Osmanthus — care at home

Osmanthus is a genus of evergreen shrubs and trees that belongs to the family Oleaceae.

There are at least 30 species of osmanthus, but at room conditions grown only one — «osmanthus heterophyllous».

Deciding to grow this plant at home, you need to consider that its contents need cool room.

And so, care for osmanthus is pretty simple.

Especially the osmanthus used as the basis for different medicinal infusions and decoctions, and its flowers give the tea a distinctive flavor.

Osmanthus in the home — care tips

 Location and lighting

Osmanthus prefers bright light. No problem to transfer a small amount of sunlight.

Temperature

It is very important the contents of osmanthus in the home when the temperature is above 20 degrees, at night it should not be above 15 degrees and not to stoop to the negative.

Watering

Osmanthus does not like excess moisture, so pour it sparingly, even in summer not more than 3 times per week. Watering only when the topsoil dries well. In winter, watering has practically ceased.

The exceptions are the young plants. The first 2 years of life, osmanthus it requires abundant watering, which helps to form a strong root system. Spray the plant only requires occasional.

Fertilizer osmanthus

Make a dressing 2 times each month in the spring and summer. Suitable liquid fertilizer for houseplants. It make diluted with water for irrigation.

Transplantation and propagation

Young osmanthus at home are transplanted annually in the spring. Over time, the growth of osmanthus is greatly reduced and, if the transplant is carried out not more than 1 time in 5-6 years.

Osmanthus propagated by cuttings. To do this, cut the stem cuttings with a length of approximately 10-15 cm and planted for rooting in a container with sand and peat mixture. Then, the future osmanthus covered with a film or glass container for the formation conditions of the greenhouse.

Constantly hold watering and ventilation. When the cuttings are rooted, transplant it into a pot.

Pests and fight with them

The pests most often occurs due to improper care. The most common «unwanted

residents» osmanthus are green aphids and scale insects.

To combat the latter are used to Akhtar, Kinmiks, Fitoverm.

The scale is first removed from plants with a cloth soaked in soap or alcohol solution, and then subjected to processing plants Acheroy, Actellic or Bitlines.