Calla Or Zantedeschia Ethiopian - Indoor Cultivation

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

Zantedeschia aethiopica in your apartment

Calla, Ethiopian Zantedeschia

According to the Horoscope, the following plants are considered by the flower astrologers to the sign of the Zodiac Leo (July 23 - August 23): akalifa bristly; protruding aphelandra; hybrid calceolaria; Japanese camellia; gardenia jasmine; balsam (touch-me-not): Waller, Holst, Peters, linear-leaved, Hawker; bashful mimosa; royal pelargonium; Chinese rose, tailed amaranth (shiritsa); Ethiopian zantedeschia (calla).

Recently, Ethiopian Zantedeschia (Zantedeschia aethiopica) has become increasingly popular among connoisseurs of indoor flowering and decorative leafy crops. This plant has many names: Ethiopian calla (Calla aethiopica), African richardia (Richardia africana), calla, etc. It belongs to the genus Zantedeschia Spreng., Which includes 8 species.

Gardener's guide

Plant nurseries Stores of goods for summer cottages Landscape design studios

Zantedeskia came to us from the tropics of South Africa, where it grows on moist, well-lit river banks and wetlands, reaching truly impressive sizes there. It is considered a close relative of the marsh calla and calamus living in our area. In appearance, this plant is extremely similar to the widespread in flower practice alocasia, belonging to the same Aroid family (Araceae).

Types and varieties of calla lilies

Calla Elliott (Z. elliottiana Engl.)

Thanks to the exceptional grace and severity of the lines, the exquisite (ideally white) bedspread, breeders have paid a lot of attention to this flower culture in the last half century.

They created varieties for both open ground (southern regions) and indoor (in the conditions of our North-West).

By the way, New Zealand is called the world leader in the selection and production of calla lilies intended for cutting, as well as in the production of its tubers.

Notice board

Sale of kittens Sale of puppies Sale of horses

Calla Remani (Z. rehmanii Engl.)

In addition to varieties of the Ethiopian Zantedeschia species (with a white blanket), in warmer latitudes, the Elliott calla (Z. elliottiana Engl.) With a yellow cover of the inflorescence and the Remani calla (Z. rehmanii Engl.) With a pink blanket and spotted leaves are also cultivated.

Interspecific hybrids have cream and orange blankets; through the efforts of breeders, pink shades are brought even to carmine and lilac. Very interesting varieties, characterized by fragrant flowers, unfortunately, are rarely found in retail and greenhouse conditions.

Most often, varieties are offered for indoor maintenance (the length of the peduncles, the length of the bedspread and color are indicated in brackets): Litle Ge (up to 50 cm, 5-8, white), Nikolai (up to 150, 12-15, white, green at the base), Perle von Zweibrucken (up to 90, light yellow-green at the base), Schone von Zweibrucken (more than 100, veil 15 cm in diameter, dark yellow at the base), Perle von Stuttgart (up to 70 cm). It is believed that Elliot's zantedeschia with a yellow veil and mottled leaves is only suitable for cultivation in greenhouses and greenhouses.

Calla lilies

To start a calla, an evergreen half-bollard, a florist will need, first of all, a fairly spacious room (it's easier to say, a small greenhouse is preferable). A small apartment, which is quite typical for the conditions of our city, is very little suitable for this purpose.

At the same time, less high varieties of Ethiopian zantedeschia are known, but for its knobby rhizomes, a decent-sized container, installed on a wide and deep base, is still required.

The plant also needs a very high dormancy period and additional lighting. So, you see, after all, this plant is not very suitable for a small living room (especially a bedroom).

Calla lilies have cord-like, fleshy roots that extend from the succulent tuber. Its large (up to 60-80 cm) wide shiny leaves of arrow-shaped or heart-shaped form are located on long (15-30 cm) basal delicate bright green juicy petioles.

This plant looks great when it has a kind of large snow-white flower blooming at the end of a high arrow. Although in reality this is not a flower, but a kind of asymmetric cover of white or yellowish color and a diameter of 10-15 cm on a yellow elongated inflorescence - a cob, consisting of very small nondescript flowers with a delicate scent, a bit like vanilla.

In indoor conditions, Ethiopian zantedeschia usually blooms from the second half of winter (quite rarely - from October) to May (but more often in spring - to April) for 1.5-2 months (in warm greenhouses, usually in winter); cut flowers can last the same amount of time. The appearance of an arrow is a sign of the beginning of a new growth (when wintering in a warm room, it is usually noted in January-February, in a cool room - later); at this time, the plant is transplanted, creating a temperature of at least 15 ° C.

Blooming calla is fed every week with a solution of mineral fertilizer, where phosphorus and potassium predominate. Excess nitrogen causes vigorous growth of leaves to the detriment of flower development. If fruits are tied, it is better to remove them so as not to deplete the plants. By the way, at home, its flowering, as a rule, coincides with a short period of rains.

Calla begins to gradually return to active life in August. After a good rest, it develops powerful leaves and then blooms again.

For successful development, it is better for a plant to choose a fairly light, but it is also possible to have a semi-shady room, necessarily protected from sunlight, moderately cool: it develops well at 10 … 12 ° C, for example, on a north-facing window. In winter, the optimum temperature is even 8 … 10 ° C with very moderate watering.

But during flowering, the temperature is desirable up to 14 … 16 ° C (in a warmer room, the quality of flowers decreases). During this period, calla lilies are watered abundantly and often sprayed on its foliage. To increase the moisture content of the soil and the surrounding air, experienced growers place the plant pot in a deep tray, always filled with water. As the plant ages, it forms a herbaceous trunk and produces a larger flower.

After the end of flowering, calla lilies enter a dormant period. It falls in mid-May - July. At this time, the leaves turn yellow and the growth of the plants stops, although the roots continue to develop. Watering is stopped, but if possible, it is advisable to take it out into fresh air (it can be done until autumn). It can be a balcony or loggia, but with moderate heat, without piercing winds and direct sunlight.

Calla lilies propagation

During this period, you can begin to transplant or reproduce. The transplanted flower needs a room with a temperature of at least 15 ° C. After rooting, the plants increase watering and gradually bring to abundant.

Calla lilies can be propagated quite easily and quickly (especially if the plant is cultivated in large pots) with the help of sufficiently tall offspring. They are nodules with small weak leaves, which still need to be removed, since they weaken the tubers and delay further flowering of the plants. These nodules form in large numbers around the plant throughout the year.

In queen cells from bare rhizomes, "babies" 0.5-1.5 cm thick are carefully broken out, which are placed for growing - each in a separate container. From an adult plant, you can get 12-25 pieces. It is better to do this in a small greenhouse (air temperature should be about 14-16 ° C and humidity 80-85%). At a higher temperature and a lack of light, the leaves of young calla lilies stretch out, break easily, acquire a light green color, and then the number of flowers sharply decreases. Under good conditions they can bloom next spring.

Calla lilies in the ground

Sometimes, for reproduction, whole root tubers are divided into several parts, so that there is one bud for each, but two are better. According to some growers, it is better to break them carefully than to cut them with a knife. Bare cracks are sprinkled with coal (or treated with a solution of potassium permanganate) and dried for 3-4 days before planting.

The plant requires shallow planting: the rhizome should be slightly covered with earth. At the initial stage, the soil substrate with "delenki" is poorly moistened. Watering is increased only with the appearance of the first shoots. Sometimes, when transplanting, parts of the tubers break off, which remain in the soil and after a period give small sprouts in the most unexpected places. With normal care, such a small piece - a "cut" with one developed bud gives a flower in a year.

Young calla lilies bloom the next year, but with the onset of flowering, they are periodically reinforced with foliar dressings - solutions of trace elements (boron, zinc, molybdenum, manganese, potassium iodide, copper) and often sprayed with clean water.

Calla can also be propagated by seeds, which are sown immediately after harvest. Until emergence, the temperature is maintained at about 20 ° C. When picking, each plant is transferred to a separate container. The next year, the seedlings are given a dormant period of two summer months.

When buying a healthy tuber, it should be elastic and always have live apical buds with a light yellowish and not wrinkled skin in the upper part. Too dry (unsuitable for reproduction) tubers look wrinkled, with buds without signs of living tissue and the skin that is gray over the entire surface. The tubers can be kept in the refrigerator for some time before planting (vegetable compartment).

In March (but no later than April), their rest is interrupted and planted, picking up a fairly spacious dish for this: this culture does not like cramped containers, which may not bloom. In addition, it must be borne in mind that a whole thicket of half-meter leaves may appear from a nodule that is small in appearance. The soil substrate should be rich in nutrients (turf, leafy soil, compost - 1: 1: 1), add a tablespoon of superphosphate to 3 liters of the mixture. The tuber is planted at a depth of at least 10 cm, since a shallower planting leads to lodging of leaves.

The pot is placed on a wide and deep tray. To bring the culture closer to natural conditions, you can pour water into this sump, maintaining its constant level at a height of 5-7 cm.

Scaly leaves appear first from the soil. They begin to be sprayed regularly, otherwise the tips will dry out, which gives the plants a rather unkempt look, and flowering may also be delayed. They also start water fertilizing with mineral fertilizers. At the beginning of the season, fertilizing with nitrogen is preferred, and during flowering - with phosphorus and potassium fertilizers.

For long-term maintenance, the soil substrate must be very nutritious (slightly acidic, rich in humus), therefore, it includes humus, turf and peat soil (in a ratio of 2: 1: 1); the ideal would be to add one piece of swamp land to this. Some growers add some manure or compost to the soil.

Experienced growers specializing in this group of plants recommend that when purchasing them, keep in mind the great variability of the color of the bedspread. They warn that its color can fade in low light, so it is often impossible to get a thick yellow or pink color, such as is found in photographs in advertising brochures (even in a sufficiently lit place).

It should also be borne in mind that in all (without exception) varieties, the color of the coverlet becomes green after pollination, and the original (white or pink) disappears. Such a transition is a vital necessity for the plant, since it must use the veil as an additional source of photosynthetic products (for the successful maturation of seeds.). But experts urge not to be upset: different shades of color will still create a pleasant harmony for the eyes.

Note that calla leaves are not devoid of decorative effect. In some varieties, the leaf blades are decorated with silvery-white or pink translucent spots, which create an unusual play of light when the plants are placed against the sun.

The leaves of only a number of Remani calla varieties are less attractive (with a wedge-shaped base and without spots). According to the state of the leaves of his plant, as in a living barometer, the grower can follow the change in pressure: when it decreases (i.e., to rain), water droplets appear on the tips of the leaves and inflorescence covers.

In greenhouses, calla lilies are kept in pots and in the ground (under optimal conditions for it, it lives up to 10 years), but in the last decade it has been bred exclusively for first-class cutting: flowers remain in a vase in cut form for up to 1.5-2 months if Change the water weekly and trim the stem 0.5 cm each time.

If the indoor air is too dry, a spider mite can settle on the plant. Aphids may also appear on it.