Codiaum: home care and breeding methods

Content:

Common types
Care features
Reproduction methods
- Cuttings
- Reproduction using leaves
Flowering examples

Codiaum is an evergreen plant native to eastern India. Its variegated leaves of an interesting shape adorn many apartment flower beds. But growers often call this plant croton, which is a mistake. You can understand in more detail what kind of plant it is - a codium, if you study the features of caring for a flower at home.

Common types

Codiaum belongs to the Euphorbia plant family. It includes 17 varieties, which in nature have different heights, shapes and colors of leaves. Some varieties are successfully grown in home flower beds, but subject to strict compliance with the recommendations for maintenance.

This flower can be seen in many apartments or offices.

note: it is very difficult to achieve flowering of this plant in an apartment or office - for this it is important to observe ideal conditions. Most often, codiaum is acquired for the decorative properties of its foliage.

This flower has dense leathery leaves. They come in different shapes (wide oval, lobed, oblong) and colors, each with its own unique pattern. On the leaves, two shades are usually combined - green and burgundy.

Description of the known types of codiaum:

Codiaum mammy - is a lush bush with oblong leaves, wavy at the edges. Each leaf is twisted slightly along the central vein, thus creating an unusual shape for the entire plant. The color of the flower is bright, usually dark green and bright red shades are combined on the leaves, pink spots and yellow veins are added to them;
Codiaum mix is the most popular type of flower for growing at home. It has a large number of subspecies, from which varigatum can be distinguished. The leaves of this plant have an oblong pointed shape, their length can reach 20-30 cm. The bush has a variegated color, combining maroon leaves with bright green or yellowish veins;

Tamar leaves resemble the feathers of an exotic bird

Codiaum Sunny old - has lanceolate, pointed leaves. They are light green in color, but the tops and veins are bright yellow in color. In appearance it resembles a gold variety. Young leaves are spotted yellow-green. Old plants of this species have red and burgundy blotches and veins;
Codiaum crispam is a well-cultivated variety. Narrow leaves are also painted in variegated tones, while they have a curling shape. This flower is often called "curly" because of this feature;
Codiaum tamara - leaves of a flower of a light green shade with dark veins and blotches, sometimes have yellowish spots. The shape is elongated, with wavy edges and a pointed end. This variety was named in honor of the Englishwoman Tamara, who conquered the heart of the Asian emperor.

At home, only variegated codiaum is grown. This type has many varieties and subspecies, so choosing the right option for an apartment or office is not difficult.

Interesting fact: codiaum and croton are different species of the same family. They are often confused due to the similarity of their leaves. If codiaum is grown for decorative purposes, then croton is often grown for medical and household purposes.

Care features

Despite the differences in varieties, codiaum variegatuma mix flowers in any case require the same growing conditions and maintenance.This simplifies the task for flower growers who are going to start a plant on their windowsill, since there is no need to carefully study the belonging of the purchased plant to one or another variety.

Lighting

Lantana flower: home care and breeding methods

The intensity of the color of the codiaum leaves depends on the intensity of the illumination. It is best placed on the south window. Direct sunlight will not harm the plant, but it is important not to let its leaves come into contact with heated glass.

In winter, the plant may require an artificial increase in daylight hours using special phytolamps. With a lack of light, the leaves of the flower stretch out, turn pale and fall off.

Air humidity

Kodium is a capricious flower. He loves moisture-rich air and is sensitive to temperature increases in the room. That is why, in the hot season and in winter, when the heating system is turned on, you often need to spray the leaves of the flower, arrange for him a warm shower.

Watering

You should also pay close attention to the watering regime. Too dry soil or stagnant water will lead to the death of the flower.

Water the codiaum with soft warm water (a couple of degrees above the room temperature) as the substrate dries. The ground should be moist, but not wet.

You can use rainwater in summer and melted snow in winter. Hard water will cause leaves to stain and dry. Cold water can cause plant roots to rot.

The soil

For growing and caring for codiaum, a ready-made mixture for decorative deciduous plants is suitable. To prepare the mixture yourself, you need to take in equal parts leaf and sod land, peat and coarse sand.

The soil for this flower must pass water well, and in some cases, perlite or vermiculite can be used as drainage.

Fertilizers

Standard fertilizers for deciduous ornamental plants are well suited as a fertilizer. They need to be used during the period of active growth of the codiaum, a couple of times every 7 days.

During the rest period, that is, in winter, you do not need to use top dressing.

Codiaum, home care for which is not so simple, will delight with a variegated color all year round. For the sake of such lush landscaping, it is worth trying to comply with the lighting and watering regimes.

Advice: in winter, when the heating is switched on in apartments and houses, the air in the premises becomes dry. Experts advise buying an automatic air humidifier - it will benefit not only indoor plants, but also the residents of the apartment.

Such plants will help to give bright colors to a modern monochrome interior.

Reproduction methods

Lithops: home care and breeding methods

Many flower growers dream of buying a codiaum in their mini-garden. Reproduction of this flower occurs in two ways - seed and vegetative.

It is almost impossible to grow a plant with seeds. This is due to the fact that at home, codiaum rarely bears fruit, and it is very difficult to find the seeds of this flower in the store. In addition, the process of growing from scratch will be very long and laborious.

Since the codiaum flower reproduces by seeds very slowly, growers use the stem and leaf method of cuttings.

Cuttings

Propagation by cuttings is best done in the spring, starting in April. But experienced florists, with proper care, can carry out cuttings at any time of the year.

The process goes like this:

A cutting 10-15 cm long is cut from the top of the plant;
The section is washed under running water in order to wash off the milky juice of the stem;
After washing, the cutting is dried for 2-3 hours in a natural way;
To root a piece, it is placed in warm water;
Charcoal or pharmacy blue is added to the water - this will help to avoid decay of the roots;
The plant must be placed in a greenhouse (made of glass or polyethylene), closer to sunlight, but without direct rays;
After 2-3 weeks, the roots will grow a couple of centimeters, and the shoot can be planted in a pot.

To speed up the process of root formation on cuttings, their lower part can be treated with a special agent - heteroauxin or phytohormones.

Rooting cuttings in stages

Reproduction using leaves

Another way of grafting is with leaves. It is important that part of the shoot with the bud is cut off along with the leaf.

Leaf propagation process:

A leaf with a part of the shoot is cut in half;
Each part is buried 2-3 cm into the ground;
A greenhouse is being created (the easiest way is to put a plastic bag on the pot);
Every day the shoot is sprayed, ventilated;
After 2-3 months, the cuttings will give roots, and they can be planted in different containers.

As soon as new leaves appear at the segment, they can be transplanted. The growth of new shoots and leaves means that the cutting has not only given roots, but also gained enough strength for further growth and development.

note: different types of codiaum are cut in the same way. This is another plus of the plant, which greatly simplifies the task of flower growers.

Flowering examples

Radermacher: home care and breeding methods

Since home codiaum blooms very rarely, many growers do not even know what its flowers should look like. But if all the conditions for the plant are met, care for it is competent and regular, in the summer you can observe the blooming of flowers among the leaves.

Flowers and fruits of the plant

A peduncle grows in the leaf axils of the codiaum. On it there are small flowers of a faded shade, collected in inflorescences. In some varieties, the flowers are so unremarkable that the process of their flowering is very easy to overlook, especially if there are a lot of bright leaves on the bush.

Flowers of the codiaum appear of two types: male and female. The first ones look like small pom-poms made of many stamens. The female flowers have curved pistils. Each peduncle contains flowers of the same sex, but they all open at the same time.

Picture 6. Twigs with flowers can hide in the thick of leaves

The flowering process takes a lot of energy from the plant. That is why experts advise to provide the codium flower with thorough home care during this period. A mix of flowers of different sexes will give seeds, but whether it is worth risking an adult plant for them is up to you.

Important note: amateur flower growers often note that after the first flowering, the codiaum dies. This is precisely due to insufficient knowledge of the processes of flower development. In order not to face a similar problem, it is better to remove the peduncles immediately - this will not affect the decorative properties of the plant in any way.

Flower codiaum will help to add bright colors to the interior of the room. It will delight home owners or office workers not with lush flowering and a pleasant aroma, but with bright glossy leaves and a neat bush shape.