Tips for keeping a tropical ruella flower in an apartment: species, care, watering, lighting, breeding, harmful insects that infect diseases. Ruellia (Ruellia) is included in the genus Acanthaceae and is an unpretentious flower in maintenance and care. According to the current typification, this genus joins the Dipteracanthus family. The habitat in the wild is mainly the American subtropics and tropics, as well as tropical African and Asian areas. This genus of plants has more than 250 varieties, which include plants with flexible stems and non-lignified herbal plants that have been growing for many years, shrubs can also be found. For breeding in an apartment, up to six species of this flower are used.
Ruellia has a long leaf blade that is velvety. Some species are distinguished by leaves of a rich emerald color, with veins of a lighter shade, others have leaves of a grassy color, in some plants the leaf plate is dotted with patterns.
The flowers that cover the ruelia are usually pink, red and lilac shades. Looking at them, ruella can be confused with the flowers of the Gesneriaceae family (such as streptocarpus, for example), although this plant does not belong to the above genus. The buds sprout in the depressions of the leaves at the tops of the shoots.
But ruella blooms for very little time, the flowers wither immediately after the dissolution, the flowering time is from morning hours to noon, and after that new buds bloom. You can admire the flowering from late summer to early winter, but it all depends on the lighting on which the flowerpot is located. She loves very bright light.
In flower shops, ruella is not a frequent visitor, as it quickly loses its decorative effect in the process of growth. Since flowering does not last long at all, it is problematic to sell such a bush.
Ruella can be used as a plant for hanging flowerpots or for covering the land with them in the areas between the house (apartment) and the garden.
Types of ruelia
By species, ruelia is divided by color on the leaves - with a mosaic pattern and simply green leaf plates.
Views with mosaic on sheet plates
- Ruellia Devos or Devo (Ruellia devosina Hort. Jacob-Makoy ex E. Morren) or as it is called - blue. This species has several more names, one of these is Ruellia makoyana Hort. Makoy ex Closon. The place of growth is the Brazilian tropics with a high moisture content. This long-growing grass grows from 30 to 50 cm in height. The leaf plate has the form of an ellipse with a dimension of 3-5 cm in length and 1.5-2.5 cm in width. On the richly emerald front side of the leaf, there is a whitish tint along the entire length of the veins, a reddish tint colors the other side. The buds grow from axillary leaf buds up to 3-4 cm in length, white or lilac with cobalt and blue dividing lines for each petal. This species blooms multiple times during the cold months from September to February.
- Ruella Portella (Ruellia portellae Hook.f.) native to the wet, sultry forests of Brazil. Bears great resemblance to Deveaux's ruelle. The leaf plate has a shape similar to the shape of an egg or an ellipse, differs in size from the previous type - up to 7 cm in length and 5 in width. The surface of the plate is soft to the touch and casts a brown tint, divided in half by a light whitish line. It has veins in the middle of the leaf, they are also very light to white, the bottom is painted in purple and red tones. The buds in dissolution differ in size - 4, 3 cm by 2, 5 cm (respectively in length and width). Bred in pots, both upright and hanging, and to cover sufficiently moist soil in greenhouses.
Types of ruella without patterns on sheet plates
- Ruelia is nice (Ruellia amoena Sesse & Moc) home to humid South American tropics. Semi-lignified plants, reaching a height of 60 cm. The leaf plate in the form of an egg or elongated lancet can grow up to 12 cm in diameter and up to 5 cm in width. Leaves grow close to the stem, dark emerald, shiny, have sawtooth edges. The brush of a flower consists of many buds. When blooming, the bud, red in color, opens up to 2.5 cm. The appearance of buds is observed from the last month of winter to the last month of autumn. Since it loses its decorative effect during growth, they try to breed this type of ruelia more often with the help of seeds or young shoots than to contain an overgrown plant.
- Ruelia grandiflorum (Ruellia macranta Mart. Ex. Nees). The homeland of this species is considered to be the upper parts of the Brazilian mountains with forests with very high humidity. The plant is distinguished by a lignified stem, which reaches 1–2 m, with the presence of dense branches. The leaf plate looks like an elongated egg, rather long, about 10-15 cm, at the tip it has a slight narrowing. The leaf itself is simple, without teeth or grooves, soft to the touch. The buds are bell-shaped, reaching 12 cm in length and 8 cm in width when opened. Most often, the buds are located on the tops of young shoots and are colored pink-purple. The flowering is very attractive and therefore this species is often used at all kinds of exhibitions.
- Ruelle Caroline (Ruellia caroliensis (J. F. Gmel) Steud.) This species is a creeping grass with fluffy young shoots. It has rich emerald leaves and purple flowers.
- Ruelle Britton (Ruellia brittoniana) the synonym for the name is Ruellia Simplex. The color of this flower does not change depending on the season. It grows for a long time and its main difference is that it forms whole evergreen growth zones from numerous representatives. It has a semi-lignified stem, reaching 1 m. Leaf plates in the form of elongated knives of a rich emerald color. Under the sun's rays, the leaves turn the color of a metal with a blue tint. The flower buds are in the form of tubes, which expand upward and reach 5 cm in diameter. They differ in sky-blue and purple colors.
Ruelia flowers of any kind are never yellow.
Location of ruelia on the windows of the apartment
Best suited for keeping ruelia in a home or office environment are windows that are directed to the west or east, so that the sunlight is not bright and direct. If placed on a north-facing window, the flower will lack lighting and the shoots will begin to stretch ugly, bud formation will not occur. But at the same time, the leaf plate acquires beautiful contrasting shades. Ruelia also has a negative attitude towards drafts - she can throw off all the leaves of the lower tier. If there is no way out, and you have to put a flowerpot on such a window, then you need to use special lamps to create the necessary illumination. The same procedure will have to be performed during the winter months, since 8 hour daylight will not be enough. When the flower pot is located on the south windows, it is necessary to ensure that the direct rays of the sun do not illuminate the ruelia. It is best to shade such lighting with light curtains (in extreme cases, with gauze).
Required temperature conditions for ruelia
In the summer months, ruelia can withstand temperatures up to 25 degrees, in the cold season at least 18 degrees, for large-flowered ruella the thermometer should not be lower than 14 degrees. It is not recommended to put on a cold window sill of an apartment, as this leads to dropping of foliage.
Watering ruelia
When the temperature rises, from the spring months to the warm autumn months, water the ruella evenly, but if the flower pot is on a sunny window, increase the watering. The soil in the pot should not dry out, but it is not worth pouring in either. In the cold months, watering depends on the temperature indicators in the apartment, but it is preferable to reduce it, this happens just after the flowering of the ruella ends. It is necessary that the soil is not very dry or moist. The water that is used for irrigation is best left to stand for several days, in order to get rid of excess salts and calcium, it should be soft.
Air humidity in the apartment
Growing ruella requires constant moist air. Often, for this, they use a moisture sprinkler or put flower pots in deep containers, where expanded clay or peat soil is poured and water is poured so that it evaporates and increases the humidity in the air. During the heating seasons, hot and hot air is very destructive for ruella, so you need to try to reduce its contact with the flower, otherwise the leaves will begin to dry out and wrinkle. You can also spray the plant yourself, after which the flower begins to develop many young leaves and shoots. If you do not perform such actions, ruelia will lose a lot of green mass and cease to be attractive. In order to remedy the situation, you will have to get rid of the bare branches by pruning and then the plant will be able to start growing again.
If you want to get a beautiful plant, then there is a need to pinch it several times from early spring to July. Later, this does not need to be done, since it is possible to slow down the formation of buds.
What ruelia cannot stand is smoky rooms, you cannot smoke nearby and it is not recommended to put it in the kitchen, where there may be smoke from burning and food, soot.
Ruella transplant
The transplant of ruelia must be done in a transshipment way, that is, do not disturb the root ball with the earth. Young plants require this every year, and the grown ones pass when the roots take over the whole earth in a pot. At the same time, the soil itself will begin to dry out very quickly and will have to be watered more often. This process is carried out during the spring. The substrate must be sufficiently air and water permeable. You can use a store bought with a neutral reaction (that is, not acidic soil with Ph 5-7) or make it yourself in proportions (1: 1: 0, 5: 0, 5):
- rotted leaves;
- sod land;
- peat;
- sand.
Sometimes humus is added to the soil mixture.
Since the ruella quickly loses its decorative effect, several of them are planted in a pot. It has been noticed that flowering begins when the flower pot becomes small.
Reproduction of ruella in a home or office
There is no difficulty in propagating ruelia. This can be done in two ways: using seeds and herbal shoots.
Seed propagation
In order to propagate ruelia by seeds, you can do nothing. The seeds, which are long in shape, are formed immediately after flowering. The entire reproduction process can take place without human intervention. The seed material, which is in the flower box, simply falls into the pot of the flower itself and those that are nearby. As usual, all seeds have a high germination rate. But if you want to try yourself as a flower grower yourself, then you need to be patient - this process is long. The ripe seed is planted in a prepared soil of peat and sand (for looseness and moisture retention) and now you need to wait a long enough time until the seed germinates.
Propagation by cuttings
Reproduction by young plants is possible by placing the cuttings of the shoots in water or specially prepared soil. The mixture can be taken the same as for adult flowers, but in different proportions, namely 1: 2: 1: 1, respectively. It is better to plant it in a transparent plastic container to mark the appearance of roots and their development of the earth. Many growers use peat tablets for germination. As noted earlier, after the scraps have a sufficient number of roots and they have mastered transparent containers, it is better to plant several (up to 3 pieces) cuttings in a pot of not large diameter. The temperature during the cultivation of new shoots is kept within the range of 20-22 degrees.
Fertilizer for ruella
It is best to apply ruelle top dressing when it is actively moving into growth - in the warm season (from April days to August), when it is overgrown with buds. After two weeks, it is necessary to feed with special agents for flowering and ornamental plants in indoor rooms. When transferring, multifunctional long-acting fertilizers are applied directly to the substrate. In the cold, winter months, feeding is stopped.
Pests and diseases affecting ruelia
For the most part, if the conditions of care are not violated, then ruelia practically does not suffer from pathogenic infections. Its main problem is insects, namely: aphids, whiteflies, spider mites, mealybugs, scale insects. They just infect a plant that is weakened by improper care. You can fight them only with the help of special drugs.
What a ruelle looks like, see this video:
