Description of biophytum, tips for growing a plant, rules for transplanting and reproduction, difficulties in cultivation, pests and control of them, interesting facts, species. If you want to have a palm tree in the house, and the size of the room does not favor this in any way, then you should pay attention to the green inhabitants of the planet, which are so similar to palm trees, but have nothing to do with this family. One of the above mentioned plants is Biophytum.
It is ranked as part of the Oxalidaceae family, which also includes up to 70 varieties of similar flora representatives with both one-year and long-term life cycles. The slopes of mountainous areas in Asia and Africa, where a humid tropical climate reigns supreme, are considered their native habitat for biophytums.
The plant took its name from the combination of two Greek beginnings bios, which translates as "life" and hpytum - meaning "plant". In some English-speaking countries, biophytum is usually called "Sensitive Plant", that is, a sensitive plant, which accurately describes the properties of leaf plates, which will be discussed later.
Biophytum has a herbaceous form of growth, in spite of the existing unbranching stem-stem. Usually, this mini-palm has only one stalk, the top of which is crowned with a deciduous "cap" or "bunch". Due to this, the plant with its external characteristics (habitus) is similar to representatives of palm trees. The stem height rarely exceeds 30 cm.
The leaf plates have graceful complex-pinnate outlines. Each of the lobes is oval elongated in shape with a slight sharpening or without it at the apex. The color is deep green with some yellow tints. If any external stimuli appear (for example, touching the leaf "cap", falling rain drops on the leaves, blowing gusts of wind), then the plant reacts very curiously to them. Rhythmically contracting the leaves, biophytum, as it were, folds them along the leaf petiole, then the entire leaf blade droops and begins to nestle on the stem-stem. In this case, there is an effect on the leaves located nearby, and as a result, the entire leaf mass is already moving, like an avalanche. All this is possible due to a change in the turgor pressure in the special cells of the pads located in the articulations of the leaves. Apparently in the course of this process, ATP (adenosine triphosphate) decomposes and its rapid renewal, which causes the uninterrupted movement of the leaf lobes. In these properties, biophytum is similar to bashful mimosa (Mimosa pudica) or garden neptunia (Neptunia oleracea), but its responses and speed are not as fast as theirs.
Also, such a reaction is caused by a change in illumination (photonastia), when day changes to night. In the process, the leaves are also folded for "night rest". At the end of the summer months, a thin flowering stalk appears from the leaf sinus, which is sometimes pubescent with whitish hairs. It often happens in culture that flowering is periodic throughout the year. The inflorescence that crowns this peduncle has corymbose outlines and includes 2-4 small buds. Their petals are painted in a whitish, orange, yellow or pink hue. The size of the flower rarely exceeds 1 cm in diameter. Flowers have a peculiarity - the length of the pistil columns is unequal in different plants (heterostyly or variegated columnarity). Because of this, the process of self-pollination is difficult, but cross-pollination is not a hindrance. Therefore, buds of various types are being formed, in which the length of the stamens and pistils is varied - there are long-columnar, short-columnar and medium (intermediate) ones. The same properties are possessed by lungwort, buckwheat, gentian and some of the species of primroses. And only the buds of the fourth type have staminate filaments and the length of the columns is identical. Only such flowers are capable of self-pollination and after this process a completely viable seed material matures. It is this variety that is common in indoor cultivation.
It is interesting that with the arrival of night, the pedicels also have the property of phytonastia, that is, they begin to move - they go down. After the ovary, the fruit-box ripens, which, cracking, scatters the seed material around. Seeds are elliptical in shape, 1–1.5 mm in size, black color.
Although the family is not small, it is customary to grow only one variety in room conditions - Biophytum sensitivum, which will need to be cultivated at high humidity. Providing such conditions is possible only using special aquariums and terrariums. It is because of the delicate and unusual delicate foliage that the plant is of value for lovers of indoor plantings. But landscape designers often decorate the interiors of premises with biophytum, if it is possible to create humid conditions of detention.
Conditions for growing biophytum, care
- Lighting. The micro-palm loves to grow in bright diffused light; for this, a pot with a plant is placed on the windowsills of windows facing east or west. If the biophytum will stand on the window of the southern location, then you will have to arrange an openwork shadow with the help of translucent curtains.
- Content temperature. It is better to grow the plant at room temperature indicators: that is, in the spring-summer months, the temperature should fluctuate between 18-25 degrees, and in the autumn-winter period, it should not go beyond 16-18 degrees.
- Humidity air when growing biophytum should be high enough, so if the plant is not placed in a mini-greenhouse, terrarium or "flower window", it will need to be sprayed with warm soft water twice a day.
- Watering from the beginning of the growing season to the beginning of autumn should be abundant, but it is not worth overmoistening the soil much. The water used is soft, warm.
- Fertilizers for biophytum, they are applied every two weeks, using a full complex feeding, reducing the concentration by half. The mini-palm reacts well to organic matter. It is alternated with mineral preparations.
- Transplantation and choice of substrate. When the biophytum is still very young, then the transplant is carried out annually, in the case when the earthen lump is completely mastered by the root system, in subsequent years the substrate and the pot for adult mini-palm trees are changed every 3 years. The pots are taken deep enough, at the bottom of which a drainage layer is laid. In the bottom, small holes should first be made for the drainage of moisture that has not been absorbed by the roots.
The soil should be slightly acidic. Make up a substrate based on the following components:
- sod soil, leafy soil and river sand (in a ratio of 1: 2: 1);
- leafy humus soil, sod, coarse sand (equal parts);
- sod land, leafy soil, peat soil and river sand (parts must be equal).
As a baking powder, you can add vermiculite, perlite (agroperlite).
Recommendations for the reproduction of biophytum with your own hands
Basically, sowing of ripe seeds is used to get a new micro-palm. Since when the boll fruit cracks, they can fall into neighboring pots, scattering a fairly large distance and germinating there, it will be necessary to protect the green “neighbors” of the biophytum from “aggressive capture” of their territories, collecting seed material in time. Or sprouted seedlings can already be planted from other pots when a couple of real leaves appear on them. If you do this later, then the root system of young biophytums is very delicate and does not respond well to transplantation.
If you managed to collect seed material, then with the arrival of spring it can be sown in moistened sand or peat-sand mixture. Some growers use peat tablets, in this case, the subsequent transplantation does not harm the root system of the young seedling so much. Before sowing, you can soak the seeds for 10-15 minutes in a weak solution of potassium permanganate. A container with a planting or peat tablets is covered with a piece of glass or wrapped in a plastic bag and placed in a bright, warm place, but without direct sunlight. The temperature during germination is maintained within the range of 21-22 degrees. It will be necessary to carry out daily airing of crops and, if necessary, moistening of the soil. When young plants have two real leaves, you can plant (dive) them in separate pots with suitable soil (the diameter of the pot is no more than 7 cm).
Difficulties in growing a plant and ways to solve them
The micro-palm is quite resistant to diseases, but it is more worried about non-infectious sores, among which are:
- in case of a decrease in air humidity, the tips of the leaves turn brown and dry out;
- if the plant has stopped developing, and the leaf blades have acquired a faded shade, then this is a consequence of increased illumination;
- a strong elongation of the stem and leaves indicates a lack of light for the biophytum;
- if you do not moisten the earthen lump, then this can lead to the death of the plant;
- when waterlogged, mushroom mosquitoes start in the substrate, damaging the stem.
A plant can only suffer from a spider mite and scale insects, which, having settled on the leaves, pierce them, feeding on vital juices. Subsequently, a translucent cobweb begins to cover the stem and leaf plates, or brown-brown spots are visible on the back of the leaf lobes and the leaves can become covered with a sticky sugary bloom. It will be necessary to carry out the treatment with a soap or oil solution. The first is mixed on the basis of grated laundry soap with water (30 grams per 1 liter), and in the second case, you will need to dilute a couple of drops of rosemary essential oil in a liter of water. If sparing methods have not worked, then it is necessary to spray with insecticides. In either case, the appearance of the plant will be damaged.
Interesting facts about biophytum
Biophytum, in addition to its external features of the movement of the deciduous mass, has multiple healing properties that are used in folk medicine. The extract from its leaves on the territory of the African continent (in Mali and other countries) is usually used for wound healing, as well as for the treatment of diabetes mellitus. Mainly used is Peters biophytum, which is also called sensitive biophytum.
Biophytum species
- Sensitive biophytum (Biophytum sensitivum) or as in some literary sources it is called Biophytum petersianum. Homeland - the tropical lands of Asia and Africa. The plant loves to settle in open areas, in coastal areas of waterways and along roadsides. In the mountains, it can be found at altitudes of 1400 meters above sea level. Herbaceous perennial in height does not exceed 25 cm. Its stems are erect, without branching. At the top of the stem are leaf rosettes. Its length reaches 12 cm. The shape of the leaf plate is paired-pinnately complex, the general outlines are narrow, obovate. Each petiole has 6–17 leaf lobes. The arrangement of the lobes is asymmetric, their apex is pointed, the upper side has pubescence with long silvery hairs, and the lower side has fine pubescence. In the region of the petiole (at the base) there is a thickening. Flowers are collected in an inflorescence with corymbose outlines, 2–4 units each. The inflorescence is located on a pubescent flowering stem, the length of which reaches 4 cm. They originate from the leaf axils. The corolla and calyx in the bud are separated, have five elements, the petals are yellow. The flowering process stretches from July to early autumn. This variety is most often cultivated in rooms.
- Biophytum abyssinicum (Biophytum abyssinicum). Herbaceous representative, perennial. The stem is thin, simple in shape, erect, reaching a length of 5–30 cm with a diameter of only 1–1.5 mm, rounded in cross section. Its surface is bare or rarely with pubescence of hairs directed downward. A leaf rosette is formed at the top of the trunk. The length of the leaf plate reaches 7 cm with a width of 12–16 mm. The number of leaf lobes varies from 3-11, but usually there are 7 units. Their surface is ribbed, sensitive to touch. They are often glabrous dorsally, but sometimes there is slight pubescence. The leaves are attached to short petioles (up to 0.5 mm long), but most often they are completely sessile. The color of the petiole is green, or with the presence of a purple tone. The next pair of leaf lobes is almost twice as large as the previous one. Their shape is obliquely elliptical. The apex of the lobe is obtuse. Flowering stems are thin, glabrous or hairy. Bracts are very small, sharp. Sepals with lanceolate outlines, sharply pointed. The petals of the buds are spliced, and above 1/3 are divided into 5 parts. The color of the petals can be whitish, pinkish or cream. Seeds ripen flattened, elliptical.
- Mobile biophytum (Biophytum adiantoides). The native area of growth falls on the lands of Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Burma, it can also be found in Cambodia and the Malacca Peninsula. It often settles in cracks of limestone rocks, near rivers and in woodlands, the height of growth is 300 m above sea level. The plant is used in folk medicine and is given to young children with indigestion. Perennial with a herbaceous form of growth, reaching a height of 30 cm. The stem has a branchy ligneous. The leaf plates are pinnately divided and up to 18–27 cm in length. The petiole is 7–17 cm in length. Leaflets are yellowish lobes, outlines from oblong to lanceolate with sizes ranging from 9–22 mm in length and 3–8 mm in width. The peduncle is only 5–17 mm long. The petals are lanceolate, reaching a length of 9–10 mm and a width of 1–2.5 mm. The color is white with a yellow base. The seeds ripen 1 mm in diameter and are ribbed.
- Treelike biophytum (Biophytum dendroides). Herbal or semi-shrub perennial representative of the flora with sizes ranging from 1–18 cm. The native habitat is in oak forests, located from Mexico to Ecuador. A fairly rare species, settled along the periphery of secondary forests and rivers, the Atlantic zone, often found at an altitude of 90–900 meters above sea level. Also loves to grow in deciduous and evergreen rainforests. In Veracruz, this variety is used as an antiemetic and antidiarrheal agent, and acts as a sleeping pill for children.
The stem can be sometimes branched, pubescent or bare. The leaf blades are complexly dissected, sitting on petioles with a length of 1, 4–8 cm. There are 14–35 units per leaf, there is a slight asymmetry in the arrangement, they are rectangular-rhomboid in shape, obovate from the base to the apex. The size of the lobe ranges from 1.5–10 mm with a width of up to 1–5 mm. The top is dull, the color is green with a yellow undertone. Flower petals up to 6-9 mm long, half-accrete at the base. The color of the bud is white-lilac. Seeds ripen ovoid in length reaching 1.5 mm.
More information about biophytum in this video:
