Clivia comes from the humid subtropical forests of South Africa. This herbaceous plant from the Amaryllis family has long and even leaves, about half a meter high, with leaves that resemble belts in shape. They are fan-shaped and collected at the roots in a socket. Clivia bloom is beautiful and spectacular: up to 25 fairly large funnel-shaped flowers can bloom on strong stems 40–50 cm long. Outwardly, clivia is very similar to other popular indoor flowers, amaryllis or hypeastrum, but instead of the bulb it has fleshy, juicy roots.
Clivia is a flower, the care of which, in general, is simple, although it has its own nuances. So, its roots are very sensitive, therefore it is recommended to transplant clivia as little as possible. Usually they do this no more than once every two to three years: at the same time, the flower is simply transferred to another pot together with the ground. Damage to the roots leads to their decay, and this, in turn, leads to the death of the plant. Therefore, if, in spite of all precautions, one or several roots nevertheless break down during transplantation, they must be sprinkled with ash or crushed coal.
The pot for this plant should not be very large, then it will bloom more abundantly. In those years when transplanting is not performed, in early spring, carefully remove the top soil layer in the pot, replacing it with fresh soil. The recommended composition of the substrate is as follows: two parts of sod land and one part humus, sand and peat. At the bottom should be laid drainage. Clivia is a flower, the care of which involves moderate watering. For him, they use distant, soft water. Clivia does not tolerate stagnation of water in a pot: the plant must in no case be "flooded." Watering should be somewhat more abundant during flowering, however, the rule applies to this flower: it is better to underfill than overfill. Earthly coma should be allowed to dry periodically. It is not necessary to spray the plant, but you can gently wipe the leaves from dust.
To grow clivia - a flower, the care of which is not particularly difficult - should be in a bright place, preferably on the eastern windowsill. It should be protected from direct sunlight and, if necessary, shaded. The most comfortable temperature for clivia in the summer is within + 20-25 degrees Celsius, in winter it should provide a rest period of at least two months at a temperature of + 12-14 degrees, starting in late October. Watering clivia, an indoor flower with a pronounced dormant period, requires scarce at this time. If these rules are not followed and there is no winter “pause” of flowering this year, you can’t wait.
After the plant produces the flower stalk, it must be taken out to a less cool room (+ 18-20 degrees) - otherwise the flower arrow will be in one pore for a long time, practically not developing. If its growth still slowed down, you should pour clivia several times with warm water. The beautiful clivia blooms - a flower that anyone can take care of, usually in February. Flowers of different types and varieties of clivia can have a color from white and pale yellow to red or orange.
The most popular plant species cultivated indoors are clivia gardena, clivia beautiful, clivia cinnabar (it is also antimony red or meerk). They breed by “children”: when they are separated, you need to act very carefully so as not to damage the roots. Clivia responds well to dressing with organic and mineral fertilizers - in the summer, it needs to be fed every two weeks.
In general, this plant is quite unpretentious and care for it is simple: it is only important to observe a period of rest and to prevent rotting of the roots. In terms of the degree of undemanding environmental conditions, clivia can only be compared with sansevieria, popularly referred to as the pike tail: a flower, care of which is practically limited to moderate watering, will always be in demand, because not everyone has enough time to breed capricious plants.