Kalanchoe

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

According to the horoscope, the zodiac sign Cancer (June 22 - July 22) flower astrologers include the following plants: modest agraonema, Mason's begonia, hybrid fuchsia, bushy peperomias, wavy cotyledon, pearl havortia, warty gastria, cleansing (thick-leaved, red-colored, Adolphus), aloe (tree-like, spinous, presemous, variegated), rejuvenated, calamus cereal, adorable dieffenbachia, agave, Kalanchoe.

The perennial evergreen succulent Kalanchoe came to our windowsills from tropical and subtropical latitudes of America, Australia, Asia and Africa. It belongs to the Grassulaceae family, numbering just over 125 species (according to other authors, about 200) and to the Kalanchoe genus (the latter is named after the Chinese name of one of the species). This genus has a rich assortment of varieties and forms, consisting of both standing and creeping shrubs and shrubs with fleshy succulent leaves. Numerous species cultivated in home floriculture are conventionally subdivided into three large groups - flowering Kalanchoe (Blossfelda, Fedchenko, Bouquet-flowered, Mangina, Marniera, single-flowered), viviparous Kalanchoe (Degremona, pinnate, tubular) and Kalanchoe, decorative - deciduous (Millett). Most of the Kalanchoe grown indoors are characterized by medium-sized sizes (with the exception of the Behar Kalanchoe, which, under favorable conditions, reaches a height of 1.2-1.4 m).

Of the decorative-deciduous, the most common

Kalanchoe felt (K.tomentosa), whose homeland is called Sri Lanka. This peculiar perennial succulent plant is a small shrub with elongated juicy stems and leaves, densely pubescent with a silvery-gray "bloom" (hairs). In the upper part of each leaf along the edge there is a barely noticeable brown dotted stripe - small tubercles covered with brown bristles, which gives the plant a decorative effect. Due to the presence of brown pubescence on the tips of the leaves, the Germans called this type of Kalanchoe "cat ears".

According to the external features of the

Kalanchoe Millet (K. millotuii)to a large extent resembles felt Kalanchoe, but its leaves are more rounded, and the hairs are white.

Having spacious premises, some growers keep

Kalanchoe beharskoe (K.beharensis), which is unlikely to fit our usual window sills. In this species, the stems are unbranched, bare, covered with scars at the places of attachment of fallen leaves. He has green fleshy leaves, as a rule, are preserved mainly in the upper third of the shoot. They are opposite crosswise, 10 cm long (up to 20 cm) and 5-9 cm wide, wedge-shaped or triangular, coarsely tubular, wavy, covered with a grayish waxy bloom. Thick brown hairs make them velvety to the touch. This plant blooms in summer with yellow four-membered flowers (5-7 mm in size). This species has been known in culture since 1903.

Experts consider these three most popular decorative and deciduous species to be plants that are not very demanding on growing conditions. In summer they are quite suitable for the usual room temperature, although they develop better in cool rooms at a moderate temperature throughout the year (about 15C), but in winter it should not drop below 11 … 12 ° C. For the Kalanchoe, it is advisable to choose a place with a sunny windowsill, it is possible even with prolonged exposure to direct bright rays, but then the plant still does not hurt to shade slightly in the summer noon hours. The plant does not tolerate the dustiness of the atmosphere, therefore, it is regularly ventilated, protecting it from drafts. In the summer, the Kalanchoe is watered abundantly (preferably with warm water that does not contain lime),while avoiding stagnation of residual water in the pan (the presence of a drainage layer at the bottom of the tank is mandatory). Drying out of the earthy coma in summer can damage the root system of the plant. During active growth, Kalanchoe is fed, and nitrogen fertilizers should prevail in the composition of the dressings. But in winter they water it carefully (as the topsoil dries up).

Plants are transplanted as needed, but only in spring (at the end of the dormant period). The soil substrate for them is prepared from a mixture of leafy, humus and peat soil (1: 1: 1 ratio) with a small addition of sand. For adult perennial specimens, a ratio of turf, leaf and sand is recommended as 2: 1: 0.5. The reaction of the soil substrate should be in the range of pH 5.5-6.5. At home, plants of this group of species, as a rule, are propagated by leaf and stem cuttings, which are easily rooted in sand or peat (but before planting, cuttings are dried for 1-2 days). Until the cuttings form a good root system and take root, they are watered very carefully (by the way, the container with cuttings does not need to be covered). As they develop, young plants are transferred to larger containers.

Of the harmful insects on the Kalanchoe, spider and red mites, scale insects and thrips, as well as several types of worms, which, when strongly colonized, cover the entire surface of the leaves, can appear. The elongated oval body (3-4 mm in size) of the mealybug is covered with a waxy whitish bloom. As a rule, each individual worm or scale insect is removed by hand. You can treat the plant with a soapy solution of liquid potassium soap (20 g / l of water) by adding actellic to it (at the rate of 2 ml / l). The root worm lives on the roots of the Kalanchoe in the soil. It causes inhibition of plant growth, and at a high number, and its death. This pest is detected by white wax bags: there is a feeling that the soil is, as it were, sandwiched with lumps of cotton wool. On close examination (especially with a magnifying glass), females (1.5-2 mm in size) of white or pink color can be distinguished.

It is advisable to transplant the plant by carefully examining its root system; as a safety net, you can shed new soil with actellik solution. Leaves inhabited by mites are wiped with a cotton swab moistened with hot (50 ° C) water (20 g of green soap / l). From acaricides, you can use neoron (1 ml / l of water) or actellic (they are treated 2-3 times with an interval of 7-10 days). But nevertheless, according to experts, preventive measures are preferable to prevent the ingress of these pests on plants, since an already affected plant is rather difficult to cure.

It is necessary to monitor the condition of other (neighboring) plants, and also to prevent the introduction of these harmful insects with wild or garden flowers into the room where Kalanchoe is kept. It is also possible the appearance of rot on the roots and base of the stem (in the form of dark spots), which is caused by a group of fungal pathogenic microorganisms. At the first symptoms of the disease, a solution of foundationol (2 g / l) is used. Indoors, these three decorative leafy species of Kalanchoe are placed both in a single exposition and in groups - in combination with other succulents, as well as with large stones or small pebbles. The good thing about these succulents is their relatively fast growth under artificial light from fluorescent lamps.