10 Mistakes In Bromeliad Care. Choice Of Conditions. Care. Transplant

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10 Mistakes In Bromeliad Care. Choice Of Conditions. Care. Transplant
10 Mistakes In Bromeliad Care. Choice Of Conditions. Care. Transplant

Video: 10 Mistakes In Bromeliad Care. Choice Of Conditions. Care. Transplant

Video: 10 Mistakes In Bromeliad Care. Choice Of Conditions. Care. Transplant
Video: Bromeliad Care and Propagation - Guzmania 2024, March
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Bromeliads are one of the most popular indoor exotic plants. These plants are often mistaken for being nearly identical, requiring similar care and growing conditions. However, standard bright lighting, watering the leaves in their funnel and feeding rates will not suit all bromeliads. Indeed, among them there are decorative deciduous, and brightly flowering plants of varying degrees of capriciousness. And each bromeliad needs its own, individual approach. But only the lack of attention to the specific features of plants, mistakes in the cultivation of bromeliads are not limited to.

10 mistakes in bromeliad care
10 mistakes in bromeliad care

The status of capricious plants requiring special care and conditions in bromeliads is not accidental. Most of the plants belonging to this family really need a special approach, but not always. Bromeliads require careful selection of lighting, substrate, containers, temperature conditions. And no less attentive care.

Consider the 10 most common mistakes that lead to problems in growing various bromeliads, and often to the death of plants.

1. Wrong choice of plant

The biggest bromeliad miss always happens before the plants get into the house and adapt. As with any exotic indoor plant atypical for our climate, the choice must be made not only for the decorative qualities of the plant itself. Of course, he should like it, but the owners, or rather, the house, should like him no less.

Not analyzing and assessing the conditions that a plant from the Bromeliad family will face in your home is the most dangerous mistake that can be made. And it will be possible to do without consequences only if you have the ability to adjust lighting or temperatures using additional means.

First of all, you need to find out about the conditions that are needed for a particular plant, and compare them with those that are in the house. Lack of cool wintering, space on the windowsill, dry air, inability to scatter the sun's rays - these are just a number of factors that should always be properly assessed in advance.

2. Care according to general standards

In watering, air humidity and means of increasing it, fertilizing, examinations, wiping leaves from dust, examinations, frequency of replanting - in every aspect of caring for a representative of the Bromeliad family, individual requirements must be observed.

Carefully check all the care preferences of each particular plant, ask about the usual procedures for it, carefully observe it. Each species has little secrets or its own characteristics, and in order to properly care for your plant, you must first study it well and learn all its secrets.

2. Bromeliads are loners

Representatives of the Bromeliad family belong to plants that develop much better in groups and get sick less often. They love the company of their own kind, grow faster when planted in groups and better reveal their beauty, creating arrays and thickets in containers.

It is no coincidence that bromeliads are so often recommended as crops for the design of complex compositions in greenhouses and winter gardens. You should not rush to separate the bushes, separate the children, and plant bromeliads alone in small pots. Group them wherever you can. And if you have a whole collection, then plant with compositions or put them side by side, making it easier for yourself to care.

Bromeliads grow faster in the company of their own kind
Bromeliads grow faster in the company of their own kind

4. Hope for longevity

Buying bromeliads, many growers hope for years to admire the luxurious hard leaves in rosettes and unique flowering. And they forget that they develop in a very specific way. Most of the monocarp species prized for their luxurious flowering are all plants that die off after flowering. The dying off of the mother's outlet, which has completed its cycle, is a normal natural phenomenon. And you need to be ready for this, admiring the beautiful ears of inflorescences over the leaves of bromeliads.

It will be possible to see the bloom next time only if additional efforts are made. Any bromeliad forms daughter plants before the death of the mother plant. After rooting, they grow up and also delight with flowering, but transplantation, separation, rooting should be carried out on time and in accordance with all the rules.

5. Lack of attention

To avoid any problems in growing bromeliads, one must not forget the main thing - the plant must be constantly monitored. Even if we are talking about pests, at the first signs of the appearance of these problems, it is very easy to cope with them, but it will not be so easy to clean the thorny, tough leaves that do not like contacts, with a strong defeat by scale insects and their Co, even if you stock up with a decent set insecticides.

It is better to inspect the plants weekly or during every second watering, paying attention to the outlet, the condition of the leaves, their reverse side, color, and the appearance of signs of wilting or depression. If you check bromeliads regularly, you can immediately find obvious signs of problems that have arisen, and even the slightest disturbances as a result of waterlogging of the soil.

6. Ordinary inventory and means

To grow bromeliads, it is worth stocking up on everything you need in advance, and when choosing tools or means for work, take into account the specifics of these plants. Together with bromeliads, it is better to buy immediately a special narrowly specialized fertilizer, a systemic insecticide, a small package of a substrate for bromeliads.

And the set of tools include a new fine sprayer, a convenient watering can, the spout of which will easily "dive" into the socket, just in case prepare pegs, fishing line, soft sponge, small pruning shears, old spoon, wide pallet. Even when choosing containers, choose special pots for bromeliads - shallow, with large drainage holes, or think about options for growing a plant on driftwood.

7. Ignoring the plant's need to be at rest

All bromeliads (without exception) need a pronounced, special, long stage of rest. Even if the plant's recommendations say that it is unpretentious and can put up with a warm winter, this does not mean that it does not need rest. It is with such hardy indoor species that such errors most often occur. Without changing (or not being able to adjust) the temperature, we forget that during the dormant period, the need for coolness in bromeliads does not exhaust all the necessary conditions.

Watering, air humidity, top dressing are adjusted during this period so that the plant rested and prepared for a new stage of active vegetation. Top dressing for 3–4 months is not carried out for plants, and soil moisture is reduced at least two times compared to previous indicators.

Resistance to ordinary air of city apartments in all bromeliads is relative
Resistance to ordinary air of city apartments in all bromeliads is relative

8. Waterlogging

Bromeliads are considered to be moisture-loving plants mainly because the plants can be watered into an outlet while maintaining a stable water level. But in watering these crops (like any other indoor plants), you still need to focus on the degree of drying out of the substrate. If the recommendations state that the substrate should be constantly moist, you should not take the advice literally. Excessive dampness and waterlogging can destroy the plant.

The soil should be slightly and evenly moist, fresh but not soggy, without stagnant water in the lower layers of the substrate and in the pan. Between waterings, the topsoil should still dry out. To establish the optimal care regimen, it is worth observing the plant for a while and checking how the soil dries out. Special indicators will also help in this. Drainage at the bottom of the pot and the correct choice of a coarse, loose substrate help to avoid the risk of waterlogging.

But if bromeliads are watered with a lot of water or too often, even the drainage system will not cope with the removal of excess moisture. During the dormant period, humidity is quite critical: bromeliads should not be watered too abundantly at this time, it is better to use a minimum amount of water and reduce the total soil moisture by half.

9. Ignoring air humidity indicators

Among bromeliads there are both tropical moisture-loving species and subtropical plants from dry regions of South America. For the former, increased air humidity is the most important requirement, without which the decorativeness of plants cannot be preserved. But for the latter, according to the generally accepted opinion, even extremely dry air is suitable.

All bromeliads have a relative resistance to ordinary air in city apartments. And if your home has an almost desert-like atmosphere, even the toughest bromeliads will feel uncomfortable.

Measures to increase room humidity should be taken for all bromeliads during the heating season. The operation of the central heating system or similar heating dries the air so that additional efforts cannot be dispensed with. A humid atmosphere is not necessary for all bromeliads, but its normal indicators are required for all.

10. Transplant according to general standards

When bromeliads are encountered for the first time and their features are not sufficiently studied, they make a very annoying mistake when transplanting. It is not a common herbaceous perennial or indoor shrub. In bromeliads, the root system is underdeveloped; the plant is extremely sensitive to injury.

Before transplanting this culture, it is worth studying the features of its structure. The roots of the plant are extremely fragile and sensitive, they need to be handled very carefully, the voids are filled with soil gradually and carefully, the soil can only be compacted carefully and easily, controlling the level of plant penetration.

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