Growing Cacti And Conifers Indoors

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

Thorny plants and the health of your home

For people who have been dealing with indoor plants for a long time, it is no secret that here, in the field of floriculture, there are fashionable trends. One of the trends in recent years is the fascination with thorny plants, not only cacti, but also conifers. Their rapidly growing popularity is not hindered even by the dense train of prejudices, which, for example, trails behind cacti.

Plants with sharp leaves, dots in color and thorns (cacti, conifers and some types of palms) are believed to create bad energy, which gives rise to conflict and failure. It is not recommended to start them in the bedroom - they spoil the woman's love happiness, lead to quarrels and infidelity of the spouses.

However, the Feng Shui teachings have a different opinion on this matter: the aura of plants is multi-layered, and each energy layer has its own frequency - like different radio transmitters. The closer the vibration frequency of the aura of plants to the frequency of vibration of our own aura, the more sympathy we feel for this or that flower.

Each plant that is directly next to us offers us a whole range of energetic vibrations that penetrate our aura with different intensities, supporting us. From this point of view, cacti and conifers are not only not harmful, but, on the contrary, are necessary for people who are timid and insecure. By the way, it has been noticed that men are much more likely to become amateur cactus growers than women …

It is perhaps not worth neglecting persistent rumors, but you still need to focus on your own experience. To do this, first of all, you need to create the most comfortable conditions for the plants and even then observe what they and you do not like, in addition to leaving.

Lovely, beloved, prickly

Passion for cacti, or as they are called otherwise, "the thorny miracle of nature", originated in England. The climate of our apartments in many respects, in particular in terms of humidity, is most similar to the climate of semi-desert. That is why all cacti feel so good in indoor conditions.

The popularity of cacti was promoted by the development of ethnic design, in particular, the fascination with Mexican interiors. And really, what is Mexico without cacti? To create a national flavor, it is enough to put a pot of prickly pears next to unpretentious furniture and a carpet with a geometric pattern. However, being carried away by design solutions, do not forget that cacti are generally very light-requiring, and they should be kept near the window.

Recently, there has been a tendency to give cacti as gifts. They are considered to be very unpretentious. After bringing a new plant home, it should be transplanted. Clay pots are better suited for slow-growing cactus species because in plastic, the soil stays damp longer. It is advisable that the entire bottom of the pot be covered with a layer of small shards of 3-4 cm. It is recommended to pour river sand on top of the shards and add a little crushed charcoal.

When choosing the soil for a cactus, you should pay attention to its roots. Cacti with long taproots thrive in clay soil. Plants with onion roots require a clay-calcareous soil, while cacti with fibrous roots require soft and light soil.

For all cacti, it is imperative that the soil is porous and the water does not stagnate in the pot. For the soil mixture, they take in equal amounts well-rotted sod and leafy soil, washed coarse sand, add a little crushed charcoal (1:10), crushed clay and lime (best of all - old plaster).

The resulting mixture is mixed with granular superphosphate (for 4-5 liters of the mixture 1 teaspoon). For leafy cacti, greenhouse soil and peat are added to the main mixture. For plants with large thorns, add a little slaked lime.

Old weathered clay is an essential part of any mixture, especially for cacti with thick, long taproots. In all mixtures, sand is required, which increases soil aeration. It should be 1/5 or 1/3 of the earth mixture. If the roots of the cactus begin to rot, the amount of sand should be increased to about half of the total composition of the earth.

There is an opinion that cacti need to be watered very rarely. This is not entirely true. Indeed, they are rarely watered - in winter, for example, 2-3 times a month, but you need to make sure that the earth does not dry out. From the point of view of feng shui, a dried earthen lump is not very useful for a cactus: if it dries too much, they begin to be fed by the energy of the house.

In spring and autumn, cacti planted in clay pots require watering every 7-10 days, in summer - every 4-5 days. For plants in plastic pots, the interval between watering is increased by 2 days.

It is necessary to ensure that the water moistens the entire clod of earth, but does not stagnate in the pan. In cold rainy weather, watering cacti is not necessary at all, because the air itself is humid enough. The water temperature should be 35-40 degrees, and even warmer for spraying.

The cactus is a typical Scorpio. If you make friends with a cactus, it will protect you and your home from all sorts of troubles. But beware if you suddenly do not get along with him in character and your cactus will dislike you!

In this case, he will simply begin to actively survive you from your own home, using his strong energy. The cactus often changes anger for mercy, but brings a fair amount of energy imbalance into the house.

It is good for hyperactive people, because it willingly takes away surplus of uncontrolled energy. The cactus protects against the evil eye and damage. It is not recommended to keep cacti if you have hypertension, heart rhythm disturbances, respiratory diseases.

It is not recommended to breed cacti for Sagittarius and Leo. Stable sympathy with Aries, Pisces, Virgo. With other signs, the cactus finds a common language individually.

A passion for cacti can turn into a real passion. And then you will probably want to create very special conditions for them - a greenhouse. This will be a true kingdom of sand, expanded clay and pebbles. The greenhouse for cacti should be dry and very warm. However, this is a topic for a separate conversation, but for now let's move on to one more "thorns" - conifers.

"Herringbone" growing at home

The cultivation of conifers has become a fashionable trend in indoor floriculture. This is largely due to the extraordinary graphic quality of conifers that can decorate any interior.

The difficulty of keeping conifers in the room lies in the fact that most of them are lovers of cool winters. If the house has a subtropical greenhouse, where winter temperatures do not exceed 12 ° C, then this is certainly a paradise for conifers.

In the absence of such conditions, the list of "thorny beauties" is seriously reduced. You can name only a few plants that overwinter in rooms, and even then, if they are placed close to a window or balcony, where the temperature is usually 12-14 ° C: these are araucaria, cypress, cypress, cryptomeria, nogocarp and some others.

Despite their shade tolerance, conifers grow better in good diffused lighting. Land mixture for planting is made up of clay-sod land, sheet and sand (3: 1: 1). You can add one part of humus earth. It is important to observe a moderate watering regime, avoiding excessive moisture and overdrying of the soil.

You can buy a coniferous plant for your home in a store, or you can root it using a cuttings obtained from your friends. The best time for this is July, August; actively growing shoots of the upper part of the crown should be used.

The stalk is cut half a centimeter below the border separating the green, growing shoot zone from the brown, semi-lignified one. Conifers take root slowly. To facilitate this process, the sections are dusted with rooting stimulants such as root.

The first winter, cuttings should not be exposed to a cold winter; it is better to keep them at a moderate temperature. During the spring, if soil heating is provided, young plants quickly develop a root system.

On New Year's Eve, coniferous plants in pots are often presented as a gift. If such a plant was sprinkled with tinsel (and this is most often the case), then after the holiday it should be washed off, put the plant on a light, but not sunny window, water it carefully, without overdrying or overflowing, and spray it every day.

If you were presented not with indoor conifers, but, say, a garden juniper, you can keep it until spring by placing it in some kind of large bowl or flowerpot that exceeds the size of a pot with a coniferous plant. The space between the walls of the planter and the pot is filled with wet moss, because until the plant is planted in the garden, high humidity must be maintained.

Conifers are so good that for them it is worth starting a greenhouse or at least a glazed and heated loggia. The phytoncidal properties of these plants have been known for a long time, and keeping cryptomeria, juniper, pine in your home means improving the environment.

These plants will fill your apartment with negatively charged oxygen ions, and they, in turn, will create a healing microclimate for you, and the air will always be fresh. So these thorny plants are good for everyone.

The presence of plants in the apartment has a positive effect on the microclimate of the premises, and on the level of psychological comfort of the inhabitants. Taking care of the flower, so that later you can enjoy a new shoot, its fresh greenery or a blossoming bud - all these are our daily steps towards harmony with living Nature.