Aechmea always looks decorative thanks to its unusual structure and beautiful leaves. And many people remember its flowering for a long time. Aechmea is also popular among gardeners because it is easy to care for at home.
Origin and appearance of the plant
Homeland - tropical forests of Central and South America. Aechmea is a representative of the bromeliad family (like pineapple, guzmania, etc.).
In nature, it prefers well-lit places in dry climates. At home she feels great and is easy to care for. Not only flowers, but also original leaves play a decorative role.
Blooming echmea is a very beautiful sight
Belt-like pointed leathery leaves with spines along the edges are collected in a rosette and, as a rule, are colored in a variegated, grayish-green or uniform dark green shade. The stems are short. When flowering, a thick pink peduncle appears from the middle of the rosette, which is much smaller in size than the bracts. After flowering, the rosette dies.
Aechmea leaves have thorns, its juice is poisonous. Causes inflammation upon contact with skin. Access to the plant by children and animals should be limited.
There are more than 170 species of echmea in nature, 10 of them are grown at home. The most popular among gardeners are the following types:
- Sparkling. The leaves are rounded at the end, their upper part is green, the lower part is reddish. The flowers are small and red.
- Striped (example fasciata). The tubular rosette is assembled from belt-shaped leaves. Complex inflorescence about 30 cm. Bracts pink. Offspring appear on creeping stems.
- Curved. The inflorescence is about 20 cm long, red. Blooms in April-May.
- Shaggy. The rosette is formed by densely collected leaves. The flowers are yellow and the bracts are red. Blooms in winter.
- Bearded (tailed). The flowers are golden, the bracts are red. The peduncle is covered with a white coating.
- Weilbach. Leaves up to 0.5 m in length. Blooms from March to August, sometimes in October.
Photo gallery: example fasciata, striped, curved and other types of echmea
Inflorescence of Aechmea curved - 20 cm in length 
Aechmea beardeda has golden-colored flowers. 
Echmea Weilbach can please with flowering in autumn 
Striped echmea is one of the most popular plant species 
Aechmea shaggy blooms in winter 
The upper part of the leaves of Aechmea sparkling is green, the lower part is violet-red.
Conditions for echmea depending on the season
How to plant and replant at home
Aechmea needs to be replanted once a year - in the spring, after flowering. Faded rosettes are removed. For echmea you will need a shallow, wide pot, at the bottom of which you should put drainage (broken shards, expanded clay).
Soil: turf and leaf soil (2 parts each), sand and humus (1 part each) plus a little moss and charcoal. Soil for bromeliads is also suitable.
Care
Watering
Watering the echmea is carried out in two stages: first pour water into the outlet, then spill the soil.
Water for irrigation needs to be settled and warm.
There should be water in the outlet only in the warm season
Echmea favors moist, but not too damp soil. It needs to be watered when the top layer of soil has dried out. During the warm season, there should be water in the funnel. It should be changed every 2-3 days, removing the old one with a napkin. After flowering, as well as during the cold season, the rosette must be dry, otherwise rotting will begin. Watering the land in winter is also reduced to 1–2 times a month.
Top dressing
Feeding is carried out in the summer once every 20 days, in the fall - once a month, in the winter - once every 1.5 months. Use complex mineral fertilizers in liquid form, fertilizers for epiphytes (bromeliads or orchids) or regular fertilizers for flowering plants (in this case, the concentration should be half that specified in the instructions). The mixture should not fall into the plant's outlet.
Flowering - how to make echmea bloom
Aechmea blooms from April to August. Some varieties bloom in winter (for example, shaggy aechmea). Under natural conditions, the plant is ready to flower at 4–5 years of age. This process can also be induced artificially. Methods:
- Place apples and oranges next to the pot, cover everything with film. The gas released by the fruit helps speed up the onset of flowering.
- Place a piece of calcium carbide into the funnel. It interacts with the water in the funnel, resulting in the release of the same gas - ethylene.
- Sometimes flowering causes a large difference in daily temperature.
After flowering, rosettes with peduncles should be unscrewed or cut out.
Rest period
The rest period in echmei is weakly expressed. However, in winter it is necessary to provide the plant with a low temperature (16 o C), reduce watering and fertilizing.
Table: why leaves turn yellow, dry, lighten - care errors and ways to eliminate them
| What's going on | Cause | Options for solving the problem |
| Doesn't bloom | care conditions are not met |
|
| the plant has not reached 4 years of age | Wait or stimulate flowering. | |
| The socket is rotting | overwatering |
|
| Root rot is detected | excess moisture, heavy soil | Replant the plant by cutting off damaged roots. |
| The leaves are brightening | excess sunlight | Move the pot to another place or shade the plant. |
| Brown spots will appear on the leaves | sunburn | |
| The tips of the leaves dry out | lack of moisture, dry air |
|
| Leaves turn yellow | the plant is affected by disease or pests | see below |
Disease and pest control - table
| Pests/diseases | How it manifests itself | Control measures |
| Spider mite | Small arthropods that entangle leaves with webs. Affected leaves turn yellow, fall off, and the plant loses vigor. |
|
| Shields | Small insects that look like dark plaques that leave sticky marks. When affected by scale insects, echmea is stunted in growth, the leaves turn yellow and dry out. |
|
| Mealybug | Small insects that damage the above-ground parts of plants. Colonies look like pieces of cotton wool. Aechmea affected by scale insects stops development. | |
| Root mealybug | Forms oviposition at the root collar, which leads to rotting of the roots. |
If the plant is severely damaged, it is almost impossible to save it. |
| Root rot | May develop due to waterlogged soil. The leaves turn yellow, darken, wither and fall off. |
If the roots have darkened and softened, then the plant cannot be saved. |
Photo gallery: diseases and pests of Aechmea
Reproduction
Aechmea can be propagated by children or seeds.
By shoots
Seeds
The soil should be loose with a predominance of peat.
Note! When propagating echmea by seeds, varietal characteristics may not be preserved.
Striped echmea (Aechmea fasciata) is a herbaceous crop with large and leathery leaves, one of the most striking representatives of the Bromeliad family. In nature it grows on the bark and branches of trees, and in our homes it is a common indoor plant.
With proper care, echmea begins to bloom at 3 years of age, but in order for the plant to bloom, it needs to create suitable home conditions for this.
The leaves are collected in a powerful vase-shaped rosette and are a natural reservoir of nutrients (humus) and water. In August, an adult plant sprouts from the middle of the “vase” with a capitate inflorescence, between the bracts of which there are pink-blue flowers.
Artificially bred hybrids of Aechmea are more attractive, which are easier and easier to care for...
Unlike other bromeliads, aechmeas are relatively easy to maintain and care for at home, are easy to grow, and bloom for a long time.
- Temperature.
Aechmea is a heat-loving crop; it feels most comfortable at a temperature in summer of 21°-26°C, in winter - 15°-18°C - not lower than 12. The difference between night and day temperatures is positive within 5-7 degrees. Does not tolerate drafts and direct sunlight. Before flowering, it requires high air temperature (23°C); after the first flowers appear, on the contrary, it requires a decrease in temperature to 15°-21°C.
In the summer we take it outside - Aechmea loves fresh air, but we put it under cover: an open veranda, a balcony, under the shade of bushes so that direct sunlight is inaccessible.
- Lighting.
The echmea plant loves a lot of light, but is afraid of direct sunlight - the leaves turn yellow, dry out and die. After flowering, it can grow in partial shade. It is better to place it near the windows of the western and eastern sides. In summer you can put it on the balcony, gradually accustoming it to bright light.
Aechmea with thick, hard leaves (striped, bracted) can be placed on southern windows, with shading only during the hottest hours of the day. In species with dense leathery leaves, like curved echmea, with shading and high air humidity, the decorative color of the leaves is lost and becomes green.
Species with soft leaves (matte red, Weilbach) and sparkling Aechmea prefer more moderate lighting and shading on sunny days.
- Watering and humidity.
In winter, water moderately, as needed, without waterlogging the soil, and in summer we water abundantly. When it is hot (above 23°C), you can pour water directly into the leaf vase and refresh it (renew the water) every month, but only when the temperature does not drop below 18°C.
In summer, every day, the leaves must be sprayed with water. To ensure constant soil moisture, it is best to place the flowerpot with the plant in a tray with hygroscopic expanded clay and pebbles.
- Fertilizers.
Feed with fertilizers for bromeliads (together with watering) every 2-3 weeks in spring and summer until August. Using fertilizers intended for flowering indoor plants, the solution is prepared in half the dose. Echmea is very responsive to good care and care.
- Aechmea transplant.
Unlike the powerful leaf mass, the root of the plant is small and Aechmea does not require frequent replanting. We change the flowerpots to larger ones if the upper vertical leaf part of the plant grows, when the plant looks awkward and bulky in a pot and can simply tip over under its own weight. In this case, they are transplanted using the transshipment method, without disturbing the roots of the echmea.
- Soil for planting.
The soil should be loose and fertile. It grows best on humus soil mixed in equal parts with chopped moss and deciduous soil, with the addition of sand and broken shards. Provide good drainage.
It is not difficult to prepare a mixture of 1 part each of light turf, peat, leaf and humus soil, with an admixture of sand. Or use a store-bought bromeliad potting mix. It is quite possible to grow echmea in clean high-moor peat.
- Bloom.
It is believed that it is possible to speed up the flowering of grown-up “babies” with the help of ethylene vapor emanating from ripe apples, banana skins, and citrus fruits. The plant is placed in a transparent plastic bag for a couple of weeks along with 2-3 ripe apples; the top is not tied very tightly. After the ethylene procedure, the echmea blooms in a few months.
Real flowers appear and fade within a fairly short period, but the inflorescence itself, which is of decorative value, can decorate for several months.
After flowering, only the faded peduncle is cut off with pruning shears at the base of the echmea when it begins to dry out. The plant itself is not touched, since it has to grow several more daughter shoots to prolong its genus.
- Reproduction by shoots.
Aechmea is usually propagated by children, after the main stem almost begins to die. You can cut off the shoots at any time as soon as they grow, but the best time for this is March. In spring, Aechmea babies are more viable and take root easily. Planted in a light substrate, moistened and kept under a film for some time, not forgetting to ventilate. Then they are cared for as if they were an adult plant.
When caring for echmea, you should be more careful because the plant is slightly toxic and can cause skin irritation.
Thanks to its unusually beautiful flowering, the indoor flower Aechmea is very popular among lovers of house plants. When you see a blooming echmea, the main attention is drawn to the bright bract, so many people mistake it for a flower. In fact, the flowers are hidden in the axils of the bracts; they are very small and difficult to see from afar. However, the main decorative function is performed by the bract, and not by the flowers themselves, which Aechmea blooms with. Care at home is not particularly difficult, so Aechmea is very popular, both as a greenhouse plant and as a houseplant.
Aechmea is a genus of herbaceous plants belonging to the Bromeliad family, numbering about 300 different species. Widely distributed throughout Central and South America.
Aechmea has a short, thick stem. The leaves are long, lanceolate-shaped, collected in a rosette, the diameter of which, depending on the type, can reach 2 meters. Inflorescences and flowers come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. The flowers are located in the axils of the bracts, which have the main decorative function. An adult plant blooms only once, after which it fades.
Echmea care at home
All flower growers who want to have echmea at home must know the basic rules and subtleties of flower care. If they are followed, the plant will delight with its beauty and good growth.
Temperature
Most species are heat-loving plants. In summer, the temperature must be maintained between 22 and 27 °C, in winter – not lower than 18 °C. The plant tolerates temperature changes normally; moreover, a drop in temperature at night has a beneficial effect on its growth and stimulates the development of the peduncle.
Lighting
The indoor Aechmea flower is a light-loving plant that prefers soft, diffused light. In summer and late spring, to prevent burns, it is advisable to protect it from direct sunlight. In winter and autumn, in conditions of short daylight hours, you can organize additional lighting using special lamps.
Watering and humidity
Aechmea is a moisture-loving plant, so it needs to be watered regularly, avoiding complete drying out of the soil.
The watering procedure itself has some peculiarities. First you need to pour some water into the funnel formed by the leaves, and then moisten the soil. Under natural conditions, rainwater accumulates in this kind of funnel, providing the plant with the necessary moisture during dry periods. In winter, as well as at temperatures below 18°C, you should limit yourself to just moistening the soil, otherwise the flower may begin to rot. For irrigation, it is advisable to use soft, warm water.
Important! Aechmea does not tolerate stagnant moisture, so after watering you need to drain excess water from the pan.
The indoor Aechmea flower does not have any special requirements for air humidity, but in conditions of elevated temperatures, in hot weather and when located near heating radiators, it is advisable to periodically spray the plant with warm water.
Plant propagation
Aechmea can be propagated by lateral shoots (children) or seeds. When propagated by seeds, the plant will be able to bloom only 3 years after planting the seedlings. When propagated by layering, flowering can occur within 1-2 years.
For sowing seeds, light peat-based soil is used and kept at a temperature of about 24-25 ° C, maintaining a high level of humidity. Every day, for about 10 minutes, it is advisable to remove the film covering the container to provide fresh air to the young shoots. Already grown sprouts are dived into separate containers for further cultivation. Then, throughout the year, it is important to maintain the room temperature above 22 °C and periodically spray the sprouts.
Aechmea can be propagated by lateral shoots when they have grown their own roots. One adult echmea may have not one, but several shoots, so there should not be a shortage of planting material.
Before planting the shoot, it should be grown to approximately half the size of an adult plant.. When separating children you need to be very careful. The cut area must be treated with charcoal. Then the shoot needs to be placed in a small pot with substrate. At the bottom of the pot you need to organize. As the plant grows, it can be transplanted into a wider pot. After transplantation, the shoots take root quite easily and form a good root system. They do not need special care, but it is necessary to monitor the condition of the substrate and prevent it from becoming waterlogged.
Flower transplant
It is advisable to replant the plant in early spring. You can leave the pot the same or choose 1-2 cm larger. In echmea, the root system develops more in width than in depth, so it does not need a voluminous, deep pot. The only important condition is the presence of a drainage hole at the bottom.
To plant a flower, you can purchase special soil for Bromeliad plants. As a rule, it consists of peat, leaf soil and sand. To make the substrate more loose, you can add pieces of bark and charcoal to it.
Before transplanting the echmea into a new pot, carefully examine the root system and assess its condition. In general, transplanting echmea does not present any particular difficulties, so if necessary, the procedure can be carried out annually.
Remember that some types of echmea are poisonous; their juice in contact with the skin can cause irritation, so be sure to wear gloves when working with the plant.
Aechmea flowering
This phenomenon can be observed from March to October. The flowers fade quite quickly, but the bract lasts for several months. During the flowering period, avoid getting water into the bract.. Aechmea blooms once, after which the plant gradually fades. However, it is at this time that new shoots appear - babies.
There may be several reasons why the beautiful echmea does not bloom. The most common is lack of lighting. Move the plant to a brighter place or use additional lighting.
Diseases and pests
Difficulties in growing echmea at home can arise due to improper care or pest infestation. In most cases, diseases are caused by insufficient or excessive watering.
Possible plant diseases:
- Leaves dry out or turn brown. If the tips of the leaves change color, this is a consequence of the low temperature in the room. A change in color at the base of the leaf indicates the plant is rotting due to overwatering;
- The leaves wrinkle, droop, and the tips dry out. The plant is experiencing moisture deficiency. This is caused by increased dry air or infrequent watering;
- The leaves are turning yellow. The reason may be planting in an unsuitable substrate or pest infestation.
Signs of pest infestation:
- Bromeliad scale insect. It settles on the upper and lower surfaces of leaves, as a result of which they turn yellow and then fall off.
- Red spider mite. It settles on leaves, entwining them with its web. Subsequently, the leaves turn yellow and fall off.
- Aphids settle on the top of the leaves and suck the juice out of them. The leaves turn yellow and dry out.
- Mealybugs also attack leaves. The plant develops poorly, its growth slows down, the leaves turn yellow.
In case of pest damage, the plant must be treated with appropriate preparations - insecticides. If, due to excessive watering or other reasons, the plant begins to rot, only replanting the echmea into a new substrate with appropriate treatment of the affected parts will help.
Types of echmea
The most common in home floriculture are sparkling aechmea and striped aechmea, as well as one of its varieties, aechmea example.
Striped Aechmea (Aechmea fasciata)
The plant can reach 1 meter in diameter and 50 cm in height. The leaves are dense, leathery, jagged at the edges. The surface is smooth, green in color with uneven transverse stripes of a silvery tint. The leaves are about 50 cm long and 5 cm wide. The leaves near the flower are glossy, pinkish in color.
The peduncle is erect, up to 45 cm in height, bearing a fairly large spike-shaped inflorescence - about 30 cm. At the beginning of flowering, the flower petals have a bluish tint, and subsequently acquire a red-blue color. Striped echmea blooms in spring and summer.
Important! Striped aechmea is a moderately poisonous plant; its juice can cause skin irritation, so be sure to use gloves when working with it.
Aechmea primera
One of the varieties of striped echmea is example echmea (Aechmea primera). Its height can reach 65 cm. The leaves are dense and hard. The bracts are deep pink, and the flowers themselves are light purple. Aechmea example has a more pronounced pattern than striped aechmea.
Aechmea fulgens
The leaves are wide, belt-shaped, can reach 70 cm in length and about 7 cm in width. The upper surface of the leaf is smooth, light green in color with a silvery coating. The lower surface of the leaves is purple-green.
The peduncle is thick, bears a spike-shaped inflorescence of an orange-pink hue. The flowers are small, blue in color, located in the axils of the bracts. Flowering period: spring-summer. Aechmea sparkling is the most, so it is advisable to protect it from too bright light.
Matte red Aechmea (Aechmea miniata)
Refers to resistant varieties of echmea. The leaves reach 50 cm and form a funnel-shaped rosette. The color of the leaves is striking in its zest; they are light green above and have a purple tint below. The flowers of this variety are also of two colors: bluish petals and reddish sepals. If the plant is pollinated, bright pink fruits may appear.
With proper care, an indoor Aechmea flower will definitely delight you with spectacular, long-lasting flowering. If the plant does not bloom for a long time, adjust the growing conditions - make sure that the plant receives enough light and control the degree of moisture in the substrate.
Aechmea comes from Brazil, and its natural habitat is forests. Aechmea grows in the voids that have formed in trees.
Its leaves are rich in color and have a specific shape. At the base they curl, thereby forming a funnel where water collects during rain.
Striped echmea: optimal conditions for growing
In order for striped echmea to actively develop and grow well, it is important to know how to care for it and provide comfortable conditions within the premises where you plan to place it.
Lighting
Bearing in mind that in nature this plant lives in the tropics, the need to provide a large amount of light for Aechmea is natural. You can place a flower pot on windowsill west or east side of the house.
If the south side was chosen, then you will have to shade the flower during the highest sun activity, protecting the leaves of the plant from direct, burning rays. It is better not to choose the northern side at all, since the lack of lighting will make the color of the leaves blurry and indistinct, which will significantly reduce the attractiveness of striped echmea, and you can completely forget about flowering.
Temperature
Striped Echmea loves warm rooms, but can't stand the heat. Therefore, it should be provided with a temperature regime within the range of +20...+27 °C in summer and +17...+19 °C in winter. In such conditions, the plant will develop and grow stably, and differences in night and day temperatures will stimulate flowering in the echmea.
Important! The temperature in the room where striped echmea grows should not fall below +16°C .
Like many other green pets, Aechmea needs an influx of clean air, so do not forget to regularly ventilate the room, but do not allow drafts to form. 
Echmea striped: care at home
Striped echmea is not a capricious plant, and feels quite good in the conditions or at home. But in order for you to admire not only the beautiful leaves, but also the flowering of the plant, you should still know some requirements and rules for caring for it.
Watering and humidity
Aechmea striped naturally requires regular watering. But the method of moisturizing is somewhat different from caring for other plants. So how to water echmea?
Concerning containers, then you should choose a relatively low but wide pot. We must not forget to prevent stagnation of water and, accordingly, rotting of the root system.
Speaking about fertilizing echmea, it is worth remembering special fertilizers from the store for bromeliad plants, or for. These fertilizers are available in liquid form and are ideal for. Simply place the liquid in a spray bottle and distribute the solution over the entire surface of the echmea leaves.
Precautionary measures
When planning to plant echmea at home, gardeners often wonder whether it is there or not. It should be reported that the juice of the leaves can actually become cause of skin irritation. In this regard, when working with the plant, always use gloves and wash your hands thoroughly after the procedure. 
But there is no need to be afraid to keep this flower at home, because pets are unlikely to want to eat its tough leaves, and you can protect it from your pet by placing it in an inaccessible place. As flower growers sometimes joke, the main thing is not to crumble the plant into a salad, but in other cases it is practically harmless.
Transplantation: when and how
Aechmea will need to be replanted every year if possible. It is recommended to do this.
During the period when echmea blooms, under no circumstances should it be replanted. it is forbidden. The pot for the plant is selected to be low but wide. If the previous pot was cramped, choose a larger container, always with holes for water drainage. You will also need a wide tray for the flowerpot.
Half of the prepared substrate is poured into the new pot. Then they very carefully collect the echmea foliage in a bunch (at the very roots) and remove the plant from the old container, after which they place it in a new one. 
Striped echmea does not hold onto the soil with its roots, so removing it without damaging the plant itself will not be difficult at all. In a new pot, the roots of the echmea are sprinkled with fresh substrate and placed in a permanent place.
Important! So that the striped echmea can quickly adapt to the new soil, it should not be watered for 2-3 days, and it is also recommended to protect it from direct exposure to sunlight.
Echmea striped: reproduction by children
Fans of striped echmea will certainly be interested in its method of propagation. The procedure can be performed by separating and transplanting the children, which at that time should grow to 10-20 cm in height and have their own developed roots.
To propagate echmea by transplanting children, you need to carefully cut them off from the main plant, and sprinkle the cut itself with powdered wood charcoal, dry it a little and plant it in a separate pot. A young plant will be able to bloom in about a year and a half. Echmea striped is able to reproduce and seeds. True, only special enthusiasts undertake this process. A plant that can be grown by sowing seeds will bloom only after three or even four years.
It is important to know that this plant blooms only once, so if you are wondering why your striped aechmea is not blooming, try this first transplant put it in a new pot and this issue will probably be resolved.
Did you know? The name "echmea" comes from the Greek word "ahme", which literally means "spike tip". This is most likely due to the pointed bract of the plant.
Pest and disease control
Diseases can affect a flower as a result of improper care.
Too low a temperature and excessive watering often cause rotting of the leaf rosette, or even the peduncle itself. If, on the contrary, the temperature is very high and the air is extremely dry, then the plant will burn and shrink. To avoid such problems, it is enough to simply provide suitable, comfortable conditions for the aechmea, and soon it will begin to delight the gardener’s eye with its appearance, without any manifestations of disease.
As for the main enemies of striped echmea, bromeliad
Aechmea, which requires minimal care at home, is a houseplant that many amateur gardeners bestow with special reverent love for its decorative, original appearance and unpretentiousness. Externally, the flower is characterized by a greatly shortened thick stem, on which fleshy green leaves are arranged in a spiral shape, forming a kind of funnel, so dense in nature that accumulated rainwater can remain in it for a long time under natural conditions.
The smooth leaves of Aechmea are rich green in color, with transverse silver stripes, strongly curved and sagging from the middle of the length. In nature, the length of an echmea leaf can reach 2 meters; indoor specimens are more modest in size.
Types of echmea
There are more than 180 species of this attractive houseplant. Echmea fasciata for example, caring for it at home is not particularly difficult, is characterized by a dense leaf rosette, wide green leaves, on which silver and white transverse stripes are visible in streaks. Striped echmea blooms in early summer; The peduncle is densely pubescent, pink.
Aechmea bractae is characterized by long (about 1 meter) smooth leathery leaves with large curved spines at the edges. The peduncle is pubescent and straight. The flowers are yellow, small.
Aechmea sparkling has a dense rosette of leaves, green above and purple below. Peduncle pubescent, straight. Often after flowering, fruits in the form of red berries are formed.
Echmea primera, care for which at home mainly consists of timely watering, tolerates bright lighting and dry air well, and therefore is a private resident of home and office greenhouses. The plant welcomes the sun very much, so it can be given a place on the south side of the room before the heat sets in. If there is too much sun activity, it is recommended to move the echmea to a shaded place. The western and eastern sides of the apartment will be optimal for it.
The heat-loving echmea, which even a novice gardener can care for at home, does not tolerate extreme heat. The comfort zone for the plant is 20-27 degrees. In winter, the optimal temperature for echmea will be 17-18 degrees, but not lower than 16. The room in which this attractive indoor flower is located must be regularly ventilated to ensure an influx of fresh air, and in the summer it is advisable to take the plant out onto the veranda or balcony.
Aechmea: an unusually strange plant
Echmea, despite its apparent ease of care, has a number of features that should be paid attention to. Firstly, the plant dies immediately after the first flowering. Aechmea compensates for such an unpleasant event with its “babies”, which are easily transplanted and take root, which cannot be said about an adult plant. There is one more feature that belongs to a number of mystical ones. Echmea, caring for which at home is an aesthetic pleasure, can become a good friend for its owner, helping in making some painfully difficult decisions. It seems to suggest the correct answer, acting on a person in a calming way.
Watering echmea
Aechmea, a native of the humid tropics, requires a certain sequence when watering: water must first be carefully poured into the outlet, and then watered in the same way as a regular plant. It is necessary to constantly monitor the presence of water in the plant outlet and constantly add water as it evaporates. Periodically, you need to wait until the plant funnel is completely dry in order to refresh it with fresh water. This is done to avoid the development of negative flora in stagnant water.
At the end of the flowering of the echmea, the water should be removed from the outlet (to avoid rotting of the plant). This can be done using an ordinary napkin. In winter, watering, the frequency of which is reduced, is carried out exclusively in the pot; Irrigation water must be settled. Since the plant needs high humidity, in addition to basic watering, it should be sprayed regularly. It is recommended to place a flower pot near a container of water or on a tray with wet pebbles.
Striped echmea, which does not require special effort to care for at home, requires periodic feeding, which is done in the same way as other indoor plants, about twice a month with any universal fertilizer.
Aechmea transplant: features
The plant is replanted annually; To do this, you need to carefully remove all the soil from the root system of the flower so as not to damage the fragile roots. It is at this moment that its dying part is separated from the plant, and young specimens are transplanted into new, previously prepared soil. A pot for echmea, the bottom of which must be covered with a layer of drainage (to prevent water from stagnating), must be spacious, but not high, because the roots of the plant grow on the sides. A large container is not recommended, because the green darling will not bloom and will devote all its strength to the development of the root system, with which it will try to fill the entire space.
The optimal composition for a houseplant will be a composition obtained from leaf, peat, humus and peat soil, taken in equal proportions. You can also add half of the coarse sand here. The result will be exactly the soil composition in which the magical echmea manifests its qualities to the maximum.
Home care: propagation by shoots
Echmea domestica reproduces in two ways: rosettes and seeds. Regarding seeds: it is better to collect them from a flowering plant and plant them in the spring. To do this, they are placed in moist soil, sprinkled with earth, covered with oilcloth or glass (to create a greenhouse effect) and placed in a warm, bright place (without direct exposure to sunlight). After germination, young plants at 3-4 months of age are picked and planted in separate containers. With this method of propagation, echmea will delight its owner with beautiful flowers after 3-4 years.
Propagation by rosettes is the easiest way, in which you can admire beautiful flowers within a year or two. From the mother flower you need to carefully separate the baby, which is well developed and reaches a height of 10-20 cm, and plant it in a new place. The cut surface of the main plant must be treated with crushed charcoal to avoid rotting or the development of diseases.
Echmea: care at home
Aechmea blooms in spring and summer, and this magical process is very interesting to watch. First, a thick pink peduncle appears from the center of the rosette, the length of which sometimes reaches half a meter. A spike-shaped loose inflorescence is formed on it. Immediately in the blooming flower, the main attention is focused on the strap-shaped bracts of pink color; The flowers themselves are blue-violet, small in size and are a kind of decorative addition.
Causes of diseases and pests
Aechmea, like any plant, is often attacked by all kinds of diseases and pests. It can be overcome by spider mites, scale insects and others. Therefore, it is periodically necessary to carefully examine the leaves and stems of the plant for the appearance of negative factors that are detrimental to it. If any stains are found, the latter should be carefully removed with a damp cloth, and then washed with a soapy solution.
Aechmea diseases are often caused by improper care. Excessive watering of the plant, especially at low temperatures, causes rotting of the peduncle and rosette of leaves. Too high temperatures and dry air will cause the leaves to wrinkle. From the cold, the plant will become drooping and lethargic, and its peduncle may dry out.
Aechmea, caring for which at home improves your mood and brings immense joy, is a favorite of many gardeners because of its unusualness, beauty and undemandingness and takes its rightful place in the home greenhouse.