Chlorophytum comosum, generally often called spider plant, is a powerful home plant for newbies. It is easy to look after, tolerates common room situations, and is straightforward to propagate.
Spider crops look finest in hanging baskets or on tall stands or pedestals to indicate off their trailing foliage. Their variegated leaves and swish, fountain-like rising behavior add a phenomenal distinction and texture when grouped with different home crops.
Get to Know Spider Plant
The slender, arching leaves are darkish inexperienced with a creamy white stripe. Leaves develop from a central crown and might attain as much as 1 ft (30 cm) lengthy. Give this plant loads of mild for one of the best leaf shade. Vegetation grown in low mild could lose their variegation.
When lower than a 12 months previous, the plant produces small, white flowers on the guidelines of wiry, upright stems, known as runners. The runners are quickly laden with plantlets giving it a spidery look.
These plantlets — typically known as “infants” — are simple to propagate, supplying you with an ongoing provide of crops. For certain success, select younger, small plantlets after they start to develop roots for propagating as a result of older plantlets will root slowly. (See “Propagation” beneath for all of the how-tos.)
Spider plant readily grows plantlets which are simple to propagate. Picture © Bogdan SonyachnySpider Plant Issues, Options and Particular Helps
Repot in spring when the plant has outgrown its pot. Should you see roots rising out of the drainage holes, it is time to pot up. For one of the best development and flowering, use a pot that is just one to 2 inches bigger than the previous one. Keep in mind to at all times use a pot with drainage holes to forestall soggy soil, which might result in root rot.
No blooms? Spider crops prefer to be barely root-bound and can flower and produce plantlets finest when grown in a smallish container. Additionally, take it simple on the fertilizer — an excessive amount of will produce a number of leaves, however no flowers and plantlets.
Brown leaf suggestions seen on this plant could also be a symptom of scorching, dry air or dry soil. Or could also be brought on by fluoride, typically current in faucet water. Use distilled water, rainwater, or permit faucet water to take a seat in a single day in order that the chemical substances within the water will dissipate. Snip off brown leaf suggestions with scissors, if you’d like, to maintain the plant trying neat.
One thing bugging your plant? Look ahead to scale bugs. These tiny pests appear like brown discs that connect themselves to the leaves and stems. They are often scraped off the leaves. Isolate an infested houseplant to forestall them from transferring on to your different indoor crops.
Purchase a Spider Plant
This is likely one of the finest crops for bettering air high quality indoors. It has one of many prime removing charges of formaldehyde from tainted indoor air.
You will discover a couple sorts accessible. ‘Vittatum’ is the most typical selection, that includes a central white stripe on its foliage. ‘Variegatum’ has broader inexperienced leaves with reverse variegation: a inexperienced central stripe with white margins. ‘Bonnie’ sports activities curly leaves.
Spider Plant Care Ideas
Origin: South Pacific and South Africa
Top: Vegetation develop as much as 1 ft (30 cm) tall, with stems trailing to three ft (90 cm) in size.
Gentle: Give your spider plant shiny, oblique mild to take care of the variegation on the leaves. Preserve plant out of direct daylight as a result of it could possibly scorch the foliage, leaving dry, brown patches.
Water: Preserve soil calmly moist in spring and summer season, when spider plant is actively rising. In fall and winter, permit the highest 1-inch (2.5 cm) to dry earlier than watering once more. In case your faucet water incorporates fluoride, use distilled or rainwater to forestall brown leaf suggestions in your plant.
Humidity: Intention to take care of 45% indoor humidity year-round. If the leaves flip brown and crispy, increase the humidity round it. That is simple to do. Set the planter on a humidity tray or use a cool-mist room humidifier close to the plant.
Temperature: Common room temps 65-75°F/18-24°C go well with this tropical plant completely. It would not just like the chilly; do not expose it to something beneath 50°F/10°C.
Soil: Peat-moss based mostly potting combine, with added perlite and vermiculite for good drainage, resembling African violet combine.
Fertilizer: Feed each 2 weeks spring by summer season with a water-soluble fertilizer diluted by half. Do not feed within the fall and winter months, when development is gradual.
Propagation: Plantlets. Set a small pot full of damp potting combine subsequent to the plant. Sink a brand new plantlet into the soil of the small pot, in order that the foundation buds are barely coated. You could want to make use of a bent paperclip to carry the plantlet in place. It ought to root in 2-3 weeks. After that point, sever it from the father or mother plant. Spring is one of the best time for propagation, when spider plant is starting its most vigorous time of development.