Once, having come to visit my grandmother, I saw a blooming Hippeastrum on her window. Expressing my admiration, I turned my attention to a nearby plant. Dark green leaves, an elongated bulb about 8 cm in diameter and a dozen children peeking above the ground. "Also a gypp" - I decided, and asked my grandmother what color the flowers of this comrade are. But, as it turned out, for all the time that she had a flower, he did not bloom even once. The former hostess told her grandmother only that this "lily" blooms in red.
Just at this time, my craze for houseplants, in particular, their bulbous part, resumed. Seeing the interest, my grandmother decided to give me this sufferer. The sufferer was brought home, chosen from all sides and settled on the window. The goal glowed in red letters in my brain: make it bloom! And how to make a gypsum bloom with an 8-centimeter bulb? Getting It Right! Put to bed! Which I tried to do. She dug up the unfortunate plant from a three-liter can from under the paint in which it lived, and laid it on its side to dry the leaves in coolness. It didn't want to do this, but I'm persistent! As a result, for a month of such execution, we have 2 sheets out of 12. And then I saw between the sheets a small spout of a young leaf. "Woke up!" - I was delighted. She pulled the poor man into the light of God, cut off the long roots and put him in a small pot. A few days later, the young leaf withered, growing no more than a centimeter. And then I was pierced by lightning: Is it a gypsum at all ???
Vallota or, as some sources say, Valotta (which is not correct) is a plant of the Amaryllis family. Not having as many varieties as Hippeastrum, she is not inferior to him in grace. Originally from the Cape province of South Africa, Vallota got its name from the French botanist Pierre Vallot and has been grown as a houseplant since the 17th century.
The genus Vallota includes only one species - Vallota the beautiful Vallota speciosa, however, according to the English taxonomic nomenclature, the genus consisted of 3 species of plants. According to the latest data, Vallota speciosa and Vallota purpurea are transferred to the genus Cyrtanthus and are called Cirtanthus elevated Cyrtanthus elatus, and Vallota miniata in the genus Clivia. There are many names in the literature that, nevertheless, belong to one plant. So, Vallota is beautiful (Vallota speciosa (L. f.) T. Durand & Schinz) has the following synonyms: Cirtanthus elatus (Jacq.) Traub.), Amaryllis elata Jacq. (basionym)), Amaryllis purple (Amaryllis purpurea Aiton), Crinum beautiful (Crinum speciosum L. f.), Vallota purpurea (Aiton) Herb.).
There are several common varieties:
- Vallota speciosa 'Alba' - the flowers are white;
- Vallota speciosa 'Magnifica' - flowers with a white eye;
- Vallota speciosa 'Major' - large-flowered (up to 12 cm);
- Vallota speciosa 'Minor' is small-flowered and narrow-leaved.
Appearance of the Wallot
Vallota is a deciduous bulbous plant. Dark green leaves 25-40 long and up to 4 cm wide are collected in a fan-shaped rosette, which looks quite impressive even on a non-flowering plant. The leaves have such a weakly expressed central vein that on some plants the leaves are perfectly flat, unlike the grooved Hippeastrum leaf.
The main feature by which vallot can be distinguished from other amaryllis is the saturated purple color of the base of the sheet. The bulb is elongated-ovate, sometimes pear-shaped pink-brown in color with a massive neck, which on some plants does not have a clear border with the bulb body. If you remove the upper scales, you can see an interesting game of color: it changes from almost white at the bottom of the bulb to dark pink at the neck.
Children of Vallota, unlike the same Hippeastrum, are formed not at the bottom of the bulb, but above the surface of the soil. Thanks to special "legs," the children rise above the mother's bulb, break through the upper dry scales and appear in all their glory. Initially, the baby has no leaves. Only when it forms its own roots, which slightly "pull" the baby into the ground, leaves will appear.
Vallota blooms in spring, summer or autumn, with good care - and twice a year. On a hollow leafless peduncle, 2-9 funnel-shaped or bell-shaped flowers of bright red color open. After pollination, a box fruit is tied, which, after ripening of the seeds, cracks.
How to care for the Wallot
Vallota feels good on light windowsills, even direct sunlight is not contraindicated for her. However, you need to make sure that the temperature does not rise above 25 ° C. On hot days, it is better to remove the plant deep into the room or at least shade it a little.
During the growing season, Vallota requires constantly moist soil, but you still need to avoid the bay - the bulb can rot. In nature, Vallota grows in the humid tropics, so it will also gratefully perceive regular spraying. You just need to make sure that the water does not fall on the inflorescences.
To achieve flowering, the plant needs a small, even cramped pot. In a wide and deep pot, children grow en masse, the mother's bulb gains volume, but does not think about flowering.
During the growing and flowering season, Vallot must be fed once every 14 days with liquid fertilizers for flowering plants or universal fertilizer, breeding them according to the manufacturer's instructions.
In September, after the end of flowering, watering is reduced, but not stopped at all. The plant is placed in a cool (12-16 ° C) place. Vallota, unlike Hippeastrum, does not lose leaves during the dormant period, so watering is necessary. In winter, Vallota is watered only after the earthen lump is dry enough, but in no case dry out .
After my "efforts," my sufferer, who turned out to be the beautiful Vallota, fell into despondency. The leaves sagged, and there could be no talk of any growth. Only the onion pleased - after all, as much as 8 cm. Well, I think nothing - here the roots will recover, and it will grow again. And in order to take root faster, you need enough moisture. I will water with high quality. Several weeks have passed, and oh horror! The upper scales on the bulb turned gray and became wet and slippery. I was shocked. After all, I know that it is impossible to strongly water the bulbs until they are completely rooted, and yet I poured it. Having scolded myself properly, I began to think how to save the situation. First of all, she stopped watering, loosened the ground. It was difficult to do this, the pot is 12 cm in diameter, and the onion, as you remember, is as much as 8. That and look hurt. But I did it. In the process of loosening, she carefully peeled off wet scales as best she could. The body of the bulb did not seem to suffer, but for reinsurance I still poured it with a solution of "Maxim," a week later I repeated and dried the soil well. The rot stopped, the onion dried out, but growth never resumed. For the desire to see flowering at all costs, or at least a young leaf, I completely forgot about when Vallota had a period of rest. Why would she grow in February?
Wallot landing and transfer
As mentioned above, the pot for Vallota is quite tight. In a spacious pot, children will grow en masse (up to 10 pieces per year), but flowering is difficult to achieve. The soil for Vallota should be light, but very nutritious. In the literature, you can find several recipes for preparing the soil mixture, let's dwell on the most common ones.
1 option. Sod earth mixed with sheet earth and peat, as well as rotted cowpea and coarse sand in a ratio of 3:2:2:1:1.
2 option. Deciduous land, sod land, humus (4:1:2) with the addition of sand and bone meal.
Option 3 (mainly for sowing seeds). Mixture of sod, peat, sheet earth and sand (1:2:1:2).
4 option (good for raising kids). Sod, sheet, humus earth, sand (1:1:1:1).
Option 5 (not written anywhere, found empirically).
I have Vallota growing in a substrate that consists of leaf earth from under fruit trees with pieces of bark - the 3 part, peat land (the usual universal soil for indoor - sold in the store) - the 2 part, sand - the 1 part, crushed charcoal - the 1 part.
Good drainage is mandatory in the pot. What it will be - expanded clay, gravel or foam - is up to you. The main thing is that the drainage layer is at least 2 cm and the pot has a sufficient number of drainage holes.
The bulb is planted in the ground without covering the neck, otherwise it can rot. My Vallota sits in the ground only to its widest part - about 1/3, and feels great. Wallot is transplanted no more than 1 times every 2-3 years, since the plant perceives any damage to the root system very painfully. Some sources recommend planting Vallota in open ground for the summer, where it grows and develops well. This is really true, besides, you can place a plant in the garden without damaging the roots, but how to make the plant transfer from garden to pot without loss? If you are confident in your capabilities, why not pamper the plant in nutritious garden land? If you are not sure, it is better not to take risks, but simply put the pot of Vallota outside or bury it on the edge of the pot in the ground.
If you decide to somehow place Vallota in the air, choose a place where there will be no scorching midday rays of the sun. The best option is an openwork shade of trees in the middle of the day and sunlight at dawn or before sunset.
Desperate to see the young leaves in February, I came up with the wonderful idea of looking at the roots of the plant. Pulling the long-suffering Vallota out of the pot, I dusted off the ground and admired the new strong roots, which looked like they were no more than a couple of weeks old. Together with the soil, the remains of old roots crumbled, which were ruthlessly trimmed by me. And then I realized my mistake: in no case should Vallot be transplanted often! Any damage to the root leads to its death, it is unlikely to grow further. The plant will spend precious energy building up a new root. From experience with separated children, I already knew that they begin to grow leaves only when they are firmly rooted in the ground. An adult plant lives by the same principle. Sighing and once again showering my curiosity with curses, how could I carefully put Vallota in a pot again, along the way replacing the soil with a more nutritious one. On top of the soil, I poured a layer of fine (up to 1 cm in diameter) expanded clay. It prevents the upper layer of soil from drying out and compacting. You can check the humidity in the pot just by spreading the expanded clay with your finger and touching the ground. I noticed that with expanded clay on top, the earthen lump dries more evenly and not as quickly as without it. After transplanting, she settled Vallota on the south window and left alone, periodically watering and spraying.
Vallota propagation
Like all other members of the Amaryllis family, Vallota is propagated by seeds, children and bulb division.
The most common way is with children. Fortunately, the plant produces them very generously. Children are separated from the mother plant during transplantation, most often in the spring before leaving the dormant period. For separation, those children who already have their own roots are suitable, and preferably those who are no longer associated with the mother's bulb "leg" on which they moved out of the ground. Such children are already ready for independent life. Children who already have roots, but are still associated with the mother plant, take root much worse in a separate pot, so it is better to postpone their separation, if possible. Those children who do not yet have their own roots practically do not survive after separation.
Seed propagation is not as popular, but it is no less interesting. Unlike propagation by children, seedlings immediately have their own roots, which increases the survival rate of bulbs at times. To get the seeds, after flowering, you just need to leave the ovary on the peduncle - a box. If there are several such boxes, it is better to leave only one, the largest and strongest. After ripening, the box cracks, which is a signal to collect seeds. The collected seeds quickly lose their germination, so they need to be sown shortly after collection, in September-October, and sometimes in January. Sow into the prepared substrate, moisten it, cover it with glass or other transparent material. Constantly spray and ventilate. At a temperature of 16-18 ° C, shoots appear after 3-4 weeks. The first pick is performed 6 months after emergence of seedlings. When planting, the neck of young bulbs is covered. In summer, they are watered so that between watering the upper layer of the substrate dries, excess water is poured from the tray. In winter, they are kept in a well-lit place, with a temperature of about 16 ° C, with moderate irrigation. Children usually bloom for 2-3 years of life.
In the second year, in the spring, young plants are planted in pots or boxes. In September, plants are dug up and planted in pots corresponding to the size of the bulbs (approximately 9-10 cm). The substrate is composed of sod, sheet or humus earth and sand (1:1:1). When planting, the neck of the bulb should protrude above the soil surface. In winter, plants are kept in a bright room with a temperature of about 16S. In the third year, the plants are not provided with a period of rest, however, starting from the end of June, watering is reduced, continuing to intensively ventilate. From the book Greenhouses (S.G. Sakov). The flowering of seedlings can usually be seen for 4-5 years.
The reproduction of Vallota by dividing the bulb is also practiced. A healthy adult bulb is cut into 4 parts with a sharp knife so that a part of the bottom remains on each. Sections are sprinkled with crushed charcoal, dried and planted into a substrate similar to that used for children or a mixture of sand and peat (1:1) for rooting. For the formation of new bulbs, the air temperature must be at least 20 ° C. Usually such bulbs bloom in the third year.
Having missed all winter and all cold March, I was already desperate to ever see my Vallota in the growing season. And now it happened! On April 10, looking between the remaining two leaves, I saw two more soft green leaves that stretched towards the light. Songs and splashes around the windowsill pleased my whole family? And on April 20, I saw 2 more new sheets! Now I am writing this article and admiring four, no, already six sheets from soft green to dark green and the soul sings. I had enough common sense not to ruin such beauty completely! It remains to wait for flowering. Hopefully, despite the lack of cool wintering, it will come. And if not, there is another year ahead. After all that has been transferred, we are not afraid of anything!
Growing problems
In general, Vallota is an unpretentious plant, however, and she has her own whims. In particular, Vallota does not like a very high temperature in summer - above 25 ° C, in this case it must be rearranged to a cooler place.
A sharp temperature drop at night, or a draft, especially if it stands on the balcony, can also adversely affect the plant. Of the diseases that can threaten Vallota - this is most often gray rot - with excessive watering in cold weather or in winter with cool maintenance. Fusarium fever may also appear. Young bulbs usually die quickly, while an adult bulb can fight the disease for quite some time. However, you still cannot do without special treatment. Of the pests, Vallotto can most often be affected by a shield, a red spider mite.
If the plant does not bloom, there may be several reasons: too spacious a pot, children did not separate from the bulb for a long time, in winter there was no cool period of rest.
Precautions with the plant
Vallota is poisonous, so you need to carefully monitor so that young children and pets do not try to "try for a tooth" any part of the plant. Bulbs are especially dangerous, in which the concentration of toxic substances is much higher than in leaves and flowers. After working with the plant, it is recommended to thoroughly wash your hands and all tools.
Despite the amount written, Vallota is a very unpretentious and tenacious plant. If you do not put experiments on it, similar to those that I put, your plant will successfully grow and delight the owners. I hope I didn't get too tired of the reader with so much information. I would be glad if my experience is useful to you. Good mood and healthy plants!
Sincerely, Oksana Dyachenko (OxyKsu)