Afelandra: species, planting, care and reproduction

Many flower growers strive to recreate real tropical thickets in their apartments. To do this, they try to choose unusual exotic plants. One such plant is aphelandra – a flower with unique variegated leaves and bright inflorescences.

Aphelandra (aphelandra) is an ornamental and flowering plant that belongs to the Acanthus family. It is native to the tropical regions of the Americas. The name translates from Greek as “simple man”. This is due to the fact that the flower has single nested simple anthers.

In the natural environment aphelandra is a herbaceous perennial or low shrub (up to 2 m in height), but in room conditions it rarely reaches even 70 cm. The plant is characterized by large dark green rounded leaves with a slightly pointed tip. Their surface can be corrugated or smooth, matt or glossy. The broad white, cream, bronze or silver veins, along which there is an ornament consisting of stripes, stand out on the rich background of the leaf plates.

Flowering lasts a long time, about two months. The first inflorescences appear in early spring and last until the first days of winter. They may resemble a spike, a cone or a pyramid. Flowers are small, so the plant owes its effect to bracts. They, in turn, are distinguished by their bright color – yellow, red, orange and rather large size (up to 15 cm).

After flowering, a capsule is formed on the plant. It consists of two parts, each of which contains 2 seeds.

Popular species

There are about 200 varieties of Aphelandra in the wild, but only 2 of them are suitable for indoor keeping.

Aphelandra golden (Aphelandra aurantiaca) or orange

Aphelander Orange is a low-growing evergreen shrub with thick, succulent reddish woody shoots. Its leaves:

• smooth;
• About 25 cm long;
• oblong with a pointed tip;
• green with a silvery glow;
• arranged supropositely.

The inflorescences are spike-like, have 4 facets, and consist of small reddish-orange buds and rich green bracts. They reach 15 cm in height and do not stay on the plant longer than a couple of weeks.

Aphelandra squarrosa or Aphelandra squarrosa

Aphelandra spurge is an evergreen, low-growing shrub with fleshy, glabrous reddish shoots. Its leaves:

• smooth;
• about 30 cm long;
• elliptically oval;
• Mottled – background dark green, pattern whitish-silvery;
• sessile.

The inflorescences are apical, tetrahedral, spike-shaped, and contain yellow buds with orange bracts. They appear in early June and remain on the plant until November.

The following varieties of Scuarros aphelandra are especially popular with florists:

1. Luis – distinguished by greenish-silvery or yellow veins, canary-yellow buds and dark yellow bracts with green veining.
2. Leopold is a variety with bright orange inflorescences.
3. Denmark – differs in dark green leaf plates with pale veins and yellow inflorescences.

In the homes of florists, it is more common to find Aphelandra branched, or its subspecies, as the Golden one is difficult to buy.

Planting and care

Aphelandra is considered a capricious plant, but this is not quite true: simply provide it with conditions close to natural, and there will be no problems.

Planting and transplanting

The plant needs light, loose soil. For planting you can use:

• universal soil with peat and fine perlite in the proportion 6:3:2;
• turf soil with peat and river sand in the ratio 2:1:1;
• peat, leaf soil and sand in equal parts.

The pot should be chosen high and heavy, and each following container should be larger than the previous one by 5-7 cm. Of materials, it is better to give preference to ceramics that have not been glazed. The presence of drainage holes is mandatory.

Transplanting is recommended to carry out:

• immediately after the purchase of the plant;
• once a year for young bushes;
• once every 2-3 years for adult flowers.

The procedure should preferably be carried out in early spring. Before starting it, disinfect the substrate (pour boiling water or oven bake) and abundantly water the aphelandra to make it easier to remove it from its former container.

Order of planting (transplanting):

1. At the bottom of the pot pour drainage, it should occupy about 1/3 of the volume.
2. Fill with 3-4 cm of soil mixture.
3. Take the plant out of the old pot.
4. Roots rinse and inspect for damage. If found, cut them off, rinse with water and treat with activated charcoal powder.
5. Put the plant in its container and straighten out the roots, making sure they don’t bend.
6. Fill in the substrate in portions and tamp it down gently in the process.
7. Mulch pebbles, expanded clay or sphagnum.
8. Water generously.

If some of the roots were removed, then immediately after planting it is recommended to introduce a solution of “Kornevin” into the soil. The procedure should be repeated after 14 days.

Location and lighting

Aphelandra needs bright diffused light, so the best position for it:

• In autumn and winter – southern windows;
• In spring and summer – western or eastern.

The flower should be protected from direct sunlight – they injure the leaves. In the warm period of the year it is allowed to take the plant outside, but it should be protected from winds, drafts, precipitation and sun.

In the cold season, you need to make sure that the afelandra gets enough light. At this time, the length of the daylight hours for it should exceed 8 hours. If it is not possible to achieve such a parameter in a natural way, it is recommended to use phytolamps.

Temperature

Aphelandra is a native of the tropics, so it prefers heat. It grows well in room conditions at a temperature of 20-25˚C. However, in winter time the bush needs to be cool, so it is desirable to reduce the figure to 16˚C.

Watering and moisture

The plant needs regular watering with soft water, it is better to use melted, evaporated, boiled or filtered water. The soil in the warm period of the year should be constantly moist, in the cold – it should be allowed to dry out.

Regardless of the season, overwatering must not be allowed. It is also recommended to ensure that the liquid does not stagnate in the pan – this is fraught with the emergence of processes of rotting. When watering, do not allow water to get on the leaves.

The humidity in the room should be high. To create the right conditions, you can use a humidifier, spray the flower regularly or place it in a tray with damp keramsit, pebbles or sphagnum. Spraying is recommended twice a day in summer and twice a week in winter.

Feeding

Aphelandra needs systematic feeding from the beginning of spring to the end of flowering. For them it is recommended to use complex mineral fertilizers. During active growth, it is better to give preference to mixtures for ornamental deciduous indoor plants, and after the appearance of inflorescences – for flowering plants. The frequency of application is 2-3 times a month.

Pruning and pruning

The bush belongs to the fast-growing, so to maintain a neat shape it should be trimmed. The procedure is better performed in early spring. About 50% of the stem length should be cut at this time.

After pruning, it is important to keep the flower in conditions of high humidity and, preferably, in greenhouse conditions. To do this, you can put a bag over the aphelander.

In order for the plant to form thickly, it is additionally necessary to pinch the stems. This should be done before the onset of the active growth phase.

Possible difficulties

Aphelandra sap is poisonous, so it is rarely affected by diseases and pests. However, with improper care, problems can still occur as the immunity is reduced.

Determine that the flower is not cared for properly, external signs will help:

• Leaf tips withering – too high temperature and low humidity;
• Delayed flowering – low light or lack of nutrients;
• falling off or dropping leaves – irrigation failure (use of hard cold water, soil drying out) or exposure to direct sunlight;
• appearance of mold and spots, general wilting – stagnation of moisture in the pot, infection with fungus.

The main danger to the flower are scabs, mealybugs and aphids.

The pest	Symptoms of damage	Prevention	Methods of control
Scabies	Small brown plaques and sticky coating, leaf fall	Compliance with keeping conditions, preventive inspections, wiping the leaves with a damp cloth	Treatment with Actellic or Fitoverm
powdery mildew	cotton grayish-white blotch		Mechanical removal of the insects with a cloth soaked in soapy water, insecticide treatment (Aktellik or Fitoverm)
Aphids	Leaf deformation and desiccation, insect colonies		Spraying with Akarin, Iskra Bio or other strong-smelling plant infusions

Propagation

Aphelandra can be propagated using seeds and cuttings.

Propagation by seeds

Seeds are sown in a soil consisting of sand and leaf soil in a 4:1 ratio in February-March. For normal development, they need a temperature around 20-22˚C and, if possible, lower heating. A mini greenhouse is the best way to grow them.

After the emergence of sprouts, sprouts should be pickled in new containers with a substrate of leaf, turf soil and sand in equal proportions. With proper care, flowering is likely in the first year of life.

Propagation by cuttings

Vegetative propagation is a simpler method. To harvest shoots, you should choose annual mature shoots with 2-3 leaves. It is recommended to cut them in March-May or in December-January. The length of the cuttings should be 13-15 cm.

1. Treat the cut with a growth stimulant: Atlet, Heteroauxin, Baikal EM-1, Kornevin, etc.
2. Root in moist peat or sand.
3. Create greenhouse conditions, preferably using bottom heating.
4. Keep at a temperature of 20-25˚C, moisten regularly with a sprayer and ventilate.

Young plants take root in 1-2 months. After that, they should be transplanted into permanent pots.

Thanks to the bright prolonged flowering and spectacular leaves, Aphelandra will please the owner all year round. The main thing – to create suitable tropical beauty conditions, then she will not be afraid of diseases and pests, and care is minimized.