Distinctive features, recommendations for growing neoalsomiter, recommendations for plant propagation, difficulties in leaving and ways to solve them, facts, types. Neoalsomitra is a plant belonging to the Cucurbitaceae family. The native growing areas are in the lands of China, Malaysia, Burma, Thailand, India and the Philippines. In the genus, the number of samples reaches 30 units. However, most of the varieties are not of particular decorative value, therefore one species is the most popular in room culture - Neoalsomitra sarcophylla (Neoalsomitra sarcophylla).
These perennials are the owners of caudex (a thickened part at the base that collects moisture in case of dry weather). The size of the diameter of such a caudex formation is measured at 15 cm. It has a herbaceous or shrub form of growth and climbing shoots. The length of the branches when grown indoors reaches 3-4 meters or more. The sheet plate can be either simple or 3-5-split. The leaf lobes sometimes also have a pair of glands at the base. There are barbate outgrowths that help the shoots to cling to the protrusions on the support and rise up, braiding it. Antennae are simple or paired.
Neoalsomitra has the colors of two sexes (dioecious). Inflorescences, collected from male flowers, cupped or racemose, are located in the leaf axils. Pedicels and pedicels are filiform. The calyx is distinguished by its tubular contour, with five sepal lobes. They have oblong or longitudinal-lanceolate outlines. The corolla is wheel-shaped, with five oblong-shaped petals. The number of free stamens is 5 units. The threads are short, spliced at the base. Anthers are oblong, 1-celled. Female flowers are collected in loose panicles or racemes growing in the leaf axils.
When flowers are pollinated, fruits are formed with a buloid, cylindrical, weakly cylindrical or triangular shape. There is a wide truncation at the top or it is three-valve. Inside contains scaly numerous seeds, on the sides they are compressed, end in a very thin elongated wing, the edge is wavy-tuberous, the seed coat is crustacean.
Growing neoalsomitra does not require great knowledge of floriculture and special cultivation conditions. The plant is unpretentious, but there is also a high growth rate. Caudex can reach a thickness of up to 1–1, 5 cm in a year, and the shoot in length sometimes exceeds 3–4 meters.
Growing neoalsomitra indoors, caring for the plant
- Lighting and location selection. Bright but diffused lighting is recommended to keep this Pumpkin member comfortable, and can be provided on the sills of windows facing west, southwest, or east and southeast. If there is no way out, and the neoalsomiter will be placed on the southern location of the room, then you will have to hang tulle made of translucent fabric or curtains made of gauze, some growers stick tracing paper (thin paper) on the glass. In the northern direction, the plant will not have enough light and its shoots will start to stretch ugly, and the foliage will shrink. In this case, additional lighting with special phytolamps or fluorescent lamps will be required.
- Content temperature neoalsomitra should be in the range of 20-24 degrees, but with the arrival of the autumn-winter period, they try to keep the thermometer column no higher than 15 units. In the summer, the plant can be displayed on a balcony or terrace, but at the same time you need to make sure that the plant is not in direct sunlight at midday, otherwise sunburn is inevitable. You can put a liana pot in the garden under the tree crowns.
- Air humidity when growing neoalsomitra should be elevated and be in the range of 60-80%. But the plant is so unpretentious that it easily adapts to the dry air of living quarters and frequent spraying is not required. However, this bush will be grateful for the increase in moisture readings in this way and will respond with exuberant growth of leaves and shoots.
- Watering. Since the plant is moisture-loving, it is recommended to carry out abundant watering in the spring-summer months. In this case, the upper layer of the substrate should dry out between waterings. An indicator of this state is that if you take a pinch of soil, it should crumble between your fingers. However, complete drying will lead to yellowing and shedding of foliage and shoots. Since neoalsomitra has a caudex at the base, in which moisture accumulates, the bays are harmful to it. With the arrival of autumn, humidification decreases, and in winter, watering is moderate. For humidification, warm and well-settled water is used, which is free of lime and chlorine impurities. To do this, you can pass the tap through a filter, subject it to boiling, and then stand for several days. It is recommended to carefully drain such a liquid, taking care not to entrap the sediment. If you do not want to prepare the irrigation liquid for so long, then you can use river or rain water, or take distilled water.
- Fertilizers. In order for the plant to please the owner with a lush deciduous mass, it is recommended to carry out regular feeding in the spring-summer period. The preparations are suitable for universal use in liquid form, intended for succulents or cacti. They must be diluted with water for irrigation. The frequency of fertilization is once every 14-21 days. With the arrival of autumn and throughout the winter months, it is not recommended to fertilize the plant.
- Neoalsomitra transplant. This subtropical exotic will require an annual pot change, while increasing the new capacity by 2–3 cm in diameter. Before laying a layer of drainage material (about 3-4 cm), which can be medium-sized expanded clay or pebbles (often flower growers use broken clay or ceramic shards), it is necessary to make holes in the bottom of the container. If a plastic pot is chosen, then a hot nail, a knife or a drill will become an assistant. But if the container is made of ceramics or clay, then it is not recommended to pick up a pot without such drainage holes, as moisture can stagnate and the root system will rot. After the drainage layer is poured into the pot, a support is inserted into it for future neoalsomitra shoots. It can be a flower trellis or a strong rigid wire, from which a support is made of the required shape and size. You can use a ladder or a grid. For transplantation, you can use ready-made flower substrates that are suitable for succulents and cacti. Many growers prepare the soil on their own, mixing sod and leafy soil, wet peat and river sand in equal proportions. Instead of sand, you can use perlite, and instead of peat - humus.
- General features of neoalsomitra care. Since the stems have increased flexibility, the plant is often used for growing in the bonsai technique. When the foliage is young, it has a light green tint, but over time the original color darkens - this is a natural process. Since the growth rate of climbing shoots is quite high, it is necessary to carry out regular pruning.
DIY neoalsomitra breeding steps
It will get a new plant with climbing shoots, possibly by sowing seed material or planting cuttings.
For blanks for grafting, the upper parts of the branches are selected. On a shoot that will be good for the cutting should contain 2-3 leaf plates. It is recommended to remove the lower leaves, and treat the cut with a root stimulator (for example, heteroauxin or Kornevin). You can put the cuttings in a vessel with water and so wait for the appearance of root processes or plant them in a light peat-sandy substrate (parts of the components are equal). To speed up the process, wrap the cuttings with plastic wrap or place them under a cut plastic bottle (glass jar). With daily airing, rooting will take place within a few weeks.
If the cuttings stand in a vessel with water, then when root shoots appear on them and their length becomes equal to 2-3 cm, then they are planted in a substrate suitable for neoalsomiters.
It is worth planting seeds in the spring. The material is planted in a bowl with a peat-sandy soil mixture and the container is kept in a warm place (the recommended temperature is about 15 degrees), wrapped in a plastic bag or putting a piece of glass on top. Here it is also recommended not to forget about airing every day and moistening the soil if necessary. When the seedlings hatch and grow up, they are dived (transplanted without destroying the earthen coma) in separate pots with a diameter of 7 cm, poured into it with a layer of drainage and selected soil.
Possible diseases and pests arising from the care of neoalsomitra
The plant most of all suffers from damage by a spider mite. In this case, a thin cobweb can be seen on the leaves and stems of the plant, the reverse side of the leaf plate seems to be covered with microscopic punctures. If you do not take action, the leaves begin to turn yellow, deform, dry out and fly around. At the same time, it is recommended to wash the neoalsomitra under shower jets, then you can wipe the leaf plates and stems with special solutions that remove the pest and its waste products. These means are:
- soap solution based on laundry soap diluted and infused in water (for 10 liters of water, you need to put 300 grams of grated material, then insist it for several hours and then strain);
- an oil preparation, which is prepared by dissolving 4-5 drops of rosemary oil in a liter of water;
- for treatment with an alcohol solution, a pharmacy alcohol tincture of calendula is suitable.
If such preparations do not give the desired result, then it is recommended to spray with systemic insecticides. It is necessary to repeat the treatment until the pest disappears. Such means can be Aktara, Aktellik or Fitover.
If the leaf plates suddenly began to take on a yellow tint, dry out, and the stems die off, then this is a sign of too much drying of the substrate in the pot and low humidity in the room. When the plant is under direct streams of ultraviolet radiation, especially in the summer afternoon, the foliage may burn.
Curious facts about neoalsomiter
Under natural conditions, neoalsomitra usually prefers to settle next to tall trees, since their trunks are used by plant shoots as a base, clinging to the protrusions on the bark with antennae, this shrub moves its branches closer to the light. If a plant is grown as a pot culture, then when planting, a support is necessarily installed in the container. Neoalsomitra is a rather close "relative" of cucumber and watermelon and, apparently, this played a negative role for such an ornamental-deciduous plant, and it is not very popular with us.
Types of neoalsomitra
- Neoalsomitra sarcophylla the most popular variety most often grown in indoor floriculture. It is an evergreen plant with a prominent caudex at the base. The caudex is spherical, and its diameter does not exceed 15 cm. Shoots in length reach up to a maximum of four meters. If there is a support nearby, then the branches will cling to it with the help of special antennae. Such whiskers have twisted outlines with a bifurcated end, their surface is covered with small suction cups, through which attachment to any, even slippery surface takes place. The leaf plates from above are smooth, their shape is oval, and there is a sharpening at the top. The foliage grows on the shoots in the next order, the color of the leaves is rich bright green, there is a clear vein in the center. The shape of the leaf plate can be either simple or with a finger cut, trifoliate. During flowering, buds are formed with petals of a cream or creamy green color, usually the flowers are unisexual. Female flowers are arranged one by one, racemose or paniculate inflorescences are collected from male flowers.
- Neoalsomitra podagrica. The plant owes its name to the famous Dutch botanist and one of the leading phytogeographers - Cornelis Geisbert Gerrit Jan (kus) van Stenis (1901-1986). It is a dioecious member of the Pumpkin family and was described in 1955. Its native habitat is in the Lesser Sunda Islands in southern Indonesia. There, the plant prefers to live in trees, climbing them with its climbing shoots. The substrate underneath is a thin layer of peat with clay. The plant is quite hygrophilous and only needs a small amount of sunlight. Its vines stretch to a height of 3 meters, the lower part of the stem is 10 cm in diameter and one meter high. The flowers have petals colored greenish-yellow. Male buds gather in racemose inflorescences, while female buds grow one after another.
- Neoalsomitra clavier (Neoalsomitra clavigera). The diameter of the trunk of a vine, which resembles a grape in shape, is about 4 cm. The bark is comparatively thick. The aroma is reminiscent of a cucumber scent (Cucumis sativus). The surface is shiny, marked with fibrous stripes. The leaf plates have parameters of about 5-12, 5x1, 8-7 cm, the middle leaf is larger than the lateral leaf lobes. Leaflets have stems about 0.5–0.8 cm in length. On the reverse side of the leaflets, they have multiple pale glands and a rare vulgarization of short whitish hairs. Lateral veins, 6–8 units on each side in the middle part. Lateral laminae usually feature a well-developed glandular lobe near the base. In the cross-section of the branches, there are transverse vessels in individual threads of wood. Antennae +/- axillary, branching into two halves. When flowering, inflorescences appear with a length of up to 10-15 cm. They are formed in the leaf axils, usually near the antennae. Male flowers are about 6-7 mm in diameter, crowning a peduncle with a length of about 3 mm. The calyx of the blade is about 1 mm, and the length of the petal is 2.8 mm. The stamens are located in the center of the flower in a five-membered structure, the filament length is less than 1 mm. Female flowers are formed in axillary panicle inflorescences, reaching a length of 40 cm. The diameter of such flowers is about 10 mm. Sepals (lateral sepals) about 3x1.5 mm. Petals with an obovate shape with parameters 6x3 mm. The size of the ovary is about 10-12x2-2.5 mm. When fruiting, they ripen in the form of an elongated thimble +/- cylindrical fruits, about 5-10x1, 5-1, 8 cm. Carpels with three valves folding inward. The number of seeds is multiple; they are placed in three vertical rows. The seed and the elongated wing are up to 20–24 mm long, the wing is papery, the color is pale brown. The length of each seed is about 8-9 mm, ribbed or lobed, the wing is 20x8 mm.
