Many plants are charming in their own way. They attract the attention of beautiful flowers or unusual leaves, but most of all emotion is caused by climbing plants. They seem completely different, a bit strange, but so incredibly unique.
Such flowers not only create an atmosphere of a romantic evening, but also serve as a kind of screen, a hedge. One such representative of climbing plants is lophos.
Room gloxinia can have more than twenty large from seven and a half centimeters in diameter flowers, blooming at the same time. Gloxinia flowers have a terry or regular texture, vary in color, can be wavy and normal - it all depends on the type of plant.
Botanical description
The scientific name of this plant is lofosperm or lofos. Many people know him as a comb seedling.
Lofos is a perennial liana that appeared in North and Central America.
This plant belongs to the evergreen, velvety representatives of the flora. From the middle of the seventeenth century, this flower became famous among many gardeners. It began to be used to decorate balconies, buildings, flower beds and gazebos. In places with a temperate climate, it is possible to grow such a plant as an annual, but indoors it can become a multi-year one.
Appearance, features
The runaway at Lofos is a bit woody, so you can mistakenly take this plant for a small tree. The leaves have a light green color, and in their form resemble more grape leaves. It is worth noting that the flowers of the lofos are bell-shaped with slightly curved edges.
Buds plants are not collected in inflorescences, because they are large and calmly feel alone. Thus, they take more minerals and nutrients.
The color range is quite diverse, so you can find white, crimson and pink lofosy. The main feature of such plants is their amnichnost. They can sprout on a support, but they feel better if they fall from an elevated landing site.
Most often, these flowers are planted in hanging pots. It can also be attributed to the peculiarities of the fact that with the onset of the first frost you need to move the plant into the room. It is necessary to carefully cut the shoots, because otherwise they will bloom before the winter period.
- Kaiser Wilhelm and Friedrich.
- Sonata.
- Shahane
- Little Red Riding Hood and Krasnoyarsk.
- Brocade.
- Rosalind.
- Yesenia.
- White terry gloxinia.
- Gloxinia Pink.
Landing
Initially, it is necessary to decide whether a given plant is needed at all, because, although it is unpretentious, it grows rather quickly. Some do not take into account the fact that even if it is not often to water the lofos, it will still continue to grow and get into almost all available places.
If you still decide to purchase this plant, then you need to carefully and responsibly approach the choice of seedlings or seeds. Lofos is transplanted to the garden only after frost, with the arrival of spring.
Lighting and location
Gloxinia refers to light-loving plants. However, it prefers a rather bright, but diffused light and does not tolerate direct sunlight. The best place to place flower pots with gloxinia will be the windows facing east or west.
Curly gloxinia is madly in love with all the places that are very well lit. It is worth noting that in spite of this, she is not in awe of direct sunlight.
Experts recommend placing the plant in such a way that the lighting around it was diffused. Under the roof of the house or against the wall will be really perfect, because there is support for the plant, and the shadow is always welcome.
It is worth noting that lofos is an ampelous planttherefore, it should be placed in a container that could be placed on an elevation.
The shoots of this flower are incredibly fragile, so you need to think carefully about the place for it to prevent too strong gusts of wind. Otherwise, the plant will be damaged and may die.
It is also necessary to take into account the fact that the plant will rapidly grow and reach upwards, therefore it is worth making a support for the shoots. Initially, the vine must germinate on a support, and then fall down from it. When choosing a potter should take into account the fact that the plant must feel confident and secure. It is best to choose a tank with a depth of 25 cm.
Soil requirements
Curly gloxinia is a unique plant that does not require special components of the soil. The only thing that should not be forgotten is the fertility and soil structure. It is necessary to prepare the soil in advance for the given proportions.. Compost and humus will give the soil fertility.
Fine sand will contribute to an increase in porosity. Experts recommend adding a little wood resin to make sure the alkalinity is weak and the soil is neutral. A small amount of peat can provide moisture. From all we can conclude that the composition of the soil should include:
- sod land;
- sand;
- peat;
- leaf humus;
- handful of ash.
If a person has no opportunity or time to prepare the soil, then the primer can be purchased at the store, but you should carefully review the mixture.
Caring for vines
If you read all the recommendations for the care of lofos, you can get a healthy plant that will not only please others, but also provide their territory with protection.
In order for the plant to be healthy, you must follow these recommendations.
- Watering. A plant with such a growth rate simply requires abundant and thorough watering. It is necessary to provide the plant with water every day, and on hot summer days it is better to water the lofos several times. In winter, it is better to reduce watering slightly and ensure it only so that the soil does not dry out.
Top dressing. Abundant flowering plants and rapid growth need constant nutrition, so you need to feed the lophos 3 times a month with a variety of universal fertilizers for garden plants that bloom. The composition of such fertilizers should include nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus.- Plant formation. As soon as the plant perezimuet, you need to do pruning grown shoots. If they reach a height of 15 cm, then you already need to remove excess parts. Separated parts can safely pinch and wait for them to reach 10 cm. Cut off shoots need not so often and without fanaticism, because otherwise the plant can fall into a stressful state.
- Wintering. If a small threat of unexpected freezing appears, it is better to move the winding gloxinia into the room as soon as possible. You can put it in any place where temperature indicators will not be below +5 degrees. At this time, you can transplant the lophos into a larger pot and remove excess shoots. If the room is a place where the plant can stand for a long time, then the shoots can be left. In this case, it can bloom until December.
- What to do in the spring. As soon as the warm spring days come, the lophos needs to be thinned out and cut off the grown vines. The plant must be carefully watered, so as not to wet the soil too much. After new leaflets begin to appear, fertilizer needs to be applied. Lofos planted in the garden can be at the end of the night frosts.
Top dressing. Abundant flowering plants and rapid growth need constant nutrition, so you need to feed the lophos 3 times a month with a variety of universal fertilizers for garden plants that bloom. The composition of such fertilizers should include nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus.If you follow these recommendations, the plant will not get sick and will always look green, healthy, alive.
Possible problems
Lofos is a rather rare plant, therefore it is not possible to meet it in all flower beds. It is for this reason that talking about diseases and pests that affect this plant is not entirely appropriate. It is worth considering the general problems of these colors.
Diseases
Representatives of the flora may be held hostage to dangerous diseases, which are divided into 3 types:
- fungal;
- viral;
- bacterial.
Consider in detail:
- Fungal infections. In order to get rid of fungal infections, it is necessary to use special preparations. Treatment of the lesion site should be carried out several times, with an interval of two weeks.
Preparations must contain copper. It is possible to process large areas of the plant with such preparations at once.
- Viral infections. Only viral infections cannot be treated. All plants that were affected by this problem should be immediately destroyed so that the infection does not spread. Viruses are transmitted by insects, so it is better to deal with such pests.
- Bacterial infections. With the defeat of a bacterial infection, oiliness appears on the plant. It is necessary to carefully remove the affected areas and treat them with antibacterial drugs. If this method did not give a result, then you need to contact the specialists and apply more effective drugs purchased in a special store.
Pests
Flowers most often suffer from the invasion of aphids, thrips, ticks and whitefly. It is necessary to treat the plants, but most likely the pests will return after the rain, so you should repeat the procedure. You should also get rid of ants, because if aphid appeared, then these insects are in any case already there.
Breeding features
There are two ways of reproduction of lophos, so each person chooses the one that is most acceptable.
Cuttings. You can carefully trim the shoots and root them in the ground. It is necessary to select as many shoots as possible, because they will not all take root in moist soil. As soon as the first leaflets appear, you can breathe with relief, because the plant has stuck.- Seeds. Lofos can be sown in early spring. Seeds should be spread out on moist soil and sprinkled with sand on top. Then you need to tightly close the container and follow the first shoots. A few weeks after the emergence of shoots can be planted lofos in the garden. Only in the second year the plant will begin to fully bloom.
Cuttings. You can carefully trim the shoots and root them in the ground. It is necessary to select as many shoots as possible, because they will not all take root in moist soil. As soon as the first leaflets appear, you can breathe with relief, because the plant has stuck.Medinilla is similar to lophos in that it is also a climbing plant, but is only suitable for growing in a room. It can also be noted that a similar plant is a lotus because there is practically no difference in the shape of the flowers. Bougainvillea also grows around its footing, creating a hedge. A similar plant, like lofos, is resistant to many diseases. Ipomoea perfectly adapts to any conditions, but requires abundant watering.
You can list many of these plants, which are great for decorating fences, arches and houses. Curly gloxinia is still quite unfamiliar plant. It requires special conditions for growth. Experts recommend all the same to experiment and choose a variety of varieties of climbers that will give a good mood and a great view of everything that surrounds a person.
