Family of proteas. Homeland - Australia. More than 30 species of small trees and shrubs are common in nature.
- Adenanthos Detmolda Adenanthos detmoldii is a low bush 1.5-1.78 m high, the leaves are sessile, spirally located on the stems, gray-green in color, linear in shape, young pubescent, smooth with age. The flowers are tubular, pale yellow or orange, pubescent, solitary, axillary.
- Adenanthos coastal Adenanthos sericeus is a low tree, reaching 2-2.5 m in height, the leaves are sessile, gray-green, thin as needles. The trunk and young leaves are silvery pubescent. The flowers are tubular dark red, hairy, solitary, axillary, and can appear throughout the year.
In the photo in pots, young plants, with age, adenanthos grows, forms a very lush bush, branching well from the ground itself, so that the main stem is not visible. It tolerates transplantation and pruning.
Care for Adenantos
Temperature: Normal in summer, optimal 25-28 ° C, cool in winter at 14-15 ° C, minimum 10 ° C. In winter, in normal home conditions (heated room), adenanthos suffers greatly from dryness, heat, and lack of light.
Lighting: Adenantos loves bright diffused light (with shading in summer at midday). It grows well on the east, west windows or near the south window.
Some species, for example, Adenanthos terminalis, cuneatus - require full sunlight, in nature they grow in open areas. And since there is always less light in winter, these species may need additional light.
Watering: The earth should be evenly moistened, have time to dry well between watering. Adenanthos prefer watering with soft filtered water. They do not tolerate swampiness in the pot or complete drying during the growing season. In winter, in cool conditions, before watering the plants, touch the ground with your finger, make sure that it is already dry. Water a little, so that the soil dries in 3-4 days no longer.
Humidity: Loves high humidity, can be sprayed. In winter, with a decrease in temperature, they are not sprayed, and watering is significantly limited. If you leave adenanthos to winter in a heated room, you need to protect the plant from batteries with a screen (made of glass) or film. Place on a wide tray with water or hang the battery with a damp terry towel.
Fertilizers: For feeding during the growing season, fertilizers are used the same as for azaleas, gardenias. Feeding is carried out once every 3-4 weeks.
Transplant: Annually in the spring. The soil mixture consists of a slightly acidic or acidic reaction pH 5.0-5.5, from peat or leaf earth, sand, vermiculite, fine expanded clay or gravel crumb, pieces of pine bark can be added. Drainage should also be done to the bottom of the pot.
Adenanthos is a plant from the South-West of Australia, where almost all species grow on sandy-rocky soils, require good drainage in a pot, and easily rot and die during waterlogging. Only species of "Adenanthos detmoldii" and "Adenanthos obovatus" grow in marshy areas, love copious watering and high humidity. But copious watering does not mean stagnation of water in the pot.
Reproduction
Adenanthos are propagated by seeds. This process is quite complicated. The problem is that adenanthos seeds have a dense rigid shell, they need scarification - sawing or complete removal of the shell. In industrial greenhouses that grow adenanthos and other plants for sale, the seeds are completely cleaned of the seed coat. They are then placed in a sterile medium (agar, vermiculite or filter paper). The whole process is carried out scrupulously, manually using a scalpel, tweezers and a microscope. For better growth, treatment with gibberellic acid (concentration 25 mg/l) is added - this promotes germination. With this technique, the germination rate is 70%. With ordinary sowing - much less.
Seeds are quite well stored and retain germination for 2-3 years. Ideally, adenanthos seeds should be stratified - stored in wet sand or vermiculite, at about 10 ° C (in the refrigerator) for 2 months. In February-March, you can sow in a mixture of sand and peat (the substrate is sterilized). Keep the area with crops at a temperature of 20-25 ° C, with regular ventilation and maintenance of moderate soil moisture.