Indoor Flower Schlumberger: photo, care and reproduction

This flower adorns the collections of many lovers of indoor plants in our country. For most of them he is better known as the Decembrist. The Schlumberger flower is a beautifully flowering plant that does not require complex care. Its name was received in honor of the French florist, a great admirer and collector of cacti Frederic Schlumberger. Another name for the flower is the zigokaktus. It is translated from Greek as "rocker". The stems of the flower do bend in the form of a rocker.

Description of the flower

Despite the fact that this plant belongs to the family of cacti, it does not come from a hot and arid desert. In natural conditions, the Schlumberger flower grows in the moist forests of Brazil and South America. These flowers live on the trunks and roots of trees growing in the highlands. Pollinates flowers in these conditions of hummingbirds.

Florists often call it a Christmas tree or a Decembrist. The name of these plants is not accidental. This amazing flower blooms under Christmas. However, zigokaktusy are so unpredictable that they can drive out numerous buds in the spring, and even in the middle of summer. But most often the flower growers manage to make the Decembrist blossom in the winter.

The indoor flower of Schlumberger is an epiphytic (forest) cactus. Each stalk of this beautiful plant is oblate-segmented, branched, buds of flowers appear at their ends. They have a somewhat poised shape and can be painted in different colors.

Breeders are constantly working on improving this plant and every year there are new hybrids. Over time, the Decembrist may exhibit a spalling of the trunks. To the Schlumberger flower was not one-sided, it must be periodically turned to a light source.

Varieties

Today in indoor floriculture, three types of Decembrist are most often used:

• Gertner;
• truncated;
• Booklets.

The first variety is a fairly large plant with numerous leaf-like segments, up to seven centimeters long. Beautifully blooms a scattering of bright red-orange flowers in the form of bells, which have sharpened along the edges of the petals.

The next grade has stems consisting of leaf-shaped segments, with sharp denticles on the edges. The flowers are symmetrical, the central tube is slightly sloping, and the petals are wrapped back. Color of flowers is diverse: soft pink and white, purple and lilac.

Stems of the third grade consist of small segments of light green color, which have small protrusions along the edges. Symmetrical flowers are lilac-pink in color.

Decorative properties

Flowers Schlumberger, care for which will not be difficult even for beginners, thanks to its attractive appearance fits seamlessly into any interior of the room. Best of all, they look in a hanging flowerpot, because - this is an ampel plant. If you do not have such an opportunity, the Decembrist can be installed on an inverted pot.

The soil

Soil mixture is prepared from leaf, turf and sand. Acidity is necessary neutral or weakly acid. In the prepared mixture should be added a little powdered charcoal (suitable and activated tablets). At the bottom of the pot laid drainage (pebbles, expanded clay). The container for planting should be low and wide: the diameter should be greater than the height of the pot. Decembrists grow well and effectively look in the original wicker baskets.

Crown formation

For a thicker and lush crown, the Schlumberger's home flower is plucked and trimmed. Sprigs that do not branch, it is better to shorten. Due to the fact that the buds appear more often on new young shoots, a frequent haircut is completely justified, since it promotes rapid and abundant flowering.

Lighting

Flowers Schlumberger, care for which is surprisingly simple, loves light, but protected from direct sunlight areas of the room. In summer, the flower must be protected from heat, which it tolerates badly. In summer, the flower can be taken to fresh air. However, it must be remembered that direct sunlight can damage the plant: the leaves turn yellow, the growth of the flower stops.

The plant is quite comfortable on the northern, western or eastern windows. In winter, the Decembrist can be rearranged on the windowsill of the southern window. But this must be done before flowering, otherwise the Decembrist can discard the buds.

Temperature

To the temperature drops and environmental conditions, the Decembrist is quite tolerant. The plant survives at a temperature of +2 to + 7 ° C. But do not abuse this feature. To please you with its beauty Schlumberger's flower, home care must necessarily include control over the temperature of the air in the room. Optimum parameters of the thermometer will be in the range from +18 to +25 ° C.

Bloom

When Schlumberger's flower blooms, the photo of which you can see in this article, it's as if the gray winter days are shining. Bright, delicate flowers, like multistage fountains, cascade through the stems. And if you plant a few plants in the pot, and even with colored flowers, it seems as though a magnificent firework broke out on the window-sill. New Year holidays with such decoration become more colorful, brighter, and more joyful.

The Schlumberger flower forms buds only when the temperature decreases and the light day decreases. Therefore, it must be taken into account that in the spring and summer, as well as during the heating season, when the temperature in the apartment is from +20 to +23 ° C, the plant grows foliage. Buds in such conditions either are not formed at all, or immediately fall off.

What is necessary to make Schlumberger's flower blossom, how to care for it? First of all, it is necessary to keep the room temperature not exceeding +20 ° C.

Watering

Despite the fact that they call cactus flowers Schlumberger, care and reproduction of these exotics is not much different from other no less popular houseplants. Water the flower with warm water, because the cold can damage the root system. At the same time watering should be moderate - the decembrist does not tolerate overdrying or waterlogging of the soil. As in one, and in another case, this is fraught with the death of the root system, and then the whole plant.

After buds appear, care must be taken to ensure that the soil in the pot is always moderately moist. In the period from the end of April to the middle of September, when the plant is actively growing, the root system requires moisture only when the upper layer of the soil is dried.

From the second half of September, watering is reduced, and the plant is transferred to a cool room. In the heat, the Schlumberger cactus evaporates a large amount of moisture from the leaves, so it should be sprinkled with soft water. Periodically it is necessary for the Decembrist to arrange a warm shower.

Top dressing

To Schlumberger's flower grows well and enjoyed a long flowering bloom, do not forget about regular feeding. From February to October, organic and mineral fertilizers for cacti are usually introduced into the soil, which can be purchased at a specialized store. During the formation of buds, the flower is poured with nutrient compositions for flowering plants.

The rest period

For the active development and luxuriant flowering of the Decembrist, the plant needs a rest period. After the end of flowering before the beginning of the growing season, the flower should be placed in a cool place and reduced watering to a minimum.

Reproduction

If you decide to propagate your beautiful flower, you should do this at the end of April or the beginning of May with cuttings from stems consisting of two or three segments. Carefully unscrew the cuttings from the mother plant and dry them for two days. After that they easily take root in moist soil, sand or water. It is possible to grow a Decembrist from seeds, but this is a rather troublesome and lengthy process.

Graft

Fans of experiments can grow grafted Decembrist, in the form of a small tree. As a stock, you can use other cacti: cylindrical tsereus, prickly pear, pereskiyu. Vaccination is done in early summer. The top of the rooted young cactus is cut with a very sharp knife, the upper part of the stem is split and a stalk of the Decembrist consisting of three segments is inserted into the cleft. The graft is fixed with a thin needle and tied with a string.

When the sections are merged, spines and leaves are removed on the cactus. After that, the bandage can be removed. As soon as the flower develops the crown, it should be tied to the peg to prevent breakage. Owners need to know, grafted plants are short-lived: they grow very quickly and soon lose shape. In addition, they are often affected by various rot.

Diseases, pests

If the Decembrist's withering or dying stem segments begin to appear, yellow spots appear on them, which means that the flower was struck by a flat red tick. The disease causes excessively dry air in the room.

Direct rays of the sun make the stems of the plant sluggish, the color of the segments pales. But this may be a sign that the root system began to rot in the absence of regular watering, or affected by pests.

If the flower discards segments, buds, then the temperature of the air in the room is too low. The same reaction can be given by the plant with insufficient watering, damage by pests and decay of roots. Lack of light or nutrients in the soil leads to the termination of flowering.

Often, the Decembrist is stricken with a scabbard. In this case, the leaves at first pale, then dry and fall off. If on the surface of the stem you notice wounding, then, probably, with infected soil, fungal diseases are included: phytium, fusariosis, phytophthora. To get rid of the disease, use fungicides.

If the flower has slippery and damp spots, it means that it is infected with a bacterial infection. The effect of antibacterial agents is not always effective, so it is more appropriate to remove the affected stem or part thereof.

Additional care tips

Many get a Decembrist, tempted by beautiful flowering, not knowing at the same time how to take care of him. Therefore, we will disclose to you some secrets of growing this flower.

1. The Decembrist has a poorly developed root system, so it should be grown in low pots.
2. If you have purchased a flowering plant, do not rush it immediately. Wait until it fades.
3. Young flowers are transplanted every year, and adult plants - in three years.
4. After the flowering, the plant can be plucked (not trimmed) the tops of the stems to give a beautiful shape to the crown. The stems will become more branched, many new shoots will appear.

Blossoming Flower Schlumberger is unusually beautiful: bright, attracting attention. At this time it becomes an ornament of any interior. If in natural conditions the Decembrist has only red flowers, then in indoor floriculture plants are grown today, pleasing multicolored buds. The flower belongs to the longevity. With proper care, he will decorate your apartment for twenty years.