Anthurium flowers of the Aroid family accrue 800 varieties of culture with unusually beautiful leaves and bright inflorescences, airy roots. Homeland of "male happiness" - Central and South America. Varieties of Andre (a large individual with large heart-shaped dark green leaves on long stalks) and Scherzer, an epiphyte with shortened stems up to 40 cm tall, are more often grown as a houseplant.
The latter option attracts the attention of fans with leathery matte leaves in a small speck, a sleepy red veil of inflorescence. Anthuriums look spectacular and original, phytodesigners successfully use culture in the design of interiors of apartments and offices.
What does anthurium look like
Home care after purchase
Temperature
For tropical plants, including anthurium, home care provides a stable comfortable temperature of 20-25 ° C, in winter it is possible to keep it in a room heated to 16-18 ° C. Drafts, sudden changes in temperature are detrimental to the flower.
Lighting
Anthurium flower is recommended to be placed on a large bright window sill, avoiding direct sunlight. When planning to put the pot on the south side, you should step back (30-50 cm) or shade the room with blinds or tulle in the afternoon. Otherwise, the leaves will be covered with yellow spots, the flowers will bloom on short stalks.
The western and eastern windows are the best places for growing anthurium. Northern bright apartments are also suitable. When shading a house from the street with trees, plants will lack lighting. Shoots quickly elongate, the flowers will be small, flowering sparse. Anthurium will need additional lighting with fluorescent, gas-discharge, LED lamps.
Watering
Before caring for anthuriums, one should remember: an exotic culture does not tolerate drought, but, overdoing it with moisture, the roots will begin to decay. Overflow will also cause mold to spread. The amount of moisture required is determined based on observations of the flower. If dryness is felt when probing the soil, it is time to water the flower.
It's important to know! Young plants consume more moisture, relative to adult specimens.
Many gardeners add water in a saucer, for anthurium this method is unacceptable. The flower has air roots in the lower part of the stem that need moisture. The right decision would be to place a sphagnum moss at the base of the flower. Additional measures will retain moisture and provide nutrition for small roots. Mixed irrigation will also be effective: in the pan and soil. The main thing is not to pour water on the leaves and flowers. Neglecting the rule leads to a deterioration in the appearance of the flower. Drops of liquid, drying up, form unsightly traces.
Irrigation Anthurium
Spraying
The frequency of irrigation of anthurium is determined by the season. In summer, in cool weather, once / day is enough, in hot weather the number of sprayings is increased and the state of the plant is constantly monitored. In winter, the number of sprayings reduce or completely abandon them.
Need to know! Insufficient humidity is manifested by folding the leaves with a tube, the processes begin to turn greener more slowly.
Humidity
In the natural habitat of Anthurium, air humidity is 65-85%. It is easy to achieve the desired result: the flowerpot is placed on a wide pallet with wet expanded clay or pebbles. Nearby they put containers filled with water.
In an apartment with flowers such as Aroid need to do wet cleaning more often. Spray the air around the anthurium with a fine spray, wash the leaves under a warm shower. Excess moisture is removed with a damp sponge or cotton swab. Laying moss around the base of the plant also fills the air with moisture.
Priming
Anthuriums are unpretentious to the choice of soil, in nature they grow on sandy loam and heavy clay soils. However, it will be possible to achieve decorativeness achieved by bright glossy leaves and long flowering when planting the crop in well-drained soil. Drainage prevents rotting of the roots and the stem, they leave him half the pot. Elements that increase air permeability and retain moisture, should also prevail in the soil: stones, coal, expanded clay (which one to choose depends on the availability of available materials). Being an epiphyte, anthurium grows perfectly without soil in a pine bark or moss.
Among the prepared substrates for anthurium, it is worth choosing a primer for orchids, azaleas or Aroid. With independent preparation of the soil, the following components should be stocked:
- peat - 1 part;
- sheet land - 1 part;
- coniferous soil - 1 part;
- sand - half.
It is desirable to supplement the resulting mixture with charcoal, chopped pine bark and feed with mineral additives.
Choosing a pot for anthurium
Top dressing
The frequency of feeding should not exceed twice a month in the summer and once a month in the winter. In warm time, the plant is fed with fertilizer for flowering crops, in winter it is advisable to add humate to the ground. Overfeeding the processes is not recommended, the correct solution is to use half the recommended dosage of nutrients.
In winter, at rest
Caring for anthurium during dormancy requires maintaining a moderate temperature, reducing watering and feeding, which helps the culture recover and gain strength after prolonged flowering. In the cold season, anthuriums grow slowly. After a flowering period, the crops partially drop their leaves and hibernate.
Pruning
After a flowering period, buds that have lost viability are cut with a sharp blade at the base of the flower. The exposed area is sprinkled with activated carbon. Many flower growers wait until the cover of the inflorescence dries, carefully remove the top layer. The core will dry later and will independently remove from the sprout.
Rejuvenation
Over the years, the flower loses its aesthetic properties, overgrows with growths near the roots and partially discards the lower foliage. The aging process is also accompanied by the appearance of small leaves and flowers, a complete absence of buds. Such signs indicate the need to rejuvenate "male happiness", the most effective way is a special transplant of culture. It is necessary to carefully cut the top with foliage, capturing the processes of roots located above the soil. Transplant the shoot into fresh soil, root and moisten the flower.
When and how it blooms
Anthurium blooms at home from the beginning of spring until the fall, as well as in winter. Variety Andre forms new inflorescences all year round.
Types of flowers
The cover of the inflorescence is often green or white, often takes the form of a perianth, painted with red, purple, pink tones or a combination of shades. The structure of the bedspread is leathery.
Flower shapes
Inflorescences of "male happiness" are represented by club-shaped, cone-shaped, spiral-shaped or spherical ears of white, green or pink tones. The flowers are tightly placed on the cob in a series of spirals, have the shape of a rhombus and a square. Bisexual flowers include:
- four-membered perianth and four stamens;
- gynoecium syncarpous;
- stigma of the form of a disk;
- ovary with 1-2 ovules in two nests.
The flowering of anthuriums is peculiar. During the female phase, only stigmas are visible, the stamens are closed in the periglossal indentations, and the plant looks female. Stigmas form a sweetish liquid that attracts insects. As the liquid dries, the stigma ceases to perceive pollen, and stamens are visible under the perianth segments. After pollination, the stamens return to the base of the perianth, the individual takes on a female appearance.
Varieties of Anthurium
Flowering period
Flamingo plant blooms 3-4 weeks under the most comfortable conditions.
How to make anthurium blossom
Simple tricks will help to make anthurium blossom:
- Increase the amount of ambient light about 12 hours a day.
- To provide the anthurium with loose, light, nutritious soil, giving the roots good access to oxygen.
- Transplant the flower into a pot, 3 cm in diameter, larger than the roots of the adult specimen.
- In winter, maintain a temperature of + 15-18 ° C, reduce watering, provide artificial lighting.
- Feed the culture with potassium and phosphorus (half a dose every 20-30 days after moistening the soil from March to October).
Tip. If proper care has not yielded results, it is worth looking for additional reasons why the anthurium does not bloom (drafts or an attack of pests are possible), and try to stimulate the culture in spring with soft water heated to +50 degrees. In practice, a stressful situation increases the likelihood of flowering.
How does Anthurium reproduce?
Owners of flowering anthurium often face the risk of disease or death of the plant in the absence of proper care or infection. It is better to worry about the reproduction of culture in time. Additional specimens are obtained by dividing the bush, germinating seeds, cuttings, forming air layers.
Breeding Anthurium at home
Seed germination
The need to grow anthurium from seeds appears under the following conditions:
- Getting a lot of young plants.
- Sowing seeds received by mail or provided by other growers.
- With targeted seed cultivation of two pre-selected parents.
Note! The seeds on the petal inflorescences will not be planted on their own.
In nature, insects pollinate the flower, attracted by the pronounced aroma of the plant. There are no pollinators in the apartment. Gardeners recommend a variety of “cobs” to smear with a soft brush during the week. Anthurium flowers reach puberty for a long period. In individual inflorescences, pistils and stamens are usually ready for pollination on different days. The best time for pollination is sunny days.
The ripening of berries on inflorescences lasts 8 months. Seeds are formed inside the fruit. The berry ripening signal is its separation from the flower. Seeds are separated from the pulp, kept in pink potassium permanganate, slightly dried at room temperature.
Anthuriums are sown in spacious shallow tanks. The landing stages are not difficult, enough:
- Fill the container with soil mixture, moisten the earth.
- Sprinkle seeds over the ground.
- Slightly push the inoculum into the substrate;
- Close the tank with glass or polyethylene;
- Place the tank in a warm, bright place.
If you plant the seeds correctly and maintain the temperature in the room at 22 degrees, the first seedlings will appear after a week, mass germination will begin in 14 days.
Rooting cuttings
The ideal time for rooting anthurium cuttings falls from April to June. For propagation, shoots 12 cm long with aerial roots, two healthy leaves are suitable. Leaves before planting are removed or twisted into a tube, tied with a thread, preventing excessive moisture evaporation. Slices on the handle are treated with activated carbon. The processes are immersed in a 5 cm substrate, watered and covered with a film to form a greenhouse effect. The temperature in the greenhouse is maintained close to + 21-24 degrees, daily sprayed and ventilated, the substrate is wetted.
On a note. If new seedlings began to produce green leaves, the rooting of the cuttings was as successful as possible. The young plant is ready for transplanting to a permanent place.
Propagation of anthurium at home by cuttings
Air lay
If the plant is extended and loses its shape, the upper shoot is convenient to use for the reproduction of anthurium. It will take part of the top to free from dried scales and leaves, wrap with wet peat moss.
Fasten the bag or film over the dressing. After a certain time, new roots begin to penetrate the moss. Cuttings from anthurium are cut and rooted in a separate container. The remaining stem will quickly grow lateral sprouts.
Root division
Propagation by dividing the roots is conveniently carried out during the spring transplantation of anthuriums into new flowerpots. The step-by-step instruction of the process includes a number of stages:
- The adult bush is carefully removed from the pot, shake off the soil, free the root system.
- The roots are untwisted and divided with a sharp clean knife.
- Slices and fractures of the roots are disinfected with activated charcoal.
Important! Separated parts of the flower are planted separately.
Anthurium transplant
Anthurium is transplanted within three days after acquiring in the store or changing the pot or soil. A negative change in soil is indicated by a white or rusty coating on the surface of the earth. At home, caring for a young flower Anthurium (under four years of age) requires an annual change of substrate, adults change the land every two to three years.
Stages of transplanting anthurium:
- A layer of drainage is poured into the pot of the required size for one quarter of the size of the container and the soil is prepared.
- They take out the anthurium from the previous vessel, previously watering it.
- Check the roots of the plant for damage or decay.
- Sprinkle the rhizome with Fitolavin and transfer the culture to a new pot.
- Gradually add the substrate, tapping the pot for a more dense subsidence of the soil. The layer of earth in the tank should not reach the edge by 2-3 cm.
Tip. If a flower transplant is a necessary measure for soil depletion, you should remove the old soil from the roots, soaking the anthurium in water for a short time.
One year old plant
Anthuriums are not capricious in leaving under simple growing conditions, bloom all year round. For the active development of flowers, it is enough to ensure high air humidity, the absence of drafts and temperature changes, the plant is transplanted every two to three years.
