How to care for aloe? Aloe in the home. Aloe: how to plant

The bactericidal and curative properties of aloe have long been known. This plant is widely used in cosmetology and medicine, and therefore many housewives, wishing to always have at hand a real "healer", prefer to grow aloe in the home. Despite the fact that the plant is unpretentious, one should nevertheless know some peculiarities of its content. So, how to care for aloe right?

Shine

The plant loves bright direct light, and therefore it is best to place a flower pot near the windows facing east or south. In order to prevent aloe from lack of light in the cold season, it is necessary during this period to create artificial lighting, using fluorescent lamps or fluorescent lights for this purpose. With the advent of spring, it is useful to teach the "home healer" to the sun, but it is important to do this gradually, because otherwise the probability of getting burns is high.

Watering

For the aloe vermin abundant watering, in which the stagnation of water in the pan is formed. This is due to the fact that the roots of the plant are very tender, and therefore prone to decay. How to care for aloe is correct in terms of providing it with the necessary moisture? So, it's best to water it by immersing the flower pot in the water for 7-10 minutes. It is important to ensure that there is no accumulation of water in the outlet of the leaves.

It is known that the leaves of the plant have the ability to store a fairly large amount of moisture. However, Aloe does not like waterlogging, in particular it is relevant for the winter period. So, in summer the plant should be watered abundantly, once a week, while in winter it will be enough to have one watering a month. Between watering, the substrate should be allowed to dry slightly.

Humidity and temperature

Aloe is an indoor plant for which the moisture content of the air does not play a significant role, since all those belonging to this family, the representatives tolerate both dry and moist air. In the warm season, the optimal temperature for aloe is room temperature, while in winter the plant simply needs a temperature regime of 12-14 ° C. If it is not respected, aloe can not enter into a period of rest.

Substrate and transplant

The plant should be transplanted only if necessary, when its roots have grown so much that they have ceased to fit into the pot. The best way to transplant is in the spring. This is due to the fact that just at this time, aloe is filled with vital juices, and the chances of plant rooting are increasing.

It is very important to remember that in free conditions, aloe, mainly, grew on dry clay-sandy soil. For this reason, it is not recommended to transplant a plant in a saturated chernozem. Not suitable for planting and heavy clay soil. If you need to grow aloe, how to plant this plant correctly? Experienced growers recommend to buy for this soil, specially designed for growing succulents.

If desired, you can make a substrate yourself. To do this, you will need turf earth (2 parts), sheet earth, sand and humus (1 part each), to which should be added charcoal and finely broken brick. As a rule, transplantation of adult plants is carried out once in 3 years, while young specimens should be transplanted annually.

Reproduction

Ways of reproduction of aloe, the photo of which adorns the pages of books about medicinal plants, are different. Propagation of the plant can be cuttings, seeds, whole leaves and radical layers. Cuttings can be done almost all the year round, but it is better to perform cuttings in summer or spring. When the aloe leaves only begin the process of forming the rosette, it is necessary to separate the plant from the offshoots or side shoots. Of these, glutinous juice will flow down, and so it should be given them first to dry out well, and afterwards - to plant.

Fertilizers

It is recommended to carry out top dressing of aloe. To feed the plant should be in the period of active growth, in the spring, once for 2 weeks. Of all the variety of existing fertilizers for indoor plants, it is necessary to choose the ones that are intended for succulents and cacti. In the soil with aloe, one should not put peat and various fertilizers made on its basis. It is useful to saturate the earth with nitrogen-containing mineral fertilizers.

Other recommendations

If you do not know how to take care of aloe and do it wrong, first of all it will affect the appearance of the leaves, and therefore this part of the plant should be given increased attention.

So, the aloe leaves grow up from the base of the plant. If the leaves lean down or grow in the side, then, most likely, aloe lacks sunlight. If the leaves curl or become thin, then the plant probably does not have enough water, and it began to use its own juice in order to maintain moisture.

If the leaves of the plant have acquired a brown hue, the aloe appears to receive an excess of sunlight. In this case, the pot with the plant must be moved to another place where the sun's rays are not so aggressive.

If the aloe grows slowly, then it may be that the soil or water has an excess of alkali. It is necessary in this situation to abandon the use of organic fertilizers.

Pests of aloe

How to care for aloe to protect the plant from hitting it with various pests? To do this, you should regularly inspect the plant and, if suspicious signs are detected, urgently take measures. In this case, the important thing is the decision of the correct diagnosis. Aloe can attack such pests as:

• Shield. It sucks the juice of aloe and promotes the development of fungal diseases and mold. In order to fight the stems of the plant must be wiped with a solution of vinegar. And to destroy the larvae of the scabbard, insecticide preparations need to be treated , choosing an insecticide with the widest possible spectrum of action.
• Nematodes. When they are detected, cut the affected plant roots, after which the aloe is rooted again. Also, watering the soil with the use of drugs such as "Vidat" and "Tecta."
• Spider mite. Get rid of this pest will help spraying plants with solutions of garlic tincture and alcohol, a cold infusion of soap or tobacco. There are also special chemical preparations aimed at getting rid of spider mite: "Fitoverm", "Neoron", "Rogor".

Knowing how to care for aloe, you can always have at hand a real "home healer", the useful properties of which make the plant irreplaceable in the treatment of many ailments.