Characteristics of bokarnea and origin, agricultural technology in the cultivation of nolina, transplantation and reproduction, difficulties in growing, interesting facts, species. Few of the exotic plants are capable of living indoors. This happens because they come from tropical territories and they are completely uncomfortable in the dry indoor air, and not every florist is ready to “put” his life on creating comfortable conditions for a green “whim”. But here is a plant that will calmly endure heat, drought and will continue to delight the eye with a cap of green leaves and a trunk that resembles an elephant's leg and is Beaucarnea.
Since 2009, it belongs to the Agavaceae family or, as mentioned in some other, earlier sources, to the Dracaenaceae, Asparagaceae or Ruscaceae families.). This group includes up to 30 plant species, which mainly grow in Mexico. That is, they chose the arid and hot regions of South America for their place of residence, therefore, they contain a large amount of moisture in their leaves and trunk, which will help them survive difficult weather conditions. Therefore, it is called a xerophyte - a plant that can live at elevated temperatures in very arid regions of the planet and makes up the flora of deserts and semi-deserts.
For the unusual shape of the stem at the base, the bokarney is popularly called “elephant's leg”, “bottle tree”, and because of the belt-like leaves, the plant is called “horse's tail”. Its second name, "nolina", was given in honor of P. Nolin, a gardener and naturalist from France, when describing it at the beginning of the 19th century by the French traveler and botanist Andre Michaud (1746-1802).
At the base, as already mentioned, there is a swelling (caudex), in which the plant is able to accumulate a certain amount of moisture, since the places where nolina grows can enjoy rain only 1-2 times a year. The trunk in diameter can reach up to one meter at a plant height of up to 8 meters, but in conditions of rooms nolin rarely exceeds meter indicators. When the plant is young, its shape resembles balls obtained from long belt-like leaves or leafy barrels. The color of the bark at the trunk is pale brown, the surface is rough.
The roots of the "elephant's leg" do not go too deep into the soil, but are located more in breadth. Since bokarnea grows on stony soils that are not rich in nutrients, the root system does not need to go deeper.
When nolina grows in its natural environment, branching occurs immediately after the flowering process, but Dutch growers achieve the same effect in a shorter time by trimming the plant. And then the thick trunk will be decorated with beautiful decorative leaf clusters of leaf "caps".
The leaf blades also help the bokarne survive in extremely difficult hot conditions. They gather in dense bundles and due to this, the surface from which moisture evaporates is greatly reduced. The outlines of the leaves are narrowly elongated, belt-like, with a slight sharpening at the apex. The length of the leaf can be measured by a meter with a width of up to 1–2 cm. The surface is smooth, leathery, the color is very beautiful, deep green, grassy, the leaves are highly durable, and therefore are used in Mexico for household needs.
The plant does not bloom in room conditions. But in nature, in the summer, a panicle-shaped inflorescence may appear from a leaf outlet, which consists of multiple flowers of a cream or pink color. The growth rate of her bokarnea is average and in our flower shops it is the most frequent representative of the so-called bottle trees. This is due to the fact that nolina is a very hardy plant that grows calmly in dry indoor air, does not require difficult growing conditions, and temperature drops are not a problem for it. Well, naturally, the appearance also plays an important role here.
Most often, if the room is decorated in a modern style (high-tech or fusion), then designers like to use bokarney to create a green spot because of its focal outlines, using it as a decorative leafy culture.
Basic rules for growing bokarnea, care
- Lighting you will need a bright and constant, it is better to put the plant on a south-facing window. In other cases, you should highlight zero with lamps.
- Content temperature. They maintain heat indicators within 24-28 degrees, in the winter months a dormant period begins and the temperature is reduced to 10-15 degrees.
- Air humidity and irrigation. Bocarnea does not need spraying, dry air does not harm it. Watering is carried out once a month, when the soil dries out, the main thing is not to allow the bay. During the resting period, moisture is greatly reduced.
- Top dressing carried out extremely rarely, only once a month with mineral fertilizers.
- Transplanting and soil selection. Young bokarnei are transplanted annually, adults every 3-4 years. The pot should be wide, but not deep. Planted at the same depth as before. It is better to use the transshipment method. The substrate is made up of equal parts of sod, leafy soil, humus, peat and river sand or from leafy soil, peat soil and sand (in proportions 1: 1: 2). Nolin can be grown hydroponically.
Reproduction of bokarnei with your own hands at home
You can get a new "bottle tree" by sowing seeds or planting side shoots. But the growth of such plants is very slow and they will reach meter indicators only after a few years.
Before sowing, the seeds are soaked for two days in a weak solution of potassium permanganate. If the seeds are healthy and not affected by the fungus, then they immediately sink to the bottom. Sowing is carried out in containers filled with a mixture of any fertile soil and sand. The seeds are buried 1 cm, the soil is moistened and the container is covered with glass or plastic wrap - this will create conditions for a mini-greenhouse with increased moisture and heat. The container is placed in a well-lit place, but not in direct sunlight. The temperature during germination is maintained within 20-25 degrees. Seeds will germinate for 3-4 weeks. Aeration will be required for 10-15 minutes every day and it is important to keep the soil slightly moist at all times. When the sprouts are old enough, they can be planted in separate pots with suitable soil.
Under the bark of nolina, it happens that dormant buds wake up and begin to grow, in this case they give rise to young lateral shoots. These shoots have no roots and therefore, when separated from the mother trunk, they will need to be placed for 24 hours in a phytohormone solution that stimulates root formation. Then this "stalk" is placed obliquely into a peat-sandy substrate. Planted news will need to be covered with a glass vessel or wrapped in a plastic bag and placed in a warm, well-lit place. The rooting temperature should not go beyond 21-26 degrees. If root shoots appear before the leaves begin to lack moisture, then the plant may well survive.
How to deal with nolina diseases and pests?
The difficulties that flower growers have to face in the process of growing nolina arise due to violation of the rules for keeping the plant, among them the following can be distinguished:
- If the tips of the leaves become dry and acquire a brown color, then for large specimens, this is normal, with heat indicators above 20 degrees, it will be necessary to spray the leaves.
- When the lighting is not sufficient, the leaf plates become lethargic, drooping and gradually darken. You will need to move the plant closer to the light source or carry out additional lighting of the bokarnea.
- If the lower leaves of a plant dry up and then fall off, when the rest of the deciduous mass looks normal, then this is a natural process. Dried leaves should be removed by cutting them off at the very base.
- With an excess of moisture in the soil, the stem begins to rot, it becomes soft and springy under the fingers. In this case, the plant is unlikely to be saved.
- If the trunk of the bokarnea began to dry out and wrinkle, then this is a consequence of too long wintering, it will be necessary to carry out gradual regular moistening of the soil with the arrival of spring.
- When few new leaves grow and their growth rate is very low, this indicates a lack of nutrition, it will be necessary to feed or transplant nolina.
- In the case when the leaves become small, with a pale color and not as hard as usual, this indicates a lack of light or a cramped pot, or an elevated temperature of the content.
Spider mites, scale insects, aphids and mealybugs are distinguished from pests of bokarnei. It is necessary to treat them with soap, oil or alcohol solution. The drug is applied to a cotton swab, and harmful insects and their secretions from the leaves and trunk are manually removed. If these funds do not help much, then a systemic insecticide treatment will be required.
Interesting Facts About Barney
If you grow nolina in your room, then over time it will improve the microclimate in the room, enriching it with oxygen, ozone and aerons. By this, it helps to fight respiratory diseases and strengthens the protective functions of the human body. Bocarnea has a very beneficial effect on the nervous system of those present, creating a feeling of psychological comfort.
With the help of long bokarnea leaves, enterprising Mexicans have long weave their famous sombrero hats, as well as all kinds of baskets.
Types of bokarnea
- Beaucarnea recurvata often called Nolina recurvata. Under conditions of natural growth, the height of the plant reaches 6–8 m, in a greenhouse-room culture it does not exceed one and a half meters. It has an erect, tree-like stem, with slight branching. At the base there is a thickening (caudex) with typical "bottle" outlines. The top of the stem is crowned with rosette-shaped leaf "caps" formed by leathery leaf plates painted in a rich dark emerald color. The leaf shape is ribbon-like, hanging to the ground, twisted. The dimensions of the plate reach a meter in length with a width of 1–2 cm. The inflorescence originates from the center of the leaf rosette and is a panicle composed of a large number of flowers, the petals of which are painted in cream or pinkish shades. When grown in rooms, the plant does not bloom, but in nature this process can be observed during the summer months. The native habitat of the species is in the southwestern United States.
- Beaucarnea stricta in the literature it can be found under the name Nolina stricta. This variety is very similar to the previous one. In nature, it is most often found on lands in the central part of Mexico. It, like its predecessor, is popularly called the "bottle tree" or because of the leafy "caps" the "horse's tail" or "horse palm". Can survive temperatures as low as -5 degrees. Grows indoors up to a height of 1.5 meters. At the top of the trunk, hard, thick, belt-like leaf plates grow, which are bent in an arc-like manner to the ground. Their color is light green. The lower part of the stem, where the caudex is located, is bare and covered with a smooth gray cork material, which serves as a protection against moisture evaporation.
- Long-leaved bocarnea (Beaucarnea longifolia), which has the name of Nolina longifolia in literary sources. The plant has vigorous forms and an upright stem. To the bottom, there is an expansion, which also covers a thick layer of cork bark. When the plant is very old, this part of the trunk is cut with deep cracks. In natural conditions, the height of the variety is measured in several meters. Leaves of light green color form dense bunches crowning the top of the trunk. The entire leaf bends arcuately towards the soil surface, there is a strong sharpening at the tip. Over time, these leaf blades dry out and become similar to a lush, pale yellow-green-brown "skirt" that wraps around the entire lower part of the stem. The plant is ubiquitous in the Mexican vastness.
- Beaucarnea lindheimeriana, as well as others, has the synonymous name of Nolina lindheimeriana. The variety is one of the shortest plants in the genus. Its trunk is practically not expressed, long rigid and durable leaf plates, drying out, become similar to light yellow-brown laces, in which the legs of travelers can get tangled. For this feature, the people are called "Devil's lace". Initially, the color of the foliage is light green, its surface is leathery, the length of the leaf reaches up to a meter.
- Beaucarnea matapensis in the literature it is also referred to as Nolina matapensis. It is a medium-high variety, reaching 1.8 meters in height in natural conditions. From dried leaves that do not fall off immediately, "skirt-like" formations arise. It is popularly called the “bergas tree”. The leaf plates are narrow, long, reaching a length of one meter, with a strong narrowing towards the apex.
- Beaucarnea nelsoni often called Nolina nelsoni, and popularly called the "blue bergra grass". The trunk of a plant, when it is especially young, is not expressed at all. In height, the variety can reach several meters.
- Beaucarnea gracilis can be found under the name Nolina gracilis. At the base there is an expanded-swollen caudex, the apex is crowned with bundles of narrow leaf plates with belt-like outlines. Their length reaches 70 cm. In rare cases, flowers appear from leaf rosettes, the petals of which are painted in pinkish or red tones, gathering in racemose inflorescences.
- Beaucarnea stride often called Nolina stride is very similar to the previous species, but has a tighter deciduous mass.
- Guatemalan bocarnea (Beaucarnea guatemalensis) synonym - Nolina guatemalensis. The native territories of growth are considered to be the lands of Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. A plant with a very slow growth rate and tree-like outlines. The trunk has a bulge at the base, very much like a bulb. In height, it reaches 4.5–8 meters with its volume up to 3.5 m. The rosette, which grows at the top of the trunk, is assembled from long hanging leaf plates. In length, their indicators vary from 60 cm to 2 meters. When the plant is still very young, the shade of the leaves casts reddish colors, gradually giving way to a green color. Flowering is extremely rare and only when the bokarnea is mature enough.
How to care for Nolina at home, see this video:
