Japanese Fatsia - Growing In An Apartment

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

Japanese Fatsia - under the sign of Virgo

According to the horoscope, the zodiac sign Virgo (August 24 - September 23) corresponds to plants: cissus, philodendron, cross, syngonium, dracaena unbent, roicissus (birch), aucuba japonica, scindapsus, monstera deliciosa, japanese fatsia.

Japanese Fatsia (Fatsia japonica) - Araliaceae family - belongs to the monotypic genus Fatsia, i.e. includes only one species. Much less often, experts use its other outdated name - "Japanese aralia" (Aralia japonica). In the name we find information about the origin of fatsia: in its natural form, it grows on the coast of Japan (also on the island of Taiwan), reaching a height of 4-5 meters there.

Now it is widely cultivated in many tropical and subtropical countries. On the European continent, where it came from Japan, fatsia in culture (due to its unpretentiousness, rapid growth and large decorative leaves) has been grown for almost two centuries, but it gained particular popularity only in the first quarter of the twentieth century.

This is an evergreen multi-stemmed bush, which in indoor conditions, even with normal care, is able to grow strongly and reach a height of 1.5-1.8 m. Therefore, few growers have the opportunity to have such a decorative larch in their room if they are going to cultivate it for many years: it scatters its long leaves in all directions.

Fatsia has a light brown unbranched trunk and remarkable shiny leathery bright green leaves resembling the palms of a giant (15-45 cm in size). Collected at the tops of the shoots, they are quite specific: at the base they are cordate, finger-separated, and serrate at the edges.

With good care, the stem of the fatsia is covered with leaves almost entirely to the base, lateral shoots appear near the root collar. They are usually used for breeding.

Indoors, fatsia blooms relatively rarely: small white or greenish-yellow flowers are collected at the ends of the shoots in umbrella-shaped inflorescences. Ripe fruits are black berries with a bluish tint. Several rather spectacular variegated forms are known. The most popular of them is the Japanese fatsia of Moses, which is a compact, densely leafed beautiful plant.

Another form, F. japonis variegata, has distinctive green leaves mottled with asymmetric cream-colored specks. Argentea Marginatis has leaves with a white border, Aurea Marginatis has yellow leaves, Varrnegatus has a cream border. The bushy plants of the Albomarginata and Reticuhata varieties are characterized by variegated yellow or white leaves.

Under indoor conditions (optimally large and well-ventilated), it is better to choose a bright place for fatsia, but it does not tolerate direct sunlight, which can cause leaf burns in the form of white spots; able to withstand partial shade. If in the summer there is a constant temperature in the room that goes over 20 … 22 ° С, it is advisable to carefully ventilate the plant, avoiding drafts.

As soon as the weather is stable in spring, the fatsia can be moved to the open air (to the balcony, loggia, to the garden), in partial shade. Although it is tolerant to any room temperature, it is preferable for it to choose cooler conditions for the winter period (6 … 10 ° С). In a hot and dry room, her leaves curl up.

In summer, the plant is watered abundantly, avoiding any drying of the earthy coma, or stagnation of water in the pot (with an excess of moisture in the soil, the leaves will become soft and lethargic); foliage is sprayed with soft cool water. In the summer, you can practice a warm shower every 2-3 weeks.

In winter, water the fatsia with extreme caution. On the one hand, watering should be very moderate, on the other hand, one-time drying of the earthen coma is not allowed. Even a slight overdrying of the soil leads to drooping of horizontally standing leaves, to the appearance of brown spots on them.

In this case, it is quite difficult to return them to their former shape: the subsequent intensified watering may no longer give positive results, but you can try to straighten the leaves with a garter on the spacers in a horizontal position. Then over time (there is some probability) they will be able to take the previous horizontal position. In winter, high humidity is especially important for plant foliage.

The pot with fatsia is moved away from the batteries of the heating system, kept away from heating appliances. Failure to comply with this rule (too warm room, excessive dry air), the plant usually responds by dropping the lower tiers of leaves. You can achieve high air humidity by placing the container with the plant on a wide tray with wet pebbles and a thin layer of water.

Top dressing is carried out once a month (March-August), alternating a solution of complex mineral fertilizers with an organic infusion. It should be borne in mind that a more frequent repetition of this event can "help" the plant to reach a height of 1-1.2 m in 1.5-2 years, which is not in the interests of a "desktop" grower.

As an organic fertilizer, cow manure diluted with water (1:10) is used, from mineral fertilizers - potassium (or ammonium) nitrate and superphosphate (1-1.5 g / l of water). Before feeding, the soil is well watered. In the period from September to February, feeding is completely excluded.

It is possible to somewhat limit the Fatsia bush in space and achieve the formation of a beautiful crown, but only if the grower has enough space in the room for the plant, since it develops systematically only with a free arrangement. Given the active annual growth, experts advise replanting the Fatsia every spring using a mixture of turf, humus soil and sand.

Fatsia is propagated by seeds, shoots and summer green cuttings. If seeds are used, then they must be freshly harvested, since they quickly lose their germination. They are sown in late February and early March to a depth of 0.5-1 cm (soil mixture of sod, leafy and humus soil and sand in a ratio of 1: 1: 1: 0.5).

After the appearance of 2-3 young leaves, the seedlings are planted in small (5-7 cm) pots. During the summer season, they are transferred two or three times into pots, each time slightly increasing the volume of the latter. The shoots that form at the base of the main stem of the mother plant root easily on any substrates. Then they are transplanted into pots in a standard mixture of sod, leafy earth with sand (2: 1: 0.5).

Plants are cut in spring (March-April). Shoots up to 15 cm long are used for cuttings; they are cut obliquely under the lower leaf node. Cuttings are planted in boxes with soil (the top layer is 4-5 cm of sand, the bottom is a nutrient mixture of the above composition) to a depth of 2-3 cm.

They are sprayed with warm water, then the boxes are covered with glass. It is advisable to spray them 2-3 times daily, remove the glass (for 20-30 minutes) for airing. After rooting, the cuttings are planted in a permanent place in a standard substrate.

If the plant reaches a size and height at which it is already difficult to keep it in the room, the old specimen is rejuvenated (air cut method). To do this, the top of the trunk is cut and tied with wet moss soaked in a phytohormone solution (for example, heteroauxin) or a full complex mineral fertilizer (1 g / l of water); moss as it dries, moisten.

After 2-2.5 months, callus will appear at the incision site and a sufficient root system will develop, then the top is cut below the formation of roots and planted in the soil. Some growers cut off the remaining bare part of the trunk, slightly receding from the root collar, split lengthwise into two halves, which are laid separately from each other horizontally in a picking box with a substrate (sand or peat), sprinkled with a small (2-3 cm thick) layer of the latter.

With constant moistening of the substrate, young shoots develop from the buds, which give roots. From a small hemp (1-1.5 cm), left after cutting the trunk, 2-3 young shoots (root growth) will also go, which can be further cultivated in the same container.

Some experienced flower growers practice, after removing the air layer, grafting (in the split or behind the bark) into the trunk of two or three cuttings of indoor ivy. After engraftment, these cuttings will grow, dropping down and beautifully framing the trunk of the fatsia, giving the plant a weeping shape.

Most of our readers are well aware that the Araliaceae family is famous for its many species that have a tonic effect and can increase the immune properties of the human body. Let us recall that this family also includes common ginseng, eleutherococcus prickly, Manchurian aralia, high zamaniha and others.

Nature and fatsia did not bypass, endowing it with medicinal qualities: scientists found triterpene saponins, protocatechinic acid, choline, mucin, saponins, tannins (araliosides), essential oil and fats in the leaves. In folk medicine, this plant is used as a tonic and analgesic for joint pain, rheumatism and gastritis; the bark of the stem promotes salivation and urination. Fatsia root is effective as an antiseptic for skin lesions.

Of the pests on Fatsia, the whitefly, scale insect, mealybug are known, a rootworm nematode is possible, spider mites and aphids are observed somewhat less often. So, drying and falling of leaves, the presence of honeydew indicate the appearance of one of the first three listed pests. When white bloom is noted on the leaves, the causative agent of powdery mildew (fungal disease) may be the cause of this phenomenon.

Fatsia is believed to be an ideal plant for those flower growers who have little experience in caring for house plants. Its bushes with palm-like leaves, partly similar to the leaves of chestnuts and maples, are suitable for indoor landscaping of spacious halls, large living quarters, winter gardens; they feel good under artificial light. Fatsia pots can be placed in a semi-dark hallway or on windows facing north.