Pellonia is a perennial evergreen plant with decorative colorful foliage. Marble pattern on delicate leaves attracts many gardeners, and even beginners will like the flexible character. Pellonia as a houseplant is grown in a cache-pot, although at home, in Malaysia or Burma, it is a creeping groundcover beauty with beautifully hanging vines.
Plant description
Pellonia belongs to the genus of the same name in the Nettle family. Herbaceous, ground cover species predominate in the genus, but there are also shrubs. The maximum height does not exceed 30 cm. The plant has a superficial, fibrous root system. Above the ground are soft, succulent stems. They can be painted bright green, pinkish or lilac.
Regular leaves are attached to the stems with short reddish cuttings. The oval or ovoid leaf plate has smooth or slightly serrated sides and a pointed edge. Relief veins are visible on the surface of the foliage. Leathery leaves are green, bronze or gray-silver. The edges of the foliage have a darker, burgundy-brown color.
Pellion bloom in summer. It releases small umbrella or capitate inflorescences from the axils of the leaves. The buds are made up of five bell-shaped petals. They are painted white-green and are small in size. Foliage attracts much more attention than plain flowers. After flowering, dense seed bolls are formed in which oval seeds with light smooth skin ripen.
Types of Pellionia
The genus of Pellionium has about 50 species, but only some of them can be bought and grown in culture.
Pellonia Dawo. The plant has creeping, highly branched stems at the base. The reddish branches are slightly thickened and covered with smooth skin. The next short-leaved leaves of the pellonia reach a length of 6 cm and have an oval shape. Asymmetric with respect to the central vein, the foliage is painted in bright green. In the center passes a lighter wide strip. The outer surface of the sheet plate is glossy, and the reverse side has a rough surface and reddish stains. In the axils of the leaves in summer, rare, subtle inflorescences form.
Pellonia is beautiful. The plant is distinguished by smaller leaves. Their length does not exceed 4 cm. The glossy surface of the sheet plate has a lighter central part and dark, sometimes burgundy edges. Stripes and stains resemble a marble pattern. The underside of the leaves is covered with a short pile and painted in silver pink.
Pellonia is short-leaved. The creeping plant has reddish, velvety stems branched from the base. Ovoid or elliptic leaves are located on elongated petioles. An asymmetrical silver vein pattern is visible on the leaves.
Pellonia is creeping. The plant has fleshy, creeping stems, capable of clinging to rocks and walls, and also rising to a height of 50 cm. Oval leaves reach a length of 4-5 cm and have a dense structure similar to paper. The middle of the leaf is lighter, light green, and the edges are covered with bronze-green stains.
Breeding methods
Propagation of Pellionia is possible by seed and vegetative methods. For seed reproduction use seeds aged 1-2 years. Vesta they are sown in plates with a wet mixture of sand and peat. Sunflower seeds are deepened by 1-1.5 cm. It is advisable to cover the pot with film or glass so that the soil does not dry out too quickly. Shoots appear within 10-12 days. Young plants are grown without shelter until two true leaves appear. The grown seedlings dive and transplant in small pots of 2-3 pieces.
It is convenient to use the method of rooting cuttings. It is enough to cut the stem into segments with 2-4 leaves. Cuttings are left in a glass with water until young roots appear. Then the seedlings are transplanted into pots with soil and grown as adult plants.
You can root segments immediately in a wet sand-peat mixture. In this case, the bottom sheet is removed from the stem and deepened by 1-1.5 cm. A cap is built over the cuttings so that the moisture does not evaporate too quickly. The greenhouse is kept in a warm room with an air temperature of + 22 ... + 24 ° C. Saplings very quickly take root and can grow normally without shelter.
Care Rules
Pellion care is easy even for beginner gardeners. This flower is very unpretentious and pleases with lush vegetation. Pots with pellionium are placed in bright rooms away from windows. Direct sunlight causes the foliage to dry and drop. In the winter, in the northern rooms, the Pellonia may suffer from a lack of light. If the leaves are pale, you must use the lamp.
In summer, the temperature should not rise above + 25 ° C. On hot days, it is recommended to take the plant into a shady garden. The place is chosen quiet, calm. In winter, cooling is allowed up to + 16 ° C, but it is not necessary to specially arrange a plant a dormant period.
For a resident of humid tropics, it is important to maintain high humidity in the room. The indicator should be at the level of 70%. You need to regularly spray the leaves, turn on the humidifier or arrange trays with wet expanded clay. Water tanks must be isolated from the ground.
Pellonia needs frequent and plentiful watering. The plant prefers soft, purified water. It is important to ensure that excess fluid freely leaves the pot. The pan must be emptied half an hour after watering. Otherwise, root rot may develop and the plant will die.
Not more than once a month, complex fertilizer for indoor plants is added to water for irrigation. Do not use dry or concentrated fertilizer, so as not to burn the roots. Organic compounds are welcome, they will make the leaves more vivid.
Pellion is useful to transplant every 1-2 years, as it grows very much. The procedure is carried out in the spring, the pot is chosen a little more than before. The roots should be carefully freed from the old earthen coma. For planting, use a soil mixture of:
- peat;
- sheet land;
- humus leaf;
- sand.
You can buy garden land in a flower shop. The substrate must have an acid reaction, so it is recommended to increase the amount of peat in the soil.
Pellonia after 5-8 years of life loses its decorative properties. Its stems are stretched, and their bases are exposed. It is recommended to trim the edges of the stems annually in order to maintain the attractiveness of the crown and increase bushiness. Periodically, the plant is rejuvenated by cutting new petioles.
Possible difficulties
Pellonia has a strong immunity to diseases. The only problem with excessive watering can be root rot.
Succulent leaflets are periodically attacked by aphids, mealybugs, spider mites or whiteflies. At the first sign of infection, the flower is rinsed under a warm shower and treated with a soapy solution. The earth is covered with a film. If this does not help, you must use insecticides (Karbofos, Actellik and others).
