There are more than 50 hybrid
varieties of achimenes, which are more frequently grown than the species. They
are among the most colorful and floriferous pot plants, producing abundant
white, pink, purple, blue, or yellow flowers throughout the summer. These
appear on short stalks from the leaf axils and comprise a narrow tube flaring
out into five broad lobes. Each flower lasts only a few days, but the flowering
period is extensive. Leaves are generally rich to dark green, slightly hairy,
heart-shaped, and with toothed edges. Because achimenes have weak stems, they
are ideal for a hanging basket where they can trail.
All achimenes grow from small,
caterpillarlike rhizomes, which can be started into growth by dipping them in
hot water before planting them, hence the unromantic common name of hot-water
plant.
Direct sunlight
over a long period may scorch the tender leaves, causing small brown spots to
appear.
Dormant tubers will
survive the winter in any cool, dry place, but exposure to frost will kill
them.
Do not water the
plants during the dormant period. That would start them into growth at the
wrong time.
Aphids occasionally
attack the fleshy growth at the growing tips.
FACT FILE
ORIGIN Guatemala; hybrids.
HEIGHT To 12in/30cm.
POTTING MIX Peat-moss- or soil-based.
REPOTTING In early spring, set 3-4 tubers horizontally, V2in/13mm
below the surface of the potting mix in a 4-in/10-cm pot at a minimum of
50°F/10°C.
PROPAGATION Divide tubers when repotting or take 3-in/8-cm tip
cuttings in early summer.
KEEPING PLANTS If allowed to dry out, even briefly, the plant will return
to dormancy. But do not let flowering plants stand in water, or the root system
will quickly start to rot.
PLANT CARE
Bright indirect sunlight. • An
average temperature of 65°F/18°C in the growing season; the plants will droop
above 80°F/27“C. • Water freely, particularly when the plant is in flower. •
Apply a high-potash liquid feed every 2 weeks in the flowering season.
Aechmea FASCIATA (syn. Billbergia rhodocyanea)
Bromeliaceae
URNPLANT
The natural home of this plant is
near the floor of the rain forest, where water from the tree canopy drips onto
the tough, leathery, strap-shaped leaves. These often grow to 12in/30cm in
length, and they combine in the center of the plant to form a natural
water-retaining vase shape, from which the common name of silver vase plant is
derived.
In mature plants 3-4 years old, a central
pointed pink flower stalk some 6in/15cm long emerges from the center of the
leaves. The top of the stem opens into many t racts, and in summer the flowers
themselves, which are small and blue, bloom on -hort stalks that rise between
the bracts. They last for up to six weeks, after which the nflorescence
gradually fades and shrivels, and then the rosette dies. At the same time, the
plant produces two or three smaller spikes, or rosettes, which can be detached
and rotted as separate plants.
FACT FILE
ORIGIN Brazil.
HEIGHT To 20in/50cm.
POTTING MIX Soilless mix with a
little fresh sphagnum moss: free drainage is essential.
REPOTTING Every other year.
PROPAGATION Once the offsets at the
base of the plant have grown to a viable size, after 4-6 months, remove them in
spring and pot them into a rich, barely moist potting mix. Or cut out the old
rosette, allowing the new offshoots to develop instead.
KEEPING PLANTS Despite its exotic
appearance, this plant is easy to care for. Simply make sure that neither the
water well nor the soil dries out.
PLANT CARE
A tolerant plant, taking either
direct or subdued sunlight. » Minimum winter temperature of 55°F/13°C with,
ideally, 80°F/27°C in the growing season. • Water twice a week with rainwater
if possible, keeping lin/2.5cm depth of water in the well at all times. • Do
not feed this plant in the conventional way; instead, mist the leaves with weak
liquid fertilizer occasionally in the spring and summer.
ALSO RECOMMENDED
Aechmea fasciata ‘Purpurea’ has striking maroon leaves and silver
markings; the gray- green leaves of‘Variegata’ are striped with cream-yellow
along their length.
If the leaves develop brown tips and
then shrivel, it is an indication that the plant is too hot and dry; increase
watering.
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