Among the plants with beautiful unusual patterns on the leaves, the pseudoerantemum is one of the largest. A constantly growing plant requiring vigilant care can only be grown by flower growers with considerable experience. But all the efforts of the pseudo-erantemum pays off with its beauty, and the better they take care of it, the more spectacular the plant becomes. Large dark leaves, decorated with pink, reddish, yellow spots, seem to be hand-painted. Pseudo-erantemums require regular rejuvenation, belong to indoor beauties with a restive temperament.
Pseuderantemum (Pseuderanthemum) is a genus of flowering plants of the Acanthus family. In everyday life and in some literature, it is customary to call Pseudo-erantemum – Pseudo-erantemum, which is not entirely true, but has already become sufficiently entrenched in the Russian language.
Carruthers’ pseudoeranthemum. Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Carl E Lewis
Beautiful leaves and an uneasy disposition
These Polynesian evergreen shrubs or semi-shrubs combine the ability to bloom beautifully with extraordinary foliage. Pseudo-erantemums really belong to the most spectacular indoor decorative leafy cultures. These are large, bright and unusual accents.
The shrubs reach a height of 80-100 cm.Eyearly, the pseudo-erantemum adds 10-15 cm in height. In indoor conditions, it blooms, unfortunately, rarely, but if you manage to achieve magnificent flowering, then delicate, as if porcelain flowers will fully pay off all the difficulties with leaving. But even without flowering, the pseudoerantemum will become one of the brightest indoor pets, charming with unusual specks on dark leaves. They reach a length of 15 cm, stand out in a beautiful oval shape with a pointed tip.
The inflorescences of the pseudo-erantemum bloom at the tops of the shoots; in small, sparse ears, simple, tubular flowers with rather dense petals resembling porcelain or plastic are collected. In shape, the flowers are similar either to stars or to enlarged lilac flowers, although upon closer examination the textures evoke associations with the best representatives of the orchid family.
The color palette of the pseudo-erantemum includes white, pink and purple tints. They are presented in muted, soft, romantic variations, most often the flowers are painted in watercolor shades with soft transitions.
Pseudoerantemum carruthersii (Pseuderanthemum carruthersii). Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Carl E Lewis
Types of pseudo-erantemum
In nature, there are about 120 species of these plants, but only 4 of them are grown as indoor plants. In the botanical classification of pseudo-erantemums, there has always been a striking confusion. Today this plant belongs to the Acanthus family, although earlier it was included in the Erantemum genus and was often confused with other crops. But today, fortunately, the pseudo-erantemum is considered as an independent genus and all due attention is paid to it.
Pseudoerantemum of Carruthers (Pseuderanthemum carruthersii, formerly known and still marketed today as pseudoeranthemum dark crimson — Pseuderanthemum atropurpureum) is the basic, most popular species, common as a houseplant. This is a Polynesian shrub up to 1 m high or slightly more. The main pride of the plant is that they reach 15 cm in length and 10 cm in width, broad-ovate, with a pointed tip, leaves covered with outlandish patterns. Leaves sit on thin cuttings, whole-edged, the base dark green or dark purple color seems inky, and uneven, asymmetric pink, whitish, red or yellow spots appear on the plates. The brighter the lighting, the brighter the color of the leaves, their “purple”.
Pseudoerantemum longiflorum (Pseuderanthemum longifolium, formerly known as pseudoerantemum notched — PSEUDERANTHEMUM drabifolia) – a more compact view with a height of only half a meter. Leaves up to 15 cm in length reach only 2 cm and in width, somewhat reminiscent of bulbous and cereal crops. On the edge of the leaves there are beautiful small notches, the color is not dark green, but olive green with a reddish reverse side. The plant blooms spectacular asymmetric flowers with beautiful purple specks on one of the petals.
Pseudoerantemum bristly-calyx (Pseuderanthemum seticalyx) – evergreens with graceful, about 10 cm in length, oppositely located ovoid leaves, when blooming, pubescent, and then glossy. This species, unlike its counterparts, has thicker paniculate inflorescences, and individual snow-white flowers reach a diameter of 10 cm.But this pseudo-erantemum is devoid of spectacular patterns on the leaves.
Pseudoerantemum Q (Pseuderanthemum kewense) Is a charming plant with pointed egg-shaped chocolate or purple leaves, an unexpected light green color on the underside of the leaf plates, which is extremely difficult to achieve flowering from.
Pseudoerantemum longifolium (Pseuderanthemum longifolium). Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Linda De Volder
Care of the pseudo-erantemum
Only experienced flower growers can grow pseudoerantemum. This is a rather capricious culture that does not reveal all its talents at once. All key requirements of pseudo-erantemums for conditions are associated with their tropical origin. The plant feels great in florariums and terrariums, in a greenhouse in the company of other tropical crops with a complex content. Indoors, it can only be grown with the most careful care. The amazing combination of rapid growth with a tendency to elongation, exposure of shoots, the loss of decorativeness with age makes us constantly pay special attention to pseudo-erantemums. This plant is suitable only for those who like to tinker with plant propagation, flower growers who adore cuttings, who are able to provide the pseudo-erantemum with all the attention it needs.
Lighting for pseudo-erantemum
Pseudoerantemum prefers bright, but diffused lighting, with reliable protection from direct sunlight. The latter negatively affect not only decorative patterns, but also leave ugly burns. Best of all, this houseplant feels on the eastern and western windowsills, but also on the southern ones, provided that scattering screens are installed or pseudo-erantemum is removed from the glass, it can grow no worse. Inside the interior, this culture is placed very rarely, exclusively in rooms with front, panoramic windows and bright lighting.
The most difficult thing in growing this crop is to provide it with the same level of illumination in the winter. Only with good lighting in winter will this plant retain attractive leaf patterns and retain its character. Most often, when grown in ordinary room conditions, and not in greenhouses, the pseudo-erantemum is supplemented with fluorescent lamps or special phytolamps. But at the same time, we are talking precisely about compensating for the seasonal decrease in light and in no case about increasing the usual illumination. If the pseudo-erantemum receives more intense light during the winter, the plant may stop developing and also lose color, changing the traditional dark green or purple color of the base plates to bright red.
Pseudoerantemum planted in the garden for the summer. Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Forest & Kim Starr
Comfortable temperature
Pseudoerantemum belongs to extremely thermophilic crops and at any time of the year cannot stand a drop in air temperature below 15 degrees Celsius. At the same time, hypothermia of an earthen coma is much more dangerous for decorative deciduous beauties. If your pseudo-erantemum is on a cold windowsill or on surfaces covered with cold materials (for example, a stone), you must definitely provide an additional insulating support for the pot for the cold season.
During any season, it is most comfortable for a pseudo-erantemum to be kept in a temperature range of 22 to 25 degrees Celsius. In autumn and winter, a seasonal drop in temperature is permissible, but it should not fall below 20 degrees Celsius anyway. For this culture, sudden changes in temperature during drafts, exposure next to heating devices, and airing of rooms are also dangerous. Features are harmful drafts in the cold season, when even the slightest negligence can lead to partial shedding of leaves.
Watering and air humidity
The numerous luxurious leaves of the pseudo-erantemum actively evaporate water and the plants are extremely hygrophilous. In this regard, the pseudoerantemum can be ranked among the typical tropical indoor plants that need frequent and abundant watering. It is best to control the frequency of procedures by the degree of drying out of the substrate, carrying out the next watering after the topmost layer of the soil dries up.
In fact, this plant needs equally abundant watering throughout the year, especially if it is possible to create the same temperature conditions for the plants. Pseudo-erantemums are not afraid of a single waterlogging, but they cannot stand stagnant dampness. However, drying out of the substrate is much more dangerous for this culture. Even if you allow the soil in the pot to dry completely only in the middle layer, the plants can partially shed their foliage. Regardless of the time of year, it is better to carefully monitor the condition of the pseudo-erantemum and, if necessary, adjust the care program. Excessive, abundant watering in combination with lower temperatures can lead to rotting of shoots and leaf bases, root injuries. But even frequent, but insufficiently plentiful procedures can lead to poor results. Therefore, you can find your own maintenance regime only by constantly observing the plant itself.
Pseudoerantemum loose-flowered (Pseuderanthemum laxiflorum). Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Jon T. Lindstrom
For pseudo-erantemum, it is important to provide high humidity not only of the substrate, but also of the air. At low rates, the tips of the leaves of the plant will dry out and become less decorative. Air humidity is considered critically important in winter, when the plant cannot tolerate a decrease in indicators below 75%.
The best strategies for increasing air humidity for this plant are:
- content in rooms with naturally high rates;
- installation of special humidifier devices or their artisanal counterparts, pallets with expanded clay or moss.
The general increase in air humidity must be supplemented with spraying, which is carried out as often as possible. All pseudo-erantemums also adore “wet” procedures – showering, wiping the leaves with a damp sponge.
For watering and spraying pseudo-erantemum, you can use only soft, high-quality water at room temperature. It is impossible to spray and water pseudo-erantemum with cold water even if the temperature of the content drops. For spraying, it is advisable to additionally filter the water.
Top dressing for pseudoerantemum
Pseudo-erantemums need rather modest, not too frequent feeding. They are introduced only during the spring and summer, using a standard dose of fertilizers once every 1-3 weeks or half the dose with a frequency of 4-2 weeks. The key to growing plants is choosing the right mix. Pseudoerantemums need fertilizers with a high potassium content, without which they can partially lose their leaf color. For this plant, a high nitrogen content is dangerous. It is better to use classical fertilizers for ornamental deciduous plants, when buying a mixture, checking, according to the manufacturer’s recommendation, whether this fertilizer is suitable for pseudoerantemums. If you have enough experience and your own garden, you can use plants and organic matter for this, which mulch the soil in pots or use an aqueous solution (for example, mature manure).
Pruning a pseudo-erantemum
Pseudo-erantemums are prone to self-cleansing, shedding the lower leaves as the shoots develop, exposing the base of the branches. This is one of the fastest growing indoor plants, capable of reaching a meter or more without control. To avoid stretching, it is necessary to carry out the formation of the crown, stimulating as much branching as possible. The formation is carried out both as a clothespin for young twigs, and as pruning of elongated old shoots.
Pseudo-erantemum of Carruthers. Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Forest & Kim Starr
Since the lateral shoots of the plant are always directed mostly straight up, to achieve the best shape of the bushes, you must carefully bend them down and tie them to the pot with a flexible cord or sisal.
If your pseudo-erantemum is too stretched out, has lost its attractiveness, it no longer seems to you to decorate rooms, you need to resort to rejuvenation. For this, the shoots of the old plant are used for grafting, after rooting, the old plant is replaced with young seedlings. Cardinal pruning of the pseudo-erantemum is not suitable.
Transplant and substrate
Pseudoerantemum belongs to crops that need an annual transplant. The reason for such a frequent transplant is the too active growth of both shoots and the root system. When transplanting adult pseudo-erantemums, it is better to slightly shorten the roots, since they grow very quickly (it is simply physically impossible to infinitely increase the size of the container).
It is advisable to change the containers for plants in early spring, at the very beginning of the active growth phase. At a young age, pseudo-erantemums are transplanted into containers, the diameter of which is 2 times the previous pot. But even when growing adult pseudo-erantemums, you should try to continue to increase the volume of containers. In cramped pots, this plant can shed its leaves. Choose a substrate for a pseudo-erantemum that is light enough. Any soil mixture with a loose, loose, air-permeable structure based on deciduous soil is suitable for him. According to the reaction, the substrate should be slightly acidic.
At the bottom of the container, during transplantation, it is imperative to lay a thick layer of drainage, which will allow you to maintain a high moisture content of the substrate without the risk of water stagnation and root decay.
Pseudoerantemum long-flowered. Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com Jan De Laet
Diseases and pests of pseudoerantemum
Pseudoerantemum, in case of serious violations of the conditions of detention, easily loses its beauty and becomes extremely vulnerable to pests that quickly spread in dry air. Whiteflies, spider mites, mealybugs and scale insects are especially dangerous for this plant. In order to identify the problem as early as possible, you need to regularly inspect the plants, checking the underside of the leaves. Pest control should begin with spraying with cold water, washing the leaves, and applying insecticides. When grown in greenhouses, pseudoerantemum is recommended to be kept under an ultraviolet lamp every few weeks to prevent the spread of diseases and pests (a two-minute procedure will be enough).
Common growing problems:
- falling leaves when the substrate dries out, waterlogging, in cold drafts, with other violations of comfortable conditions;
- drying of the tips of the leaves under excessively dry conditions or in direct sunlight;
- brown spots on the leaves with excessive lighting;
- yellowing of leaves when waterlogged or too dry air.
Reproduction of pseudo-erantemum
These cultures are propagated by cuttings. Cuttings can be cut in spring and summer from young shoots. The younger the plant and the younger the shoots from which the cuttings are cut, the better. The optimal length is 10-15 cm. 2-3 internodes are left on the shoot and the cut is made necessarily at an oblique angle.
Pseudoerantemum Anderson (Pseuderanthemum andersonii). Farmer Burea-Uinsurance.com techieoldfox
Rooting is carried out according to the standard scheme – in a mixture of peat and sand, under a film or glass cover. The main condition is a sufficiently high air temperature, from 22 to 24 degrees. If you want to try rooting pseudoerantemum cuttings in water, then they need to be kept at a temperature of at least 25 degrees Celsius. After rooting, young plants are planted in separate containers for 2-3 pcs. A few weeks after growing up, they must pinch the tops for thickening.
