The general difference between the plant, recommendations for the care of porphyrocoma when growing in rooms, reproduction, pest and disease control, curious facts, species. Porphyrocoma is an exotic plant belonging to the Acanthaceae family. It includes dicotyledonous specimens of flora, which generally take on a herbaceous, herbaceous, shrub and, less often, a liana-like form. Although almost all varieties of the family grow in temperate climatic zones, the native habitat of the porphyrocoma is in Brazil (South America), where a tropical climate prevails.
The plant got its scientific name due to the combination of two words in Greek: "porphyra", which means "purple" and "koma", translated as, "curls" and in general, the plant is often called "purple curls" or "purple hair". This is the impression given to the ancient Greeks by the shape of the inflorescences and their coloring. This genus includes all two varieties, which will be discussed a little later.
And although the porphyrocoma is very similar to its “relatives” in the family - crossandra, pachistachis, Jacobinia, as well as its species are often confused with ruelia, sanchezia or fittonium, this plant is practically not found in the indoor culture of our lovers of home exotic plants. From the above, this plant differs in its distinctive features.
So, this representative of the acanthus is a perennial that can grow both grass and shrubs. In height, it reaches no more than half a meter, but when grown in room conditions, experts do not recommend bringing the parameters of the porphyrocom to such values. It is better to limit them, since it has been noticed that it is in short plants that the flowering process is much better. The stem is erect, lignified over time.
The foliage is sessile, its outlines are lanceolate or oval, at the top there is a sharpening and a slight bend, and at the base the plate goes to a narrowing. The leaf color is dark green. Often there is a pattern on a general background of silvery stripes that adorn the central and lateral veins. The arrangement of the leaves is opposite. The length of the sheet plate is 25 cm with a total width of up to 4.5 cm.
During flowering, the resulting buds are collected in tetrahedral inflorescences located at the tops of the stems or in the leaf axils. They themselves are distinguished by their density and spike-like shape, and are often located vertically upward. The inflorescence can have 28-40 buds. The corolla of the flower is painted in lilac color, has two-lipped outlines and has the contours of an elongated tube. On the lower lip, a herringbone pattern of a whitish shade clearly appears.
But all the decorative beauty of the porphyrocoma is given by the bracts, which are shaded with purple tint along the edge, but greenish inside and are arranged in two pairs of rows. Their surface is wavy, the size is large. Since in the inflorescence one flower is replaced by a newly blossoming one, the process seems to be rather long and continuous. But even after flowering, because of the bracts, "purple curls" do not lose their decorative appeal.
When fruiting, the capsule with oblong outlines ripens. When this box is fully ripe, then it bursts or cracks. It consists of a couple and more carpels, which, when ripen, dry out and separate (the process of opening is in progress). Carpels release the seed material accumulated inside the capsule.
The porphyrocoma is not very capricious when leaving, but the intensity of its growth is rather low - the annual growth is only 8–10 cm.
Tips for taking care of your porphyrocoma at home
- Lighting and choosing a place for the pot. It is necessary that the lighting level is high enough, but without direct sunlight. A west or east window is ideal. If there is not enough light, additional lighting is carried out, otherwise the flowers will not wait.
- Growing temperature porphyrocoma in the summer should be 21-28 degrees, and when autumn comes, it is gradually reduced to 18 units.
- Moisture content supported by about 50%. Spraying the foliage is carried out, and also increases the humidity by any means; drops should not fall on the flowers. In winter, spraying is daily.
- Watering. For porphyrocoma, the soil in the pot should always be moist without drying out. But overflow is prohibited, otherwise the roots will begin to rot. In spring and summer, the plant is watered every three days, and in winter only once every two weeks. The water used is soft and warm.
- Fertilizers. During the period of increased growth (spring-summer time), it is recommended to carry out subcrustations with the help of complete mineral complexes. The frequency of fertilization is once every 14 days.
- General care behind the porphyrocoma is to remove wilted flowers and leaf plates. This will not only help to prolong the flowering process, but also contribute to an improvement in appearance. If you want to enhance branching, it is recommended to cut off the inflorescence after flowering. To get more bushy shoots, they are often pinched on 2-3 leaves. Before the plant begins to bloom, feed with phosphorus preparations is carried out, otherwise the buds are crushed or may not be tied at all. If the shoots are too elongated, then pruning, leaving no more than 5-15 cm. Then these branches are used for cuttings.
- Transplant and selection of suitable soil. The pot and soil for the porphyrocoma are changed every 2–3 years. This is done due to the fact that the root system assimilates the substrate offered to it (all the soil in the pot becomes a tightly braided root system) and it loses its fertile qualities. It is recommended to carry out transshipment when the soil is not removed from the roots, and the plant is placed in a new container and a layer of soil mixture is poured along the edges. In a new pot, a layer of drainage material is laid at the bottom, which is often small broken clay or ceramic shards, expanded clay or pebbles, broken brick. It is important to remember that the weaker the root system, the more the drainage layer must be laid.
A couple of days before transplanting, it is recommended to water abundantly and mix the substrate, keeping it moist (not raw). When removing the porphyrocoma from the container, the root system is examined and all parts that are sick or affected are recommended to be cut to healthy tissue with a sharp disinfected garden tool. The sections are sprinkled with crushed charcoal (activated or wood).
If the plant is quite large, then you should simply replace 3-5 cm from the top of the soil with a new mixture - you do not need to transplant the bush. The porphyrocoma substrate must be breathable and permeable to water. To do this, river sand libor peat-perlite mixture is added to the universal purchased soil. If the soil is compiled independently, then turf, coarse sand (perlite), peat or humus earth (leaf) are combined for it in proportions of 1: 1: 2.
Reproduction of porphyrocoma with your own hands
To get a new plant with "purple curls" in the form of inflorescences, it is recommended to divide the overgrown bush, cuttings or sow seeds.
The process of cuttings need not be timed to a certain time of the year, since the plant does not have a dormant period, but most of all the survival of cuttings occurs in the spring, when the active movement of life juices begins. In this process, use branches that have not yet formed buds. Such cuttings remain after planned pruning. The blanks should have at least a couple of leaves and 2-3 internodes. Planting is carried out in pots filled with a moistened mixture of perlite and peat (or peat-sand). Before planting, the sections of the branches are recommended to be treated with a root formation stimulator (Kornevin or heteroauxin will do). The content of cuttings should be with high humidity and heat of about 20 degrees. Such conditions can be arranged by covering the planting pots with plastic bags or placing cuttings under cut plastic bottles or glass vessels.
In this state, the cuttings are kept for about 3 weeks, while it is important not to forget about regular ventilation in order to remove condensation, since its presence can provoke rotting of the workpieces. And also if the soil is a little dry, then it must be watered with soft water. As soon as the cuttings take root, the shelter is removed and transplanted one at a time into prepared pots with a soil suitable for porphyroke.
For seed propagation, it is recommended to place the material in a moist substrate made up of leafy soil and sand (in a ratio of 1: 4). A piece of glass is placed on top of the container with crops, a plastic lid with holes made for ventilation, or simply covered with plastic wrap. The germination temperature is maintained in the range of 22-24 degrees. At the same time, they try not to forget about airing, if the shelter is dense, and they should be daily for 10-15 minutes. If it is dry, it is recommended to moisten the soil from a finely dispersed spray bottle so that the seeds do not float up. The water is soft and warm. After 10-12 days, you can see the first shoots.
When a pair of true leaves is formed on the seedlings, they are dived so that the distance between them is 4x4 cm. When young porphyromes grow and get stronger, they should be transplanted into separate pots with a diameter of 7 cm. It is advisable to transfer them so that the roots do not were alarmed. In this case, the soil is used from leafy soil, sod, humus soil and river sand (in a ratio of 2: 1: 1: 0, 5).
When the next transplant of an overgrown plant bush with "purple curls" is carried out, this process can be combined with the division of the root system. The porphyric tissue is removed from the container, the roots are cut with a sharply sharpened knife, and the sections are treated with a powder of crushed activated or charcoal. Then the divisions are planted in separate containers, with drainage at the bottom and a selected substrate.
Pest and disease control of porphyrocoma
When keeping a plant with "purple curls", the following problems can be distinguished:
- When the substrate dries up, the leaves growing in the lower part wither and fly around. You will need to equalize the watering mode.
- If the temperature is too low, the lower leaves fall. The recommended heat values should be maintained.
- The flowering process is not observed due to insufficient lighting. Advice: rearrange the porphyrocoma pot closer to the light or carry out lighting.
- Rotting flowers or their discharge is observed when water gets on the petals during spraying or from stagnant air in the room. It is recommended that during flowering, raise the humidity in other ways or spray only deciduous mass, regularly ventilate the room, protecting the bush from the action of a draft.
- When feeding is carried out irregularly or in small quantities, the leaf plates lose their rich color. Tip: Follow the directions on the fertilizer packages and maintain the frequency of application of the drugs.
When the humidity in the room decreases strongly and for a long time, the porphyrocoma can be affected by:
- Thrips. They appear as brownish plaques on the back of the foliage and the formation of a sticky plaque.
- Aphids. At the same time, small bugs of black or green color can be observed on the plant, and over time, the foliage can be covered with a sweet sugary bloom (excrement of the pest, called the paddy).
- Whitefly. On the reverse side of the leaf plates, you can see whitish specks (pest eggs), and then small white midges begin to swarm over the bush, the foliage is covered with a sticky composition (paddy).
- Spider mite. This pest is noticeable by the formation of a thin whitish translucent cobweb, which is visible on the leaves, stems and internodes.
It is necessary to wipe the leaf plates and the stem with soap, oil or alcohol solutions:
- For soap, dissolve up to 300 grams of grated laundry soap in a bucket of water (you can take any liquid soap solution for washing dishes), insist it for up to 8 hours and then, after filtering, use it.
- In the manufacture of the oil solution, rosemary essential oil is used (3-4 drops fight for 1 liter of water).
- An alcoholic remedy can be a pharmacy tincture of calendula.
If no improvement is noticed after a couple of days, then spraying the deciduous mass with insecticidal and acaricidal agents is used. You can repeat the operation after a week if the pests and their waste products are still visible.
Curious facts about the porphyrocoma flower
In culture, this plant appeared only a hundred years ago, it was brought by travelers to Europe from Brazilian lands. The plant is fully responsible for caring for its relative, the pachistachis.
Types of porphyrocoma
- Porphyrocoma field (Porphyrocoma pohliana) is an evergreen perennial shrub, which with its stems can reach a height of 30-50 cm. The foliage is green or dark green in color, on the surface it is decorated with silvery veins. Sessile leaf plates are located on the shoots opposite each other. The inflorescences are axillary or located on the tops of the stems, in them lilac or purple two-lipped flowers are connected. They are surrounded by red or purple bracts, which give the plant a decorative appeal. Bracts are located in 4 rows and serve as an ornament even after the flowers fade. When the fruit ripens, it has the shape of an oblong box. This variety is recommended for growing on balconies or terraces, in corridors, where filtered sunlight, devoid of scorching rays, will enter. The most attractive is the Karnaval variety, which has leaf plates with a glossy surface and a dark green color. Their location is opposite, the shape is lanceolate, with a sharpness at the apex. On the sheet there is a patterning of a silvery color scheme, which falls on the veins in the center and sides. When flowering, the color of the bracts included in the inflorescence is bright red. This shade contrasts favorably with the blue-violet color of the flowers. The lifespan of each flower is only 1-2 days, but there are so many of them that wilting is almost imperceptible, as one bud opens after another.
- Porphyrocoma lanceolate (Porphyrocoma lanceolate). A plant characterized by a bushy herbaceous form, which can reach up to a meter in height in culture. The foliage is painted in a rich green color scheme. The shape of the leaf plate is spear-shaped. During flowering, bright inflorescences are formed, which include multiple purple bracts. Flowers with a corolla in the form of an elongated tube, painted in a lilac tone, protrude far from them. The corolla has a lip bent outward. The beginning of the flowering process falls on the first week of the last winter month, and stretches from 14 to twenty days.
More about porphyrocoma in the following video:
