Eukomis (Eucomis), or eukomis, or pineapple lily is a flowering monocotyledonous bulbous plant from the Asparagus family. There are 14 species of this plant, but only 4 of them are grown in culture. The main feature of eukomis is that it looks decorative, both during and after flowering.
Description of eukomis flower
Eukomis is a herbaceous perennial with oval-shaped bulbs in diameter that reach 8 cm. Leaves are basal and shiny, have an ovoid or belt-like shape. Peduncles up to 1 m high and cylindrical in shape, somewhat similar to pineapple inflorescences. The flowers are wheel-shaped purple or brown, the perianths are lanceolate. The apex consists of a flower arrow, which is covered with green perianths. The fruit is a flat-rounded three-ribbed capsule. Seeds are round or ovoid, black or dark brown in color.
Planting eukomis in open ground
The most suitable time for planting eukomis in open ground is late May-early June, at which time the soil will warm up enough, and night frosts will definitely not return. If the spring is too cold, then it is best to first germinate the bulbs in pots, and only then plant them in open ground.
The site for planting eukomis should be in a sunny part of the garden, where there are no strong winds and drafts. The soil should be light, loose and fertilized with humus and well-drained. In order for the soil to be well permeable to moisture, coarse sand or gravel must be added during transportation. It is necessary to deepen the bulbs by 2-3 cm during planting.The distance between the bulbs should be at least 15 cm, and between the rows at least 30 cm.
Caring for eukomis in the garden
Watering
At first, after planting the bulbs in the ground, scanty watering is needed. When the plant begins to grow actively, the meager watering needs to be changed to more abundant and regular. After each watering or rain, be sure to carefully loosen the soil around the plant and remove weeds if necessary. After the eukomis flowering period ends, abundant watering should be changed to moderate. When the leaves turn yellow, you must completely stop watering the plant.
Top dressing and fertilizers
In order for the plant to be healthy, lush and pleasing with abundant flowering, it is necessary to feed it once every 2 weeks with a solution of a complex mineral fertilizer. You need to choose such complexes in which the minimum content of nitrogen, since this element will not benefit the plant.
Transfer
Eukomis care and transplantation are fairly easy procedures. They do not require a lot of time and any special knowledge. The plant needs to be replanted annually, as it does not tolerate winter cold. In late autumn, before the onset of frost, it is necessary to dig up the bulbs and store them in a warmer place, and plant them back in the spring.
Eukomis in winter
After the end of the flowering period, the arrows need to be cut off, but the leaves should not be touched, since the plant should receive nutrition in the autumn. In mid-September, the leaves themselves will turn yellow and wilt, and the bulbs will begin to prepare for winter rest. In southern latitudes, you do not need to dig up the bulbs for the winter, you just need to cover them well with dry foliage or spruce branches. But in regions with harsh winters, it is better to dig up the bulbs, as they will not survive the frost. The bulbs must be carefully dug up, the adhering soil must be removed and treated with Maxim's solution, then thoroughly dried and put into cloth or paper bags. Store bulbs in a cool, dry place with good ventilation. If there are few bulbs, then they can be stored in the refrigerator, as long as there are no apples next to the bulbs. Bulbs are perfectly stored in pots with soil at room temperature, they need to be watered occasionally. Watering should be moderate.
Diseases and pests
Most often, eukomis suffers from rotting of the bulbs. Such a disease may appear due to waterlogging of the bulbs during growth or due to improper storage during the dormant period. Fight this disease with a solution of fungicides. In order for the disease to finally go away, 2-3 careful plant treatments will be required.
Harmful insects that can infect a plant: whitefly, spider mites, aphids, or mealybugs. You need to fight pests as soon as traces of their presence appear. This will help special preparations for processing, for example, Aktar or Actellik.
Reproduction of eukomis
Eukomis can reproduce vegetatively or by seed. The vegetative method is good because it can be used to preserve species and varietal traits from mother plants. During the season, several babies form on the bulbs. When there is a dormant period, the children will need to be broken off, and the cut sites will be treated with coal powder. And then, during the spring or summer planting, the children need to be planted along with the rest of the bulbs.
As for the seed method, the seeds should be planted in containers with soil immediately after harvest. After about 4-6 weeks, the first shoots will appear, you need to care for them in the same way as for ordinary seedlings. Choosing this method of reproduction, you need to remember that eukomis grown from seeds will bloom only in the third or fourth year.
Eukomis also reproduces with the help of leaf cuttings. To do this, you need to cut off the sheet at the base and divide it from the bottom into 4-6 parts. Then plant in a substrate that should consist of equal parts of peat and sand. Cover the planted leaf with a cut plastic bottle, thereby creating a greenhouse environment, sometimes removing it for a few minutes to ventilate. After about 2 months, bulbs will begin to form at the edges of the leaf, which must be carefully detached and planted in pots so that they grow a little. When the bulbs are well grown, they can be planted outdoors.
Eukomis in landscape design
The pineapple lily will become a real decoration of the garden. The inflorescences are strong and clear, thanks to this the plant looks great, both independently and in combination with other flowers. Eukomis looks interesting in combination with gerberas, soil-bearing annuals and perennial conifers. Eukomis in combination with heycheroi looks original against the background alissuma and lobelia... Eukomis, planted on rocky areas, also looks beautiful. In principle, pineapple lily looks beautiful in combination with any plants, it is more important to choose the right shades of them.
Types and varieties of eukomis
Only those species that are grown in culture will be listed below.
Eukomis point, or eukomis crested (Eucomis punctata = Eucomis comosa) - grows 30-60 cm in height. A plant with flat, grooved leaves, lanceolate or linear, growing up to 60 cm in length and 7 cm in width. There are brown spots on the bottom of the leaves.Greenish flowers are collected in fish bunches of 40-100 pieces. This species has varieties that have purple or pink flowers.
Eukomis bicolor (Eucomis bicolor), or eukomis bicolor - grows up to 1.5 m in height. Chroma have an interesting striped color, purple stripes. The flowers are light green, the perianths have a purple border. The fruits of these species are dark red in color.
Eukomis autumn (Eucomis autumnalis), or eukomis otumnalis - unlike other species, it is more resistant to frost and in regions with warm winters can winter right in the soil. Chroma grows 20-30 cm in height. Flowers collected in fish brushes are white or creamy white in color. This species blooms a little later than others.
Also, sometimes in the culture are grown eukomis Zambezian, Pole Evans, red-stemmed and wavy.
If the planting, cultivation and care of eukomisoch are correct, then the flower will grow incredibly beautiful, lush and healthy, and will certainly delight with long and abundant flowering. Since caring for the plant is quite simple, even inexperienced growers can grow a beautiful and unusual flower.
