Sansevieria is a decorative foliage herbaceous plant. It belongs to the Asparagus family. For flower growers, it is better known as the "pike tail", "leopard lily", "devil's tongue" or "mother-in-law's tongue". The habitat of sansevieria extends to the tropical and subtropical forests of Africa, North America, Indonesia and India. Dense fleshy leaves are covered with exquisite patterns and very decorative. Group thickets look especially beautiful, so it makes sense to plant several copies together in a long pot.
Botanical Description
Sansevieria is an evergreen stemless perennial. It grows 30-120 cm in height. Among the representatives there are epiphytic and terrestrial specimens. The fibrous rhizome is compact in size. Dense linear leaves grow directly from the roots. They are located strictly vertically or slightly deviate from the center.
All varieties can be divided into 2 main types: long vertical leaves or short wide foliage in a symmetrical rosette. The edges of the leaves are solid, and the end is pointed. The surface of the sheet is covered with a dense skin, preventing excessive evaporation of moisture. The sheet plate is painted dark green. Some varieties have a contrasting yellow or silver border, as well as a pattern across the surface. Every year, 2-3 new sheets are added to the outlet.
In early spring or summer, a long peduncle dotted with small star-shaped flowers appears from the center of the leaf rosette. In nature, sansevieria blooms throughout the year. The buds form racemose inflorescences and exude a strong pleasant aroma, similar to the smell of vanilla and cloves. The buds open in the evening, and close in the morning. Flowering lasts about two weeks.
After pollination, miniature fleshy berries with small seeds ripen. An interesting feature is that after flowering, the leaf rosette stops releasing new leaves.
Types of Sansevieria
In total, about 70 species are in the genus Sansevieria, but about ten of them are used in indoor floriculture. Many flower growers prefer varietal plants as the most decorative.
Sansevieria is three-way. A drought tolerant species found in the desert regions of Africa. Its dense vertical leaves grow up to 1 m in height. They have a lanceolate shape. Almost brown longitudinal stripes are located on the surface of dark green foliage. Varieties:
- sansevieria hanni - shorter and wider leaves grow in a vase-shaped rosette;
- Hanni Gold - contrasting uneven strokes of gold color are visible on short pieces of paper;
- sansevieria laurenti - long lanceolate leaves bordered by narrow vertical stripes of yellow color;
- Sansevieria Moonshine - slightly thickened, short foliage has a plain gray-green color with a slight silver coating.
Sansevieria is cylindrical (cylindrical). The plant is distinguished by long cylindrical leaves of a dark green color. On their surface are vertical silver stripes and yellow strokes. Foliage forms a symmetrical outlet. Its ends are greatly narrowed and pointed. They are sharp enough to injure themselves, so often the edges are covered with a cork cap. During the flowering period, a single inflorescence with creamy white stars appears from the outlet. Reddish strokes are barely visible on the petals.
Sansevieria is great. A large epiphytic plant forms rosettes of 2-4 fleshy leaves. The length of the lanceolate sheet is 30-60 cm, and the width is about 15 cm. A beautiful pattern of transverse spots and strips of malachite hue is visible on a dark green surface. Along the edge there is often a narrow reddish border. In spring, a multi-flowered brush up to 80 cm long appears. On an upright peduncle there are greenish-white buds with narrow petals and a thickened base.
Propagation Features
In indoor conditions, sansevieria is propagated mainly by vegetative methods: dividing the bush and rooting leafy cuttings. In the spring, during the transplantation of a large bush, most of the soil should be removed from the roots, and then the rhizome is cut with a sterile blade. Each dividend must have at least one growth point and several leaves. The resulting plants are immediately planted in sandy peat soil. They are watered very limitedly and kept in a warm (+ 25 ° C) room. This method of propagation allows you to preserve the decorative color of the leaves and border.
Each leaf of sansevieria can be divided into segments 4-8 cm long. Rooting occurs very well. It is necessary to dry the cuttings in the air, but why put it vertically in the sand. It is important not to confuse the bottom and top of the sheet. Cuttings are covered with a transparent cap (cut plastic bottle or glass jar). Watering is done through a pan. After 4-5 weeks, the leaf will have roots and new buds. Real leaves will develop a little later. With this method, plants most often appear with plain foliage, without a border. You can try to get a motley baby if the lower cut of the leaf cuttings is made in the form of a wedge so that only the motley sides come into contact with the ground.
Rules for home care
Sansevieria is a very tenacious and non-whimsical plant. It is ideal for beginners and busy gardeners, and also without difficulties will survive the long vacation of the owners.
Lighting. The plant develops equally well under natural and artificial lighting, in partial shade or in bright sun. Variegated varieties require more light. In the spring-summer period, it is recommended to take the plants out to fresh air, in a place well protected from precipitation and drafts.
Temperature. Sansevieria is kept at + 18 ... + 25 ° C. On hotter days, it is useful to ventilate the room more often. In winter, you can lower the temperature to + 12 ... + 14 ° C. At the same time, plant growth slows down somewhat and the need for watering is significantly reduced. Cooling below + 10 ° C leads to plant disease.
Humidity. Teschin tongue adapts to the usual humidity in the room and does not need additional spraying. To make the plant feel better, you need to regularly wipe the leaves from dust or bathe them under a warm shower. Water should be soft so that no lime stains appear.
Watering. Water the bushes after drying the soil at least half. Sansevieria is resistant to prolonged drought, but may suffer from soil flooding. When air temperature decreases, watering is reduced.
Fertilizer. From May to October, sansevieria is fertilized monthly with mineral compounds for succulents and cacti. It is necessary to limit yourself to half the dose of top dressing. It is bred in water and poured into the soil.
Transfer. Sansevieria can grow for a long time in one pot without a transplant. It has a compact rhizome, so the capacity is selected wide and shallow. The bottom must be covered with a thick layer of drainage material (pebbles, expanded clay, shards). The soil for the plant is made up of the following components:
- coarse sand;
- sheet soil;
- turf soil.
After transplanting, the flower is not watered for several days.
Diseases and pests. Sansevieria is very resistant to plant diseases. Only with prolonged, excessive watering and low temperatures does its root and foliage damage rot, powdery mildew and mosaic. Parasites on the pike tail do not settle even in the vicinity of another infected plant.
Signs and superstitions
Many are biased towards sansevieria in the home. Superstitious people believe that mother-in-law's language leads to disagreement in the family and gossip. It seems that some ill-wisher came up with this, because there is no evidence for such statements. Perhaps Sansevieria is really fueled by the negative energy of the household and draws on itself rudeness, anger and bad mood. Thus, she maintains a friendly relationship with each other, and also develops positive energy and creative impulses.
The untimely signs include untimely, winter flowering of sansevieria. This promises a big quarrel or a serious quarrel between close people.
Beneficial features
The high content of sansevieria juice of saponins and other active substances makes it an excellent air purifier. It is scientifically proven that leaves absorb a large amount of formaldehyde and nitric oxide.
Pieces of plant leaves are applied to skin lesions (inflammation, burns, wounds). They contribute to the rapid healing of no worse than the well-known aloe. Decoctions of foliage have diuretic and choleretic properties.
For all the usefulness with sansevieria, caution should be exercised. When eating fresh leaves, severe poisoning occurs, so the flower should be placed away from children and animals. During pregnancy, treatment is not carried out, as the individual components have an abortive effect.
