Anthurium - home care after purchase

Anthurium flowers of the Aroid family are credited with 800 varieties of culture with unusually beautiful leaves and bright inflorescences, aerial roots. The homeland of "male happiness" is Central and South America. As a houseplant, Andre (a large individual with large heart-shaped dark green leaves on long petioles) and Scherzer - an epiphyte with shortened stems, up to 40 cm in height - are more often grown.

The latter option attracts the attention of lovers with leathery matte leaves in small specks, a sleepy red blanket of inflorescences. Anthuriums look impressive and original, phytodesigners successfully use culture when decorating the 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 warmed up 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 light windowsill, 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 during the day. Otherwise, the leaves will be covered with yellow spots, the flowers will bloom on short stalks.

The west and east windows are the best places to grow anthurium. Northern light flats will also work. When shading a house from the street with trees, the plants will lack lighting. The shoots will quickly stretch in length, the flowers will be small, the flowering is scarce. Anthurium will need additional lighting with fluorescent, gas-discharge, LED lamps.

Watering

Before caring for anthuriums, you should remember: an exotic culture does not tolerate drought, but, overdoing it with moisture, the roots will begin to rot. Overfilling will also cause mold to spread. The amount of moisture required is determined based on observation of the flower. If dryness is felt when probing the soil, it's time to water the flower.

Many growers add water to the saucer; this method is unacceptable for anthurium. The flower has air roots in the lower part of the stem that need moisture. The right solution would be to place sphagnum moss at the base of the flower. Additional measures will allow you to retain moisture and provide nutrition for the small roots. Mixed irrigation will also be effective: in the sump and in the 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, form unsightly traces.

Irrigation of 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 sprays is increased and the condition of the plant is constantly monitored. In winter, the number of sprays is reduced or completely abandoned.

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. Containers filled with water are placed nearby.

In an apartment with flowers like Aroid, you need to do wet cleaning more often. Spray the air around the anthurium with a small spray bottle, 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 infuses the air with moisture.

Priming

Anthuriums are unpretentious in 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 the crop is planted in well-drained soil. Drainage prevents rotting of the roots and stem, half the pot is left for it. The soil should also be dominated by elements that increase air permeability and retain moisture: stones, coal, expanded clay (which one to choose depends on the availability of available materials). As an epiphyte, anthurium grows well without soil in pine bark or moss.

Among the ready-made substrates for anthurium, it is worth choosing a soil for orchids, azaleas or Aroids. When self-preparing the soil, you should stock up on the following components:

• peat - 1 part;
• leafy ground - 1 part;
• coniferous soil - 1 part;
• sand - half.

It is advisable to supplement the resulting mixture with charcoal, crushed 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 weather, the plant is fed with fertilizer for flowering crops; in winter, it is desirable to add humate to the soil. Overfeeding the shoots is not recommended, the correct solution is to use half the recommended dosage of nutrients.

In winter, during dormancy

Caring for anthurium during the dormant period requires maintaining a moderate temperature, reducing watering and feeding, which helps the culture to recover and gain strength after prolonged flowering. In the cold season, anthuriums grow slowly. After a period of flowering, crops partially shed their leaves and hibernate.

Pruning

After the flowering period, the buds that have lost their vitality are cut with a sharp blade at the base of the flower. The exposed area is sprinkled with activated carbon. Many growers wait until the inflorescence cover dries up, carefully remove the top layer. The core will dry out later and remove itself from the sprout.

Rejuvenation

Over the years, the flower loses its aesthetic properties, grows overgrowths near the roots and partially sheds the lower foliage. The aging process is also accompanied by the appearance of small leaves and flowers, the complete absence of buds. Such signs indicate the need to rejuvenate "male happiness", the most effective way is a special culture transplant. You should carefully cut off the top with foliage, capturing the shoots of the roots placed above the soil. Transplant the shoot into fresh soil, root and moisten the flower.

When and how it blooms

Anthurium blooms at home from early spring to autumn, 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, staining 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 clavate, conical, spiral or spherical cobs of white, green or pink tones. The flowers are densely arranged on the cob in a series of spirals, in the form of a rhombus and a square. Bisexual flowers include:

• four-membered perianth and four stamens;
• syncarpous gynoecium;
• stigma disc-shaped;
• 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 depths of the perianth, and the plant looks female. The stigma forms a sweetish liquid that attracts insects. As the liquid dries out, 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 form.

Various varieties of anthurium

Flowering period

The flamingo plant blooms for 3-4 weeks under the most comfortable conditions.

How to make anthurium bloom

Simple tricks will help to make anthurium bloom:

1. Increase the amount of scattered light for about 12 hours a day.
2. Provide the anthurium with a loose, light, nutritious soil, giving the roots good access to oxygen.
3. Transplant the flower into a pot 3 cm in diameter larger than the roots of an adult specimen.
4. In winter, maintain a mode of + 15-18 ° C, reduce watering, provide artificial lighting.
5. Feed the culture with potassium and phosphorus (half a dose every 20-30 days after moistening the soil from March to October).

How anthurium reproduces

Owners of blooming anthurium often face the risk of disease or death of the plant in the absence of proper care or infection. It is better to take care of the multiplication of culture in time. Additional specimens are obtained by dividing the bush, germinating seeds, cuttings, and forming air layers.

Breeding anthurium at home

Germinating seeds

The need to grow anthurium from seeds appears under the following conditions:

1. Getting a lot of young plants.
2. Sowing seeds received by mail or provided by other growers.
3. With the purposeful cultivation of seeds of two pre-selected parents.

In nature, the flower is pollinated by insects attracted by the pronounced aroma of the plant. There are no pollinators in the apartment. Gardeners recommend smearing various "cobs" with a soft brush during the week. Anthurium flowers reach sexual maturity 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.

Ripening of berries on inflorescences lasts 8 months. Seeds are formed inside the fruit. The berry ripening signal is its separation from the flower. The 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, it is enough:

1. Fill the container with soil mixture, moisten the earth.
2. Spread the seeds over the soil.
3. Press the sowing lightly into the substrate;
4. Close the tank with glass or polyethylene;
5. Place the reservoir in a warm, bright place.

If the seeds are planted correctly and the room temperature is maintained at 22 degrees, the first shoots 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. Shoots 12 cm long with aerial roots, two healthy leaves are suitable for reproduction. Before planting, the leaves are removed or twisted into a tube, tied with a thread, preventing excessive evaporation of moisture. Slices on the handle are treated with activated carbon. The shoots are immersed in the substrate 5 cm, watered and covered with a film to form a greenhouse effect.The temperature in the greenhouse is maintained close to + 21-24 degrees, sprayed and ventilated daily, the substrate is moistened.

Reproduction of anthurium at home by cuttings

Air layering

If the plant stretches and loses its shape, the upper shoot is convenient to use for reproduction of anthurium. You will need to free part of the top from dried scales and leaves, wrap it with wet peat moss.

Fasten a bag or film over the bandage. After a certain time, new roots will begin to penetrate the moss. The cutting from the anthurium is cut and rooted in a separate container. The remaining stem will quickly grow lateral shoots.

Division of roots

Reproduction by dividing the roots is convenient to carry out during the spring transplant of anthuriums into new flowerpots. The step-by-step instructions for the process include a number of steps:

1. An adult bush is carefully removed from the pot, shaken off the soil, and the root system is freed.
2. The roots are untwisted and divided equally with a sharp, clean knife.
3. Root cuts and breaks are disinfected with activated carbon.

Anthurium transplant

Anthurium is transplanted within three days after purchase from the store or change of pot or soil. A negative soil change is indicated by a white or rusty coating on the surface of the earth. At home, caring for a young anthurium flower (up to four years old) requires an annual change of the substrate, adults change the land every two to three years.

Anthurium transplant stages:

1. A drainage layer is poured into a pot of the required size for one quarter of the size of the container and the soil is prepared.
2. Remove the anthurium from the previous vessel, pre-watered with water.
3. Check the roots of the plant for damaged or rotten roots.
4. Sprinkle the rhizome with Phytolavin and transfer the culture to a new flowerpot.
5. Gradually pour in the substrate, tapping on the pot for a more dense soil subsidence. The soil layer in the tank should not reach the edge by 2-3 cm.

Transplanting a one-year-old plant

Anthuriums are not capricious in care, subject to simple growing conditions, bloom all year round. For the active development of flowers, it is enough to provide high air humidity, the absence of drafts and temperature drops, the plant is transplanted every two to three years.

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