What is the difference between pyzonia and other plants, how to care in rooms, advice on breeding, difficulties in growing, curious notes, species. Botanically, Pisonia belongs to the genus of evergreen plants that belong to the Nyctaginaceae family. These representatives of the green world of the planet are found especially on the islands located in the South Pacific Ocean, such as Norfolk, New Zealand and Queensland. That is, Pizonia is endemic to these areas. Tropical and subtropical climate predominates in these regions of the world. However, some of the species do well on the Australian continent, and similar plants have even been found in the Hawaiian Islands and mainland America. There are up to 50 plant species in the genus.
Pizonia got its name thanks to the famous physicist and naturalist from the Netherlands (Amsterdam) Willem Piso (1611-1648). Also, this outstanding figure was engaged in healing, and in collaboration with Jacob de Bondt was the founder of tropical medicine. Since the plant is secreting a sticky substance, it bears an impartial name among the people "bird-catcher", since insects and small birds fall into this natural trap.
All types of pyzonia grow as shrubs or trees. When grown in rooms, greenhouses and conservatories, the size of the plant rarely exceeds the parameters of 120–150 cm. Its maximum height can vary within 2–6 m. The growth rate of the plant is rather slow - the growth rate is only 3–4 cm per year, at the same time, only a few leaf plates are formed on the pyzonia.
It is often possible to hear that the "bird-catcher" is confused with ficuses, but it differs from the latter by strong branching of shoots and a large amount of foliage, thus creating a beautiful and lush crown. And the size of the pyzonia is much smaller than the ficus representatives.
Leaf plates can also resemble ficus plants to uninformed people, but if you make a careful comparison, it becomes clear that the patterns on the pisonia foliage have nothing to do with the coloring of the ficus leaves. The leaves of this New Zealand exotic, as if created by the skillful hand of a master, the spotting is supposedly brought out on the surface with the help of gouache or tempera (this is the name of the type of painting made with a certain paint, which was created by rubbing on egg yolk or on a mixture of a solution of glue and oil). The one-meter crown, which is formed by the leaves, differs from the ficus crown in greater density and with the overall small dimensions of the plant, which do not exceed 1.5 meters. And even with the presence of large leaf plates, pizonia is more attractive for phytodecoration with the introduction of green accents than rubbery ficuses.
But not only the type of foliage characterizes the "bird-catcher". Due to its highly decorative flowering, pyzonia has won the love of flower growers. At the same time, she is developing bright flowers, which gather in loose paniculate inflorescences, crowning the tops of the stems. The flowers have large bracts, painted in rich shades of purple, red, orange or white. These bracts serve the plant as bait for insects to aid pollination. In rare cases, the "bird-catcher" blooms with miniature tubular flowers. The flowering period of this plant extends over all summer months.
In place of flowers, when pollination takes place, medium-sized fruits with a sticky surface are formed. The shape of the fruit has the contours of the pods, inside of which there are seeds. However, in spite of the general unpretentiousness and quite decorative appearance, pyzonia is still a rarity in the collections of flower growers. Consider the rules for caring for this New Zealand exotic, perhaps this will encourage our domestic lovers of indoor flora to experiment and acquire such a plant.
Features of caring for pizonia at home
- Lighting. Recommended when leaving bright, but diffused light. It is better to place the pyzonia pot on the sill of the east or west window. If the form is variegated, then the lighting should be slightly brighter, otherwise the plant will lose its pattern on the leaves.
- Content temperature. In the summertime, heat indicators should vary between 18-20 degrees. With the arrival of winter, the pyzonia begins a period of rest and the temperature is lowered to 16–17 units. The plant is afraid of heat and draft.
- Humidity The air when growing this exotic should be moderate, but the pyzonia can easily survive dry indoor air. However, spraying the deciduous mass at elevated temperatures, this "bird-catcher" will be grateful. It is important to regularly clean the large leaf plates of the plant from dust with a soft damp cloth or sponge. Pizonia also loves when shower procedures are performed. The water should be warm, and the soil in the peas should be covered with plastic wrap.
- Watering pisinia. To make the plant feel comfortable, the soil in it is moistened regularly and moderately. As soon as the top layer of the substrate begins to dry out, you can water the soil. The signal that watering is necessary is the substrate, taken in a pinch and easily crumbling. Both the bay and the complete drying of the soil in the pot are prohibited. When flooding, it is possible that the root system begins to rot, and the drying out of the substrate threatens with wilting of the leaf plates. When autumn comes, the watering is gradually reduced and in this state the "bird-catcher" is kept throughout the winter. At the same time, make sure that the leaves do not become lethargic. Pizonia is watered only with settled water, which is devoid of chlorine. River or rain is used, snow is melted in winter. Some flower growers practice watering with dispersed water, as they are not very sure about the purity of the above natural water.
- General care behind pyzonia is that when the plant is very young, the pinching of the tops of the shoots is carried out. This will help the crown get a thicker look. It is not worth pruning the branches, as this New Zealand plant grows rather slowly, but the shoots themselves branch well enough.
- Fertilizers for the "bird-catcher" they begin to bring in from the beginning of the activation of vegetative activity. The frequency of such dressings is once every 14 days. It is recommended to use a complex fertilizer for indoor plants, which is available in liquid form. For variegated representatives of pyzonia, special preparations are needed. With the arrival of winter, feeding is stopped.
- Features of transplantation and selection of a substrate. When the pyzonia is still young, such an operation is performed every year, while the new pot is one size larger than the old one. When the "bird-catcher" becomes large, then the change of the pot and the soil in it is performed as needed, when the root system has already mastered all the soil in the pot and the roots may look out of the drainage holes or the bush has grown too large. In the bottom of the new pot, holes are made for the outflow of excess liquid, and drainage is laid in the first layer. It is broken brick, which is sifted from dust (parts are selected of medium size), small expanded clay, pebbles or shards of ceramics or clay. To grow pyzonia, the substrate must be loose and rich in nutrients, and air and water must easily penetrate the root system. The acidity of the soil is selected with a slightly acidic or neutral reaction. Often, a universal substrate is used, to which perlite or vermiculite is added as a baking powder. Knowledgeable flower growers mix the soil for pyzonia on their own, combining in a 1: 1: 2: 1: 1 ratio of horse sod, humus and leafy soil, peat and river sand.
Steps for self-breeding pyzonia
To get a new bush of New Zealand exotic, you will need to carry out cuttings or root the layers.
With the arrival of spring, when the transplant takes place or during the summer period, you can try to propagate the "bird-catcher" using cuttings. The workpieces are cut from semi-lignified branches. There must be at least three internodes on the handle. It is also important to remember that the blanks cut from the stems do not have a high survival rate; those that are cut from the tops of the shoots are more capricious. After cutting the rooting site, it is recommended to treat it with a rooting stimulant (for example, heteroauxinic acid or Kornevin).
The cuttings are planted in pots filled with a light substrate; a peat-sand mixture is suitable. A few hours before planting, the soil should be slightly moistened. The cuttings are deepened by 2 cm and the container is covered with a glass jar, a cut off plastic bottle, or wrapped in plastic wrap. It is also important that rooting takes place with constant heating of the soil, while the heat indicators should be in the range of 21-22 degrees. It is important not to forget periodically to air and water the soil if it starts to dry out. On average, it should take up to 3-4 weeks for the pizonia cuttings to take root.
After that, it is recommended to immediately transplant young plants in separate containers, placing one seedling in each. The soil is poured into the pots, which is more fertile and suitable for growing a "bird-catcher".
When propagating using layering, the usual steps are carried out in this operation:
- a healthy shoot is selected in spring, the length of which will allow it to bend it to the soil;
- an incision of the bark is performed in a circle with a sharpened and disinfected knife;
- the stalks of pyzonia, where the cut is made in a vertical plane, are recommended to be wrapped only with moist moss, and not sprinkled with a substrate;
- the shoot is maintained in this state until a sufficient number of root processes has developed;
- the cuttings are separated from the parent specimen and planted in a container prepared in advance.
Pests and diseases arising from the care of pyzonia
Among the problems that may arise in connection with the violation of the rules for caring for the "bird-catcher" there are:
- loss of foliage color or the formation of yellow spots on its surface (mainly along the edge), if the pizonia is constantly in direct sunlight;
- if the lighting level is very low, then the size of the foliage is greatly reduced;
- in strong shading, pyzonia can completely lose the spotting on the leaf plates, and they will acquire a dark green color;
- if there is a constant flooding of soil in the pot, then the plant takes on a depressed look, the foliage is quickly affected by putrefactive processes;
- when watering is very rare, which leads to the complete drying of the substrate, then the leaf plates become sluggish;
- foliage falls off at elevated temperatures and a decrease in humidity in the room where pyzonia is contained.
If the humidity in the room is constantly low, then the plant can be affected by harmful insects such as spider mites, scale insects, aphids, thrips or mealybugs. To combat these pests, a hot shower is arranged for the "bird-catcher", but before the procedure, worms and scale insects are removed using a cotton pad dipped in an alcohol solution of calendula (you can take a soap or oil composition). But if such a remedy does not give the desired results, then it is recommended to spray the deciduous mass of the plant with insecticidal preparations.
When the humidity level is very high, and the substrate is exposed to frequent waterlogging, then powdery mildew or gray mold disease inevitably occurs. In the first case, a foundationol solution is used for recovery (or agents with a similar effect), and in the second, it is recommended to use a fungicide.
Curious notes about pyzonia
Some members of the Nikoginov family are actively used in traditional medicine. The wood of pyzonia is soft and fragile, it quickly decays if the tree falls.
Often, seabirds love to nest in the forests of these plants; one of the most famous forests, mainly consisting of pyzonia, is located on the Palmyra atoll. The island of Saint-Pierre, a member of the Farquhar group, was once almost entirely covered by a forest of "bird-catchers". However, it completely disappeared due to the mining of guano between 1906 and 1972. Natural vegetation was mercilessly destroyed to cleanse the guano, and after that the island landscape became lifeless.
Pizonia foliage is traditionally used as a leafy vegetable in the countries where it grows. Leaves are found in national Maldivian cuisine in dishes such as mas-huni.
Pizonia species
- Pizonia umbellifera (Pisonia umbellifera) - is practically the only representative of the family that can be found in the collection of florists. But if there is a desire to purchase such a plant, then in flower shops this variety is presented only as Pisonia umbellifera f. Variegata. The basic species in adulthood can reach up to 1.5 m, then the variegat will never exceed meter values. The color of the foliage also varies. A simple plant has leaf plates of a dark green color; the variegat variety has a variety of patterns on the surface. When the pyzonia is still young, its spots on its foliage are cast in dark pink tones, but over time they are replaced by light yellow and whitish colors. Because of these patterns, the crown of the plant takes on graphic outlines. It is the spotted color that is the greatest distinguishing feature of the plant - it looks like paint strokes that seem to be superimposed on each other, while the color shades become more or less saturated because of this. Such patterns are said to have been applied by the artist with gouache or tempera.
- Pisonia brunoniana is endemic to the lands of New Zealand, Norfolk, as well as the islands of Lord Howe and Hawaii. Usually in these areas the plant is called "parapara" or "bird-catcher", "bird tree". In height, such a plant can often reach 6 meters or more. The wood is soft, but the branches are fragile. Large leaves are opposite or triple, their surface is bare and glossy, whole (simple with a smooth edge) and obtuse with a rounded top. Flowers are formed unisexual, gathering in a multi-flowered paniculate inflorescence. During fruiting, very sticky fruits are formed, into which very small birds fall into a trap. The shape of the fruit is narrow pyramidal, they measure 2-3 cm in length, and have five ribs on the surface.
- Large Pisonia (Pisonia grandis) in areas of natural growth is called "devil's claws". This plant has a tree-like shape, thin and wide foliage outlines. The bark of the trunk is smooth, with a brown color. The flowers gather in verdant inflorescences and have a strong aroma. When pollinated, sticky, thorny seeds ripen. Reproduction occurs by adhesion of seed to bird feathers, and vegetatively this species can multiply when shoots are formed at the trunk.
Looks like pyzonia in the video below:
