Pandanus

The pandanus plant (Pandanus), or pandanus is a plant from the Pandanov family. It includes about 750 different species found in the tropics of the Eastern Hemisphere. Most often, these tree-like plants are found in South Asian countries, in western Africa, as well as in Hawaii, Australia and the Polynesian islands. Madagascar is home to about 90 species of pandanus.

These plants are highly adaptable, so they can live in a wide variety of areas: near water bodies, in the highlands, in swampy forests and even near volcanoes. Residents of countries where pandanuses grow use their large leaves for building roofs or weaving household items. Parts of some plants of this genus are used in traditional medicine. In addition, the fruits, foliage and young shoots of the pandanus species can be found in many Asian cuisines. They are used as an ingredient in many dishes, as well as flavoring and food coloring.

Description of pandanus

The genus pandanus includes shrubs or trees that remain green all year round. In nature, the height of representatives of the genus can reach 15 m, and sometimes even 25 m. In appearance, they usually resemble palms or vines. There are also species whose height does not exceed half a meter. Pandans have aerial roots that gradually grow into the ground. As they develop, the lower part of the trunks of such plants begins to die off, but the stiff roots continue to hold them in their previous position. Due to the peculiarities of the location, such roots are called "stilted".

The width of the pandanus leaf plates reaches 15 cm, they resemble a sword in shape and can be up to 4 m long. Each leaf has an edge covered with small and sharp thorns. For this reason, the plant should be handled carefully and kept away from children or pets.

Due to the spiral arrangement of the leaves on the trunk, the pandanus is also known as the "spiral palm", although it is not actually a palm tree. As they age, the leaf blades from the bottom of the row begin to fly around, leaving traces-scars at the site of attachment to the trunk.

During the flowering period on the pandanus, inflorescences appear in the form of cobs or panicles, including small yellow flowers, devoid of perianths. They have a pleasant aroma. After flowering, some types of spiral palms are tied with edible fruits resembling pineapples. When mature, they can be purple, yellow, red, or even bluish. In many countries, they are widely used in cooking as a component of desserts. In other species, the fruit can be poisonous. But at home, this plant almost never blooms.

The main difficulty in caring for a pandanus at home is its large size. Because of them, this plant will fit optimally into a spacious room or a winter garden. The spiral palm tree is unpretentious and easily tolerates both a lack of light and periods of drought. In an ordinary apartment, you can keep a young pandan, which has a more compact size.

Brief rules for growing pandanus

The table shows brief rules for caring for pandanus at home.

Home care for pandanus

Lighting

From autumn to the end of winter, pandanus can be kept in a bright place - on the east or west side of the house. In summer, the palm tree will have to be slightly shaded from too bright sun. But the plant cannot be called shade-loving. Lack of lighting causes the foliage to lose its elasticity and begin to bend. Sufficient illumination is especially important for variegated subspecies. In the shade, their color will fade and become ordinary.

If the pot with the plant is in a shady place, additional lighting should be used. They are installed 60-70 cm from the pandan and kept on for 8 hours a day. In order for the bush to develop symmetrically, it must be systematically turned to the light source with different sides.

Temperature

Pandanus can grow all year round at a constant temperature - from 19 to 25 degrees. In the fall and winter, it is not necessary to transfer it to the cool, tk. the screw palm does not have a pronounced dormant period. During this period, you can keep the flower in a room with a minimum temperature value - from 18 degrees. 12 degrees are considered a critical indicator for it - the temperature should not fall below this level.

The room in which the pandanus stands can be ventilated even during the cold season. The main thing is not to allow the plant to get in the way of a draft.

Watering

In the spring and summer, the soil in the pandanus pot is moistened abundantly. For irrigation, only settled and slightly warmed (up to about 35 degrees) water is used. Half an hour after watering, excess water is poured from the pan. Watering is carried out 2-3 days after the soil in the pot begins to dry out.

From autumn to the end of winter, when the development of the pandanus slows down a little, you can water it a little less and less often. But it is not worth overdrying the soil lump - this can harm the plant. At the same time, the pandanus is able to calmly spend some time without leaving. Leaving on vacation, you need to properly water the bush and remove it away from the window.If the departure is relatively long, you can place the pot in a container filled with expanded clay, and also cover the topsoil with it.

Humidity level

This plant does not require high humidity, it feels great in the usual room conditions. But if the air in the apartment is too dry, you can use a tray filled with wet pebbles to moisten the area around the pandanus. It is not recommended to spray the bush - due to moisture entering the leaf sinuses, the pandanus can rot.

You can use a damp, soft sponge or tissue to remove dust from foliage. The plates are gently wiped, moving from the base to the end of the sheet. This should be done with gloves so as not to hurt yourself on the thorns on the surface of the leaves.

Aerial roots

Under indoor conditions, pandanus rarely forms air roots - it does not have a special need for "stilts". But the roots that have appeared cannot be removed. On the contrary, they need to be overlaid with moistened sphagnum moss and make sure that it does not dry out. It is especially important to fulfill this condition in hot weather.

Due to the small number, such aerial roots are not able to provide full stability to an adult plant, therefore, it is recommended to keep large pandanuses on supports.

The soil

A mixture of humus with sand, leafy soil and turf is suitable for growing pandanus. The use of a universal palm substrate is acceptable.

Top dressing

From early spring to late summer, pandanus must be fed. This is done about twice a month using complex formulations for plants with decorative foliage. For young plants, the dosage can be reduced. In autumn and winter, feeding is no longer applied.

Transfer

Transplanting a pandanus is required when its root system becomes too crowded in an old pot. Young specimens, characterized by high growth rates, are moved to a new container annually. More mature bushes can be replanted 2-3 times less often.

Despite the fact that the pandanus can grow to a very impressive size, the root system of the plant is fragile. In order not to damage it, the bushes are carefully transferred into a new container.

Pandanus is usually grown in fairly wide and tall pots. At their bottom, it is imperative to lay a thick drainage layer - it can be about a third of the total volume. Too large a container should not be taken - it should be only slightly larger than the size of the plant's soil coma.

Before starting the transplant, the foliage of the pandanus is carefully lifted up and tied. This will make it easier to move around and will also protect your hands from thorns. When the bush is in a new place, the resulting voids are filled with fresh soil. It is important to ensure that the depth of the bush does not change.

Large specimens that have turned into a heavy tree can not be replanted, but simply replaced the upper part of the soil layer. If such a pandanus still needs to be transplanted, it is better to do it with an assistant.

Breeding methods of pandanus

Homemade pandanus can be propagated in several ways. Most often, vegetative options are used for this, but sometimes the bush is propagated by seeds.

Growing from seeds

In nature, pandanus seeds are often spread by crabs that feed on the fruits of the plant. The difficulty of seed propagation at home is associated not only with the longer development of the pandanus, but also with the need to use fresh seeds. Since the plant practically does not bloom at home, it will not work to get them from your own bush. But some species of pandanus can only reproduce in this way.

If the seeds still manage to get, they are placed in a small container filled with a peat-sandy substrate or a mixture of sand with leafy soil. From above, the container is covered with a film or glass and placed in a warm place, where it is kept at least 25 degrees.The shelter is regularly opened for ventilation, and the soil, if necessary, is moistened with a sprayer. Seedlings should appear in 2-4 weeks. The bottom heating will help speed up the process.

When the sprouts form 2-3 full-fledged leaves, they can be cut into their own pots, filling them with a mixture of turf, leafy soil and sand.

Cuttings

The lateral shoots of pandanus are used as cuttings. Sometimes it can have aerial roots. The length of such shoots should be at least 20 cm - shorter cuttings take root less well. The areas of the cuts are dusted with crushed coal and allowed to dry.

Prepared cuttings are placed in a peat-sandy substrate, and then covered with a transparent jar or bag. The sections should take root in the warmth (about +26 degrees or slightly higher), the shelter is periodically removed to ventilate them, and, if necessary, re-water. The process of root formation takes up to 8 weeks; the use of root formation stimulants will help to speed it up. It is best to carry out this procedure in the spring.

Dividing the bush

The large adult pandanus forms a large number of baby rosettes. They can be located near the trunk of a plant or in the axils of its foliage. When the rosettes reach 20 cm in length and develop their own roots, they can be detached from the main plant and rooted in another pot. To accelerate root formation, you should surround the base of the children with moistened sphagnum and make sure that it does not have time to dry out. The cut outlet should be dried for about a day.

The resulting planting material is planted in flat containers, on the bottom of which drainage up to 2 cm thick was laid. 6-7 cm of turf is poured on top of it, and then 3-4 cm of previously washed sand. The rosette roots are placed in sand to a depth of 2 cm, and then compacted. The sand near the seedling should be sprayed with water and then covered with a bag or jar. If the soil temperature in the container is at least 22 degrees, the baby should root successfully. Usually this process takes about a month, phytohormones will help speed it up.

A couple of months after planting, the rooted outlet, along with the soil clod, is transferred to a larger container. For transplanting, a substrate is used that includes sand, turf and leafy soil (1: 2: 3).

Diseases and pests of pandanus

Pests

Domestic specimens of pandanus are very resistant to pests, but sometimes they can still be attacked by spider mites, worms or scale insects.

Spider mites can settle on bushes during periods of high dry air. They leave pinpoint punctures on the leaves, gradually filling the plate. It is necessary to spray the affected bush with acaricides, and then try to adjust the moisture level to avoid re-infection. Due to the fact that pandanus foliage cannot be moistened, you can put it on a pallet with wet pebbles.

The mealybug, which leaves a light bloom on the foliage, must first be removed from the plant by hand. To do this, use a cotton wool soaked in alcohol or a brush. Then the bush is treated with soapy water and insecticide. Scabbards leave sticky marks on foliage. They can also be identified by scaly "growths" on the surface of the sheet. Against such pests, the same means are often used as against the worm.

Diseases

A common problem in pandanus cultivation is the yellowing of its leaves. The flower staunchly resists many diseases, but in this way it begins to signal the wrong care. Sometimes the leaves begin to turn yellow due to putrefactive processes in the root system. This can happen with frequent watering of the plant, so the watering regime will have to be changed. Excessively hard water, excess calcium in the soil, or too bright light can also cause yellowing.

Lack of lighting, on the other hand, leads to a decrease in the size of the leaf plates. The color of variegated forms can be lost because of this.Very dry indoor air can also affect the decorative effect of the bush - the tips of its foliage can dry out because of this. In this case, the moisture level should be slightly increased, and the dry ends should be trimmed without touching the healthy leaf tissue.

If the lower leaves of a pandanus fall off, it may be a natural process for the pandanus to develop. But the frequent falling of leaves usually indicates a lack of moisture in the soil. A slowdown in the growth of pandanus can be observed in a too shady place, on poor soil, or with additional stimulation of development in the autumn-winter period.

Types of pandanus with photos and names

Pandanus Veitch, or Veitch (Pandanus veitchii)

The species lives in the southeast of Asia. Pandanus veitchii is distinguished by a shortened trunk, around which there are air roots-props. The foliage is arranged in a spiral. The length of the leaf plates reaches 1 m, and their width is only 5-8 cm. The foliage is decorated with a white border, and along its edges there are small light thorns with a white top.

If you follow all the conditions for caring for such a pandanus, in 10 years the potted plant will reach a height of 1.5 m. But the flowering of this species can only be admired in the natural environment.

Pandanus utilis

In the natural environment, this fertile species reaches gigantic proportions - its height reaches 20 m. In the culture of Pandanus utilis, it grows only up to 2-3 m. Its flowers are not formed at the same time. The appearance of natural and domestic specimens differs not only in size. In nature, after the end of flowering, the pandanus begins to branch, at home this does not happen. Foliage, like all members of the genus, has a spiral arrangement. It has a deep green color and a hard surface. Contact with leaves of this species is believed to cause skin irritation. The length of the plates reaches 1-1.5 m with a width of 5-10 cm. Small reddish spines are located along the edge.

Pandanus sanderi

The species lives in the humid tropics in the Malay Archipelago. Pandanus sanderi has a small trunk with dark green foliage complemented by longitudinal yellow stripes. The leaves reach 80 cm in length, and their width is about 5 cm. There are a few thorns at the edges of the leaf.

Covering Pandanus (Pandanus tectorius)

This species is a branched shrub with airy "stilted" roots. In its homeland, Pandanus tectorius grows up to 3-4 m. Its linear foliage becomes more narrowed as it approaches the top. The edges of the plates are covered with narrow light spines. In indoor culture, the species does not bloom, but in nature, after flowering, it produces brightly colored yellow, orange or red fruits that can be eaten. They have a sweet taste.

The laevis form is widespread in culture. Its leaves reach 2 meters in length and are devoid of thorns. The flowers are white or light pink in color, and their size reaches 10 cm.

Signs associated with pandanus

Despite the sufficient unpretentiousness of the pandanus, not every florist decides to have such a plant. This is due not only to the size of the spiral palm tree, but also to folk signs. It is believed that pandanus absorbs positive energies and transforms them into more aggressive ones. On an unbalanced person, this property of a bush can have a negative effect, making him nervous and more irritable. For the same reason, it is believed that pandanus should not be grown by easily suggestible and impressionable flower lovers. But the plant is often kept in offices - its energy stimulates brain activity. Sometimes pandanus spines are interpreted as a "barrier" that protects the house from external aggression.

People with strong nerves, as well as flower growers with no superstition, can take the risk of growing such an unusual native of the tropics. In addition, in other countries, pandanus, on the contrary, is associated with happiness.So in India, girls weave the earring-shaped flowers of the most fragrant pandanus into their hair in order to find themselves a good groom.