Beginning gardeners want to find decorative plants that are useful and uncomplicated in everyday care. A great choice for landscaping and decorating your home will be Curly Chlorophytum. After all, this plant not only plays the role of an unusual decoration, but also copes well with cleaning and moisturizing the air in the room where it grows.
The undoubted advantages in favor of such a choice will also be the absolute undemanding nature of the flower in its care and its high resistance to diseases that affect indoor crops. It has virtually no stem and consists of a dense rosette of basal leaves. This plant is compact and has an unusual color, which distinguishes it from decorative and deciduous pets. Curly chlorophytum will add freshness to the room and fill it with eye-pleasing colors.
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Characteristics of Curly Chlorophytum with photo
The homeland of chlorophytum is the tropical forests of Africa, Australia and South America, where under natural conditions it has more than 200 species. This is an epiphyte plant from the Asparagus family, growing on the bark of trees. One of the most unpretentious and well-cultivated species is Bonnie or Curly. This flower differs from its counterparts by the presence of a white longitudinal strip on the leaves, which is preserved regardless of external conditions.
This plant is characterized by:
- small inflorescences in the form of white stars;
- oblong swirling leaves growing from the center;
- specific spiraling of leaves as the plant develops;
- the formation of children after flowering;
- the appearance of rosettes-antennae during the growing season with further germination of leaves on them;
- can reach 50 cm in height and width, but the room view is more compact;
- growth period is more than 10 years.
Since the plant is unpretentious in care and can grow in almost any conditions, adapting to them, it is popular both in apartments and office premises. Being also an active air purifier, the flower was popularly nicknamed "vacuum cleaner".
In the photo you can see that the leaves of chlorophytum have a smooth surface and variegated color.
Rules for the care of Curly Chlorophytum at home
There is an opinion that it is chlorophytum that is suitable for all lovers of indoor greenery, because an unpretentious plant does not die even in the absence of watering for a long time. But if you want to have a beautiful and vibrant decorative foliage at home or at work, you should adhere to care recommendations after him.
Lighting
An ideal condition for Bonnie is the presence of diffused light entering in the morning and evening hours, since the plant tolerates the shadow well and does not really like direct sunlight, but at the same time needs a long daylight. Thanks to this, chlorophytum can be grown even in offices with artificial lighting or in rather dark corridors.
If possible, you need to choose eastern or western windows for the flower, they are best suited for the lighting it needs.It is important to pay attention to the intensity of foliage staining depending on the location of the Curly Chlorophytum: the less light it receives, the paler it will look and may lose its colorful color, but still continue to throw out new leaves and form its beautiful crown.
Temperature and humidity
Being a native of the tropics, the flower loves high humidity, therefore it is advisable to spray it constantly, especially in the summer months, when the plant is simply suffocating from dry air. You can use a watering can or spray, as well as "bathing" in the bathroom under the shower. To moisten foliage, it is better to use settled water at room temperature.
If the flower stands in a cold room for a long time, then the green leaves begin to acquire a yellow hue and dry at the tips. Bonnie also responds to sudden changes in temperature, you need to limit them as much as possible by moving the flower to another place for a while in order to preserve the life and beautiful appearance of the plant.
Watering and feeding
Like other decorative greens for the home, chlorophytum requires watering, depending on the time of year:
- summer - plentiful watering, the soil should always be moist;
- winter - moderate watering, but without drying out the soil;
- spring-autumn - watering depending on the air temperature and the place of growth, while you should focus on the appearance.
You need to water the flower under the root, not very cold, defended water. Additionally, at least once a week, dust should be removed from the foliage with a damp cloth.
A feature of this plant is its ability to store moisture in the stems and roots, which makes it possible to use it during periods of drought. At home, this means that Curly chlorophytum can do without watering for up to a month and at this time feed on its moisture reserves. This feature is convenient to use during business trips and vacations, because you do not need to ask someone to water the greens at home or in your office.
During the period of vegetative growth, the flower actively grows greenery and it requires additional top dressing (usually this is the summer season). In order to help the flower gain new strength, it is enough to water it twice a month with mineral fertilizers in liquid form, but universal for indoor deciduous plants are also suitable.
Diseases, pests and methods of dealing with them
The flower is not very whimsical and quite resistant to various diseases and pests, but still it can suffer from such troubles from time to time:
- Parasites: aphids, thrips, nematodes. To get rid of them, you should use special insecticides sold in specialized stores for flower growers. From folk methods, you can try spraying with a solution of water and laundry soap.
- Drying leaf tips. Most often caused by the presence of sodium in mineral fertilizers, in this case, the type of top dressing should be changed.
- Yellowing of the leaves is associated with rotting of the root system due to excess soil moisture.It is necessary to transplant the flower, having previously removed the damaged roots and change the irrigation system to a more optimal one. If during the examination of the root system no damage was noticed, the plant was affected by drafts and you just need to move it to another place.
If chlorophytum is sick, then all damaged areas must be cut off. It is also useful to completely replace the soil and treat with fungicide.
Propagation of a flower at home
For lovers of homemade greens, it’s useful to know that Bonnie’s species can be easily propagated at home, and you can choose from several possible options that are more convenient.
Seeds
This type of propagation of this flower is not very popular due to the fact that the seeds do not always germinate and this complicates the process and makes the procedure lengthy. Having decided to plant chlorophytum from seeds, the following steps should be taken:
- soak seeds for a day;
- pick up soil in a prepared pot and spread them moist on the surface;
- cover the container with cling film and put in a warm place;
- every few days remove the film and air the soil, moistening it;
- wait for the shoots to germinate and several leaves appear on them before transplanting.
Each sprout with several leaves can be safely transplanted into a separate container, the plant will quickly gain strength and grow into a full green decorative home decoration.
Rosettes
Using sockets is a great way to increase the number of indoor chlorophytums quite quickly and painlessly. After the flowering period has ended, new children will surely appear, which you can safely cut in the right amount for transplantation.
Breeding Bonnies is possible in two ways:
- trim the baby and immediately put it in a pot with a substrate;
- After cutting the socket, place it for a while for germination in a container with water, so that small roots appear.
Both methods are simple and productive in the process of propagation of room culture, and you can use them at any time of the year, which is also a definite plus.
Dividing the bush
This technique is appropriate for adult plants, whose age is more than two years. To use the division, you must first well moisten the soil in the flowerpot and get the flower with the root.
After that, take a sharp garden knife and divide the root part into several parts. Damaged areas where the cut was carried out should be treated with charcoal and after that Bonnie pieces can be planted in different pots in a special substrate with drainage.
Why is chlorophytum not curly?
With age, the leaves of the flower become more like wavy than curly. He may lose his former splendor and originality of form. This often happens due to the fact that in the phase of active growth, chlorophytum threw too many children and they take away a lot of its strength. However, the kids will curl without any problems.
It is also possible that the flower does not get curly due to the fact that there is no room left in the pot for the development of the root system, and this closes the way to the full development of Bonnie. If such a problem was noticed, then it should be transplanted into a larger pot, and also regularly tear off part of the foliage and children, so that moisture in the trunks is enough for all life processes and the flower regains its desired shape.
Useful properties of indoor plants chlorophytum
Bonnie's flower will not only please the eye with green foliage year-round, but will also benefit the house in which it is grown, because it:
- an excellent air purifier that helps with dust and even fungi;
- able to facilitate the course of allergic reactions;
- moisturizes the air, which is especially important on hot days;
- absorbs harmful fumes after repair;
- has cleansing properties to improve memory;
- helps cleanse the intestines of pets.
From the point of view of Feng Shui, chlorophytum reduces the level of negative energy in the room and helps to process it into a positive one. It is also a good helper for resolving conflict situations and is recommended for use in office premises with a large number of people and constant voltage.
Common flower growing questions
Chlorophytum Bonnie is a good choice of greenery for office and home, making it possible to use it as an element of the interior due to its high tolerance to the absence of light and different temperatures, as well as allowing you to moisten and purify indoor air in a natural way.
Stroitelstvo.Guru
Chlorophytum is an ideal plant for beginner gardeners. It is very undemanding to care and capricious. In addition, it is useful to start chlorophytum in the house, it purifies the air, neutralizing harmful impurities. Propagation of the plant is also easy. For example, in a crested chlorophytum, a small rooted rosette grows very quickly, especially if you put it in a bright place.