Conditions for keeping arrowroot tricolor
Attracted by the beauty of the tricolor arrowroot, growers should remember that this decorative native of the tropics needs special conditions for active growth and well-being. First of all, this concerns the location of the flower.
If most indoor crops claim well-lit areas of the windowsill, then arrowroot is better to take the corner away from direct sunlight, but in dense shade, where the leaves will lose their brightness and acquire a grayish tint. In the summer, the arrowroot tricolor, as in the photo, has enough natural light, but from mid-autumn it is better for the florist to take care of additional lighting.
Arrowroot needs warmth and moisture. Drying out the soil in a pot, like staying in a cold room, is a serious risk for a plant that is accustomed to something completely different in nature.
The combination of cold and excessive moisture of the substrate is especially dangerous. The coolness is perceived by the arrowroot tricolor as the beginning of a dormant period, so the plant reduces its moisture and nutrient intake. With an excess of non-consumed and poorly evaporated moisture in the soil, harmful microorganisms multiply, putrefactive processes develop on the roots.
Plants of the rainforest not only relate well to moisture in the soil, but also cannot exist in the dry air of apartments. To provide a prayer plant or arrowroot tricolor, as in the photo, complete comfort, you will have to take care:
- about frequent irrigation of the crop;
- maintaining high humidity using all available means;
- about protecting the flower from hot air from heating radiators or cold drafts.
The culture feels best when it is in a home greenhouse. But the care for the bright native of the tropics does not end with the creation of acceptable conditions of detention.
Replacing the pot
With proper care, the flower grows quickly, so it needs a transplant every 2 years. It is held in early spring. A deep pot of arrowroot is not needed; it is better to replace the old container with a wider one. Preference should be given to plastic dishes. Its bottom is covered with a thick layer of drainage. Suitable as it:
- expanded clay;
- pebbles;
- broken brick;
- coarse sand.
Arrowroot tricolor grows well in loose soil with a slightly acidic reaction. At home, a soil suitable for a flower is prepared by mixing garden soil, peat and sand in a 6: 3: 2 ratio.
Transplanting a plant into a substrate of three components, taken in equal volumes, will be successful:
- leafy land;
- peat land;
- humus earth.
Flower transplantation is carried out by the transshipment method
During the procedure, it is important not to damage the earthen ball and not injure the roots of the plant. Before proceeding with it, the arrowroot is carefully examined
If the flower has pests or signs of disease, it is better to postpone the transplant until it recovers. Yellowed, lethargic and dried leaves are cut off. Such care will serve as an impetus for the active development of young shoots. You can act more radically by shortening all the stems to 1 internode. As a result, the arrowroot tricolor will release many new shoots, turning into a shrub with a dense variegated crown.
Arrowroot care at home
Lighting
It is best to place an arrowroot flower on the east or west side of the apartment, since the plant does not tolerate direct sunlight - the light should be bright, but diffused. If the home arrowroot is in direct sunlight, then the adult leaves may lose their color, and the young leaves will grow smaller.If the natural conditions cannot be adjusted for growing room arrowroot, then it grows well under fluorescent lamps, but it must be illuminated for at least 16 hours a day.
Temperature
The arrowroot plant at home is afraid of both overheating in summer and hypothermia in winter. In summer, the temperature should be between 23-25 ° C, and the soil should not cool below 18 ° C. From mid-autumn to late spring, the temperature should be kept between 18 and 20 ° C - the plant may die if the air cools below 10 ° C. The arrowroot plant should not stand in a draft and be exposed to sudden changes in temperature.
Watering arrowroots
In spring and summer, arrowroot is watered at home abundantly, not allowing the soil to dry out, but also not leading to acidification of the soil. The rest of the time, watered moderately - the earth should dry out between waterings. Because the roots are afraid of hypothermia, then you need to water it with warm water, a couple of degrees above room temperature. The water should be soft and stand for at least 12 hours before watering.
Spraying arrowroot
Indoor arrowroot is very demanding on air humidity, so it is sprayed year-round with soft, settled water. If the arrowroot houseplant grows in a room with dry air, then you need to spray it in the morning and in the evening, and to heighten the effect, the pot with the plant must be placed on a pallet with wet pebbles or expanded clay, but placed so that the pot does not touch the water in the pallet. If you arrange a summer shower with arrowroot, then you must not forget that the soil must be covered with a plastic bag. But even with all these methods, the tips of the leaves can dry out in the apartment near the arrowroot.
Top dressing arrowroot
Home arrowroot is fed 2 times a month alternately with organic and mineral fertilizers (they need to be diluted 2-3 times).
Transplanting arrowroot
Home arrowroot is usually transplanted every 2 years in early spring. The pot is taken shallow, slightly larger than the previous one, and preferably made of plastic. Expanded clay (or broken brick) and coarse sand are poured at the bottom of the pot. The soil should be slightly acidic: one soil option - one part of sand, one and a half parts of peat and 3 parts of garden land; another option is humus, peat and leaf land in equal parts. It would be nice to add some coniferous earth and charcoal to the substrate. Before you plant the arrowroot flower in a new pot, you need to remove the limp and dry leaves so that the young shoots develop faster.
Reproduction of arrowroot by division
When propagating by dividing the rhizome (this is best done when transplanting a plant), an adult specimen, trying not to damage the roots, is divided into 2-3 parts, and then planted in individual pots with peat. Young arrowroots are watered, allowing the soil to dry between waterings. The pot with the plant is placed in a plastic bag, loosely tied and kept in a warm place until the young leaves appear.
Propagation of arrowroot cuttings
In May-June, it is necessary to cut off a stalk with two or three leaves from a young shoot. A stalk of arrowroot is placed in a jar of water, where it will take root in a month and a half. After the roots appear, the cuttings are planted in a soil mixture based on peat and carefully looked after.
Reproduction methods
The culture can be propagated by the following methods:
By dividing the mother bush
Depending on the size of the plant, the number of parts is selected into which the grower will be able to divide the arrowroot
It is important that each separated part has roots and a couple of sheets. Plants are rooted in a container with loose soil and covered with foil to create an optimal microclimate for germination
Instead of polyethylene, you can use the bottom of a plastic bottle. Caring for young crops during their independent rooting will be reduced to regular moistening of the soil and maintaining a comfortable temperature of at least +20 degrees.
Cuttings
For this method, perennial shoots are selected, the length of which will be about 10 centimeters. There should also be foliage on the selected parts. After removal, the cuttings are kept in a growth stimulator, and then dipped into a container with water for further germination. The water in a glass or other container should be warm. Experience shows that arrowroot cuttings will take root in about 1.5-2 months. Then they can be rooted in soil consisting of peat and sand.
On aerial roots
Some flower growers prefer to propagate adult plants by obtaining a young culture from the stalks of withering leaves, on which roots appear. In the spring, buds and leaves are formed on such parts of the plant. The rosette is usually separated together with the green mass and aerial rhizome and rooted directly into the ground or germinated for some time in water. The seed propagation method for the arrowroot tricolor is used extremely rarely, since it will require quite a lot of time and work from the grower.
Home care
When growing this flower, not only correct placement is important, but also further care. To do this, you need to timely carry out procedures such as watering, fertilizing, pruning, transplanting
Watering rules
Since the arrowroot loves high humidity, it needs to be watered often. To do this, use settled water, the temperature of which should be at least + 15 ° C. In summer, the plant must be watered every other day so that the soil has time to dry out. In winter, watering is reduced and carried out every 3 days. Watering is carried out directly under the root, and as soon as the water drains into the pan, it must be immediately poured out to avoid root rot.
Poorly concentrated fertilizers are used to feed arrowroot. The flower is fed during the growing season 2 times a month, in the fall you need to reduce fertilization to 1 time per month. As organic and mineral fertilizers, you can use (be sure to alternate):
- a solution of mullein, bird droppings and potassium humate (1: 1: 1);
- "Agricol" or "Kemira wagon" (use according to the instructions).
During the dormant period, the plants are not fertilized. 
Flower pruning is carried out to form a bush, as well as if necessary. It is recommended to carry out this procedure every two years, while only long branches are cut, which will allow new branches to appear in the center of the flower. With this procedure, the plant takes on a more luxuriant appearance. In the spring, you can cut off all the shoots, and after a month and a half, the flower will not only recover, but also rejuvenate.
Arrowroot is transplanted into a new container in the spring. Before starting this process, it is necessary to prepare the flower and the soil for transplanting. Step-by-step instruction:
Video: transplanting arrowroot tricolor
Botanical description of arrowroot tricolor
An ornamental shrub plant has relatively small oval leaves that have a very unusual coloration. The central part of the leaf plate is colored dark green. The edges of the foliage have a lighter, more attractive shade. Light-colored, well-visible stripes diverge from the central part of the sheet plate. All veins of foliage are characterized by dark red, closer to burgundy color, color.
This popular and demanded variety of arrowroot in indoor floriculture is considered to be the most decorative and unpretentious, which allows even beginner growers to grow it. When growing a decorative culture at home, competent care is required, which will allow the plant to bloom. Flowers are collected in spikelets. They are rather inconspicuous and small in size. The flowering period lasts from the last decade of spring to almost the last summer days.
Reproduction
The flower is characterized by vegetative propagation. It is grown in 2 ways:
- from part of the rhizome;
- from the cutting.
Repotting is the best time to split an adult arrowroot shrub. It is unlikely that it will be possible to avoid damage to the roots during the procedure, but you need to try to keep them minimal. The bush is divided into 2-3 parts so that each of them has several leaves and a piece of rhizome with 3-4 shoots. Fresh wounds are treated with crushed coal. When the roots of the delenok dry out a little, they are placed in individual pots filled with peat. You can also use a more nutritious mixture into which an adult arrowroot is transplanted.
Delenki take root in a warm place and in a mini-greenhouse. Watering the plants, they are placed under a film or placed on top of a plastic bottle. The substrate in pots must be periodically moistened, between procedures it must dry out. Shelter is removed when young arrowroots release new shoots and leaves. Further care for them is carried out according to the usual scheme.
You can propagate a flower by cuttings from late spring to autumn. It is better to cut them from young shoots. The handle should have 2-3 leaves and several internodes. Its optimal length is 10 cm. They are rooted in water or in the ground, creating greenhouse conditions for the escape.
Such reproduction is not always successful - some of the cuttings die, so it is better to use several at once. In water, the roots of arrowroot shoots appear in 1-1.5 months. When this happens, it is transplanted into a separate pot. While the stalk takes root, it is kept in a mini-greenhouse. When he gets stronger, the film is removed. The plant is looked after at this stage in the same way as for an adult arrowroot.
Conditions for growing at home
To grow this flower at home, you need to create favorable climatic conditions for its maintenance. To do this, you need to know at what temperature and humidity the plant can be grown and on which side of the house it is better to place the flower.
Air temperature and humidity
Arrowroot is a thermophilic plant, so in summer the temperature of its content should be +20. + 25 ° C. During the dormant period, which begins in autumn and lasts until the end of winter, the flower must be transferred to a cool place. For this, the temperature is lowered to +18. + 20 ° C.
In addition to overheating, the plant is in danger:
- decrease in temperature to + 10 ° С;
- the presence of drafts;
- a sharp change in temperature.
