How to grow lucky bamboo so it thrives more? The latest care methods
Lucky bamboo, also known as wan shou zhu, kai yun zhu, fortune tower and so on, is a perennial evergreen small tree-like foliage plant of the genus Dracaena in the asparagus family. In China there is the well-wishing phrase “flowers bloom for wealth and honor, bamboo brings peace,” and because its stems and leaves are slender and delicate, soft and elegant, and full of bamboo charm, it is very popular with people. Now let us take a look together at how to grow lucky bamboo so it thrives more!
Growth habits of lucky bamboo
Lucky bamboo likes shady, humid and warm conditions, tolerates waterlogging, has strong tolerance to fertilizer and strong cold resistance, and likes a semi-shaded environment. It is suitable for growing in well-drained sandy soil, or semi-muddy sand and alluvial clay. It likes warmth, with a suitable temperature of 18-24°C, and can grow all year round. Below 13°C the plant goes dormant and stops growing. When the temperature is too low, because the root system takes up insufficient water, yellow-brown patches appear at the leaf tips and leaf edges. The minimum overwintering temperature must be above 10°C. It is not strict about light and is suitable for growing in bright, scattered light. Too strong light or exposure to the sun can cause leaves to turn yellow, lose green color, and grow slowly.
Propagation methods of lucky bamboo
1. Cutting time: For spring cuttings of lucky bamboo, the most suitable time is from late January (after Great Cold) to mid-to-late February (around Rain Water), when it can be directly cut in open fields, and it generally takes 30-35 days to root. It can also be cut from mid-March to early April (Spring Equinox to Qingming); it is best to plant in late March, because during this period the temperature gradually rises and the humidity is suitable. After cutting, it can root in about 7-15 days, with a survival rate of 100%, and with good management it can be marketed in the same year.
2. Cutting method: Lucky bamboo is generally propagated by cutting leafless stem sections as cuttings, 5-10 cm long, preferably with 3 nodes, inserted into a sand bed or semi-muddy sandy soil, with 2 nodes buried in the soil, watered once a day to keep the soil moist, and generally rooting in 35-45 days. In recent years, top shoot branches (that is, tender stems) are commonly cut into 20-25 cm lengths and directly inserted into sandy loam or semi-muddy sand or alluvial clay fields, and with careful care and planting they can be cut for bottle use by the Spring Festival of the same year.
How should lucky bamboo be grown?
1. Soil: Lucky bamboo is not strict about soil and is suitable for growing in well-drained sandy soil or semi-muddy sand and alluvial clay. It should be kept alternately dry and wet; if the soil is too wet, reduce watering and stop fertilizing.
2. Temperature: The suitable growth temperature for lucky bamboo is 20-28°C, and it can tolerate a low temperature of 2-3°C, though frost protection is needed in winter. Summer and autumn are high-temperature and high-humidity seasons, which are very favorable for the growth of lucky bamboo.
3. Light: Lucky bamboo has strong adaptability and can be placed for a long time indoors for viewing in morning and evening light or in bright light. Spring is the peak growth season for lucky bamboo, so it should be placed where there is morning and evening light, while in summer it should be placed in a bright indoor spot.
4. Fertilizing: Lucky bamboo likes fertilizer and tolerates it, mainly nitrogen fertilizer. During the growing season, apply once every 20 days a topdressing of thoroughly decomposed 5-times liquid fertilizer mixed with an equal amount of 1000-times monopotassium phosphate or 1000-times “Huaduoduo” general-purpose fertilizer. When the temperature is lower in autumn and winter, do not fertilize.
5. Watering: Lucky bamboo likes a humid environment but fears waterlogging, and the potting soil should be kept in a semi-dry state. In summer the plant transpires heavily, so indoors it needs to be watered thoroughly once every 1 day; in spring and autumn it can be watered thoroughly once every 1 week; in winter watering thoroughly once about every 20 days is enough.
6. Pests and diseases: The main pests and diseases of lucky bamboo include leaf spot, anthracnose, longhorn beetles, spider mites, scale insects and so on. For household pest problems, manual capture is the main method. For anthracnose and leaf spot, 75% chlorothalonil or 70% thiophanate-methyl 800-times solution can be used alternately, with good control results.