Bilbergia is a popular houseplant, which is popularly called the "Queen's Tear." It is easy to grow it, you just need to get acquainted with the principles of content, methods of breeding. About the types of bilbergia, home care - further in the article.
Description
Bilbergia belongs to the Bromeliad family - plants that inhabit the tropics and subtropical zone in West Africa. The family includes over 2000 plant species, a characteristic of which are thick fleshy leaves and a well-developed root system. Many successfully grow it at home. Although the plant is considered quite unpretentious, it is still necessary to observe elementary rules. About it further.
Different Billbergia species may vary slightly in maintenance and care. Of the most popular varieties of bilbergia, one can distinguish:
- Greenflower. Has dark green straight leaves with gray scales. Homeland - Southern Mexico.
- Great. She has erect, hard, large leaves. It blooms with small blue flowers. The homeland is considered the southeast of Brazil. With good care, the Brazilian flower Bilbergia gives a beautiful and long flowering.
- The tape. The main feature is brightly colored leaves of different shades and large blue flowers. The country of origin is considered Central America.
- Zebra It is easy to recognize by the leaves of silver-bronze color and bright pink flowers. Homeland - Guatemala and Honduras.
- Pyramidal. Has erect swirling leaves and small-sized flowers. Venezuela is recognized as her homeland.
Each plant needs quality care at home. Bilbergia drooping (drooping) is a rather unusual plant. With the rest of the relatives of the Bromeliad family, it is similar only to the strong fleshy structure of the leaves. By other signs, the “queen's tear” is similar to epiphytes - parasitic plants with long bright inflorescences.
Compared to the rest of the bromeliads, the plant has long, narrowed up leaves that look like cereals. The leaves are covered with small scales, and along the edge there is a series of pointed teeth. The plant does not have a stem - the leaves grow from the root.
One of the features of bilbergia is its ability to change the color of leaves depending on lighting - in the dark they have a darker, more saturated green tint, and in the light they become pinkish-bronze. This perennial evergreen has unusually bright inflorescences. The color is scarlet or pink; yellow-green panicles in the center stand out against its background.
The flowers are collected in spiral, twisted drooping ears. Hence the name “drooping”.
The plant blooms in winter, standing out as a bright spot on the windowsill against the background of snowdrifts outside the window.
But some species bloom only in summer. For example, green and pyramidal bilbergia. The fruits of the flower are berries. The plant reaches a height of 60 cm, and peduncles are found up to 80 cm.
Content
Despite its exotic origin, it is a fairly unpretentious plant. Bilbergia is quite hardy and adapts well in temperate climates. The flower is practically not susceptible to disease.
For bilbergia, home care involves a comfortable temperature, the use of top dressing, and regular watering. Like any other plant, it requires proper care, otherwise it dies.
Temperature and humidity
With proper care at home, bilbergia gives a beautiful abundant flowering. An important requirement is the absence of sudden changes in temperature. A quick change in temperature by more than 12 - 14 degrees causes a shock state: the leaves wither, twist and fall off.
Comfortable is a temperature of 17 - 22 degrees. And at a lower (14 - 15 degrees), the plant will begin to bloom faster. But with a constant flower content in the cold or draft, there is a risk of weakening immunity, which leads to various diseases and even death. Also, do not raise the temperature to 26 degrees: with insufficient watering, the plant will quickly die from drought.
Lighting
When growing bilbergia at home, it is necessary to take into account all the nuances. The advantage of this plant is that it adapts very well to insufficient lighting, although it is considered quite photophilous. But even if the windows are located on the north side and the house is twilight, the bilbergia calmly tolerates this.
But the most favorable for this flower is the diffused natural sunlight. When the rays of the sun fall on it, the leaves acquire a beautiful rich shade. In summer, on sunny days, the plant should be carried out into the air. This will help accelerate the formation of young rosettes in varieties that bloom in summer. But you need to make sure that the flower is not under direct rays for a long time - leaves may burn.
Watering and spraying
With proper care at home bilbergia watering is required regularly. Then the plant feels great and blooms beautifully. Strong soil moisture, as well as drought, are extremely undesirable. In this case, medium moisture soil is required. Watering should be carried out no more than 1 time in 5-6 days, but provided that the topsoil has dried out by no less than 3-4 cm.
It is advisable to use root watering with spraying: in the summer in a drought, you should spray the flower up to 5 times a day. In winter, you need to water at least 1 time in 10 days. It is an effective home care. Regular watering of bilbergia ensures high-quality flowering.
If excess water appears in the pan, it is drained: otherwise the roots will rot. During flowering, the top of the soil should be covered with moss or moist expanded clay: this will help retain moisture in the soil, eliminate evaporation and saturate the plant with moisture in sufficient quantities. During watering and spraying, you should not allow stagnation of water in the funnel-shaped leaves of the plant - otherwise, with a draft or cold air temperature, the flower will “catch a cold”.
Top dressing
When growing a bilbergia flower, home care consists in the use of fertilizers. But they are necessary only during the growing season.
Feeding is carried out using special soluble fertilizers that are designed for bromeliad species. Standard fertilizer is also suitable - 1 dose is reduced by 2 times. It should be applied once every 15 to 20 days, the total feeding period is 2 - 2.5 months. Regular fertilizer provides health and beautiful flowering.
Transfer
Other care features should be mentioned. Bilbergia does not need to be transplanted regularly: they do this only when the flower grows, moving it to a larger pot. Choose not too deep, but wide pots or planters.
At the bottom of the new tank, a substrate is lined with a mixture of humus, river sand, leaf peat and soil (in equal proportions). The prepared soil should be moistened, after which the plant can be replanted.
Pruning
The plant develops with the constant replacement of faded rosettes. Old sockets should be cut manually 4 to 6 weeks after flowering is complete. They not only spoil the external attractiveness of the flower, but also hinder the growth of young shoots, "children."
Seed breeding
A good flower development ensures proper home care. Bilbergia breeding comes from seeds. This is a troublesome way. It will take fresh, not dried seeds. They must be soaked in a weak solution of potassium permanganate and dried slightly. Then prepare the containers, they place a mixture of wet river sand and peat (1: 1).
Finished seeds need to be planted in moist soil (they are pressed with a finger to a depth of 1 cm). On top of the boxes should be covered with glass or a transparent bag to ensure the greenhouse effect. Such greenhouses are installed in a darkened warm place (temperature not lower than 24 degrees) for 5-6 weeks before the formation of the first sprouts.
It is necessary to control the humidity and prevent the soil from drying out: a bag or glass should be removed regularly and high-quality soil spraying should be performed. Reproduction by seeds is rare. If a mistake is made, then nothing will grow.
Breeding lateral processes
With proper care, a bilbergia indoor plant will be a wonderful decoration of the interior. If you want to increase their number, it is not necessary to buy new plants in the store. You can breed them yourself.
In addition to seeds, lateral processes can be rooted. The main plant is divided into several parts, the lateral processes are planted in another pot. This method is more reliable, the processes are better accepted. From one flower, several new ones are obtained.
Then the “children” with roots are transplanted into small pots with moistened soil and placed in a well-lit place (young shoots require a sufficient amount of light). A young plant blooms 2 years after planting.
Leafy cuttings
This method is called "division" - the main flower is divided into parts. It is advisable to take a leaf stalk large, not less than 20 cm: this leaf will have a lot of strength and energy for normal development. The cuttings should be rooted in moist soil (a mixture of peat and coarse sand in a ratio of 1: 1).
To do this, it should be planted in a small pot of soil. The container is covered with a transparent bag, after 5 hours it is removed. Then the stalk is moved to a warm (at least 24 degrees) place with good lighting. If you maintain the desired moisture level (spray every 3 to 4 days), then after a month the first roots will appear.
Pests and diseases
It is worth mentioning other features of home care. Bilbergia will develop well if the control of diseases and pests is kept under control.
Of the pests, the appearance of:
- scale insects;
- aphids;
- spider mite;
- mealybug.
It is difficult to prevent the appearance of parasites, but it is possible to eliminate them in a short time. The affected areas on the leaves are treated with a cotton swab dipped in a soap solution (10 g of laundry soap is dissolved in 1 liter of water) - the entire sheet should be wiped for disinfection.
If the flower is affected by parasites in small quantities, then usually this is enough for the pests to retreat. If the invasion is massive, use an insecticide: dilute "Actellik" or "Karbofos" in water (15 - 20 drops per 1 liter) and spray the plant.
If a fungus is wound on the leaves, then the affected leaves are immediately removed so as not to infect neighboring healthy ones. For the purpose of prevention, healthy leaves are treated with a soap solution.
Despite good immunity, these plants are also susceptible to various diseases. The most common include the following:
- Brown spots. They are the result of a burn due to direct sunlight. In this case, bilbergia should be sprayed with warm water and transferred to a cool place (temperature fluctuations should not be more than 5 - 6 degrees).
- The tips of the leaves darken. This indicates the presence of water in twisted leaf fibers. You need to use softer water, and after spraying, wipe off excess moisture with a soft material.
- Withering leaves and slow growth. This phenomenon indicates a lack of sunlight: it is necessary to transfer the plant to a well-lit place, best in open air (in summer) or use additional artificial lighting (in winter).
- Decay. From this ailment, the plant may die. An urgent transplant is needed in a new container with optimal soil.
To prevent diseases, you need to carefully inspect the flower every week: check the uniformity of the color of the leaf and the presence of pests. It is also necessary to remove dry leaves, fertilize and monitor soil moisture.
The decay or drying out of the plant outlet after flowering is considered a natural process. This is not a signal of the disease, so you should not worry about this.
Why is there no flowering?
The main reason for the lack of flowering is the lack of moisture and lighting. Thanks to regular spraying in the summer and keeping under diffused light, usually there are no difficulties with flowering. But bilbergia can still not bloom, then another method is used: a cut apple is put into the ground, and a thin transparent bag is put on the plant.
The greenhouse effect leads to the release of ethylene by an apple - a component that accelerates the flowering of these plants. To stimulate flowering, they often resort to propagation by the cuttings method: a new flower will delight you with a beautiful view in a year and a half.
The next reason for the lack of flowering is considered to be inadequate soil mineralization. In this case, a plant will need to be transplanted into another container with soil replacement. Subject to the above conditions necessary for bilbergia, it will delight with regular flowering for many years.