Cotyledon

In the classification of plants, cotyledon belongs to the "Fatty" family and unites about forty different succulents. Plants are native to Africa, they can be found both in South Africa and Ethiopia. Most representatives of this species are decorative and look great in pots as indoor plants, some of them are even used to form bonsai. In addition to its interesting appearance, cotyledon is also unpretentious, which makes it especially popular not only among experienced flower growers, but also among beginners. How to care for a Cotyledon plant, how to transplant and propagate it, which species of this plant are the most popular - we will talk about this in this article.

Cotyledon: flower description

Cotyledon flower: photo of a plant

All cotyledons are small plants, the largest specimens found in nature do not exceed one and a half meters. The stems of the plants are thick, but fragile; they gradually lignify and change from green to brownish. The leaves are fleshy and juicy, the petiole is either not at all, or it is very short. The shape and size of leaves in different plants can be very different: there are plants with round, oval, diamond-shaped, lanceolate leaves. The color of the leaves is both monochromatic and variegated, and the surface of the leaf plate is covered with small hairs. The root system of cotyledons is fibrous and located close to the surface, therefore, when growing these plants at home, they do not require deep containers.

Cotyledon blooms in summer, its flowers, located on long plump peduncles, resemble bells collected in umbrella-shaped inflorescences. Flowering, as a rule, is abundant and long, after its end, seed pods are formed in place of flowers, filled with a large number of small round seeds.

Cotyledon: home care and planting rules

Succulent Cotyledon: photo of a plant

Cotyledon is unpretentious, and if you follow the rule of caring for the plant, then there will be no problems with it.

This plant needs a long daylight hours, and unlike most indoor plants, cotyledon prefers direct rather than diffused sunlight, so a southeast, south or southwestern window sill will be the best place for it. At the same time, the plant is able to grow in another place, but then flowering can never be expected. It is very simple to determine that cotyledon does not have enough light - the new leaves are noticeably smaller than the old ones, and the plant stems are disproportionately stretched.

It is important to remember that cotyledon loves exactly sunlight, not heat, the optimal air temperature for it will be about +20 degrees. The room where the plant is located must be regularly ventilated, avoiding drafts, and if there is such an opportunity, it is better to move it to the garden or balcony for the summer, taking care of protection from precipitation. In winter, it is necessary to provide the plant with a cooler temperature (about + 12 ... + 15 degrees), since in the case of warm wintering, flowering may not occur.

Watering cotyledon should be extremely careful and not very abundant. This plant tolerates drought persistently, so watering is needed only when the soil in the pot dries out. In winter, if you have lowered the air temperature to the recommended one, then you can water the plant even less often (and some growers argue that you can not water at all).It is very important to ensure that the water does not stagnate in the sump or in the soil, as this leads to the death of the plant. And of course, water for irrigation must first be defended for two to three days.

Cotyledon feels comfortable in low air humidity, while many other plants require high humidity. When placing plants in groups, keep this in mind and keep cotyledon separate from those that require regular spraying.

Cotyledon does not need pruning, as it grows rather slowly. But if you chose a tall variety, then you can periodically pinch so that the plant does not grow much.

Cotyledon practically does not need feeding. From spring to autumn, when the plant goes into a dormant state, you can feed it three or four times using fertilizer for cacti and succulents.

Cotyledon: transplant

Cotyledon flower: photo of a plant

Cotyledon is transplanted in the same way as other indoor plants: at first every year, gradually increasing the size of the flower pot, and then every three years. The root system of cotyledon does not grow so much that the roots begin to crawl out of the drainage hole, but if the crown of the cotyledon has become larger than the diameter of the pot, then it is time to transplant the plant.

Succulents, like cacti, do not need nutritious soil (in natural conditions they grow on rather poor soil), the most important requirements for the soil are loose, light and stony. You can buy a special soil for succulents and cacti and add some fine expanded clay to it or prepare a soil mixture yourself. To do this, you need to mix the garden soil with sand and add fine or broken claydite. You can also add chopped coal or bone meal to this mixture.

Cotyledon: reproduction of a succulent

If, after flowering, you managed to collect seeds, then you may well grow cotyledon from seeds that have excellent germination. But this method of reproduction is practiced by few growers, since it takes quite a long time to grow cotyledon from seeds.

Propagating a plant by rooting cuttings is much easier and faster. Apical cuttings can be placed in water, wait until roots appear, and then plant the plant and care for it in the same way as for an adult specimen. Or you can root them in wet sand (this will take three to four weeks), and only then transplant them into special soil suitable for the plant.

Possible problems and solutions

First of all, it should be noted that some plant species contain toxic substances, so it is better to carry out all manipulations with cotyledone with gloves. And also it is worth placing it so that small children or pets cannot get to the plant.

Cotyledon rarely gets sick, but sometimes gray rot can appear from excessive watering. In this case, it is necessary to cut off all the affected parts of the plant, and treat the healthy part with a fungicide two or three times with an interval of several days.

Of the pests for cotyledon, the mealybug is the most dangerous. If you find this parasite, then first try to deal with it with a folk remedy - moisten a cotton swab with alcohol or vodka and remove the pests. If this does not help, then you will have to resort to the help of insecticidal preparations (Actellik, Fufanon). And remember, if you find pests or signs of disease on a plant, then it must be isolated from other indoor flowers until it recovers completely.

If for the summer you take the plant out into the garden, then be prepared for the fact that snails and slugs will want to feast on its fleshy leaves.

Also, in the summer months, cotyledon leaves may partially fall off, but you should not worry - this is part of a natural process.

Varieties

Despite the large number of plant species, only four to five of them are the most popular among flower growers.

Cotyledon orbiculata. One of the most popular species, which in nature can grow up to 120 cm, but when grown indoors, it has a more modest size. Due to the dense waxy coating on the leaves, they have a gray-green color, the shape of the leaves resembles a triangle with rounded corners. During flowering, the plant produces a very long burgundy flower stalk, on which small orange-red flowers are located (in some varieties, flowers are yellow).

Cotyledon flower: photo of a plant

Cotyledon undulata. A very compact plant with large gray-green leaves, also covered with a waxy coating. The edges of the leaves are wavy, thanks to this and their shape, they resemble scallops. The flower stalk is burgundy with white stripes, and the shade of flowers can be yellow or orange.

Cotyledon flower: photo of a plant

Cotyledon tomentosa. One of the smallest cotyledons no more than 15 cm high. The bright green leaves with burgundy teeth do not have a wax coating, instead they are covered with fluff. Such a plant blooms with orange-red flowers. Thanks to the contrasting color combination and amusing shape, the plant has received another name - growers jokingly call it "Bear's paw". One of the varieties of cotyledon tomentosa is Lady Smith. Outwardly, these plants are very similar, but "Lady Smith" has smaller leaves and thicker pubescence.

Cotyledon flower: photo of a plant

Cotyledon cacalioides... A compact shrub no more than 20 cm high. The plant has a strong lignified trunk, on it are rosettes of leaves with fleshy elongated grayish-green leaves with a contrasting edging. During flowering, on a peduncle about 30 cm long, small flowers are located, which can have a yellow, orange or red color.