Agave - unpretentious and convenient to grow a plant. Care for him is easy, but a number of basic rules you need to know.
Did you know? The name of the agave comes from the name of the daughter of the ancient Greek king and in translation means: unsurpassed, glorious, noble, amazing, wonderful.
Agave Description
In nature, there are up to 300 species of agave, and in the culture they use American varieties of this plant. This flower has a gray-green or bluish-green fleshy leaves. In some varieties, they are decorated with yellowish or white stripes. Like most succulents, the stem of an agave is short, undeveloped, therefore it is practically not visible. The leaves of the plant are large, gathered in a rosette and covered with a waxy coating, and at the edges are decorated with sharp spines, the longest of which is located on the tips. The plant agave in natural conditions grows to huge sizes - 4-5 m in diameter. At home, its size is much smaller - dwarf species can grow up to 3-4 cm. This type of plant belongs to long-livers and can live 50-100 years.
Did you know? In the botanical garden of St. Petersburg there is an agave survived the siege of Leningrad.
In the natural habitat of an agave during the flowering period (as a rule, it occurs at the age of 15-20 years old) a peduncle with a height of 3-10 m appears. Multiple (up to 15,000 pieces) flowers of a yellowish shade are collected from him with small tassels in inflorescence. After the agave ceases to bloom, its fruits are formed, and the plant itself dies, leaving young shoots budding from the rhizomes. At home, agave blooms extremely rarely.
Conditions for successful growth, where to place the agave
This succulent, like the rest of the plants in this group, is a rather unpretentious crop and it is pleasant to deal with it - it is undemanding to the soil and tolerates drought perfectly. However, if you decide to grow agave, you should learn about the intricacies of caring for it at home.
Lighting for agave
The agave prefers bright places and feels great on a sunny window, on the south side - the plant does not tolerate dark areas. However, on hot days you need to ensure that water does not fall on the leaves - this can cause burns. In the penumbra and on the windowsills on the north side, the agave may slowly languish, but this is not immediately noticeable. From a lack of light in winter, the agave is drawn out, and its leaves shrink (with proper illumination, the leaves sit on the stem tightly hugging each other).
Important! If the plant was in a shaded area, it can not be immediately put up in the sun - teach it to the light gradually.
Air temperature and humidity
Agave, both wild and as a houseplant, perfectly adapts to any temperature regime. Therefore, in the summer it can be taken out onto the street or balcony. If it is impossible to “walk” the agave, then it is often necessary to air the room in which the plant is located. Thanks to this procedure, any temperature drops will not cause any harm to the plant. Due to its nature, agave feels rather well at +18 ° C, and the optimum temperature is + 22- + 28 ° C.
Important! In cold weather, the temperature in the room with agave should not be lower than -6 ° C; at -10 ° C the plant may die.
Agave does not make any special claims to the humidity of the air - it feels excellent when the humidity is low (40%) and does not need to be increased.
How to plant an agave plant reproduction
If you remember where the agave grows in the wild (on poor sandy-stony soils), then before planting you need to take care of the appropriate soil mixture. The best option - a mixture of humus, coarse sand, leaf and sod land (ratio - 1: 0.5: 1: 2).
You can use ready-made soils:
- for yucca;
- for palm;
- for dracaena.
Experienced florists and avid flower growers believe that the top layer of soil where a flower such as agave grows should consist of large brick chips, which will increase the drainage function of the substrate. As a container, for agave choose wide and low ceramic pots with holes in the bottom. The bottom layer (2-3 cm) should consist of small pebbles or gravel.
Important! In the first days after planting the agave must be protected from direct sunlight.
Breed agave room can be seeds or shoots.
Seed planting
This method of reproduction can not be called the best, since the plants obtained from the seeds develop slowly. For growing it is necessary at the end of winter to place the seeds in wet sand to a depth of 1 cm. The container is then covered with a film or glass. The temperature should be maintained between 20-25 ° C. In 5-7 days, shoots will appear. 15-20 days after the first leaf appears, the second leaf begins to grow, another 20 days later the third, and after 2 weeks the agave will be 8 cm high and 15 cm in diameter. Then the third root of the plant grows, and after another 20 days a fourth leaf will appear and a rosette will be formed.
Reproduction cuttings rhizomes
Room flower agave can be grown from cuttings, for which they are cut at the base during transplantation.
Important! At each handle should be at least one kidney.
After cutting, the cuttings are dried for 2-3 hours. To accelerate growth, you can sprinkle the cut with crushed charcoal. Plant prepared cuttings need to be prepared in the prepared soil (sand), then pour (water should be at room temperature). In the first year of life, the young plant throws up to six leaves, in the second - up to nine, and in the third - up to twelve.
How to grow agave from root and stem offspring
The houseplant agave can multiply by lateral and root suckers, transplanting and further care of which is also not difficult. When the children appear, they are carefully separated with a sharp blade, dried during the day and placed in a separate container with the mixture prepared in advance. Cover and spray the sapling is not necessary. The first watering should be no earlier than 3 days. And before the rooting of the flower to water it should be extremely rare.
Important! It should be remembered that agave can grow to large sizes, so it is better to grow dwarf varieties in apartments.
Home Agave Care
As with any plant, home care for an agave consists of proper lighting, watering and feeding. In addition, agave needs regular cleansing of leaves from dust - its layer disrupts the process of photosynthesis and interferes with the normal functioning of the vital processes of the plant. Many prefer to grow at home unpretentious plants. And those who love succulents will be happy to grow agave, although this plant is not a cactus (in the traditional sense), it doesn’t matter to him at all whether there is regular watering or not.
The easiest way to care for these types of agave:
- whitish;
- nitrous
- victoria royal
Proper watering agave
Watering agave should be moderate:
- 1-2 times in ten days during the growing season (before watering, the top layer should be dry, but not dried out);
- in the cold season, the plant is watered once a month.
It is impossible to spray agave, since water entering the outlet center may cause rot.
Feeding agave
Knowledge of how to properly care for an agave will be incomplete without taking into account the rules of plant nutrition. In fertilizing, agave needs in the period of its active growth, in summer. Recommend to feed 2 times a month. To do this, choose fertilizers with a low nitrogen content. Ideal special mixes for succulents.
Important! Agave is better underfed than overfeed.
When you need a transplant and how to transplant an agave
Young plants should be transplanted annually, and adults - once in 2-3 years or when the capacity becomes small for them. After the sprouts of the agave, which were cultivated by the seed method, grow up a little, they are transplanted into separate containers 6 cm in diameter (8 cm in a year), and the next care should follow the above scheme. When transplanting the root collar can not be buried, it is better to leave above the surface. The earth around the transplanted flower is not compacted, but the outlet is fixed with stones - this way oxygen will be more free to flow to the roots.
Did you know? Agave in its homeland is considered a valuable product - fibers are extracted from its leaves, which are used to make twine, ropes, hammocks, fabrics and other textiles. Juice produces acid and lure for bees, agave pulp is used in the manufacture of soap and cosmetics, and pulp is prepared from agave leaves. In addition, the juice of this plant is used as a laxative, wound healing and painkiller.
Major Agave Diseases and Pests
Agave is rarely affected by diseases, therefore we will not pay much attention to their description. The most important thing - the plant is sick only with the wrong care or conditions. Agave is most often affected by thrips and scutum. If you find these pests, wash the leaves of the plant with a solution of alcohol, soap, beer or boric acid. This procedure is repeated every 4-5 days, until complete disposal of pests. In case of severe infection, insecticides should be used. If the lower leaves of a cactus or agave turned yellow (like foliage on autumn trees), then you need to take care of it especially: reduce the volume and frequency of watering. Here, in principle, all the simple rules that will help grow such an exotic flower at home, like agave.
