How to raise potted crab claw orchid?

Crab claw orchid, also known as Christmas cactus, icing on the cake, crab orchid, etc., is the cactus family, crab claw orchid epiphytic succulent plant, common cultivation in parks and flower beds in our country, often grafted on Tianyu or other rootstocks to obtain luxuriant plants. Potted culture is suitable for window sill, entrance and exhibition hall decoration. Let's take a look at how potted crab claw orchid is raised.

Growth habits of crab claw orchid

Crab claw orchid is native to South America and Brazil, and is commonly cultivated in the tropics and subtropics around the world. Sex like cool, warm environment, more resistant to drought, afraid of high temperature and heat in summer, more resistant to shade. The suitable temperature for growth is 20 ~ 25 ℃, and the temperature during dormancy is about 15 ℃. Like loose, rich in organic matter, good drainage and ventilation of the matrix. Crab claw orchid is a short-day plant, under the condition of 8-10 hours of sunshine every day, it can blossom in 2-3 months, and the flowering period can be adjusted by controlling light.

The propagation method of crab claw orchid

1. Cutting: select robust and thick stem nodes, cut off 1-2 nodes, leave them in the shade for 2-3 days, and then insert the sand bed after the incision is slightly dry. The substrate is peat and sand with a proportion of 4:1, and the bed temperature is 15: 20 ℃. The humidity of the inserting bed should not be too high, so as to avoid excessive wet decay of the incision. The roots began to take root 2-3 weeks after planting, and potted plants could be planted 4 weeks later.

2. Grafting: it is often carried out in May-June and September-October. Pear cactus is used for large pot cultivation. Scion to choose the same year's strong stem nodes, generally a rootstock can be grafted into 3 scions, grafted in a semi-shady place to maintain high air humidity. If the scion remains fresh and stiff within 10 days after grafting, it has healed and survived and needs careful maintenance, and the grafted surviving plants can be transferred to normal management after 1 month.

3. Sowing: crab claw orchid needs artificial pollination before it can bear fruit. Indoor pot sowing is often used, and the optimum temperature for germination is 22 ~ 24 ℃. The mixed soil of peat, rotten leaf soil and coarse sand is used as sowing medium, and high temperature disinfection is needed before sowing. After the seeds of crab claw orchid are sown, the basin mouth is covered with glass to maintain the humidity of the basin soil. It sprouted 5-9 days after sowing. The seedlings grow slowly and should be managed carefully.

How to raise potted crab claw orchid?

1. On the basin: when the seedlings are on the basin, first put a broken tile or ceramsite 1 cm thick at the bottom of the basin as a filter layer, and sprinkle on it a layer of fully mature organic fertilizer as base fertilizer, about 1 cm to 2 cm thick. Cover a layer of soil, you can use a more fertile mixture of rotten leaf soil, peat, coarse sand, pH should be kept between pH5.5~6.5, and then put into the plant, to separate the fertilizer from the root system to avoid burning roots. Pour water once after putting on the basin and keep it in a shady environment for a week.

2. Watering: watering should vary with different seasons. although winter is the growing season, it is not suitable for watering because of low temperature, as long as you keep the basin soil moist, generally watering once every 4-5 days. The summer temperature is high, although shaded, the basin soil is still easy to dry, generally watering once a day or two. It can often spray water to the leaves in summer, which can not only prevent heat and cool down, but also make the plant grow well. Water every 2-3 days in spring and autumn.

3. Fertilization: fertilization was mainly carried out from September to October before flowering and from April to June after flowering, and rotten human feces and urine and cake fertilizer and water were applied every 10 days. Fertilization in spring is to promote multiple branches and leaves, mainly nitrogen fertilizer, it is not suitable to apply fertilizer in summer, otherwise it is easy to cause decay, fertilization in autumn is mainly phosphate fertilizer, which can make flower bud differentiation. Stop watering before fertilization, make the basin soil belt dry, the effect is better. Never use strong chemical fertilizers.

4. Temperature: the suitable temperature for the growth of crab claw orchid is 1525 ℃. It should be shaded and protected from rain in summer, and it should be placed under a well-ventilated windowsill or eaves porch. After autumn, it can be transferred to an indoor sunny place for cultivation. It is better to maintain the temperature at 15 ℃ in winter, but grow poorly and even suffer frost injury when the temperature is lower than 5 ℃. In a clear day, it should be exposed to the sun. Large plastic bags can be used to cover the plants on a cold night to prevent frost damage.

5. Light, crab claw orchid Xiguang is also very shady, the requirement for light is not high, indoor light can keep its normal growth, in summer, we must pay attention to prevent it from being directly exposed by the sun, otherwise it will be greatly damaged. In other seasons, as long as you put it in the window and other bright places, you can grow well, and put it in a shady place after flowering, which can prolong the flowering period.

6. Pruning, the growth of crab claw orchid is relatively fast, and its crown width can reach more than 50 cm after 3-5 years of culture. in order to control the plant shape, we should usually pay attention to the short stem nodes in spring and remove the weak or dense stem nodes at the same time. After thinning and cutting short, the new stem will grow more green.

6. Diseases and insect pests: we should pay attention to ventilation and light transmission at ordinary times, create a relatively dry small environment, and use chemical control when necessary, such as using methyl topiramate 800x liquid or 1000 times liquid, spray once every 7 to 10 days. If you find scale insects, you can spray fenvalerate 4000-5000 times every 7 days or so.

Points for attention of crab claw orchid

1. There is a period of dormancy after the crab claw orchid, at this time, the basin soil should be kept a little dry, after dormancy, when new buds grow at the top of the stem node, it can be watered normally.