Fenoccolus( fowl)
Family gesnerievye. The genus of senpolia. Natural climatic conditions: mountainous areas of tropical Africa.
Grassy perennial with a shortened stem and collected leaves of the rosette;leaves on long petioles, oval or broadly oval, up to 8 cm in length, wavy along the edges, pubescent, usually dark green on top and lighter, sometimes pinkish-red( depending on the variety) from below;flowers up to 3 - 5 cm in diameter;solitary or in loose cyst-like inflorescence, corolla widely open, stamens clearly visible in the form of a pair of velvety, usually yellow ovals, flowers can be simple and terry. More than one and a half thousand varieties of senpolia are known, differing primarily in coloring and coloration of the flower.
Varieties: "Amaranth" - simple violet flowers;"Blue ekay" - terry, large, sky-blue flowers;"Blue Danube" - large, simple, pale blue flowers;"Double Pink Giant" - terry, pink flowers;"Delft Imperial" - terry, with wavy on the edge petals, light blue flowers;"Bully" - semi-double, with wavy petals of white flowers with a lilac edge;"Lillian Gerett" large( up to b cm in diameter), terry, pale pink flowers;"La FAM" - large, terry, bright pink flowers;"Moor" - terry, cherry-violet flowers;"Mentor Boy" is a marble, dark purple-blue flowers;"Natalie * - terry, with wavy on the edge-petals, bright pink flowers;"Cloud" - rounded, white with a bluish tinge of flowers;"Plum type" - large( up to 5.5 cm in diameter), with pointed petals, lilac-pink with dark purple tips;"Paul Banyan" - terry, raspberry-purple flowers;"White Lady" - simple white flowers;"Smile of Spring" - simple, with flowers corrugated along the edge, pink on the main background, bright pink on the edges;and other varieties. With proper cultivation, the senpolia blossom up to 9 months a year.
Moisture requirement: optimum maintenance of moderate, but necessarily constant humidity;Spraying is not recommended( on the leaves there are burn-like spots).For the same reason, it is best to water the senpolis through a tray with warm water.
Temperature regimen: does not tolerate abrupt temperature fluctuations, the optimum temperature is 20 - 22 ° C, it can tolerate a short-term decrease of at least 12 ° C.Skvoznyakov does not tolerate.
Light mode: bright, but diffuse lighting is necessary, north, west or east exposure are preferable, in the south one needs shading. It grows well under artificial light.
Requirement for soil: optimum soil mixture from leaf land, peat, sand and dry mullein. For rooting, a special earth mix is required, which is prepared from chopped sphagnum, river sand or vermiculite and crushed charcoal in a ratio of 5: 3: 1.Drainage is mandatory, but the use of brick crumb is undesirable. Plants will develop better if the soil from above is covered with a layer of moss.
Reproduction: apical stem and leaf cuttings. Leaf cuttings can initially begin to take root in boiled water( before the formation of the first rootlets), and continue in the above-mentioned zemlezmesi. They are transplanted into the usual earth mix after the growth of daughter outlets began( in 2-3 weeks).Less often - seeds( seeds are small, dusty).
. Features: It is not possible to transplant frequently( no more than once every two years), as active vegetative growth will be observed at the expense of flowering. When transplanting in any case, you can not unduly overcharge the plant in the substrate: the petioles should be located just above the soil level, otherwise the plant may rot and die, but excessively planted plants are unstable. Young specimens are better to pass with a lump, slightly loosening its lower part. Top dressing is required in the case of cramped dishes, their abuse leads to a special disease, in which transparent watery spots appear on the leaves. In this case, top dressing is urgently stopped, and the damaged areas are gently washed with a warm( about 30 ° C) weak( light pink) solution of potassium permanganate. Adult plants grow well in a group planting.