Anthurium Anthurium

Aroid family. The birthplace of anthuriums is the tropics of America (Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador). In nature, these are about 800 species of epiphytic or semi-epiphytic plants .

Types of anthurium

Scherzer's anthurium Anthurium scherzerianum - has a shortened aboveground or underground stem. The leaves are green, oblong on long petioles, pointed at the end, 15-20 cm long and 5-7 cm wide. The peduncle is twice as long as the petioles of the leaves. The inflorescence cover is ovoid, about 10-15 cm long and 5-7 cm wide. Colors are different, from white, orange, red, to variations with different color inclusions. Cob up to 10 cm long, yellow, orange or reddish, slightly twisted spirally.

Anthurium multi-dissected Anthurium polyschistum is an unusual species, having palmately dissected leaves on long and thin petioles. One leaf has about 5-9 segments. Each is linear-lanceolate in shape, with a slightly wavy edge, 10-15 cm long and about 1.5 cm wide. This is an ornamental-deciduous species, its flowers are not particularly attractive - the cover is light green or cream, slightly bent back, the ear is also cream green.

Anthurium crystal Anthurium Crystallinum - grown as an ornamental-deciduous plant (inflorescences are less ornamental than other anthuriums). It has a shortened underground stem. Leaves on long petioles, heart-shaped, about 30-40 cm long and 20-30 cm wide. The leaf surface is velvety, dark green to almost purple, with light veins that have a silver or crystal sheen. The peduncle is not much longer than the petioles of the leaves. The cover of the inflorescence is about 8-10 cm long, the ear is long, about 2 cm, purple.

Anthurium Andreanum Anthurium Andreanum is a large plant up to 70-90 cm, the stem is shortened, above ground, the petioles of the leaves are long, sit tightly to each other. The leaves are green, heart-shaped, about 35-40 cm long and 20 cm wide. Peduncles are long and rise above the leaf bush. The inflorescence has a dense leathery cover, wide-heart-shaped, with a tuberous surface, almost rounded in shape, about 2 cm long and 15-20 wide. The color of the cover is white, pink to dark red, often mixed colors (for example, white and pink). The ear is 10-15 cm long, slightly bent, white or yellow.

Anthurium - Care and Cultivation

Temperature

Plants should be kept in a warm room, in summer the temperature is normal, room temperature, in winter it is optimal at 18-20 ° C, but isolated from the heating system. Winter minimum 15 ° C - anthurium content for 1.5-2 months at this temperature and very limited watering stimulates flowering. Protect from drafts!

Lighting

Bright diffused light, east window, northeast or northwest will do. Direct sun is permissible only in the morning or evening. In winter, additional lighting with lamps is possible. With a lack of light, the leaves are small, the flowers lose color, the bush looks loose.

Watering

Watering is moderate, but regular, the topsoil should have time to dry, but complete drying of the ground is not allowed. I.e. another watering, after the ground in the pot dries in the upper third in summer, and in winter at least dries in the upper half of the pot. In nature, anthurium is a semi-polyphytic plant, at home anthurium also does not tolerate prolonged waterlogging, the roots easily rot. If you doubt whether it is necessary to water, then act according to the rule: "it is better to dry it than to pour it." Water for irrigation is used only soft (settled and boiled).

Fertilizer

From March to September, feeding once every two weeks. Fertilizers for decorative and flowering plants (Kemira-lux, Uniflor-bud, Rainbow), the dose of fertilizers should be taken half the recommended one! You can also use fertilizer for orchids (for example, Bona forte, at the recommended dose).

Air humidity

It is recommended to spray with water regularly (morning and evening), because anthuriums need very humid air - up to 80%. At the same time, the room should be well ventilated, otherwise, the plant is susceptible to fungal or bacterial diseases.

Anthurium transplant

Transplanted into a substrate for bromeliads or orchids. Soil mixture: 1 part of leaf, 1 part of coniferous land (or pine bark), 1 part of peat land and 0.5 part of large, sifted from dust, sand, 0.5 part of vermiculite. Pieces of charcoal and pine bark are added to the soil. If you have nowhere to take leafy land, you can use purchased land for azaleas, add vermiculite (perlite), pine bark, coconut fiber in equal parts to it. Sphagnum moss is more careful - it is very hygroscopic, if you put too much of it, you can moisturize the substrate.

It is better to plant in shallow pots with good drainage. Holes can be made in the walls of plastic pots. After transplantation, especially protect from direct sunlight, often spray and gently water. Anthurium is a semi-polyphyte plant, so its main requirement is good soil aeration, the roots must breathe, so its soil must be very loose. I.e. after watering, water should flow through it almost instantly. Looseness is given to the substrate by the addition of coconut fiber, pieces of pine bark. You can add a little sphagnum moss. Soil pH should be slightly acidic, approximately pH = 6.

Anthurium - growing features

Propagation of anthurium

Anthuriums are propagated by apical cuttings having a small number of aerial roots. They are also propagated by division, when lateral shoots develop, and by seeds. Delenki are planted in spring, at the beginning of growth, during transplantation. A young plant must be planted in a loose substrate, in a mixture of leafy earth, vermiculite and pine bark. In loose ground, plants grow faster. Watering as it dries. If you get an anthurium stalk without roots, put it rooted in water, adding a tablet of activated carbon to it.

The challenges of growing anthurium

The most basic problem with anthuriums is the occurrence of various spots, as in the first photo. The reason is excessive watering and/or incorrectly selected substrate. Flower growers constantly forget that anthurium in nature leads an epiphytic or semi-epiphytic lifestyle. I.e. grows with roots not in the ground, but only in the likeness of a substrate - a mixture of leaf earth, leaf litter and litter. This is a very loose substance, water does not linger in it after rains, it flows down very quickly, and the roots are constantly ventilated. The heavier, denser the ground in the pot, the slower it dries out, and the roots breathe worse.

What to do if such spots appear on the anthurium. First of all, he will make sure that the earth is selected correctly, that it is loose enough. Secondly, check how wet it is - at the same time check how loose it is - you can easily stick your finger into good ground and the roots will not interfere. If the ground in the depths of the pot is wet, then perhaps you still flooded the plant. If at the same time the leaves have not lost their turgor, then it is enough to loosen the ground in the pot with a stick, and let it dry thoroughly. If there are a lot of spots, then drying cannot be done, you have to turn to chemical protection in order to destroy pathogens (fungal or bacterial infection that develops in a humid environment). It is best to use the systemic fungicide fundazole.

If the land of the plant is very damp, and the leaves have begun to wither, it is urgent to get the plant out of the ground and shake it off the damp earth and dry the roots in rolls of toilet paper. Then spray everything with the same fundazol and plant in fresh dry earth .

And another very important rule: never strive to compensate for the dry air of the room with excess irrigation. Anthurium loves moist air, optimally about 50%. Find a way to increase humidity without resorting to more frequent watering. The easiest way, of course, is to purchase a humidifier. If it is not there, place the pots on wide trays of water (so that water does not penetrate from the pot), put an indoor fountain next to it, cover the heating battery with wet sheets, at worst, spray. Why on thin - because spraying does little to save the situation, except to spray 4-5 times a day. In addition, if sprayed too abundantly, water flows to the ground, which again threatens to waterlogged. And water that falls on the covers of inflorescences can lead to the appearance of brown spots. And finally, the last reason to avoid spraying - with water that got on the leaves, fungal spores and bacteria spread. Therefore, if you have spots on the leaves, spraying should be stopped, and the humidity should be increased in another way. If, on the contrary, you have very high humidity in the apartment, then it is very important that the air does not stagnate, the room must be constantly ventilated, and the plants should not be crowded. If it is not possible to ventilate again, or it is too cold to open the window, put a small table fan near the plants, of low power.

In the second photo, a plant affected by a draft and hypothermia (by the way, it may have been watered the day before, which means that the root system was also hypothermic) - just forgot to close the window in the room overnight. The leaves began to brown, first on the underside of the petiole, then darkened whole. Anthurium is a heat-loving plant, but at the same time, if the ground is almost completely dry, the plant will calmly tolerate a decrease in temperature even to 12-13 ° C, but if there is no draft. Especially careful should be done when transporting the purchased plant home in the cold season, even 5-10 minutes in the cold (from the shopping center to the car in the parking lot) is enough for the plant to freeze. If the root system does not have time to cool down, the plant can be saved by putting it in a warm place and limiting watering.

Of the pests, ticks are most harmful to anthurium (in the third photo, a cyclamen tick lesion). Young leaves develop pale, deformed (twisted), with brown spots. Old leaves lose their color, point punctures, discolored strokes are visible in the leaf lumen. Gradually, the leaves dry out. It is quite difficult to detect a tick in the initial stage, spider mites do not always form a noticeable web, more often you can find them themselves, or skins from them, on the back of the sheet in the form of fine white dandruff. You can save anthurium from the tick by trying to first rinse the leaves with dog shampoo from fleas. If this does not help, use special acaricide preparations.

How to make anthurium bloom at home?

Anthurium with its glossy leaves and bright flower covers can decorate any interior. But often florists are faced with the fact that the plant stubbornly refuses to bloom. It seems to be healthy, and the foliage shines, but there are no inflorescences for months. Why this happens and how to help the anthurium reveal its beauty - let's figure it out in detail.

Why doesn't anthurium bloom?

Before taking action, it is important to find out what exactly the problem is. Here are the main reasons why the anthurium is "silent":

• Incorrect lighting
  Anthurium is photophilous, but cannot stand the direct sun. In the shade, it does not bloom at all, but in the scorching sun it burns the leaves. Optimally - bright diffused light, especially in winter.
• Too spacious pot
  If the roots are too free, the plant will begin to build up the root mass, and not bloom. Often anthurium begins to throw out peduncles only when the roots begin to slightly rest against the walls of the pot.
• Cold and drafts
  Anthurium is native to the tropics. At temperatures below + 18 ° C, it hibernates. If the flower stands on a windowsill with cold air in winter or under an open window, there will be
no flowering.
• Watering disorders
  Anthurium does not like drying out, but stagnation of water is disastrous for him. If you pour roots, they will rot. If you forget to water, it will dry out and suspend development.
• Depleted soil or improper feeding
  Without power, the anthurium will not bloom. But also re-feeding with nitrogen will cause active leaf growth to the detriment of buds.
• Plant age
  Young anthurium grown from a cutting or plot will bloom no earlier than in 1-2 years. Sometimes you just have to wait a little bit.

What to do?

If everything is in order with the plant, but it stubbornly does not bloom, it's time to create suitable conditions for it. Here is a set of measures that really work:

1. Correct light mode
   Place the anthurium closer to the window, but not under direct rays. The east or west window is ideal. If there is little light, use phytolamps. Especially relevant in the winter months.
2. Irrigation adjustment
   Water only after drying the topsoil. The water should be warm, consistent. Maintain air humidity at 70-80%. You can spray the air next to the plant or put a tray with wet expanded clay.
3. Temperature and rest
   In order for the anthurium to bloom, sometimes it needs a period of rest. For 1-1.5 months in autumn or winter, the temperature is reduced to + 16... + 18 ° C, watering is reduced, and they are not fed. After returning to a warm and bright place, the plant often begins to
bloom.
4. Competent top dressing
   From spring to autumn, feed anthurium 1 once every 2 weeks with fertilizer for flowering plants. Important: the composition should contain more phosphorus and potassium, but a moderate amount of nitrogen. In winter, feeding is stopped or done once every 1-1.5 months.
5. Transplant and suitable soil
   A loose, breathable ground suits Anthurium. You can use the finished substrate for orchids, adding a little humus and peat. It is worth transplanting once every 1-2 years in the spring, be sure to pot a little more than the previous one.
6. Pruning and cleaning the plant
   Remove old peduncles and yellowed leaves. This stimulates the growth of new shoots and inflorescences. It is also worth wiping the leaves from dust.

Little tricks from experienced florists

• Stimulation cocktail
  Once a month, you can water the plant with a weak solution of succinic acid or use natural stimulants (for example, an infusion of ash or yeast).
• Greenhouse effect
  If the plant has not bloomed for a long time, try creating a temporary mini-greenhouse: cover with a transparent bag or cap for several days, ensuring regular ventilation.
• Compatibility with neighbors
  Anthuriums fare better in the company of other tropical plants. Humidity rises and the plant feels like "home."

When to expect flowering?

If all conditions are met, anthurium can bloom almost all year round. Usually buds appear in spring and continue to open until late autumn. One peduncle pleases the eye for 5-8 weeks, sometimes longer.
If the plant rested, received the right light and nutrition - it will definitely thank abundant flowering.

Frequent mistakes of beginners

Mistake	Why bad
Overflow with water	Leads to root rot
Use of universal fertilizer	Can overfeed with nitrogen, which inhibits flowering
Transplanting into too big a pot	The plant "chews" - grows leaves, does not bloom
Dry air	Buds do not form, leaves dry
Drafts and cold	Anthurium goes into stress