Detailed Guide to Growing Coleus by Water Cuttings
Coleus is a herbaceous flowering plant with very strong growing ability. As an ornamental flower, we can grow coleus in water on our own office desks. When growing it yourself, you can try this:
1. Prepare a container:
The container for coleus cuttings can be a widemouthed bottle, or a beverage bottle with the top cut off, using the lower part filled with clean water and set aside. The container must be clean, and the water must also be clean in quality. It is best to additionally take a large cola bottle to store water for more than a day, to be used for the cuttings and subsequent management. Never use tap water that has just been drawn.
2. Cut the cuttings:
When the main stem of the coleus or a side branch that has been pinched back has 4 nodes or is about 10 cm long, select one with a thick, sturdy stem, leave only 1 to 2 nodes of opposite leaves at the base, and cut off the upper part. The cut should be smooth, without a crushed or torn wound. Then, cut off the lowest pair of leaves of the cutting, and gather every 3 to 5 cuttings neatly at the base, loosely tying them together with white thread, ready for water cuttings.
3. Water cutting management:
Generally, it is best for the cutting to enter the water 3 cm to 4 cm from the bottle mouth. After that, place it in a spot with diffused light, take care to change the clean water once every 2 to 3 days (using the stored water), and take care to top up the water level in the bottle daily as it drops from evaporation. Coleus generally shows white roots in 7 to 10 days at 18°C to 25°C.
4. Potting up:
After 7 to 10 days, you can move the coleus plant that has grown white roots into a pretty glass bottle, or you can pot it up. When you see multiple adventitious roots of 1 cm to 2 cm at the base of the cutting, you can pot it up or plant it out in good time. Take care to handle it carefully and do not damage the roots. Generally, after keeping it in a shaded spot for about another 10 days, it can enter normal management.
How to Grow Coleus by Cuttings
How to Grow Coleus by Cuttings -- Coleus is a herbaceous flowering plant with very strong growing ability. As an ornamental flower, we can grow coleus in water on our own office desks. When growing it yourself, you can try this: 1. Prepare a container:
The container for coleus cuttings can be a widemouthed bottle, or a beverage bottle with the top cut off, using the lower part filled with clean water and set aside. The container must be clean, and the water must also be clean in quality. It is best to additionally take a large cola bottle to store water for more than a day, to be used for the cuttings and subsequent management. Never use tap water that has just been drawn.
2. Cut the cuttings:
When the main stem of the coleus or a side branch that has been pinched back has 4 nodes or is about 10 cm long, select one with a thick, sturdy stem, leave only 1 to 2 nodes of opposite leaves at the base, and cut off the upper part. The cut should be smooth, without a crushed or torn wound. Then, cut off the lowest pair of leaves of the cutting, and gather every 3 to 5 cuttings neatly at the base, loosely tying them together with white thread, ready for water cuttings.
3. Water cutting management:
Generally, it is best for the cutting to enter the water 3 cm to 4 cm from the bottle mouth. After that, place it in a spot with diffused light, take care to change the clean water once every 2 to 3 days (using the stored water), and take care to top up the water level in the bottle daily as it drops from evaporation. Coleus generally shows white roots in 7 to 10 days at 18°C to 25°C.
4. Potting up:
After 7 to 10 days, you can move the coleus plant that has grown white roots into a pretty glass bottle, or you can pot it up. When you see multiple adventitious roots of 1 cm to 2 cm at the base of the cutting, you can pot it up or plant it out in good time. Take care to handle it carefully and do not damage the roots. Generally, after keeping it in a shaded spot for about another 10 days, it can enter normal management.
Growing Methods and Precautions for Pennywort, and Its Benefits and Effects
Pennywort has a neat plant shape and verdant leaf color, is very pleasing to look at, and is extremely easy to grow. It is one of the most popular aquatic plants at present. Do you all know about it? Today we will share with you the growing methods and precautions for pennywort, as well as its benefits and effects.
Growing methods for pennywort:
1. Water quality requirements: pennywort actually has no particular requirements for water quality; ordinary water can satisfy it, and river water is best, because its organic matter content is relatively rich. Generally, the water only needs to be changed roughly once a week, and when changing the water, it is enough to change roughly half the container. In winter it is somewhat special: changing one third of the water is enough.
2. Water and fertilizer: regarding the nutrients pennywort synthesizes itself, if growing it hydroponically it is recommended to fertilize sparingly. However, in the early growth stage you can use hydroponic fertilizer and add some hydroponic nutrient solution, but note that it must not be too concentrated.
3. Light: if pennywort is grown hydroponically, its sunlight requirements are still fairly high. Generally it needs at least half a day of light. If growing it in a greenhouse, it is recommended to use fluorescent lamps to provide light, ensuring 5 hours of light per day.
4. Pests: generally no insects will grow on the leaves. However, because it is grown in water, it cannot be guaranteed that some aquatic pests will not appear in the water, so it is recommended to remove them promptly at this time.
5. Temperature: because of the environment where pennywort originally grew, the most suitable temperature is 20°C. Because it is hydroponic, generally as long as it does not go below 10°C there will be no problem. But it must not be too high or too low, because this will inhibit its growth.
Precautions for growing pennywort:
1. Pennywort has round leaves with wavy edges and long stems, and blooms small yellow-green flowers in summer and autumn. It can be grown in water or on land. It likes warmth and moisture, and the best cultivation spot is one with half-day sun or shade. It dislikes direct sunlight. It is not particular about the growing soil, and loose, well-draining growing soil is best. It can be propagated by division or cuttings. It is easy to grow; keep the growing soil moist, and it will root in about 1 to 2 weeks. Since the plant tolerates moisture and is an emergent type, it is also suitable for growing in water basins and ponds. If grown in water, be sure to change the water once a week and add a special nutrient solution for foliage plants.
2. Pennywort does not need a very large pot; it can also be planted in a larger bowl, and a narcissus pot for growing narcissus also works. Use ordinary garden soil, mix in an appropriate amount of river sand, and add a small amount of organic fertilizer as a base fertilizer. When planting pennywort, you can plant it flat, covering the rhizome just enough that it is not visible, and be sure to avoid planting it too deep. Then place it in a semi-shaded spot for a week and wait for new leaves to grow before exposing it to sunlight.
3. Pennywort is afraid of cold. In winter, for pennywort kept outdoors you can pour out all the water and place it in a south-facing, sunny, wind-sheltered spot; it can then winter safely, though some leaves will die off, and the underground root system will sprout again the following spring. In cold northern regions without heating, you can make a cover and cover it together with the pot, pour out the water, and keep it moist; as long as the room temperature does not drop below zero, it will likewise continue to grow the following year.
Benefits and effects of pennywort:
1. Ornamental value
Pennywort is a perennial emergent or wetland herbaceous plant with a plant height of 5 to 15 cm. It is small and exquisite. Its submerged leaves have long petioles, are round and shield-shaped with wavy edges, and are grass-green. The flowers of pennywort are umbels, small and pinkish-white. Its stem nodes are distinct, one segment after another, with each node bearing one leaf, and it can keep extending. The underground creeping stem of pennywort grows at an astonishing speed, spreading wherever it reaches, and it is not strict about water quality; it can be cultivated in freshwater with lower hardness. It is one of the beautiful and easy-to-grow aquatic plants, with extremely high ornamental value.
2. Decorating the home
Pennywort is an evergreen, distinctive small aquatic plant that is easy to cultivate and manage, and it also matches well with many home styles. For example, if it is used to match a Chinese-style decorative style that advocates harmony and elegance and emphasizes symmetrical beauty, then you can cultivate pennywort in an oval pot carved with blue patterns, making the home appear more elegant. Chinese ornamental plants emphasize "observing its leaves and admiring its form." Pennywort has a peculiar form, with leaves like copper coins, so round and adorable, symbolizing wealth and reunion, and incorporating a meaning loved by Chinese people, while the home does not lose its air of wealth.
3. Purifying the air
Pennywort is not strict about water quality and can be cultivated in freshwater with lower hardness. In warm regions it can be potted outdoors, and it is suitable for water trays, aquariums, ponds, and wetlands, and for indoor water greening. It can purify water quality, and the green leaves of pennywort can purify indoor air, which is beneficial to the indoor environment.
4. Feng shui effect
According to Chinese culture, which pays attention to meanings and homophones, pennywort has round leaves like mini lotus leaves, quite adorable, and like the copper coins of ancient times, implying reunion and continuous good fortune. Moreover, its name carries the two characters "copper" and "coin," symbolizing wealth and implying that the home has copper coins and rolling wealth. Therefore, pennywort is regarded as a symbol of wealth, so from the perspective of meaning, it also implies good feng shui together with money. Thus, planting pennywort at home has both symbolic meaning and avoids the vulgarity of using golden copper coin decorations, while the shape of pennywort is special and also shows an air of nobility.
5. Medicinal value
The rhizome and leaves of pennywort can be used as a vegetable dish, and can also be used as Chinese medicinal material to dispel wind, firm the intestines, and clear the eyes and relieve summer heat. Pennywort is slightly cold in nature and bitter and pungent in taste. The whole plant can be used as medicine, with effects such as clearing heat, removing dampness, detoxifying, promoting urination, and reducing swelling. Pennywort can also be used for damp-heat jaundice, heatstroke and diarrhea, sandy strangury and bloody strangury, carbuncle swelling and sores, and bruises.