Dichondra is a herbaceous perennial plant that belongs to the Bindweed family. In wildlife, dichondra is found in fairly wide areas of America, Australia and East Asia. The plant lives in swamps and tropical rainforests. Dichondra takes its name from the Greek language. It translates literally as "two grains" and is due to the special structure of the fruit.
Dichondra has beautiful creeping stems, amelly, which can be easily rooted. The leaves are round, opposite. Petioles reach a length of 3 cm. It blooms with small flowers about 3 mm in diameter. The color is lilac, greenish or white.
When grown indoors, the most common dichondra is silvery (creeping), which has two varieties - dichondra emerald waterfall and dichondra silver waterfall.
Dichondra care at home
Location and lighting
The lighting level for dichondra depends on the color of its leaves. So dichondra with a green shade of leaves can grow well in the shade and in the sun, but with a silvery shade - only in a well-lit place.
Temperature
At any time of the year, the temperature in the room should vary between 18 and 25 degrees. In winter, it should not be lower than 10 degrees, otherwise the plant may die.
Air humidity
Dichondra can grow in rooms with low levels of air humidity, but will respond well to regular leaf spraying.
Watering
The pot in which the dichondra grows must contain a generous layer of drainage, since it does not tolerate stagnant moisture in the soil. Watering should be abundant, but it is important to ensure that the root system does not rot. If the substrate dries up, then the plant can spend some time without water. After watering, the dichondra will quickly recover.
The soil
Dichondra is not at all demanding on the substrate. Universal soil for decorative deciduous plants will be optimal for planting.
Top dressing and fertilizers
Dichondra 2 times a month Dichondra needs feeding. The feeding period is from April to September. To do this, use top dressing for decorative deciduous plants. In winter and autumn, the plant is dormant and does not need feeding.
Transfer
Dichondra is an annual plant, therefore, the process of cuttings is carried out every spring.
Reproduction of dichondra
There are several ways to propagate dichondra: seeds, layering and stem cuttings. Seeds are sown in the ground in late winter and early spring, the container is covered with glass and left at a temperature of 22-24 degrees. The greenhouse is periodically moistened and ventilated. The first shoots will appear in 1-2 weeks. They grow slowly, and they will become similar in structure to an adult plant only after 3-4 months.
A simpler method is to propagate dichondra with stem cuttings. The shoots are about 5-6 cm long. They need to be rooted in an impromptu greenhouse.
Propagation by layering is the simplest of the propagation methods.To do this, take a shoot and press it to wet ground in several places at once. Rooting occurs in about 7-10 days. After the appearance of an independent root system, the stem is divided into processes.
Diseases and pests
Dichondra is very rarely affected by both pests and viral and fungal diseases.
