The origin and characteristics of amorphophallus, conditions for cultivation, transplantation and independent reproduction, difficulties in cultivation, interesting facts. Amorphophallus (Amorphophallus) is a plant belonging to the genus belonging to the Aroid family (Araceae), which contains up to 170 representatives of the green world of the planet, who have chosen tropical and subtropical conditions for their growth. Most often he likes to settle in the flat areas of West African territories, the island of Madagascar, in the lands of China and Japan, in Taiwan and India, he can be found in New Guinea and Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the Adaman Islands, as well as Laos, Cambodia, and others similar climatic zones. The plant has not spared its attention on the territory of the Australian continent, and can grow in the region of North Queensland. Most of the varieties of amorphophallus are endemic - plants that are settled in only one place on the planet.
For their placement, they choose disturbed woody bases, which are often found in secondary forest areas (forests that have grown on the site of primary forest cover, destroyed by the elements, insects or human action). The plant can be a lithophyte - growing on rocks (mainly on calcareous soils) or on weed lands.
The flower has such an unusual name from the combination of the Greek words "amorpho" and "phallus", which means "formless" and "escape" respectively. Because of its completely unpleasant smell, this plant is popularly called such an unsightly name as "cadaveric flower", as well as "snake palm" or "Voodoo lily".
The sizes of the amorphophallus are very diverse - from very small to simply gigantic. The flower takes its origin from root tubers located underground. Their size can reach the size of a grapefruit, and their weight is up to 5 kg, but there are species that grow from rhizomes or stolons - short-lived elongated lateral shoots, on which the distances between the nodes of underdeveloped leaves and axillary buds are very elongated, shortened stems originate from it … Stolons are used for vegetative propagation of the plant. Some of the species are evergreen herbaceous representatives of the genus, and there are those that have a pronounced rest period. The tuber has an oblate-spherical shape in its shape, but sometimes it is unevenly cylindrically elongated, repetitive or conical.
A single leaf plate is located at the top of the tuber (rarely there are two or three). Its width can approach several meters. Leaf lifespan is spread over only one growing season. In each subsequent year, it grows taller and more dissected. The petiole is long, with a smooth surface, rarely leathery. It sometimes becomes very thick and becomes noticeably mottled or mottled. The leaf plate will be divided into three parts: the primary leaflets can be either pinnately dissected or subsequently dichotomously dissected; but the secondary and tertiary segments are characterized by pinnation or pinnation. The terminal leaves have a shape from elongated-oval to linear, with a pointed apex, descending. On them, the primary lateral veins are pinnate and eventually merge into a common vein running along the edge of the plate. The veins that create the reticular pattern are of a higher order.
The amorphophallus inflorescence begins to grow before a new leaf appears and the dormant period ends. One is always the only one. The flowering process lasts 2 weeks and even before new roots appear, it is completed. The peduncle, like the petioles, can be very long or short. At this time, the size of the flower tuber is greatly reduced, since nutrition will go to the inflorescence.
The inflorescence includes a cob with an elongated or oval shape and a blanket leaf. The latter is found falling or not, its shape is oval-rolled or divided into a tube with a plate. This tubular portion has either a smooth or longitudinally grooved surface with a cylindrical or bell-shaped outline. At the base of the tube there are similarities of hairs that are similar to scales; they serve as traps for the plant, into which insects, attracted by a stinking smell, fall. The plate, on the other hand, can be from vertical to wide in shape, its surface is smooth or with various waviness, the edge is decorated with frills.
The ear grows in length shorter than the cover leaf, or much longer. Amorphophallus is a monoecious plant in which the size of the female part is different in length in relation to the male. The male part is very diverse in shape. The uppermost part of the ear is sterile and does not contain flowers, its color is dark cherry, with an expansion in the lower part - it is called an appendage, and it serves to spread the odor. Even lower are the bristles, through which an insect can crawl into the lower compartment. It is no longer possible to get out of there. At the very bottom there are first staminate flowers, and behind them pistillate ones. Only some types of flower have a pleasant aroma, mainly the smell of decaying flesh, which attracts insects.
Closer to midnight, the sterile part heats up strongly and a cadaveric smell appears, the insects attracted by it climb into the lower chamber and the bristles keep them "captive". Therefore, insects continue to stay in the chamber all night and all the next day with stamens and pistils that have not yet ripened. By the early evening, the lower chamber begins to heat up. At this time, pollen matures and insects become active. The pollen powders the heads of the "captives" and those, crawling around the chamber, pollinate the pistillate flowers. As soon as "the job is done" - pollination has taken place, the bristles quickly wither and the insect is free, and this hour usually also falls at midnight.
There is a repeated process of pollination of another amorphophallus flower with the same insects. Female flowers on the cob always open earlier than male flowers, and therefore self-pollination does not occur. Naturally, for pollination to be successfully completed, it is necessary that at least two nearby plants bloom at the same time. After the pollination process, the leaf-cover also fades. However, this green "predator" is not so simple: sometimes it uses some larvae of butterflies or moths for food.
As soon as flowering is completed, a new sprout grows from the soil after a few months. These are leaves in the form of scales trying to make their way to the rays of light and bring to the sun one single green leaf plate, which in some species can reach 2-3 meters.
If the flower is pollinated, then a fruit similar to a berry of spherical outlines ripens later. Its color can vary from orange to red, but occasionally the color is snow-white and even blue. One seed at a time grows in a berry, but it also ripens as a multi-seeded one. The seeds are elliptical in shape.
With the help of this peculiar plant, it is customary to decorate terraces and verandas, balcony structures and loggias in the summer, beautifully decorate rooms, office premises, as well as garden plots.
Tips for growing amorphophallus, care
- Lighting. The light should be bright, but diffused with shading from midday rays - window sills of east or west orientation of windows are suitable.
- Content temperature in the spring-summer period, it is moderate - 22-25 degrees, and in the autumn-winter period of rest decreases to 13, to at least 10 degrees.
- Air humidity not very important when growing amorphophallus and spray the flower only for hygiene purposes, but this plant is very fond of. You can carry out this procedure daily. Soft warm water is used.
- Watering. Abundant soil moisture is needed during the period of growth activation, but after the leaf withers, watering stops. Water only when the topsoil dries out. During the dormant period, wilted leaves are cut at the root, and watering stops.
- Fertilizers. As soon as the first shoots germinate in spring, and another month and a half will pass, they begin to make top dressing. The plant needs phosphorus very much. It is recommended to choose the composition of the preparation in which Nitrogen: Phosphorus: Potassium are in a ratio of 1: 4: 1. It is advisable to use organic matter (for example, rotted mullein).
- Transfer amorphophallus occurs in the spring, immediately after the tubers are removed from storage. The pot must be chosen deep and wide. The more substrate, the larger the replacement root will reach.
The soil mixture should contain sod, humus, leafy soil, peat and river sand - all parts are equal. You can add superphosphate to it at the rate of 1 tablespoon per 3 liters of earth. Sometimes a substrate is used for aroids.
Recommendations for self-propagation of amorphophallus flower
It is possible to get a new plant with daughter tubers. When the dormant period begins, these nodules are carefully separated from the mother bush - this must be done during the period of leaf loss from the amorphophallus. At the base of the segment of the leaf plate there is also a bulb, with which this plant can also be propagated.
If the tuber does not have germinated buds, then the flower may not sprout or will sprout, but after a long period of time. Therefore, when dividing, it is necessary to take this into account so that each tuber has a sufficient number of them. The tuber is carefully cut so that the buds are not hurt, the cut is powdered with crushed activated charcoal or charcoal and dried over the course of a day. Then they are planted in a substrate consisting of river sand, peat soil, humus and coniferous land (all parts are equal, only half of the sand is taken). Watering is carried out extremely carefully so that the plant does not rot.
You can grow amorphophalolus in the open field, but at the same time the tuber germinates so that whitish root processes are visible on it. Germination takes place in moist peat soil. Disembarkation takes place in late spring. As soon as the leaf is unfolded, they begin to apply mullein feeding or a mixture of mineral preparations.
Problems in the cultivation of amorphophallus at home
The plant practically does not suffer from diseases or pests. However, at a young age, the leaf can be affected by aphids or spider mites. Insecticides are used to combat.
If watering is plentiful, the tubers can rot, with insufficient illumination, the leaf dries out or its shade becomes more contrasting.
Interesting facts about amorphophallus
Eastern doctors use all parts of the amorphophallus for treatment. With the help of inflorescences, it is possible to reduce fever, relieve bone pain and relieve eye inflammation. The tuber in its raw form has poisonous properties, but if the dose is selected, it is true, then this remedy will help with peptic ulcers, and will also be an antidote for snake and rodent bites. In Chinese medicine, tuber-based drugs have long been used to cure cancer. Doctors recommend using tubers as raw materials in the manufacture of diabetic products.
In Japan, it is customary to use the tubers of the plant in cooking, in the preparation of soups or stews. Housewives make flour for noodles or use it as gelatin, which serves as the basis for special tofu.
Types of amorphophallus
- Amorphophallus cognac (Amorphophallus konjac) has a tuber in the form of an oblate ball with a diameter of up to 20 cm. The length of the petiole of the leaf plate reaches 80 cm. Their color is dark olive with dark or light spotting. The leaf blade itself is pinnately dissected in a rich green hue. The flowering stem reaches 50–70 cm in height. The sheet-cover measures 25-30 cm in length, and the ear itself can reach half a meter. During flowering, heating occurs up to 40 degrees. The predominant colors are burgundy and reddish purple. It has an unpleasant odor. In culture, the plant only blooms, but there is no fruiting. In Japanese cuisine, tubers containing starch are used as raw materials for the preparation of the national dish - cognac.
- Amorphophallus bulbifer. A plant with a spherical tuber that measures 7–8 cm in diameter. The petiole is approximately one meter deep, dark olive with light spotting, and is crowned with a single leaf. The leaf plate is divided into three segments based on an onion. The flower-bearing stem usually extends no more than 30 cm in height. The cob is 10–12 cm long. It is painted in dirty green tones with pinkish mottling. The ear is always shorter than the bedspread. In culture, it is also in color, but does not form fruit.
- Amorphophallus Rivera (Amorphophallus riveri). In the literature, cognac is synonymous with Amorphophallus. The size of a tuber in a flower varies from 7 to 25 cm in diameter. The leaf petiole extends to a height of 40–80 cm, but there are specimens with one and a half meter indicators. The surface of the petiole is patterned from whitish or brown spots. The leaf blade has three dissected outlines and reaches a length of 60–100 cm. Each of the leaf segments is also pinnately dissected. Leaf lobes of the second order have an elongated elliptical shape with a pointed apex. On the entire surface there is a convex venation of a green tint. The peduncle grows up to meter indicators. The sheet-cover reaches a length of 30 cm. It has a glossy surface, ovoid along the edge, the color outside is pale green. The ear is twice as long as its cover. Also in culture it does not bear fruit, but blooms perfectly.
- Amorphophallus Titanium (Amorphophallus titanium) found synonymously Amorphophallus Titan. It is the largest and most awful smelling flower in nature. At approximately 5 years of its life cycle, the plant is ready to bloom if conditions are favorable. In height it reaches 2.5 meters with a width of up to 1.5 m. A bad smell appears if the flower is touched and it is so unpleasant and strong that the people call this plant a "cadaverous flower". At the beginning of spring, a peduncle with a height of up to 50–70 cm is pulled out of the soil. The top is crowned with an inflorescence painted in maroon color, consisting of a cob with female and male flowers. The sheet-cover has a reddish-brown color scheme. The length of the sheet cover reaches 70 cm. But in some sources there is information that there are specimens of Amorphophallus Titanium reaching 4 meters in height. The ear heating temperature can approach 40 degrees. Within 4 weeks after flowering, the depleted tuber gains nutrients for the ejection of the leaf plate. If the tuber is not strong enough for this, then it "falls asleep" until the next spring. The life cycle of the plant is almost 40 years, but during this period Amorphophallus Titanium blooms only 3-4 times.
- Amorphophallus gigas (Amorphophallus gigas) very similar to the previous species, but may exceed it in height, but the size of the flower is smaller.
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