Adenium - Desert Rose

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No, adenium does not look like a rose at all, but it justifies its name - it is one of the most beautiful flowering plants in the desert. A slow-growing bush or small tree with a fleshy trunk that has a thickening at the base (caudex) grows up to two meters in height. In addition to deserts, he loves the tropics and ... rooms of domestic flower growers.

Adenium (Adenium) - a genus of shrubby or wood succulents of the Kutrovy family (Apocynaceae) originating from the tropical regions of Africa, where it occurs from Senegal to Sudan and Kenya, and the Arabian Peninsula. In many languages, the literal translation of the name plant means "desert rose."

Content:

Adenium is fat
Adenium transplant
Adenium care at home
Adenium wintering
Diseases and pests of adenium
Adenium breeding
Crown formation

Adenium is fat

Most of all, our windowsills were chosen adenium fat (Adenium obesum) He is one of the most unpretentious and early flowering. The leaves are green, oblong, roundish or slightly pointed at the ends, but also mottled, yellow, white and even red! They may be shiny and glossy, or may be dull or slightly pubescent.

Coloring the flowers through the efforts of breeders is simply amazing, from pure white to dark red and even burgundy with blue. The size of the flowers of Fat Adenium is 6-7 cm in diameter. Flowering usually begins at the age of 1.5-2 years, and its duration ranges from 2-3 months to a year. Of course, a lot depends not only on the variety, but also on the conditions of detention. Adeniums with variegated and colored leaves require a maximum of the sun, grow slower and reluctantly bloom.

The main thing that should not be forgotten: adenium belongs to the genre, which means that all parts of the plant are poisonous. I myself do not use gloves when working with adenium, but after work I wash my hands thoroughly. If there is a wound on the arm, gloves are needed.

Attention! Fat Adenium is one of the most poisonous indoor plants. Aborigines impregnate arrowheads with them. Therefore, it is excluded for cultivation where there are small children and pets.

Adenium transplant

The root system of adenium develops very quickly and loves a fairly large space. If the plant is young, I replant it more often, sometimes even twice a year. The material of the pot does not matter, the shape is much more important.

For planting adenium I use shallow, wide round pots with a large number of drainage holes. For small plants, the pot can be taken deeper.

The color of the container also matters. Since your adenium will be constantly in the sun, do not choose dark pots - they heat up very much, which is not at all useful for the roots.

At the beginning of the growing season, and it falls in the spring, I carry out a planned transplant of adenium so that by autumn the substrate will be fully mastered by the roots. To avoid decay after transplanting, I do not irrigate for at least 2-3 days.

Adenium care at home

The soil

Soil for adenium should be nutritious, loose and permeable. Acidity - from slightly acidic to neutral. The addition of crushed charcoal or small pieces thereof is welcome. It is advisable to sterilize or disinfect with any fungicide.

Ideally, the adenium earth mixture should look like this:

coconut fiber - 50%;
deciduous-humus land - 20-30%;
perlite - 10-20%;
small, up to 3 mm expanded clay-10-20%;
charcoal.

But since the above ingredients, especially the first one, may not be, the packaging of soil for succulents bought at the store comes to the rescue. I add to it the components preventing the stagnation of water: broken brick or crushed polystyrene foam chips.

Lighting and watering adenium

Adenium requires maximum lighting. The more sun, the better. If the purchased plant was in a store in a dark corner, do not immediately put it in the sun - accustom it to the light gradually.

But note: only in bright sunshine does the plant gain strength for flowering. Experts advise not to change the position of the adeniums during the growth period, so that the sections of the stem that were previously in the shade do not get burns.

I also recommend that in young specimens of adenium (less than 7-8 cm in thickness) in spring and autumn, when the sun is low, protect the base of the stem from burns using tulle or a mosquito net.

When watering the adenium, I try to completely wet the earthen lump, between the waterings I give the substrate to dry properly. In summer, during the period of active vegetation, I water more often: the complete drying of an earthen coma during this period is undesirable, since the plant can stop growing. But if the soil is constantly wet, adeniums can even rot in the warm season, so I follow and do not zealous with water. By lowering the temperature below 20 ° C and insufficient lighting, I significantly reduce watering!

Fertilizers for adenium

Adenium fertilizer is very positive. I add slowly soluble fertilizers to the substrate or regularly feed them with a solution of organic-mineral fertilizers with an equal ratio of phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium.

During the growing season and flowering of the adenium of feeding I spend one to two times a month. Cocktails with a high nitrogen content help to increase the vegetative mass, although I use them occasionally and only at the beginning of the season. Phosphorus-potash fertilizers promote flowering and strengthen the plant. Microfertilizers should be applied in spring and autumn.

Adenium wintering

Winter is the most difficult time for adenium. At this time, a dormant period sets in, the leaves fall completely or partially. For the first time, I greatly reduce watering, then stop completely.

In winter, it is recommended that the flower be kept at a temperature of 10-15 ° C, and the temperature should not fall below 10 ° C. Adult adeniums can withstand a temperature drop of up to 4 ° C with an absolutely dry earthen coma, but it is better not to risk it. The first watering after a long dry content is fraught with danger - the plant has completely fallen asleep, all processes have slowed down, even a small amount of water for an awakened adenium can be fatal.

The conclusion on the winter content is as follows:

large plants are moderately watered in small portions, and only on very warm, sunny days;
it’s better not to top up than to pour - even adenium that has thrown off all the leaves is watered about once a month;
if the conditions of detention were 10-15 ° C and completely without watering, it is important to determine the end of the dormant period. To do this, in the spring I transfer the plant to a bright place and carefully monitor the awakening of the buds. I start watering after 2-3 weeks, when the plant wakes up, and increase it gradually until active growth begins.

Diseases and pests of adenium

Most of all, adenium is threatened by root and other rot. Therefore, I do not admit the bay and stagnation of water. Mandatory layer of drainage in the pot! Despite the toxicity, adeniums are damaged by insects (mealybugs, ticks, etc.) Control measures are generally accepted. If you have to deal with pests with some new means, it is better to try it first on one, the least valuable instance.

Adenium breeding

Adeniums reproduce in almost all ways possible for plants, and each method has its pros and cons.

One of the most effective methods of reproduction, I consider air layering, I apply it to shoots at least 2 cm in diameter. I make lay-offs during the active growing season: I make a circular incision with a clean sharp knife, dry the wound, treat it with the appropriate preparation, cover the incision with wet sphagnum, wrap it with opaque cellophane and fix it with an elastic tape.

Moss regularly moisturize. A month after the correct manipulations, roots are formed on the shoot, after which I plant in the prepared substrate.

Crown formation

Sometimes adeniums begin to branch at a young age, but more often this occurs after flowering, or when the caudex is large enough. To get a well-branched plant, I pinch my seedlings before the beginning of intensive growth, that is, at the end of winter or early spring.

But the main thing is not to overdo it: if you cut the main trunk too low, many thin branches will climb, which leads to an ugly development of the plant. In adult plants, you can also prune or remove branches, depending on personal requirements for the pet.