Distinctive characteristics and recommendations for growing jacaranda, breeding rules for the "violet tree", cultivation difficulties, species. Jacaranda belongs to the family of dicotyledonous plants (which have two opposite cotyledons) called Bignoniaceae in Latin. It includes representatives of the flora, which have the shape of trees, shrubs and lianas, in rare cases, grasses. For their habitat, they chose the territories of the tropics of the planet. But if we talk about jacaranda, then the genus of the same name includes up to 50 varieties, namely, evergreen or deciduous trees of average height. These specimens of the green world have settled in several regions of South America, mostly in the lands of Brazil, which is dominated by tropical and subtropical climates.
People can hear how jacaranda is called a rosewood tree, palissandre, which means pink or violet tree in French. The name, apparently, came from the color of the flower petals of the plant.
The trunk is usually erect, with or without branching. The height of a rosewood tree in natural conditions can reach up to 30 meters. The crown of the plant is spreading and wide. The bark, which covers the trunk, is grayish, but there is a reddish tint on young branches. The leaf plates have elongated petioles, but they may be devoid of them. If there is a petiole, then it sags down over time. The leaf plates are pinnately dissected, the leaf lobes are distinguished by ovoid or elongated-oval outlines, their apex is sharpened, and towards the base the shape may narrow. There can be 4–5 pairs of leaflets, and they become smaller towards the base of the leaf. With their outlines, the leaves resemble leaf plates of mimosa or fern. Their color is green, saturated. The leaf can be up to 45 cm in length. The arrangement of the leaves is alternate and they are placed on the branches far enough from each other, thus creating a decorative form of the crown of a violet tree.
Naturally, the pride of jacaranda is its flowers. When the flowering process begins, rosewood trees are simply mesmerizing with their beauty, tenderness and riot. Flowers appear bisexual and zygomorphic (when only one vertical plane of symmetry can be drawn through the center of the flower). The corolla of a tubular flower can be slightly pubescent, measuring 5 cm in length; when opened, its five petals diverge, reaching a diameter of 3 cm. The color of the petals may vary depending on the variety. There are all sorts of shades of lilac, lilac and bluish colors, whitish or purple tones can be found, sometimes white spot is scattered on the surface of the petals. From the flowers, racemose or paniculate inflorescences are collected, which can reach 35–40 cm in length. Their location is usually apical or axillary. The flowering process takes place twice a year - in spring and autumn. The duration reaches two months. The flowers have a pleasant honey aroma.
After the flowering is completed, the fruits ripen, which are pods or capsules, which measure 5 cm in length. Their color is light brown, rounded outlines. These fruits are dry and harsh to the touch. Usually there are four black seeds inside.
If the plant is grown in room conditions, then its parameters are much less, within 3 meters in height and it is not possible to wait for flowering. The variety Jacaranda mimosifolia is often cultivated indoors.
Growing jacaranda at home
- Lighting. The place for the plant is selected bright enough, but with diffused lighting - an eastern or western location.
- Air humidity when growing a violet tree, a high is needed and it will be necessary to spray the foliage of the crown of the plant from a fine spray bottle every day. If the thermometer readings rise too much in the summer, then the rosewood pot is placed in a deep tray, at the bottom of which moistened expanded clay is poured. The spray water is soft and warm.
- Watering. Since many varieties are evergreen, it is necessary to moisturize the soil in the pot moderately throughout the year. In the spring and summer months, jacaranda is simply watered more often than usual. It is necessary to irrigate when the substrate is a little dry on top, but has not yet turned into dust, since this will negatively affect the rosewood tree, stagnation of water should not be allowed. If the substrate in the pot is very dry, the leaves of the plant go down. When moisture stagnates in the container for a long time, this will lead to the onset of rotting of the root system. The water is soft and at room temperature.
- Fertilizers for rosewood it is applied between April and the end of summer days. It is necessary that the dressings contain a complete mineral complex and be devoid of calcium. Fertilizers are used frequently, but doses should be kept small. It is useful to alternate with organic preparations. In the spring and summer, the plant is fertilized every 14 days. You can use special complex preparations for decorative deciduous indoor plants. They do not feed in autumn and winter.
- Transplantation and selection of soil for a rosewood tree. It is required to change the pot and the soil in it as the jacaranda grows, when the root system has completely mastered the substrate provided to it. However, do not increase the volume of the new container too much, since in this case the growth in height of the plant will stop, as the root system will begin to increase its mass. When the plant is young (up to 3 years of age), then the change is carried out once a year, and then only the top layer of the soil changes or the regularity of transplants every 2-3 years. The new container is selected only 2-3 cm more than the previous one. There should be a drainage layer in the pot.
The substrate for transplanting is made up of leafy soil, sod soil, river sand and peat, the proportions should be equal, the plant also grows well in a universal soil for indoor plants.
How to propagate a rosewood tree from seed?
To get a new Jacaranda tree, you need to sow seeds or apply cuttings.
Seeds are usually sown in the spring. Before planting, it is recommended to soak them for a day, placing them in a damp cloth. The seeds are then placed in a warm place. Peat-sandy soil is poured into the container, and the seeds are immersed 1 cm into the substrate. Then spraying is carried out from a finely dispersed spray bottle. The temperature must be kept within 22-25 degrees. The container is covered with a lid, bag or glass, do not forget to ventilate and moisten the soil in the container if necessary. After 14–20 days, the first shoots will hatch.
After that, the illumination level is increased, but without direct light rays hit. As soon as a pair of real leaves appear on the plants, you can plant them in separate pots with more fertile soil. The sprouts are placed one at a time in a container 7 cm in diameter. The substrate is made up of humus, peat soil, light turf soil, river sand (in proportions 1: 1: 2: 1, respectively). When young jacarandas grow up, they are transplanted into pots with diameters of 9-11 cm and the same substrate.
During the summer, you can carry out cuttings of the rosewood tree. It is recommended to cut cuttings from semi-lignified branches. Sections must be treated with heteroauxin before planting. The length of the cuttings should not be less than 8 cm. The branches are planted in peat-sandy soil and await rooting, maintaining a temperature of 25 degrees. For successful rooting, it is recommended to wrap the cuttings in a plastic bag or place them under a cut plastic bottle. Also, do not forget about airing and moisturizing the substrate. When the twigs take root, they are planted in several pieces (3-4) in pots with a diameter of up to 7-9 cm, filled with the above substrate.
Difficulties in cultivating jacaranda
If in the winter or in the spring months the leaves began to fly around the plant, then you should not worry - this is a natural process of replacing old foliage with a new one.
The rosewood tree can be affected by spider mites, scale insects, mealybugs, or whiteflies. If pests or products of their vital activity are detected, it is necessary to carry out treatment with insecticidal preparations.
Jacaranda is practically not susceptible to diseases or fungal diseases. If the leaves began to fly around for no reason, then the plant may have been exposed to cold air, a draft, or the soil has dried out. If you do not water the substrate in a pot with a violet tree for a long time or moisten it with hard water, chlorosis may appear (the leaves will begin to thin out, and the shoots will grow unnaturally longer). If the soil is poorly drained, then this can cause rotting of the root system.
Interesting facts about jacaranda
Fern jacaranda (Jacaranda filicifolia), like some other varieties of this genus, is prized for its very expensive wood and is known as rosewood or rosewood (palissandre). The core of this wood has shades ranging from dark reddish color to chocolate brown with the addition of a violet tone, sapwood (outer young layers of wood) is light yellowish. Rosewood is distinguished by its weight, strength and good polishing qualities; often this highly valuable material was used only in the manufacture of expensive furniture, musical instruments or colored parquet, and some turning items. Interestingly, with today's technology, it is possible to successfully imitate rosewood wood, while using less valuable tree species such as birch, maple or alder.
Many of the varieties, such as Jacaranda mimosifolia, are most often cultivated due to their high decorativeness, as a garden plant, some species can be grown as a room crop.
Since on the Australian continent the time falling in October and November is the end of the school year and the examination time, and at this time the process of flowering jacaranda begins, the violet tree is called the examination tree. There is even a sign among local students that if a panicle rosewood tree falls on your head, then all the exams will be successful. However, with a large number of planted jacaranda trees, this is a frequent occurrence, then there is a belief that this plant brings good luck.
But some pessimistic students call this beautiful tree "lilac panic", because when it blooms, the "hot season" sets in for students. They even say that while the jacaranda is not blooming, it is still too early to prepare for exams, and when it has bloomed, it is already too late. Also in Australia, it is customary to plant a rosewood tree, after the birth of a baby, this tradition is so strong that at maternity hospitals in the city of Brisbane in the 30s and 40s of the last century, seedlings were given out to happy parents. In another city, Grafton, every October is marked by the Jacaranda Festival, with street processions and plant celebrations.
Types of jacaranda
- Jacaranda mimosifolia also found under the name Jacaranda ovalifolia. It grows along river arteries in Bolivia, southern Brazil and Argentina (in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Entre Rios, Tucuman, Jujuy and Salta), choosing well-drained substrates. Growth height varies between 0-1500 meters above sea level. Although in the natural environment it is a rather large tree, in room conditions it rarely exceeds three meters. The trunk does not have branching, it grows upright. The leaf plates on the branches are located quite far from each other, in opposite order, and because of this, a rather lush crown is formed. The leaves are attached to the shoots with elongated petioles, drooping over time. The size of the leaf is large, its shape is pinnate. The leaf lobes on the leaf have an elongated-lanceolate outline, with a pointed tip at the top, and a narrowing at the base. It is because of its outlines that this variety got its name, since they are very similar to the leaf plates of mimosa, although to some they more resemble fern frond. Flowers are collected in a paniculate inflorescence. The bud reaches 5 cm in length, with full disclosure the flower measures 3 cm in diameter. The color of the petals is blue with a spot of whitish shade or purple. Abundant flowering.
- Fluffy Jacaranda (Jacaranda tomentosa) can often be found under the name Jacaranda jasminoides. The native area of growth falls on the lands of South America. Often the height of such trees reaches 15 meters with strong pubescence. The leaves have a pinnate outline. There are eight units of leaflets, with the number of separate leaf lobes varying from 4–5 pairs. In a paniculate inflorescence, flowers of a purple or golden-purple hue are collected. In indoor conditions, it is customary to cultivate only young specimens, since over time the tree loses its decorative effect. It differs from the previous species in the smaller size of flowers.
- Jacaranda micrantha grows in the two northeastern provinces of Argentina (Misiones and Corrientes), climbing up to 500 meters above sea level. Differs in rather small buds from previous species. The leaves are pinnate, divided into 4–5 pairs of leaflets. To the base of the leaf, the leaf lobes become smaller. Each has ovoid outlines with a pointed apex and some narrowing at the base. The color is deep green. The edge is simple or slightly serrated. The color of the flowers is lilac-bluish. It can be used in folk medicine, as a cough suppressant, and also because of its anti-inflammatory effect.
- Pointed Jacaranda (Jacaranda acutifolia) grows in Brazil. It reaches 15 meters in height, deciduous plant. The trunk grows straight and well branched. Leaf plates resemble fern frond, they also differ in pinnately dissected contours and green color. At the apex, each leaf lobe has a sharpening. Panicle inflorescence is formed from tubular flowers of a blue hue.
- Fern Jacaranda (Jacaranda filicifolia) can have both deciduous and evergreen forms of growth. The height of the tree varies within 7, 5-15 meters, but in indoor conditions the size is much more modest. Leaves measure 45 cm in length, with double-pinnate outlines. The corolla of the flowers is tubular, lovando-blue, the length can reach 5 cm. From the flowers, racemose inflorescences are collected, reaching 25-30 cm in length. When the fruit ripens, capsules are formed, measuring 5 cm in length.
How to grow jacaranda from seeds, see here:
