Haworthia - types of striped, pearl and others

Haworthia came from South Africa to Europe in the early 18th century. The plant is cultivated worldwide. The Haworthy family includes more than 150 species of perennial succulents with decorative leathery leaves, covered with stripes and specks. In indoor floriculture, it is valued for its original appearance and unpretentiousness.

Plant description

Haworthia is a low plant with a low growth rate. Most species form a basal rosette. They are similar to aloe, but more compact and effective due to the peculiar structure of the leaves and color. The color of the leaves varies from light to dark green, with gray, silver, brownish hues. The shape of the leaves is lanceolate, the surface is rough. Volumetric strokes and specks of white or dark green color give the plant picturesqueness. It is worth considering how haworthia blooms.

Composition of Haworthia

Haworthia can bloom at any time, but more often it happens in the summer. On a thin peduncle, whitish small flowers appear. Havortia flowering is not a decorative value, and in some cases peduncles are removed so as not to weaken the plant.

Unpretentiousness allows you to use haworthia for landscaping any interior. It takes up little space and slowly grows, so it is often used in succulent compositions in pits and on stony hills.

Main varieties

The genus belongs to the Asphodelov family. Due to the ability to form hybrids both within the genus and with related varieties (Gasteria, Aloe). This is fertile material for breeders.

Common types of floriculture:

• Striped (or haworthia fasciata) is one of the most common indoor species. Haworthia fasciata has a dark dense rosette that is decorated with clear transverse stripes of white color. Leaves are pointed, slightly curved. Most of the white strokes are located on the underside of the sheet. Care for striped haworthia at home consists of moderate watering and timely transplantation.

Haworthia fasciata

• Drawn haworthia has a rosette of elongated triangular leaves, which are covered on both sides with small white tubercles. Decorative growths are randomly located, sometimes merge into stripes.

Drawn haworthia

• Adhesive - a high hybrid, reaching 20 cm in height. Small triangular leaves are concave and nested into each other. They grow in three rows and form spectacular columns that resemble snake scales from afar. Color adds decorativeness - in some varieties a reddish or salmon shade is added to the main green.

Sticky haworthia

• The sinuous haworthia is distinguished by a small trunk and small triangular leaves, the lateral surfaces of which are bent up. The view is covered with small white dots.

Winding haworthia

• The scaphoid forms compact rosettes of light green fleshy leaves with pointed ends. The wide concave leaves resemble a boat. There are lighter, slightly translucent areas - leafy windows. Their purpose is to weaken the effect of the scorching sun. The view quickly gives child sockets and fills the free space;

Scaphoid haworthia

• Pearl haworthia is distinguished by large rosettes of dark green leaves, on which there are white round bulges resembling pearls. It blooms, like most succulents, with miniature bell-shaped flowers on long peduncles.

Pearl look

• Reinvardt - forms a stem up to 20 cm high, on which short dark green leaves with a pointed apex are tightly planted, overlapping each other. They have decorative convex tubercles.

Haworthia reinwardtii

• Blunt or haworthia retusa - has a wide outlet of fleshy hard leaves with truncated tips. Color from bright green to reddish, with a lack of lighting, the red tint intensifies. Visible on the leaves lived.

Haworthia retusa

• Chess (checkered) forms stemless rosettes with fleshy triangular leaves arranged in a spiral. On the top of the sheet plate is a checkered pattern, consisting of a grid of light and dark lines. The reverse side is covered with small tubercles. The edges of the leaves are sometimes decorated with cloves. Chess haworthia is able to form shoots from underground stolons. In this species, a daughter rosette may appear at a distance of several centimeters from the parent plant.

Chess variety of haworthia

Often in flower shops haworthia flower, whose species are very diverse, is presented as a "haworthia mix." At the same time, several varieties are planted in the pots that make up the spectacular composition.

Haworthia, home care

Haworthia is one of the few plants that calmly tolerates shading. In the natural habitat, these succulents are almost completely immersed in sand, often only the tips of the leaves remain on the surface. In addition, due to the hard epidermis, the plant is practically not subject to decay.

Haworthia Florarium

Temperature mode

The air surrounding the plant should not be below +5 ℃. In winter, the temperature is maintained within 10-13 ℃ above zero. In summer, comfortable conditions at a temperature of 20-25 ℃. Higher rates for haworthia are not scary.

Watering and feeding

Rarely watered in winter. The rest of the year - a moderate regime of irrigation. The plant is moistened when the soil is completely dry, usually 1-2 times a week. It is desirable that moisture does not get into the center of the outlet, this can cause rotting.

The haworthia flower, like many cacti, is resistant to dry air. Environmental humidity does not play a significant role. During active growth, from spring to autumn, fertilizer is applied once a month. Apply top dressing for succulents or a weak solution of mineral fertilizer. In winter, feeding is not carried out.

Pruning and transplanting

If the outlet has become too large for the flower pot, or many daughter sockets have grown, the plant is transplanted. Suitable low wide capacity.

It is better to transplant plants in the spring. At this time, the vegetation begins and the flower easily adapts to new conditions. Succulent haworthia grows well in a mixture of coarse sand and nutrient land, taken in equal proportions.

Breeding methods

Haworthia propagate by seed or vegetatively - stem, and sometimes leafy cuttings. Some species can produce lateral shoots - stolons. They are also suitable for reproduction.

To obtain seeds, the most interesting species from the point of view of a gardener are pollinated among themselves. In case of successful pollination, ripened seeds are collected and sown in a moist, mostly sandy substrate. To create a warm and humid microclimate, cover with a film. Maintain a temperature of +20 ℃. Plants develop slowly; an adult developed specimen can be obtained in two years.

To propagate succulents with stem and leaf cuttings, they are dried before planting. This process, depending on the size of the handle, may take 1-2 days. Then the cuttings are placed in moist coarse sand or perlite, where rooting occurs.

Propagation by cuttings

Daughter sockets are separated during transplantation. The slice is sprinkled with charcoal and young plants are planted in separate pots. This option is the simplest and allows you to quickly get a well-formed outlet.

In some places, the demand for useful plants is so high that in order to satisfy it, they are considering the issue of haworthia by microclonal propagation.

Growing problems

Darkening and rot on the leaves is a consequence of excessive moisture. At the same time, watering is stopped, the affected parts of the plant are removed and the outlet is treated with a fungicide.

Haworth rot

Succulents are less damaged by pests than other indoor plants. However, sometimes on a haworthia, white cotton-like secretions of a mealybug can be seen. Most often they are located in the axils of the leaves or at the point of growth. In powdery spots are eggs of pests and their larvae develop. A cotton swab dipped in soapy water removes traces of insects.

Sometimes oval or round wax shields of a brownish color appear on the plant. Under them are the larvae of the insects, an insect that sucks the sap of plants. Shields are carefully removed with a brush and treated with soapy water.

Haworthia, planted in open ground in summer, suffers from slug attacks. Pests gnaw young leaves, the plant loses its decorativeness and dries. If there are few slugs, they are collected manually and destroyed. In the case when the invasion of pests is massive, metaldehyde will help.

Despite the fact that haworthia is an unpretentious and resistant to pests and diseases plant, do not neglect preventive measures, because the disease is always easier to prevent than to treat. Preventive measures:

• inspection of plants upon purchase - the leaves of succulents must be dense, without damage and waste products of pests (black dots, cobwebs, plaque);
• quarantine of newly acquired specimens - young flowers are placed separately from the main collection and monitored for two weeks; if no signs of damage are found, place the plant in the space provided for it;
• regular washing of plants.

It is easy to take care of haworthy, so even beginner gardeners can cope with the cultivation. Amateurs with experience are happy to experiment, making compositions from different species, growing haworthia in glass containers or creating miniature gardens.

Watch the video: How to take care of Haworthia fasciata "Zebra Plant" (November 2024).