Notylia Orchid

Notilium: a description of the orchid

Orchid Nottilia: photo

Notylia is a herbaceous epiphytic plant belonging to the Orchid family. In the wild, its range extends to the countries of Central and South America - Bolivia, Brazil and Mexico.

The notilias belong to undersized orchids: the height of miniature varieties barely reaches a few centimeters. Larger species can grow up to 0.3 m.

The foliage of Nottilia is colored bright green - both elongated pseudobulbs and oval leaf plates. The flowering period for Notilia begins in late spring or early years and lasts 14 to 22 days. At this time, long peduncles without leaves are formed on the tops of the pseudobulbs, on which miniature flowers with a diameter of no more than 1 cm bloom. As a rule, they are painted in white and green tones and have a pleasant and delicate aroma.

Notilia: growing and caring

Orchid Nottilia: photo

Notilium is often grown as a houseplant. In order to keep it at home without any problems, it is recommended to follow certain rules for caring for this tropical plant.

Air temperature

In the spring-summer period, notilia feels good at room air temperature - from 20 to 22 degrees. Like many tropical orchids, she prefers nighttime temperature drops of up to 12 degrees Celsius. To provide her with this condition of detention, it is enough for the whole warm part of the year to take out a pot with notilia and an open balcony and a loggia with windows wide open. In the autumn-winter period, the optimum air temperature is 12-14 degrees.

Lighting mode

Since in its natural environment, notilium grows in shady tropical forests, at home it needs protection from direct sunlight during the day. An excess of bright light causes the formation of yellowness on the leaves of notilia. Therefore, it is best if the light in the room or on the balcony is diffused or reflected. At the same time, excessive shading is also undesirable, as are too bright rays of the sun. The light mode can be adjusted by observing the color of the leaves - if there is enough light, they will have a bright green tint. With the arrival of autumn, it is recommended to take care of sources of additional lighting for notilia - for example, fluorescent fluorescent lamps.

Requirements for the composition of the soil

A soil substrate for growing notilia can be purchased at a specialized store, or you can prepare it yourself. A nutritious and loose soil is suitable, which will pass both moisture and air well. To do this, you need to mix sphagnum moss with crushed pine bark and fern rhizomes. The drainage required for notilia can be ensured by introducing perlite into the substrate. It also does not hurt to add charcoal to the mixture.

Fertilization

The phase of active growth of notilia begins in April and ends in November. During this period, the tropical orchid needs additional nutrition, which can be provided by feeding. You can use store-bought formula fertilizers for orchids. It is important to remember that concentrated feeding can burn the root system of the plant. For this reason, it is recommended to use only half of the dose indicated in the instructions for fertilizing notili.

Room humidification

The inhabitant of the rainforest, Notilium needs to maintain a fairly high level of humidity in the room where it is located. This is facilitated by regularly spraying orchid greens with warm water at room temperature. In this case, the water should be soft, well settled. During spraying, water droplets should be avoided on the flowers of notilia. Another way to moisturize the notilla habitat is to wrap the orchid pot in a layer of sphagnum. You can also purchase a room humidifier. However, the room where the air humidification procedure is regularly carried out needs regular ventilation. Good air circulation will help to avoid stagnant moisture, which can cause the development of putrefactive processes in the soil and plant roots.

Watering mode

In the spring-summer period, watering the notilium should be quite often. At the same time, in the interval between waterings, the top layer of earth in a pot with an orchid should have time to dry out. The water accumulating in the pan must be drained in a timely manner - the roots of notilia should not come into direct contact with moisture. It is recommended to water a tropical orchid with bottled or distilled water, the temperature of which corresponds to the temperature of the air in the room. With the arrival of autumn, the interval between watering should increase, and the volume of water should decrease. In winter, notilia enters a dormant state, so watering can be replaced with spraying procedures.

Recommendations for transplanting notilia

Transplanting a notilium should be used in cases where notilla becomes too crowded in an old pot. As a rule, adult plants are transplanted once every 2-3 years. The best time for this procedure is spring - before the active growth phase of the orchid begins. Since there is a risk of damage to the root system of notilium during transplantation, it is recommended that the pot with the plant be placed in warm water shortly before. After 10 minutes of taking such a bath, the root system of notilia will become softer and more pliable, after which the plant can be removed from the container with the least effort.

Nottilia: reproduction

Orchid Nottilia: photo

The best way to reproduce notilia is to divide an adult bush. This procedure is usually carried out in the spring and is often combined with an orchid transplant procedure. The root part of an adult bush is divided with a knife into separate bushes. It is important that everyone has at least a couple of pseudobulbs in stock. Small containers with a height of about 10 cm are suitable for plots. Before the young bushes of notilia enter the phase of active growth, they need to be watered sparingly.

Protection from pests and diseases

Diseases. affecting notilium, are directly related to the violation of recommendations for its maintenance at home. Keep in mind that foliage color is the best indicator of orchid health. In a healthy plant, it is colored in bright shades of green. The darkening of the surface of the sheet plates signals a lack of sunlight - the notilium must be rearranged to a brighter place, or additional lighting must be arranged for it. Yellowing of the leaves, on the contrary, indicates an excess of bright sunlight during the day. In this case, it is recommended to take care of a little shading for the notilia. The development of fungal infections, late blight is promoted by stagnation of water in the soil, which leads to the development of processes of decay of the root system of notilium. To prevent this, it is important to take care of the drainage of the soil substrate in which the orchid is grown, as well as to correctly organize the watering regime for the plant. Regular ventilation of the room improves air circulation and prevents moisture stagnation in the Notilia orchid.

Among harmful insects, mealybugs and thrips are the main danger for Notilia.You can get rid of them by treating orchid bushes with insecticidal drugs.