous offspring that sprout from the buds of renewal. In 2 months, these processes will form several leaves and weak roots.

During this period, they are carefully separated and seated in pots filled with crushed sphagnum or a mixture consisting of 1 part of sand and pine bark and 3 parts of leafy earth taken.

The planted sprouts are placed in a place where the temperature is 26-28 degrees Celsius, and covered with a glass container or a plastic bag for faster growth and development of plants. After successful rooting and noticeable growth, "young people" begin to accustom themselves to the usual conditions of detention.

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Guzmania possible difficulties

• With excessive watering, root rot is possible.
• Often, guzmania are affected by fungal diseases due to being kept in too warm and humid rooms.
• Brown spots on the leaves indicate sunburn.
• The tips of the leaves turn brown when there is insufficient air humidity, as well as watering with hard water or the lack of the required amount of water in the outlet.
• The dying off of a plant at the end of flowering is a natural process.
• The appearance of yellow spots on the leaves with a gradual yellowing and death of the leaf as a whole indicates a lesion with a red spider mite.
• The appearance of brown plaques-tubercles on the leaves - the plant is affected by the bromeliad scale.
• If the leaves are covered with a white cotton-like fluff, it means that a mealybug attack has occurred.
• If the plant does not form daughter, then it means that it lacks nutrients.
• Drooping and soft leaves indicate a low temperature of the guzmania content.

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Tropical epiphytes are very interesting plants, which is clearly demonstrated by guzmania. Its habitat is the forests of America. Most often it can be found on the bark of dead trees. Therefore, its roots are used in a slightly different sense than that of traditional plants. The plant satisfies its need for moisture from the air.

Guzmania is a classic herb with long leaves, bright bracts and miniature flowers... Indoor specimens are compact in size, growing no more than 0.5 m in height. The reason for this is due to the fact that in natural conditions they lack moisture and lighting. However, even in such conditions, guzmania can develop quite well.

The decorative character of the guzmania is given by the bracts, which can have a variety of colors: bright red, orange, brown, burgundy and orange. They look very beautiful against the background of bright greenish leaves, decorated with patterns, which makes guzmania even more attractive. When the white flowers wither, the fruit boxes, which contain many small seeds, begin to ripen. They can subsequently serve as planting material for the propagation of guzmania.

Seeing this plant for the first time, many growers may think that it will not be easy to grow it at home. However, this is not at all the case, because if you follow the rules for growing guzmania at home, then even a novice florist can replenish his green corner with guzmania.

Home care for guzmania

Regardless of the cultivated variety, when caring for guzmania at home adhere to general rules, which makes it possible to provide conditions for this plant that practically do not differ from natural ones.

Lighting and air temperature

Like any houseplant, guzmania is very dependent on lighting. Therefore, it is best to grow it on a windowsill facing the west and east side. It is not recommended to place plants on the south side, where it will be exposed to direct sunlight. It will not do the plant any good. It is not the best solution to grow guzmania on the north side, since the lack of light will prevent it from blooming. Guzmania feels most comfortable at temperatures not lower than 25 degrees in summer and 18 degrees in winter.

It is also necessary maintain an optimal level of humidity, which must be at least 85%.Proper care of guzmania also involves regular airing of the room. However, here it is necessary to ensure that drafts do not occur, since they can cause a delay in flowering, as well as create favorable conditions for the development of certain diseases.

Watering

For the guzmania flower, watering is also very important, which must be carried out using warm, settled water. It must be directed directly into a power outlet, where it will remain throughout the summer. Winter watering is different in this regard, since it is necessary to control the excess water not absorbed by the plant and drain it after each watering. In order to provide the guzmania with the necessary amount of moisture in summer, it must be watered every day, and in winter, watering is reduced to 2 times a week.

Before placing a flower pot in the pallet, lay gravel or mosswhich must be kept moist. On hot days it may be necessary to water the soil. To maintain the optimum moisture level, the plant should be sprayed every day.

Fertilizing guzmania

Home care does not provide for feeding as a mandatory measure. However, they should not be completely ruled out. Experts recommend applying fertilizer for orchids to the soil every month during the summer by adding the prepared solution to the outlet. This will help the peduncles to form earlier, as well as increase the flowering period of the guzmania.

Diseases, pests and ways to control them

Proper care of gusmania presupposes strict adherence to growing conditions. Otherwise it may cause the appearance of certain diseases:

• Fungal diseases (powdery mildew, gray rot, etc.). The reason for their appearance is associated with high humidity and air temperature. An effective method of combating them is the use of a fungicide;
• spider mites, scale insects and mealybugs. Favorable conditions for the appearance of the pests described above are low air temperature, excessive soil moisture, and the use of contaminated soil. At the first signs of the presence of pests, the plant is treated with an insecticide.

Reproduction of guzmania at home

You can get new guzmania bushes with the help of lateral processes and children, the formation of which occurs after the death of the mother plant, as well as seeds.

Features of reproduction by children

During the flowering period of the main plant, children are formed. When they reach a height of 15 cm, they begin to be divided and transplanted into individual containers. By this time, the main plant dries up completely, while the children have four leaves, as well as a well-developed root system. This usually takes two to four months from the time the shoots appear.

It is recommended to plan the transplantation of Guzmania children in the spring. First, you need to remove the plants from the container, carefully separate the processes with a sharp knife, after which you can get rid of the mother plant.

Preparing the soil for gusmania

The agrotechnology of planting guzmania involves the use of soil of a suitable composition. It is very important that it has a loose structure. To do this, it can be prepared from the following components:

• Sod land;
• Peat;
• Sphagnum moss;
• Coarse sand.

For quick rooting of the shoots, you can use the following soil substrate:

• Leafy land - 3 parts;
• Pine bark - 1 part;
• Coarse sand - 1 part.

In cases where it is difficult to prepare your own planting soil, it can be replaced prepared soil for orchids and bromeliads... The transplantation of children itself is recommended to be carried out in low containers of small diameter. Before laying the soil, the containers are filled with drainage. In the process of transplanting, you need to be very careful with young shoots because of their fragile roots. Any slightest injury can lead to the death of the plant.

When the kids are in the pot, they are covered with plastic wrap. Then they are transferred in a room where it is necessary to maintain a temperature of at least 28 degrees. If this condition is met, the children begin to grow rather quickly, and caring for them will be similar to adult plants. The first flowers appear only after 3 years. At the same time, this moment can be accelerated if you do not separate the children from the mother plant, but let them grow further in the old container. Then the flowering phase will begin in a year. In this case, you will need to carefully trim the mother plant.

How to grow guzmania from seeds?

Even before sowing seeds need to be processed... To do this, they are placed for disinfection in a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Next, planting is carried out directly into the soil prepared on the basis of peat and sand, taken in equal quantities. It is not required to sprinkle the seeds with a layer of earth on top. Containers with landings are covered with glass or plastic wrap. After that, they are transferred to a lighted room, where it is necessary to maintain the air temperature at 25 degrees. The seeds germinate after about three weeks. After a month, the seedlings will reach a state sufficient to be dived into individual pots with a diameter of 7 cm.

Transplanting an indoor flower guzmania

This plant can be grown in one planting container. during several years... The need for a flower transplant may arise only after purchase. Indeed, as a rule, in stores, guzmania is offered in transport soil, in which this exotic plant cannot grow normally. Therefore, as soon as it is in the apartment, it will need a new nutrient soil, which has a looser composition.

Given that guzmania is a tropical plant, novice growers can face certain difficulties during breeding:

• lack of flowering. One of the reasons for this may be a lack or excess of lighting, as well as a lack of nutrition and low humidity. Therefore, the first step is to determine what exactly caused this condition. After that, measures are taken to stimulate flowering. Apples or bananas can help in this, which are placed next to the plant and cover the flower with plastic. The ethylene production process will start in a couple of days. This gas is very effective on bromeliads, which bloom rather quickly. However, it is necessary to constantly monitor the condition of the fruit, since it is important to prevent their rotting and the formation of mold;
• wilting leaves. Most often this is caused by stagnation of water in the outlet, which is fraught with rotting of the root system. This situation can be corrected by reducing the number of irrigations. In some cases, the activity of certain pests can lead to this;
• slow growth or lack thereof. The most likely reasons are low soil fertility, lack of nutrients and lighting.

The uniqueness of the guzmania plant lies in the fact that its positive effect extends both to people and to the entire atmosphere in the house. Therefore, people living in a room with this flower quickly get out of a depressive state, receive a charge of vital energy. In such houses, an atmosphere of peace, harmony and tranquility often reigns. Cultivation of guzmania allows you to concentrate powerful energy flows in the surrounding space, and also contributes to an increase in well-being and brings happiness to the house.

When grown in the wild, this flower is usually associated with masculine strength. Therefore, it is often used in the bedroom, where it demonstrates the properties of a natural aphrodisiac.

Conclusion

There are not many among domestic gardeners who are well acquainted with guzmania.This tropical plant is very interesting to grow in our climate. Not only flowers differing in a varied color palette can attract in it.

Guzmania is of interest because of its unique ability to positively influence the well-being of people who quickly improve their mood and also pass their depression. And even the fact that the natural habitats of the plant are the tropics cannot prevent flower growers in our country from enjoying this plant. It provides simple growing rules at home, therefore, with their exact observance, even this exotic plant can feel normal in our latitudes and have a positive effect on people.

Guzmania flower

Guzmania is a rather unusual plant, which, despite the peculiarities of life (the development of the root system of guzmania occurs due to its strengthening on the bark of trees), can also be grown at home by a novice florist. The main thing is to follow the simple rules for caring for guzmania mix. Further about this, as well as about the features of plant transplantation and reproduction (photos and instructions are attached).

Guzmania mix: description of the plant, characteristics of varieties

Guzmania is an epiphytic evergreen perennial that in some cases can behave like an annual plant, that is, it blooms for only one season. Although the plant is native to the rainforests of South America, it has taken root well at home.

In indoor conditions, the leaves of the plant can reach 0.5-0.7 m. They are distinguished by a smooth structure, rather wide, and have a straight shape. Gathering together, the leaves of the plant form a bromeliad rosette, culminating in luxurious flowers.

An adult plant is capable of reaching a height of about 0.7-0.75 m, the crown diameter is almost the same as the height of the crop. At home, unfortunately, the guzmania is not able to achieve this size: its height does not exceed 0.35-0.4 m.

Attention! Guzmania begins to bloom only by the 4th year of its life. Six months after the beginning of flowering, the plant begins to die, but at the same time young small sprouts grow.

The flowering of the plant begins with the arrival of spring and ends by mid-autumn. At the same time, the flowers themselves look rather modest, but the inflorescences are distinguished by an incredibly exotic bright appearance: the rosette has a yellow-orange color and reaches a length of about 5 cm.

Under natural conditions, about 130 varieties and varieties of guzmania grow, but only a few of them take root well in indoor conditions:

• Mosaic. In length, the leaves can reach 0.5 m. The color of the leaves is very unusual: dark green or brown transverse stripes flaunt brightly on them. Flowering begins in late winter (usually with the arrival of February). The inflorescences are very large and bright, the number of flowers in one can reach 20-25 pieces.

Mosaic

• Reed. This variety is represented by a large number of varieties, among which Guzmania minor can be distinguished. This is a compact plant (it is considered a dwarf in comparison with other varieties), during the flowering period it is covered with a large number of small small white flowers. Flowering begins with the arrival of winter / spring.

Reed Guzmania, grade Minor

• Blood red. The leaves of the plant are distinguished by their decorative appearance: they form a kind of glass. Thyroid inflorescences usually consist of 10-12 small fiery red flowers.

Blood red

• Donnatella-Smith. The leaves are rather unusual, with a scaly structure, forming a kind of loose rosette.

Donnatella-Smith

• One-headed. The variety is distinguished by leaves of a yellow-green hue. The inflorescence is spicate, with a large number of white flowers. The flowers are pyramidal. Flowering lasts for two months in spring, starting in April.

One-spiked

The subtleties of plant care

Despite the formed myth that guzmania is a very wayward and difficult plant to grow, in practice it turned out that this representative of the tropics is quite capable of taking root at home. The main thing is to follow simple rules:

1. Watering. A strict irrigation schedule must be followed. Firstly, settled warm water is poured into the sockets, its residues are drained after a short period of time. Secondly, watering can only be carried out during a dry hot period. Thirdly, watering should be carried out at least 3-4 times a week with a frequency of 1 time in 2 days.
2. Humidity and temperature levels. Since the guzmania is native to the tropics, it, of course, is very fond of moisture and heat. The best option for a plant is a room with an air temperature of about + 25 + 30 degrees. To maintain the required level of humidity, it is better to rearrange the guzmania to the loggia or to the balcony in winter, and in the summer to the kitchen or bathroom (if there is a window there). A humidifier by spraying the leaves of the plant from a spray bottle will help to raise the humidity level.

   Direct sunlight is harmful for guzmania

3. Lighting. The ideal option for locating guzmania is a place in a semi-dark eastern room. In winter, it is advisable to rearrange the plant to the south side so that it can receive maximum solar heat and light. Under no circumstances expose the plant to the windowsill, as bright direct rays will provoke burns on the leaves.
4. Top dressing. Guzmania especially needs top dressing in summer and spring, when she spends her energy on flowering. It is quite difficult to choose the best fertilizer for guzmania manually, so it is better to use a ready-made complex of mineral and organic fertilizers for bromeliads. It is better to add them to the soil no more than 1-2 times a month.

Advice. After watering, the water should not stagnate in the soil. It is better if it is overdried than flooded with water, otherwise you can bring the plant to death.

Plant transplant

Since the guzmania develops rather slowly, it does not need frequent transplants: it will be comfortable in the same pot for several years. Transplantation is most often carried out only in two cases: when the plant was purchased in a transport container or during its propagation.

In the first case, the actions will be very simple. First, you need to prepare the soil in a pot where the guzmania will "live": it should consist of peat, sod land, sand (coarse fraction) and sphagnum (or you can use a ready-made soil mixture). Place a small drainage layer on the bottom of the container.

Guzmania is propagated by dividing the bush

Carefully remove the plant from the container and place it in the pot with the prepared drainage layer. Then cover with prepared soil and compact it slightly. Be sure to water both the soil and the plant itself.

Plant propagation

The process of reproduction of guzmania is carried out mainly by division. During the flowering period, an adult plant gradually forms small shoots, which eventually turn into full-fledged young plants.

By the time the young shoots reach a size sufficient to separate from the mother bush (about 15 cm in length), it will already begin to die. After the young process is fully formed, you can separate it from the maternal one and transplant it into a separate container according to the same principle, which is described just above.

That's all the subtleties you need to know to successfully grow guzmania at home. Good luck!

How to care for guzmania: video

Exotic on the windowsill raises your mood and gives you a lot of positive emotions. Therefore, despite all possible difficulties, flower growers grow epiphytes and orchids at home, which require increased attention in the process of organizing their care. Guzmania flower has excellent aesthetic properties.The indoor inhabitant develops rapidly at home and gives a bright, long flowering. Unfortunately, this beauty is not durable. The plant belongs to annuals. We offer you to find out the rules for caring for guzmania at home, about how children are planted and transplanted after flowering. Reproduction by air layers is possible. We will talk about all this further, but for now, look at the photo of the guzmania in various states of flower development:

Meet - the Guzmania flower and its photo

A more accurate name for the culture, used by botanists, sounds like Guzmania, it belongs to the numerous family of bromeliads. Another famous relative is pineapple. Getting to know each other better - Bromeliaceae introduce us to the indoor guzmania flower, striking the imagination with its beauty and grace. Look at his photos, illustrating the rich possibilities of the plant in solving decorative problems:

In the wild, the culture is now found in great diversity on both American continents. Refers to epiphytes (parasites) that grow in symbiosis with other plants. Ordinary soil for growing at home will not work, since the root system can only develop in the presence of a fungus on the bark of trees. Most of the moisture in the deciduous mass enters from the ambient air through massive aerial roots. In the indoor conditions of guzmania, you should regularly arrange a warm shower, spray the air around it from a spray bottle every day. Scientists have recorded more than a hundred species of this culture, no more than 10 of them are used at home. Guzmania mix, reed and rondo minor are most adapted to indoor conditions. They are not whimsical and develop successfully in any conditions.

The description can be found in many botanists. They are long dense leaves with pointed edges, absolutely smooth and very dense. They are collected in a bunch, from the center of which a peduncle appears over time. The height of an adult plant is 40-50 cm. During flowering, a single bud of burgundy or orange, yellow or white blooms. Less common are specimens with brown and pink buds. This is already a real exotic.

How to care for guzmania at home?

It is advisable to purchase not an adult plant in specialized stores, but its children, which can quickly take root. How to care for guzmania in compliance with all the rules of agricultural technology in order to grow a strong and strong flowering plant? Let's try to figure it out. You should start with the rules for watering guzmania at home, since it is this event that affects the ability of the culture to eject the peduncle. So, for irrigation, you can take only well-filtered water. Even a small amount of chlorine can completely destroy the root system. The basic rules of this procedure:

• from March to November, watering is carried out every other day, from November to February, watering is carried out once a week;
• for irrigation, water is dripped into the center of the leaf rosette;
• after watering, after 10 minutes, the remaining water should be drained;
• watering the soil mixture is required once every 2 weeks; in summer, in hot weather, you can water it once a week;
• air irrigation is carried out in the morning and in the evening every day - for this it is necessary to spray water around the bush for 2-3 minutes;
• Another type of watering is wiping the entire deciduous mass with a damp sponge once every 10 days, with the help of this technique, diseases and pests are fought.

Never leave water in the outlet after watering for more than 10 minutes. Doing so can rot the socket. The soil should always be dry, except for those days when the earthen coma is wetted.

And now let's move on to choosing a place for the permanent finding of an indoor Guzmania flower at home, and there are also certain tricks and secrets here. First of all, it is worth remembering that it is impossible to keep this culture on the windowsill. She suffers greatly from direct sunlight. Easily tolerates long-term shade, so the plant is ideal for interior gardening. In winter, it is better to rearrange it closer to the southern window, and in summer, the guzmania will feel great next to the northern or western window.

The ambient air temperature suitable for normal development is in the corridor between 20 and 25 degrees Celsius. In winter, a decrease of up to 15 - 17 degrees is allowed. The possibility of the influence of drafts should be excluded - this will help to get a large bright flower. Under the influence of low temperatures, flowering is excluded. If we talk about air humidity, then everything is clear - the higher the percentage of moisture in the air, the more comfortable it is for guzmania. The ideal place for its growth is the kitchen, where something is constantly being cooked, boiled, tap water flows. The foliage should be sprayed in the room at least 2 times a day.

Features of growing and reproduction by children

Even exotic epiphytes can be successfully grown if all the rules are followed. The features of growing guzmania are already partially described above, but it is worth talking about how the reproduction is carried out by children. Botanical feature - the dying off of the mother plant after the full maturation of the "baby". At its core, this is a new bush that begins to grow nearby during the formation of the peduncle. As soon as flowering ends, the main plant begins to dry out, giving way to a new one. The florist can only remove the dried leaves. In this state, guzmania at home can be grown for several years. In the event that 2 children have formed, one must be transplanted into a separate pot.

For this, a special soil is prepared, 2/3 consisting of tree bark, sawdust and small pebbles. You can also add sphagnum, construction or river sand, broken brick. The more structured and light the soil is, the faster the plant will develop. In some cases, it is better to purchase a special soil for bromeliads at the store. When planting or replanting, the roots should be carefully placed in a shallow pot and sprinkled with soil carefully. From above, the soil is slightly compacted and watered abundantly. After this procedure, the plant should be placed in the shade for 10 days and the foliage should be sprayed with water 4-5 times a day. To obtain a peduncle, it is important to maintain an optimal balance of organic and mineral fertilizers in the soil. Top dressing begins in the first decade of March and continues until the end of September. Recommended schedule: once every 2 weeks with an organic solution and once every 2 weeks with a mineral complex. Foliar dressing gives the best results. For this, the prepared warm solution is poured directly into the leaf outlet. Do not be discouraged if flowering does not come for a long time. Usually bromeliads bloom 4-5 years after planting. After a bright climax, the plant dries up. Repeated flowering is not observed. To speed up flowering, many growers use a simple and effective technique. An apple cut into quarters is placed in a plastic bag (directly on the soil next to the plant) and the guzmania is covered with this bag. A month later, the plant blooms due to the impact of ethylene secreted by the apple.

What guzmania brings to the house and other questions

Many novice florists ask questions about a new culture for themselves. What does guzmania bring to the house according to ancient beliefs? It is believed that this flower gives happiness and well-being in family life. It is able to endow the inhabitants of the apartment with excellent health, optimism and generosity.There are other, more material issues. What prevents normal growth and development? Slow growth may be associated with improper soil selection, lack of regular watering. Also adversely affected by the proximity of the window and the influence of direct sunlight. Sometimes the lack of growth and development for several months is a signal that the guzmania is preparing to throw out the peduncle. No flowering and leaves dry up. If the guzmania does not bloom in the prescribed period for it (the plant is more than 5 years old), then it is necessary to look for the cause of this phenomenon. Usually it lies in a lack of lighting, irregular watering and a lack of nutrients in the soil. For the same reason, the leaves dry out. You can revive them by regular watering and spraying air around the bush. Look at the video all the intricacies of caring for guzmania at home