Indoor flower cissus: how to form a vine with grape-birch leaves

Cissus is a beautiful liana, a fairly common plant in indoor floriculture. People call it “birch”, “grape ivy” and “indoor grapes”. All these names are associated with her appearance.

Botanical Description

Indoor flower cissus - climbing creeper. A mustache grows on its shoots, with which it easily clings to any supports. Often grown as an ampel plant. It is characterized by rapid growth - in good conditions, in a couple of years, the liana reaches three meters in length.

In different species, the leaves are whole or dissected, similar to the foliage of birch or grapes. The surface is glossy, smooth, rich green. Variegative varieties are rare.

Cissus blooms with small, nondescript flowers, collected in umbrella inflorescences. Blooms extremely rarely at home. It is considered one of the most unpretentious, hardy plants, often used for landscaping offices.

Types of indoor grapes

In nature, there are at least 350 plant varieties. In indoor culture, the most decorative, fast-growing and hardy species are used. The most common are six varieties.

1. Cissus antarctic. Evergreen vine with flexible pubescent shoots. The leaves are ovate, elongated, with teeth along the edges. On the stem are located next. Color dark green, the reverse side of a lighter shade. The flowers are greenish, small, collected in an umbrella inflorescence.
2. Cissus rhomboid. Fast-growing vine with long shoots. The stems are thin, flexible, with numerous antennae. The length of the shoots reaches one and a half meters. Leaves of complex shape - consist of three diamond-shaped lobes, covered with a reddish pile.
3. Cissus multicolored. The leaves are dark, velvety, with silver spots. The reverse side of the leaves is purple. It is not common in room culture due to the difficulty of growing.
4. Cissus quadrangular. Perennial vine with an unusual shape of shoots. It consists of tetrahedral fleshy lobes, like succulents. Of the shares are long vines. Leaves and antennae grow at the junction.
5. Cissus rotundifolia. Creeper plant with hard purple stems. The leaves are rounded, with teeth on the edges, silver-blue in color.
6. Cissus baines. Unusual variety with a short, thickened stem, no more than 40 cm high. The stem branches at the top. Leaves are triple, with teeth on the edges. Surface with felt pubescence.

Care for cissus and comfortable conditions

Many people are familiar with the cissus flower - home care is simple.It retains decorativeness even with improper watering, in sparse soil, rarely gets sick and is almost not affected by pests. To achieve rapid growth and beautiful appearance, it is enough to adhere to the basic rules.

• Lighting. Grown in bright but diffused lighting. The flower normally tolerates minor shading, it is often used for landscaping offices. It is afraid of direct sunlight, therefore, in hot summer days, it is sure to shade with light tulle. The exception is rhomboid cissus - he loves sunlight, grows well on southern windows.
• Temperature. In warm periods it grows well at 18-25 ° C. In winter, it can withstand temperatures up to 10 ° C, but low temperature negatively affects development. Due to sharp temperature changes and drafts, indoor grapes shed their leaves, so it is advisable to maintain the temperature not lower than 16 ° С throughout the year.
• Humidity. In nature, cissus grows in a tropical climate, in conditions of high humidity. Growing in an apartment requires the creation of a similar microclimate. In moderately warm weather, cissus is sprayed daily, in the heat and heating period - twice a day. Small specimens are periodically bathed in the shower.
• Watering. Due to the rapid growth and large leaf mass, cissus has an increased need for moisture. Water often, abundantly, immediately after the drying of the soil surface. They try to maintain constant soil moisture, avoiding drying out and stagnation of water. In winter, the frequency of irrigation is reduced, water is taken one less.
• Top dressing. During a period of intensive growth, balanced mineral fertilizers are regularly applied. They are fed weekly, at the same time as watering. Fertilizer concentration is halved compared to the recommendations in the instructions. In winter, feeding is not necessary.
• The soil. Use any nutritious universal soil with the addition of crushed coal and vermiculite. Independently, the soil mixture is prepared from deciduous land, sand, peat, humus, turf and coal.
• Transfer. Until the age of five, cissus is transplanted annually. Then the growth of home grapes slows down, the need for annual transshipment disappears. Transplanting cissus older than five years is enough every two to three years. Each time the pot is slightly increased, the bottom is covered with drainage material with a layer of about 3 cm.

Cropping and shaping

To give and maintain a beautiful shape, cissus is cut annually. Pruning stimulates the appearance of lateral shoots, makes the bushes lush. They begin to form in early April, before the start of active growth. There are two ways to form.

1. On the poles. If house grapes are grown on pylons, like a creeper plant, the formation begins early. Several cuttings are planted in one pot at once. When they grow 30 cm, pinch the growth points. Do the same with side shoots. Then they annually perform forming pruning - the main lashes are shortened by 10-15 cm.
2. Ampel plant. Pinch young shoots to stimulate branching. Subsequently, all lashes are cut to the desired length. Weak, loose decorative stems are removed.

Breeding methods

With the reproduction of indoor grapes there is no difficulty even for beginners. Vegetative methods are preferred - cuttings quickly take root, grow. In total, there are four methods of reproduction.

1. Seeds. A low container is filled with a sand-peat mixture. Distribute seeds on the surface, gently squeeze into the soil - you do not need to sprinkle with soil. The container is covered with a film, put in a bright place, germinated at a temperature of at least 20 ° C. Seeds hatch for a long time - up to six months, seedlings appear unevenly. After the appearance of the shoots, the film is removed. Seedlings with two real leaves dive into separate pots.
2. Cuttings. The easiest way to propagate cissus cuttings. The best period for rooting is spring and summer. The tops of shoots with two to three healthy kidneys are used as cuttings. Rooted in water with the addition of a root stimulant and coal. After the appearance of small roots, they are planted in the ground. At first they are kept under shelter - polyethylene or a glass jar.
3. Dividing the bush. Adult, overgrown bushes can be planted, divided into two or three parts. Cissus is removed from the pot, the roots are freed from the soil. With a sharp sterile knife, the rhizome is cut into several parts, the slices are dusted with coal powder. Delenki immediately planted in separate containers. Each part of the rhizome should have several healthy growth points. Adaptation takes a couple of weeks, after which the delenki begin to grow rapidly.
4. Layering. Choose a strong, healthy shoot, make a circular incision on the bark. The damaged place is instilled into a pot with light soil, for reliability, fixed with a wire. The soil is regularly moistened - watered with the addition of a rooting agent. After the appearance of the roots, the shoot is cut from the mother plant, planted in a separate pot.

Possible growing difficulties

Even when growing such an unpretentious plant, sometimes difficulties arise. Cissus can discard foliage, stunt, lose decorativeness for no apparent reason. Determine the causes of the problem will help the table.

Table - Problems in growing cissus

Pests and ways to deal with them

Cissus is quite resistant to attacks of most pests of indoor plants. Sometimes you have to deal with a spider mite, scale and mealybug. Get rid of them with the help of special chemicals - insecticides and acaricides. For more information, see the table.

Table - Pests of cissus

Diseases and their treatment

Rarely, room grapes are ill, but at the first signs of the disease, treatment should be started immediately - it will be difficult to restore the decorative effect of the vine. The main diseases of cissus are of fungal origin. Florists have to deal with rot, powdery mildew. More detailed information on diseases is described in the table.

Table - Diseases of cissus

Cissus, house grapes, birch - under all these names, a modest but beautiful plant hides, which will become a worthy decoration of any interior. Under correctly selected conditions, cissus will delight its owner with high decorativeness all year round.