Plants and Flowers

New Year’s and Christmas tree in pots and containers are very popular in the Western Europe (though there fur-trees are “rented� for holidays, and then are again planted in a ground). To tell the truth, sellers say that keeping of these trees in indoor conditions is a big problem – conifers hardly adapt to overdried air of heated premises.

If cypresses and araucarias quickly get accustomed to indoor conditions, potted firs would better be planted out in spring. At that it is advisable to give fur-trees time to adapt in room conditions, though the temperature should not exceed 10-15 degrees C.

Those who do not want to cut down trees or wish to enjoy longer may buy alive firs in containers.

Container plants are optimal for decoration of areas near offices, where planting out is impossible for some reasons. However you should remember that the fur-tree in the container will not live for more than three-four years.

It is very difficult to create the necessary water-temperature conditions in the container, to provide a plant with the necessary amount of nutrients: its root system suffers from lack of space in a wooden tub, and without well-timed transplanting the fur-tree can die.

After your beauty has finally felt at home in a new pot (it will take about two weeks), you should organize extranutrition. Roses can be added fertilizer in two ways: spraying or root fertilizing. Usually store fertilizers have precise instructions. Read it attentively and lower a little recommended dosage. During the spring-and-summer period fertilizing is needed once in two - three weeks, in the evening, after usual watering. In autumn and winter roses don’t require add fertilizer.

For comfortable existence of a rose in room conditions you should control temperature and humidity. During vegetation (in spring and summer) the soil should always be moderately damp, leaves can be sprayed from the bottom side with cold boiled water.

In a dormant period (in autumn and winter) roses are watered less often, soil in a pot stays dry for two - three days. Water should be a little bit colder than a room temperature. To struggle with dryness of air you may put a pot on the tray with damp stones (pebble), and moisten them as required. If the rose is located on a window sill, it will be useful to separate it from a room by a polyethylene screen; it will reduce harmful influence of dry hot air from batteries.

The native land is dry areas of the Western Asia and Balkan peninsula.

Type of a plant: a blossoming bush.
There are two kinds of small deciduous trees and the bushes distributed from the Mediterranean to the Himalayas and Socotra Island. The native land - Central Asia and Southeast Transcaucasia.

In room conditions grow pomegranate tree, brachytic. This is a small plant, up to 1 meter height, with large bright red flowers and small green leaves. Flowers with short styles - sterile (do not bear fruit) and with long - fruit-bearing.
Leaves oval, 3 centimeters in length. Pruning is needed to form a crone.

Pomegranate is light demander, during intensive growth it is recommended to take a plant out on fresh air. In winter this plant needs light cool room. Temperature 13-20 C, in winter till 6-10 C.
In summer pomegranate needs moderate watering, in winter - limited.
Transplanting - each 2-3 years.
Propagation – by cuttings in summer at temperature of 16-18 C and by seeds.
Dry and warm air can cause pests: coccids or web mite.

Doctors of the Middle Ages applied various parts of an orange in the medical purposes.
Many doctors of the Middle Ages recommended orange-peels against fever.
Orange and citric juices were considered as the most valuable remedies against scurvy.
Some people recommended to eat some oranges each day against a flu, furuncles and to improve intestines activity.
Orange water was given to slake thirst at fever.

Nowadays it is determined, that orange juice or fresh pulp of an orange improves appetite and digestion processes. The patients, suffering from constipation, are recommended to eat oranges in the morning on an empty stomach or drink orange juice in the evening before going to bed.

Oranges, due to potassium, an ascorbic acid and other vitamins in their content, improve the general state during hypertonic illness, atherosclerosis, illnesses of liver, podagra, adiposity. Fruits and fresh juice of an orange are effectively applied at avitaminosis.
Oranges are used for jams, candied fruits, and also for aromatization of confectionery.

All varieties of an orange tree cultivated in the world differ on color of fruit (yellow, red), and also on speed of fruit maturing (early, middle-early, late).

In comparison with other citrus plants, orange tree is more light-requiring, it should better to be located near southern window. This plant can winter in a room, but it is desirable to give it rest at temperature 6-8°С.

The orange-tree does not bear soil overwetting, but requires regular watering. In summer it needs plentiful watering, but without water stagnation; in winter watering should be limited, especially if the plant winters at the lowered temperature.

At a temperature about 0°С, when plants are in a dormant state, they without any damage tolerate almost full shading for 3-4 months. This significant shade tolerance of oranges during winter time promotes successful cultivation in room conditions.

Pests: aphid, coccids.

The presumable native land of this tree is Southern China. The main cultivation areas - the Mediterranean, Central and South America, Southern Africa, East Asia, Australia.
The world orange means “the Chinese apple” or from deformed Arabian world - golden.
It is an evergreen tree. Separate varieties have prickles.
In rooms reach 2-2,5 meters. Leaves are dark green, rounded at a base and with the pointed top, ovate-lenghthened.

This plant has 2-3 periods of growth. Leaves of a plant live for three years. The main crop is received from branches of 4-6 orders.
In comparison with a lemon tree, it is more light-requiring and heat-loving.
Fruits of an orange contain sugar, citric acid, vitamins, pectic and nitrogenous substances, cellulose, carbohydrates, mineral substances (potassium, calcium, phosphorus), and peel of a fruit - volatile oils.

Orange seedlings are used as a stock for lemons.
Orange tree doesn’t have sharply defined dormant period, therefore during the entire year they simultaneously grow, blossom and fructify. As well as lemons, they have 2-3 growth periods during a summer.

Watering: soft water is desirable, in winter and summer – moderate watering.
Air humidity: regular spraying
Transplanting: annually in spring. Soil: the sheet ground, humus, sod soil and sand (1:1:2:1).
Extranutrition: spring - summer - 1 time in 2 weeks mineral and organic fertilizers, winter - autumn - without extranutrition.
Pruning: does not require
Pests: coccids
Propagation: in the spring by offshoot or an apical aigrette

Ornamental pineapple is usually transplanted in 2 years in summer; dressed - 2 times a month from May through September.

After flowering and fructification the crown of a pineapple dies off, therefore it is necessary to take care of its vegetative propagation for the further cultivation.

Plant should be located at a south and a southwest window, in a light, well aired room, without shade, in winter at temperature 10-15 °С. During growth period (in spring and summer) it needs plentiful watering and spraying, feeding by organic and mineral fertilizers and since autumn watering is being gradually reduced. It is grown in soil mix from turf, humus and sand. It is propagated from seeds or more often by rooting of a top sprout, which is prudently cut from a ripened infructescence. It needs 2-3 days for predry and then is planted at a small depth in sphagnum. At a constant moderate moistening and in a warm room roots appear in 2-4 weeks. After that a plant is transplanted to another pot with appropriate soil mix.

After ending of flowering successful gardener will see compact pulpy golden-yellow collective fruit, from accreted sets, bracts, synconium and reminding a “cone”. Collective fruit ripens in 4.5-5 months. A tiny golden color fruit of decorative forms, the size 10 - 15 centimeters.

Pineapple sowing isn’t grown as an ornamental plant, but one may try to grow it out of curiosity, though risk of failure is big enough.
Light: straight and ambient sunlight.

There are 8 varieties distributed in Brazil, Paraguay, Venezuela, Columbia; it is cultivated in tropics and subtropics of both hemispheres. In hothouse collections there are 4-6 varieties, in room culture one only is known.

Ananas Ñ?оmоsus (L). Merr. (Ananas sativus Schult. f.) Land plant with strongly short stalk and crown of rigid linear ensiform leaves, when mature is 1 m height and 2 m in diameter. Leaves are gray-green, channeled, strongly narrowed to a top.
Flowers are teleianthous, 8 centimeters in length, and 4 in width.
Petals 1,2 centimeters in length, pinky-violet, sepals do not grow together, acanthaceous on edge.

Blossoms in March, April, July, December; multiple fruit matures for 4,5-5 months. The native land - Brazil; is met in open places, borders of wood, in rather thin herbages.

In Europe it is cultivated since 1650. It is known poecilophyllous variety ‘Variegatus’ - with green-cream longitudinal strips on the leaves, turning pink in bright light.

Planting stock with a young green bark, friable wood and having huge sizes frequently disappoint not very “wise” gardener, having died suddenly in a severe winter…

Delicate southern planting stock badly strikes root in cold conditions, especially if the matter is about sweet cherry and an apricot. But there is a simple way out: you may receive good and strong planting stock, having sown clingstones of these trees on a bed in your own garden.

An apricot-tree should be sown in the autumn in distances 25-30 centimeters between rows and 15-20 in a row. The next year planting stock should be planted farther apart.

With a sweet cherry the matter is little bit more difficult. Sweet cherries’ stones demand long stratification, that is keeping in damp sand in a refrigerator (temperature from 0 to 5 degrees C). During stratification the sand should be damp.