How to care for echmea, and whether it is necessary to stimulate the flowering of the “exotic princess”

Representatives of the Bromeliad family, to which the plant belongs, grow in the wild in rock crevices, hollows of stone placers and tree forks. Therefore, some features are inherent in the echmea, which should be taken into account, creating comfortable conditions for the flower.

1. Weak root system. The root for ehmei is only fasteners, not a food organ. The plant receives most of the necessary substances from the air through the leaves.
2. The specific shape of the leaves. Representatives of the genus Ehmei have leaves twisted at the base, which form a rosette. This feature allows the flower to collect water in the formed funnel.
3. Heat and moisture. Like any plant native to the tropics, ehme likes warm and humid air.

Indoor Varieties

The genus of Ehmei has about 170 plant species. Experienced flower growers recommend the novice owners of "home greenhouses" to opt for the most unpretentious varieties that are presented in the table.

Table - Description of varieties ("pets" for beginner gardeners)

Care for echmea: a florist memo

How to care for echmea, given the specifics of an exotic plant? Ehmeya loves the light, so it is better to place the plant at the window overlooking the sunny side. In winter, professionals are advised to use additional lighting. To do this, a lamp with UV radiation is placed next to the pot, which must be turned on for at least five hours a day.

Degrees

In the warm season, the flower is comfortable at a temperature of 20-25 ° C, in winter it is allowed to lower this figure to 18-20 ° C. The plant likes fluctuations in day and night temperatures, since such a regime is characteristic of the tropics and subtropics.

Humidity

The most comfortable for ehmei is slightly increased humidity. Daily spraying from a small spray bottle with soft warm water helps to maintain it. The room with ehmeya needs to be systematically aired: a stream of fresh air will benefit the representatives of all types of plants.

The soil

It is recommended to plant echmea in a ready-made substrate for bromeliads andorchids, which can be purchased in the garden shop. You can make the soil yourself. Here are a few options:

• leafy earth, compost and chopped moss- combine in equal proportions and introduce a small amount of shredded shards and sand;
• sphagnum moss and finely chopped fern roots- connect, observing a ratio of 1: 3;
• horse peat, sand, sheet land and sphagnum - mix in a ratio of 1: 0.5: 1: 1, introduce horn shavings and crushed charcoal into the finished composition;
• humus, sphagnum, sand and pine bark- connect in equal volumes.

How to "drink"

It must be ensured that the soil is constantly slightly moist. In summer and spring, plants should be periodically watered at the outlet. However, it is important to monitor the level of fluid in the funnel formed by the leaves. Once a month, water from the outlet needs to be poured out, and the funnel itself should be thoroughly washed. In winter, watering at the outlet is carried out no more than once every 10-12 days. Water should not be poured into the funnels of the shoots until they reach the size of an adult plant.

Fertilizer

It is necessary to nourish the plant in the warm season (from April to August). When using specially designed for bromide compounds, follow the instructions. You can buy fertilizer for flowering plants: in this case, the concentration recommended in the instructions is halved. The prepared solution is used to water and spray leaves every three weeks. In winter, the concentration of the solution decreases four times. Water the plant with enriched water should be once a month.

Transfer

Since only a small amount of valuable substances is received through the root of the echmea, it does not need frequent transplants. Ideally, the pot should be wide and shallow, 1-2 cm larger than the previous one. The optimal interval between flower transplants is three years. However, if substrate depletion occurs, this can be done earlier. To help the flower restore the root system after transplantation, you need to keep the plant in the shade for two to three days and not water it. It is recommended to transplant ehmeya in the spring.

Flowering features

The plant blooms once every few years from May to October. Some varieties of ehmei delight with beautiful inflorescences in November-December. How to care for echmea after flowering? Each outlet can bloom only once, after which the stick of a faded peduncle rots, so it must be carefully removed. After some time, the echmea releases the "kids."When the size of the processes reaches about half the size of the maternal, they should be planted from an adult plant.

Problems…

If the echmea does not bloom at home, it is worth paying attention to several factors because of which this can happen:

• the plant is still too young;
• improper care;
• too big pot;
• diseases and parasites;
• lack of light (most often the cessation of flowering is reacted by flowers with variegated leaves).

... and solutions

With proper care, the echmea will certainly bloom. There are several tricks that can "make" a tropical beauty to open buds:

• put under a film with apples and oranges- ethylene emitted by fruits stimulates the flowering process;
• expose to a room with a lower temperature - for the night;
• put calcium carbide - into a rosette formed by leaves (acetylene released during the reaction with water also starts the flowering process).

Breeding

The plant can be propagated by seeds or cuttings (processes).

"Kids"

Features The best time to plant shoots is March. Reproduction of echmea is possible both by young processes, which have several leaves, and by older children with formed roots.

What to do

1. Get the mother plant out of the pot along with the ground.
2. Carefully separate the side shoots, armed with a sharp knife.
3. Sprinkle cutting areas with crushed charcoal.
4. Now you need to correctly plant the echmea: plant each process in a pot with a diameter of 7-9 cm, filled with a special substrate (peat, sand and sheet land, mixed in a ratio of 1: 1: 2).
5. Cover the container with the plant with a glass cup and place in a warm, bright place.
6. After rooting, plant young sprouts in large pots and care, like an adult ehmeya.

From seed

Features Growing ehmei from seeds at home is possible, although more troublesome than reproduction by children. Young sprouts need special care during the year: they need to maintain a temperature of at least 22 ° C, as well as ensure systematic spraying.

What to do

1. Sow the seeds in the ground (peat mixture or crushed fern roots are perfect) and place the container in a sunny but slightly darkened place with high humidity, the most comfortable temperature for seed ripening is 25 ° C.
2. Cover the container with seeds with plastic wrap or glass.
3. Every day, cover the shelter for ten minutes to provide the soil with the necessary amount of oxygen.
4. After the emergence of shoots, remove the shelter.
5. After two to three months, the sprouts that have appeared must be planted in small containers filled with a special mixture (leaf and heather ground, connected in equal volumes).
6. After 12 months, the plants need to be planted in pots for an adult flower with constant soil.

Diseases, pests

The most common causes of death of ehmei include improper watering. Ehmeya leaves will tell about errors in care:

• start to get dark, rot - due to overflow;
• wither - because of thirst;
• dry at the tips - due to low humidity.
• fade - little lighting;
• covered with pale brown spots - the result of sunburn.

Do not despair if an exotic flower is sick or pests “attacked” it: the table below will help to cope with the problem.

Table - Diseases and pests of echmea

Knowing how to care for echmea, you will be surely rewarded: the flowering of an exotic plant is a magnificent sight. And let it take years to wait, the numerous reviews of the owners of the tropical flower confirm that it is worth it.

Reviews: “I fell in love with his pale pink spines”

This flower was presented to my sister a few years ago. Before him, I did not meet this, or did not pay attention. Not very at first he impressed me. The leaves of the echmea are large, round, fleshy, transversely striped, slightly prickly around the edges. Coloring from light green, almost white, to dark green with silver gray. Watering loves moderate, but the soil should always be moistened, and be sure to water the inner funnel of the flower before watering the soil. There is nothing unusual in caring for him, the main thing is to find the right place. For a very long time this flower remained in one state, large enough, but did not grow larger than the size reached. Was all the time on the western windowsill. And this spring, when he was rearranged on the east window, he seemed to wake up after a long hibernation, and finally decided to please his flowering, and I fell in love with its pale pink thorns. Usually, after flowering, the echmea does not live long, with a maximum of six months, leaving the children behind. I will certainly take the baby and plant such a flower, very interesting and unusual.

mona, http://irecommend.ru/content/tsvetushchaya-ekhmeya-ochen-krasiva-foto

They gave me an ehmey for my birthday. Before that, I had not seen such a plant and had not heard of it. I will tell you, in the beginning it did not cause me any special emotions. At that time it was just an indoor flower with large, long stripes of leaves that were green at the edges, and a silver hue appeared towards the center. A flower made its way in the center. So I was waiting for him to blossom. When this moment came, I realized that I had never seen such a flower) At first it was a big pink bud, but then blue and pink flowers began to appear between the petals. Bloomed for a very long time. Every day pleasing to the eye. In general, it’s marvelous) It’s only a shame that after flowering the plant does not live long. But it leaves sprouts! The main thing is that they must be transplanted at the right time so that they do not die. By the way, ehmeya does not require special care, you just need to find the right place for him. I read about no on the internet. This plant does not tolerate cold. Better to put it on the windowsill, but where direct sunlight does not fall. Even regular airing is advised. That's just watering it differs from other plants. It is necessary to water under the root, and then into the outlet. And even better to spray every day, then it will bloom brighter.

mashaholod, http://otzyvy.pro/reviews/otzyvy-ehmeya-131583.html

My daughter gave me this flower for my birthday. I have long wanted to buy it, but it didn’t work out. I like the dense echmea leaves with a silver coating. Also a beautiful soft pink flower in the center. Unfortunately, the plant blooms once every two to three years. My flower has already faded. But even the leaves themselves fit beautifully into the interior. The flower does not require special care. I water it 2-3 times a week.Pour water directly into the place where the flower was, then a little water into the ground. I have a plant on my sunny side, because loves the sun.

Larisochka, http://1mnenie.ru/reviews/ehmeya-komnatnyy-cvetok/review-10208.html