Nepenthes (Nepenthes) - decorative and deciduous herbaceous plant from the Non-Pentesian family. It has leaves of two types: ordinary and modified - in the form of large jugs with a lid. In them, the plant lures, as a trap, insects and small animals. Kills and digests them, getting useful substances from the organisms of the victims.
The homeland of Nepentes is Southeast Asia. In the natural environment, perennial creepers are common in the tropical zones of Australia, New Guinea, and Madagascar Island. Here they grow up to 20 m. At home, nepentes develops rapidly and during the first year of life it already becomes an adult shrub, reaching 0.65 m in 4.5 years.
In the wild, the plant blooms with small flowers, collected in nondescript long brushes. Home Nepentes blooms extremely rarely.
If you like to grow fruit plants at home, then see how to grow a lemon.
| Growth rate is fast. A young flower becomes ripe in 1 year. | |
| Blooms rarely at home. | |
| The plant will suit an experienced grower. | |
| It is a perennial plant. |
How and what to feed Nepentes
A feature of Nepentes is its insectivorousness. The neck of each jug is surrounded by a glossy rim that attracts the attention of the victims, and the spike-like growths on it prevent them from escaping to freedom. Mature shrubs once every 2.5 weeks should be treated with insects, while overfeeding the plant is not worth it.
Bloodworms, flies, maggots are often used as a live "treat", dropping one individual in a third of the jugs. A pitcher is able to absorb no more than 2 insects in 30 days. Water must be poured into empty jugs.
Home care (briefly)
Grow the nepentes at home under the power of an experienced grower, but he must also know the plant's preferences well and try to create an optimal atmosphere for it:
| Temperature mode | Depends on the type of plant, mostly prefer +15 - 25 ° C. |
| Air humidity | Increased, from 55%. |
| Lighting | Broken bright; on the southern windows they shade, they are placed on the windows facing the east. |
| Watering | The surface of the soil should dry out; in summer they water up to 2 times in 7 days, less often in winter. |
| Nepentes soil | Soil mixture of 6 parts of spruce bark, 6 parts of coconut substrate, 8 parts of sphagnum. |
| Fertilizer and fertilizer | Spraying with diluted fertilizer for orchids; chelates of boron, copper, iron. |
| Nepentes transplant | Each spring, the plant is transshipped. |
| Breeding | Cuttings or seeds. |
| Growing Features | Nepentes does not have special requirements for growing conditions, but he needs basic care. |
Nepentes care at home
Nepentes is a tropical predator that can be tamed, creating comfortable conditions for it. He will not remain in debt and will surprise with original jugs, and if he is lucky, then with flowering.
Bloom
The decorative value of Nepentes is in bright jugs, but sometimes flowers appear on the bushes. Nepentes is a dioecious plant: on some bushes only female flowers are formed, on others only male flowers. Nepentes bloom is unusual, but you can not call it attractive or spectacular.
Small leaf flowers appear in the leaf sinuses that do not have petals, but with three sepals, collected in long erect mahogany inflorescences. Flowering can last 4-6 months, after which a fruit is formed - a box. Nepentes blooms very rarely at home.
Temperature mode
Home Nepentes is a thermophilic plant. Alpine species do not develop well in hot weather: pitchers do not form, leaves become smaller. Growing in the lowlands, on the contrary, need heat, at temperatures below + 26 ° C they can die. At home, it is important to maintain the temperature regime.
During the day, the thermometer should keep within + 15 - 23 ° C, at night - not lower than + 13 ° C.
Spraying
Nepentes prefers high humidity, but can also adapt to dry air in the apartment if necessary. It is not worth it to abuse the plant's compliance, it is necessary to maintain air humidity at a level comfortable for non-Pentes (not lower than 60%), otherwise the plant will not form jugs.
Spraying is not recommended, since ugly spots may appear on the leaves. The plant is placed away from heating appliances. Use humidifiers. A pot with a bush is put on a pallet with wet pebbles, next to it you can put an aquarium and an open container with water.
Lighting
Bright sunlight is necessary for the bush to tie jugs and form developed leaves. Nepentes prefers diffused bright lighting for about 12 hours a day. In this regard, care for nepenthes at home recommends placing the plant in the eastern sector of the apartment: here he will receive a sufficient portion of ultraviolet radiation for 4 hours a day.
This amount is not enough for normal vegetation, you will have to turn on phytolamps or fluorescent lamps. On the windows facing south, Nepentes is shaded so that there are no leaf burns.
Watering Nepentes
The substrate in the pot should always be moistened, but waterlogging is very dangerous for the plant. Watering of Nepentes is carried out when the soil surface dries to a depth of about 0.7 cm. In summer, this usually happens twice a week, in winter - once every 10-12 days.
Water quality is very important. It is impossible to water with chlorinated tap water, the plant can die quickly. To defend and filter it is useless: Nepentes is very sensitive to chlorine. For irrigation, you need to take high-quality bottled water, in which there is no sodium, or distilled water. It should be tepid.
Nepentes pot
The plant has a developed rod-shaped root system. The pot for Nepentes is selected high so that not only the root fits freely in it, but also a thick layer of drainage. Sometimes Nepentes, like an ampel plant, is planted in a hanging container. Its sizes are selected according to the same criteria. Preference should be given to a plastic container: it is easier to transplant a plant from it.
Priming
In order for the nepentes plant to vegetate well at home, it is necessary to choose the right soil for it. The bush is demanding on the soil, so just a universal substrate for it will not work. The soil mixture must be prepared by ourselves, taking 6 servings of coconut substrate and spruce bark and 8 servings of crushed sphagnum.
The mixture is baked in the oven or microwave sterilized. Coal powder should not be added to the soil for Nepentes. The acidity level of the prepared mixture should be in the range of 4.6 - 5.6.
Fertilizer and fertilizer
For Nepentes, only foliar top dressing and fertilizing is performed. Once a month, a solution several times diluted for orchids or chelates of copper, iron and boron is used, which the plant is able to well absorb. Organic fertilizers are rarely given in small doses. After feeding Nepentes shade.
Nepentes transplant
Nepentes is transplanted every year, in the spring, when the roots from the drainage holes are visible. The shrub has a rooted root system.
Fragile subordinate roots depart from the central root. In order not to damage them, the transplantation of Nepentes is replaced.
Pruning
During transplantation, radical trimming of nepenthes is carried out. The procedure stimulates the formation of new shoots. They should be pinched over the seventh kidney. When new shoots appear after 2 months, they need to be cut off by about 1/3, because they have no decorative value, pitchers on them do not form.
Hypene Hygiene
To maintain decorativeness at the proper level and keeping the plant clean, hygiene of nepentes is necessary.
You should systematically water the bush with warm water from the shower, and remove dried pitchers and leaves in time.
Rest period
At the beginning of October - the first half of February, the rest period of Nepentes falls. At this time, the temperature regime changes, the duration of daylight hours decreases, and the humidity in the room changes. Nepentes at home adequately responds to a change of scenery, slowing growth.
In winter, stop feeding, reduce the number of waterings. Withered leaves and dried jugs should not upset the hostess: with the awakening of nature, nepenthes from hibernation will wake up. New jugs will appear, leaves will grow, and old ones must be removed in time so that they do not spoil the appearance of the plant.
Is it possible to leave Nepentes without leaving on vacation?
If you go on vacation in the summer for 10 or more days, be sure to ask loved ones to look after the flower. It is necessary to leave distilled water for irrigation in advance, prepare food and draw up a plan for caring for nepentes. During winter holidays, they ask only occasionally to water the plant.
Propagation of Nepentes
Reproduction of Nepentes is a long and complex process.
Growing Nepentes from Seeds
It is not always possible, because at home the seeds cannot be obtained, and those purchased are not always fresh. Seed germination is low. They are sown in a moist coconut substrate or sphagnum, sprayed and covered with a film. It will take a long time to wait for the shoots - the process can drag on for six months or more.
Propagation of Nepentes by cuttings
It happens often. Fragments having at least 3 leaves are cut from the upper shoots. Cut points are dusted with carbon powder. The cuttings are treated with a stimulator of root formation and planted in the ground under the film. After almost 2 months, when rooting occurs, Nepentes is transplanted into a pot.
If the root blackened during rooting, it is eliminated along with the ground.
Diseases and Pests
With improper care, nepentes can be affected by diseases and pests. About troubles will be seen in the appearance of the plant:
- reddish and brown spots on nepenthes leaves - fungal infection from high humidity (fungicides are used);
- Nepentes does not form pitchers - dry air, little light (spray more often, put on a pallet with wet pebbles; rearrange in a lit place);
- nepentes is slowly growing - little light (rearrange in a brighter place);
- burns on the leaves - excess light (shade, change location);
- rot the roots of nepentes - excess moisture (transplant into another soil, adjust watering);
- nepentes shrinks and wilts - waterlogging (change the soil, less often water);
- nepentes turns yellow - deficiency of nutrients (feed).
Sometimes scabs, spider mites, aphids, and whiteflies affect Nepentes. Insecticides are used against pests.
Types of home nepenthes with photos and names
In culture, there are several popular types of nepenthes.
Nepentes winged Nepenthes alata
The leaves are dark green elongated. Narrow large jugs are painted in pistachio color, "decorated" with red dots. It can tolerate temperatures reduced to + 12 ° C, undemanding to air humidity.
Graceful Nepentes (N. gracilis), Rafflesi Nepentes (N. rafflesiana)
Long shoots are strewn with elongated (up to 0.5 m) large leaves on low petioles. Jugs are small: width - up to 0.1 m with a length of up to 0.2 m. Painted outside in light green with burgundy stripes; inside they are bluish.
Nepentes bright red (Nepenthes coccinea)
A tall vine decorated with large oval leaves and yellow-green jugs with scarlet spots. The length of the jug is up to 0.15 cm. The most unpretentious of all types.
Nepentes is an insidious plant that lures insects into a trap. He can be considered a responsible nurse, whose help is especially valuable in the summer at the cottage.
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