Ktenanta is a perennial herbaceous crop native to South America. The first thing that attracts attention in this plant is the leaves, unusual in color and rare in shape. They are two-colored, consist of a basic green (dark or light) color and stripes (in the form of strokes) of white, light green or yellowish shades. The leaves are oval, elongated, up to 40 centimeters in length. The flowers resemble small spikelets of white or red color. The plant is low in height - about 20-40 centimeters.
Caring for a ktenant at home
Location and lighting
Ktenanta is a plant that requires diffused lighting for at least 16 hours a day. During the warm season, it is necessary to protect the flower from direct sunlight, since the influence of the sun's rays will immediately affect the appearance of the plant. Bright sunlight can change the usual color of the leaves for the worse.
This houseplant needs good lighting throughout the year, so in the colder months, when daylight hours get shorter, you need to use fluorescent lamps. With their help, you can additionally highlight the plant at dusk or on a cloudy day.
A good place to grow ktenants will be windows facing east or west.
Temperature
It is important to adhere to the optimal temperature regime in the soil and in the air relative to the season. This houseplant does not like sudden changes in temperature and drafts, it reacts very painfully to these processes. The root system may not survive during hypothermia. Therefore, the soil temperature should not drop less than 17-18 degrees.
The daytime air temperature in the spring and summer months should be in the range of 22-25 degrees, and in the autumn and winter months - about 20 degrees Celsius. The night temperature in the spring-summer season is 20-22 two degrees, and in the rest of the months - from 16 to 18 degrees Celsius.
Air humidity
Ktenanta grows well in greenhouse conditions and it vitally needs high humidity (at least 70%). You can maintain this moisture in different ways:
- Regular spraying throughout the year.
- The presence of a pallet under the flower with wet expanded clay.
- Covering the plant with plastic wrap bags (at night).
For spraying, you need to use only purified water and spray it only with the smallest spray nozzle. At low humidity, the leaves of the plant will begin to curl, and if large drops of water hit the leaf, a dark spot may form.
Watering rules
Watering the ktenante must be plentiful, but not before the entire surface of the soil dries up one centimeter in depth. Irrigation volumes gradually decrease in autumn and winter, and in spring they return to their usual course. The liquid must be filtered or settled.Drying of the soil or waterlogging should not be allowed - this is equally detrimental to the flower.
Top dressing and fertilizers
Top dressing is not applied within thirty days after transplanting and in the autumn-winter season. In all other months, every 15 days, the ktenant is fed with a complex fertilizer, which is recommended for deciduous indoor plants. This liquid fertilizer is applied only in half the dosage.
The soil
Choosing a potting soil mix in a retail network, you can opt for the soil for azaleas or arrowroots. But you can prepare the soil at home. For ktenants, you need to take one part of sand and peat, two parts of leafy earth and a little crushed charcoal. Such soil will be loose and water and air permeable, which is very significant for this flower.
Transfer
Only young plants need to be replanted every year, mature plants are replanted every three years. The transplant must be carried out from May to August. A flower container needs a wide, but shallow depth. Before transplanting, you need to rid the plant of damaged and dying leaves.
Important! Remember to provide good drainage for the plant.
Breeding ktenants
Reproduction by dividing the bush
Ktenanta reproduces by dividing the bush. This method can be used when transplanting an adult plant. Having pulled the plant out of the ground, it is necessary to carefully shake off the soil from the roots and divide the main bush into several parts without damaging the roots.
The separated bushes are immediately planted in separate pots in the peat soil. After that, the flowers are watered abundantly with water and the containers with the plants are placed in moisture-proof bags, leaving a small hole for air exchange. In this form, indoor plants are kept in a warm room until young leaves appear.
Propagation by cuttings
Ktenantu can also be propagated by apical cuttings. In the summertime, it is necessary to cut cuttings from seven to ten centimeters long. Each cutting should have at least three leaves. All cuttings are placed in a container of water and covered with a plastic bag. Within five days, the first young roots should appear - this means that the plants can be planted in the soil.
Diseases and pests
When the appearance scabbards the leaves of the ktenants will begin to become covered with brown spots, then dry up and fall off. Spider mite leaves behind whitish spots on foliage and traces of cobwebs. The reason for their appearance may be in too dry air. To combat pests, you must first use insecticidal solutions, and then restore high humidity in the room.
The ktenant is sick mainly due to non-compliance with the rules of care:
- At temperatures below 15 degrees and severe waterlogging, the stems lose their stability and begin to rot.
- At very low humidity, growth slows down and the tips of the leaves dry.
- With a lack of moisture and when exposed to direct sunlight, the leaves curl up and lose their usual color.
Ktenanta is a rather unpretentious plant and will not cause much trouble when grown at home.
