Lycardtus crypto
Cryptanthus lacerdae
Motherland - Brazil.
The sprawling rosette reaches a diameter of 15 cm. Leaves are 8 cm long and 3 cm wide, lanceolate with a pointed tip, dense with a prickly edge. The upper side with three silvery longitudinal bands in the center and two located closer to the edge, the lower one is densely white pubescent.
Flowers are small, white.
Criptantus is very popular, and there are many spectacular varieties:
Cinnobar - leaves strongly wavy blue-violet with dark pink longitudinal stripes;
Florence Wasley - a powerful rosette of brilliant dark green leaves, at the base - bright green with barely noticeable transverse light green stripes and small spines along the edge, occasionally appear white flowers in the center of the rosette, forms numerous daughter sockets;
Glad - leaves smooth shiny with a groove in the center and small spines along the edge, red-brown;
Green Fields - leaves wavy grayish-green with an olive longitudinal strip in the center;Reverie - leaves slightly wavy dark, almost violet with silvery-pink stripes;Sun Juan - effectively painted leaves: a dark purple background with a silver-pink pattern along the central dark pink vein;Shades of Autumn - leaves shiny red with purple-black stripes passing through the center;White Lace - leaves broadly lanceolate blue-green with silvery narrow wavy transverse bands.
Courtship. The cryptus needs bright diffuse light, in the shade the effective leaves often lose their color. However, too bright light can cause shock. To form a symmetrical socket it is recommended to turn the plants from time to time. It is quite possible to grow cryptanthus under artificial lighting. The temperature in summer is 22-28 ° С, but not higher than 35 ° С, in winter - 16-18 ° С.Watering with moderate soft water, in summer it is necessary to spray, the increased humidity of air can be provided by placing the vessel with the plant on moistened pebbles or peat "pillows".
As a substrate, use a mixture of peat, leaf, humus and sand in a ratio of 1: 1: D: 0.5. - You can replace this mixture with ground "senpolia" or mix wood bark with sphagnum and peat soil. Feeded once in two weeks, alternating organic and mineral fertilizers. The most suitable option is a full mineral fertilizer with a ratio of N, P and K 10:10:10 or 14: 14: 14.
Is affected by a mealybug.
Propagate by vegetative lateral shoots, formed in the sinuses of the lower leaves, at a temperature of 20-22 ° C.The lateral rosettes are separated after flowering.