The origin of the acokantera, advice on growing, transplanting and reproducing, difficulties in growing, interesting facts, species. Acokanthera is a member of the Kutrov family, which sounds like Apocynaceae in Latin. This plant can call its native lands the territories of Africa, Arabia and the Yemeni Peninsula, and also one of the species can be found in the Chinese lands, where tropical climatic conditions prevail.
The plant got its name from the combination of two Greek words "akakhmenos", which translates as pointed and "anthera", meaning anther. There are non-botanical names for this exotic - "Bushman poison" (Bushman poison), "Winter sweetness" (Wintersweet) or "Common poison bush".
The genus itself includes 15 more varieties of representatives of the flora, which have a shrub form of growth, but in the conditions of natural nature, the acokantera can grow to the size of a small tree. Its height can reach 4–5 meters. In a room, the dimensions will be more compact, reaching 1.5 meters or slightly less. The branches are bare, colored in a green tint. It is a perennial that never changes the color of its foliage or sheds it.
The leaf plates are located on the branches in an opposite order and are practically devoid of a petiole, or it is strongly shortened and thickened, the leaves seem to be sessile on the shoot. The leaf shape is elliptical, oval, lanceolate or elongated-lanceolate outlines can be found. The length of the leaf plate is measured in 7-14 cm with a width of 2.5-5 cm. The color of the foliage is dark emerald, the surface is leathery.
Acokantera flowers have a strong sweetish aroma that resembles jasmine, lilac or lilies of the valley. The corolla of the bud is colored white or pinkish, tubular, there is a slight expansion near the mouth, consists of five petals and reaches a length of 2 cm. The petals are slightly pubescent. From the buds, inflorescences are collected, which resemble dense, rounded brushes with short branches. They are usually located in the leaf axils or at the tops of the branches. The flowering process lasts from February to mid-spring. In the conditions of rooms, it begins to dissolve the buds in the month of January and keeps them until March-April.
The bush of "winter sweetness" bears fruit with olive-like berries, large and fleshy, with one bone. Its color is ash black, dark blue or black. The fruits can be eaten, despite the poisonous properties of the shrub.
Attention! All plants belonging to the genus contain cardiac glycosides in their parts, and because of this they are highly poisonous. Milky sap, which is released from cut roots or shoots, can especially irritate the skin. There is a danger of allergic reactions by contact with eyes or respiratory tract. This must be taken into account when caring for the acokantera and place the flower pot out of the reach of pets and small children. Acokanters grow rather slowly, but they are completely unpretentious in grooming and do not require any complicated tricks for their growth. The plant is kept for its beautiful flowers and pleasant aroma, and is grown as a greenhouse crop around the world.
Agrotechnics for growing acokantera, care
- Lighting. The plant likes diffused bright light and can withstand direct sunlight for some time. Southeast or southwest windows are suitable for keeping in the rooms; on the sills of windows in the southern location, shading will be required from 12 to 16 o'clock in the afternoon with light translucent curtains. But on the northern side of the room for the acokontera there will not be enough light and it will be necessary to supplement the bush. You can plant it in open ground in the spring-summer period or put the pot in the shade of dense trees. In any case, the outdoor location should be protected from direct sunlight, wind and rain.
- Content temperature. It will be necessary to maintain heat indicators within the range of 20-25 degrees in the spring and summer months, and with the arrival of autumn days, gradually reduce them to 10-15 degrees. If the plant grew outside, then, as soon as the average daily temperature dropped to 12 degrees, it is necessary to bring the "winter sweetness" into the room.
- Air humidity. You can spray the bush, especially on hot days of the year, but make sure that moisture does not get on the acokantera flowers. The water is taken warm and soft. Moisture indicators in the air must be at least 70%; for this, humidifiers or vessels with water are installed next to the pot.
- Watering the plant. Akokantera absolutely does not tolerate overdrying of an earthen coma, watering should be abundant and regular all year round. The water should be soft, at room temperature. Use rain or river water.
- Fertilizers for a flower. Fertilizing is applied twice a month from spring to early autumn, using complete complex mineral preparations for flowering indoor plants. It is necessary to alternate with organic tinctures (for example, mullein solution).
- Transplantation and selection of a substrate. It is recommended annually to change the pot and the soil in which the acokantera grows only at a young age. If the plant is more than 5 years old, this operation is carried out only once every 2-3 years, and for those bushes that have already acquired a decent size, only the top layer of soil in the container changes (about 5 cm). It is not recommended by experts to disturb the plant before flowering or immediately after it; it is necessary to give the "winter sweetness" a break. The transplant capacity should be appropriate for the size of the measles system. When choosing and preparing the substrate, it must be remembered that the root system of the acokantera is very prone to decay, therefore the soil must have a good drainage layer (top and bottom), looseness and sufficient permeability for air and moisture. The soil should be moderately fertile, since in the soil heavily fertilized with humus, the bush will increase the deciduous mass, but you can not wait for flowering. The following soil composition will be the best: sod and leafy substrate, coarse sand (in a ratio of 3: 1: 1).
- Peculiarities. It may freeze for no apparent reason in its development from two to several weeks.
Recommendations for self-breeding actors
You can get a new bush of "winter sweetness" by planting seeds or cuttings.
- When propagating by seeds, the operation is carried out in the spring (from March to April). It is necessary to collect the fruits, separate the seeds from the pulp, then they are washed and dried. Before planting, you can soak the seed in a solution of warm soft water with a growth stimulator for 24 hours. They make up a neutral soil, which is mixed from leaf and peat soil taken in equal parts, or peat, river sand and perlite are taken with the addition of organic fertilizers (parts are equal). The seeds are buried 15 cm into the substrate. It is recommended to put the container with crops in a warm place and cover with a piece of glass or wrap it in plastic wrap in order to maintain high levels of humidity and heat. The temperature for germination is maintained within 25-28 degrees, lower heating of the soil is desirable. It is important not to forget daily, to air the crops for 15 minutes, and spray the soil if necessary. Shoots can be observed after 3-4 weeks. When the first 2-3 leaves appear, you will need to transplant the sprouts into separate large pots. If the plant is kept indoors, then in order to obtain fruits and then seeds, it is recommended to carry out independent manual pollination of flowers. Seeds may not ripen in rooms, so they often use purchased seed material.
- When propagating by cuttings, it is necessary to cut parts of the semi-lignified tops of the branches. However, rooting is very difficult, as milky juice is secreted. There should be several nodes on the handle (usually 2-3). It is recommended to remove the lower leaves, and those that are on top to be reduced by half (this will reduce the area from which moisture evaporates). The lower end of the cutting is immediately placed in warm water so that the milky juice flows out. After it completely leaves the branch, the cut is slightly updated and the cut cuttings are placed in a solution of a root formation stimulator (for example, "Kornevin") for at least a day. After this time, the branches must be planted in a substrate based on sand and chopped sphagnum moss and put the container with cuttings in a greenhouse with lower soil heating up to 25 degrees. You can also cover future plants with plastic wrap to increase the moisture around them. Before roots appear on the cuttings, daily airing and spraying of the branches is carried out, and the soil is rarely moistened. If there are signs of growth, the cuttings should be transplanted into a new pot with a more nutritious substrate. Pinching of the apical buds and pruning in fast-growing branches must be done to form the crown already in the early stages of development. This will encourage more branching of the acocantera. This method, according to the descriptions, gives only 50% of a positive result and it takes 5-6 months to wait for the roots to appear in cuttings, and sometimes even longer.
Disease and pest control acokantera
The main problems for the acocantera are scabies, false scutes and spider mites. Probably, due to their toxicity, other insects do not disturb the plant, and the aforementioned ones cannot do much harm to the shrub. If, nevertheless, traces of the presence of a harmful insect are visible - covering the leaf plates with a thin cobweb or sugary sticky bloom, punctures of the leaf edge or brown-brown plaque formations along the veins may occur, then it is necessary to treat the "winter sweetness" with insecticidal agents (for example, " Aktara "or" Aktellik "or others with a similar spectrum of action).
There are also problems with growing:
- when the air in the room is very dry, the leaves of the acokantera may dry out and fall off;
- decay of the root system occurs from an excess of moisture or from too heavy soil;
- if the plant does not bloom or reacts poorly to pruning, then this happens when there is a lack of lighting in the room.
Interesting facts about the acokantera
The plant is actively used in pharmacology, since acokantera get milky juice from the roots, wood or bark, which is the raw material for the isolation of cardiac glycosides, acocanterin and abyssin. These substances are quite poisonous, but in micro doses they are used to treat heart failure and some disturbances in the rhythm of cardiac activity (atrial fibrillation).
On the territory of the Kenyan mountains, where the Acokanthera schimperi variety, containing the glycosides ouabain and acokantin, grows, local tribes have long known about the properties of this "winter sweetness" and prepared solutions (for example, the poison "Ndorobo") in which the arrowheads were moistened. With their help, it was possible to go hunting even for elephants.
The poison was obtained in this way: young shoots of acokantera were cut and poured with water, then they were boiled until almost all the liquid evaporated, and only a couple of drops of a deadly thick liquid of a dark shade remained on the bottom of the vessel. Then this liquid was mixed with the poison of African reptiles or the cadaveric venom of rodents. This solution was used to treat arrowheads and darts.
Most of the types of "Bushman poison" that grow throughout the African continent, in addition to the poisonous juice, have allergenic properties, can irritate the eyes, as well as the respiratory tract.
Types of acokantera
- Acocantera is wonderful (Acokanthera spectabilis). A plant that is a small shrub with evergreen leaves, the surface of which is smooth and shiny. In length, they reach 10–12 cm. Small white flowers (up to 2 cm in length) have a fragrant aroma and dense inflorescences in the form of umbrellas are collected from them. Flowering begins with the arrival of January-February. It bears fruit with highly decorative berries, which are similar to olives, painted in an ash-black shade. The milky juice of the branches and roots is highly poisonous.
- Acokanthera venenanta. It is found under the synonymous names Acocanter poisonous or Acocantera opposite. A plant with a shrub form of growth, in natural conditions reaching a height of 4 m, and in rooms it rarely exceeds one and a half meter indicators. The leaf plates on the branches are arranged in opposite order. Their shape is oval with a glossy leathery surface, the length of the leaf reaches 12 cm. The flowers are painted in whitish or pinkish shades, they practically sit on the shoot. The petals of the bud are ovate-lanceolate. Quite dense racemose or spherical inflorescences are collected from flowers. The flowering process occurs during the winter months (January to March) and because of this, the variety is very valuable in culture. Almost the most poisonous of all types.
- Acokanthera long-leaved (Acokanthera obolongifolia). A shrub with an evergreen leafy crown and a very slow growth rate. Can reach 4 m in height, branches are bare, slightly leafy. Leaves with a dense glossy dark emerald surface and an elliptical or lanceolate shape. They measure 7–15 cm in length, and up to 3–5 cm in width. There is a sharp point at the top of the leaf, the petioles are very short. The flowers of the plant are white, very fragrant; capitate inflorescences are collected from them. Milky sap is found in large quantities in the roots and branches of the bush. Flowering begins in February and continues through the month of April. It is customary to grow at temperatures of 12-15 degrees. Native lands - the territory of South Africa, prefers to settle on sandy coastal lands. The plant is very poisonous.
- Acokanthera poisonous (Acokanthera oppositifolia). A shrub-shaped plant with heights of up to 4 m, rounded green shoots. The leaf plates have elliptical or ovoid outlines, measuring 7–10 cm in length and up to 3–5 cm in width. The surface of the leaf is leathery and glossy. Dense inflorescences are collected from small flowers. The bud is attached to the branch by a short pedicel; the calyx has a weak pubescence. The corolla of the flower is painted in whitish or pinkish tones. The aroma of the buds is strong enough. The plant lives in the eastern and southern lands of the African continent, you can often find this shrub in the forests on the coasts, where the tropical climate prevails.
- Acokanthera Abyssinian (Acokanthera Schimperi). The plant can take shrub or tree-like forms. Branches are glabrous with weak foliage in small, whole-edged elliptical leaf plates. Leaves are measured 5–7 cm long, with 2–4 cm wide. Flowers grow in the leaf axils and inflorescences are collected from them in the form of whorls. The corolla of the bud is white or pale pinkish, tubular in shape. Five stamens grow in the center of the bud. After flowering, a berry fruit ripens, a dark blue shade with one seed in the form of a ball. Fruit size reaches 2 cm. The main growing area is southern Africa. The plant is very poisonous.
For more information on growing acokantera, see this video:
