Myrtle tree - home care

German brides decorate themselves with wreaths from myrtle on the day of the celebration, it is believed that this will help to make family life harmonious and happy. In addition, an amazing plant has a lot of useful properties. Grow it on your windowsill can anyone who has minimal skills for caring for green pets.

Short description

In the wild, myrtle tree grows in the Mediterranean, found in Italy, France, Spain. It prefers a warm mild climate with short winters, so in Russia it is most often cultivated as a house plant.

Myrtle tree - a great option for growing at home

A representative of the Myrtov family may be a shrubbery or a short tree. The height of the trunk is up to 0.7 meters, but in the natural environment it grows up to 5 meters.

Myrtle features:

• Evergreen view.
• The leaves are deep green, with tiny streaks. They are rich in essential oils, therefore they produce an amazing aroma.
• The flowers are small, white. Collected in inflorescences or solitary.
• The round fruits of the myrtle are deep blue. Seeds inside can be used for reproduction.

You can grow myrtle at home on the windowsill, this does not require narrow knowledge

Popular varieties and types

There are more than 30 varieties of myrtle in nature, many of them are notable for good decorativeness, grown in greenhouses and greenhouses. But for the flower garden in the house, some are suitable.

The simplest is considered myrtle ordinary, attractive, but undemanding to care. You can also plant such varieties in your apartment:

• Kassandra (swamp variety of myrtle), height up to a meter. Suitable for responsible gardeners without children and pets, as it is poisonous.
• Hymen. It is considered the patron saint of the newlyweds.
• Communis. Decorative variety with snow-white odorous flowers.
• Variegated. Beautiful elegant plant with bright color leaflets.
• Citric. It has a delicate, unobtrusive citrus scent.
• Alhambra. Flowering with tiny white flowers falls in the spring.
• Large-leaved. Known for its ability to kill bacteria. It cleans the air, the leaves of this myrtle are used as raw materials in alternative medicine.

Any of these varieties of southern plants can be grown independently.

Myrtle tree: home care

Myrtle in a pot will feel great if you create suitable conditions for it. Here are the basic requirements for the right placement:

• Lighting is sufficient, but from direct better sun the flower should be fenced with openwork shading.
• It is important to protect the myrtle tree from drafts, but the influx of fresh air will benefit him.

Myrtle is unpretentious, but it must be grown in compliance with all the rules

Temperature requirements

A guest from southern countries needs a warm climate. In winter, it is enough to maintain the temperature up to 11 degrees, since the plant is at rest. In summer, for normal growth and stimulation of flowering, the permissible parameter is + 23 ... +25 degrees.

Humidity and watering

Myrtle is a moisture-loving culture, watering the tree should be regular. In the summer, it is important not to allow the soil to dry out. The plant also responds well to spraying from a spray gun.

In winter, rarely watered, 1-2 times a month, as the soil dries. The plant is not recommended to be planted in a pot with automatic irrigation, it is demanding on moisture, so the process is better to keep under control.

Feeding

Here's what you need to feed myrtle:

• in the summer 2 times a month to use mineral complexes for flowering;
• for flowering - phosphorus compounds;
• for growth - nitrogen-containing preparations.

In winter, fertilizer is not produced.

Flowering period

Caring for the myrtle tree during flowering is quite simple. Key recommendations:

• Provide the flower with good lighting and fresh air. You can put the pot on the balcony, protecting it from sunburn.
• Phosphoric preparations will prolong flowering and increase its splendor.
• The frequency of irrigation and spraying is increasing.

Proper care and timely top dressing will help to get lush flowering of the Mediterranean fragrant tree

Rest time and winter preparations

For the plant create special conditions: temperature - + 9 ... +11 degrees, the place should be bright. Watering is reduced to 1-2 times a month and only with dry soil. Fertilizing a flower is not required. Lowering the temperature and moisturizing is not carried out abruptly, but smoothly, in order to prevent excessive stress for the plant.

Trimming

In order for the myrtle tree to look neat, it is important to trim - forming a crown. The time for the procedure is spring or autumn, after flowering is complete. Here is an instruction that tells you how to form a myrtle:

• Trimming the top will give the crown a fan shape.
• It is necessary to trim the side shoots to achieve the desired level of splendor.

Do not get carried away, a very small number of side branches is the reason for poor flowering. Flower buds simply have nothing to form on.

Transplant

You can "transfer" myrtle into a new pot for the following reasons:

• New plant just purchased at the store. The flower grower cannot be sure of the quality and safety of the soil, so you should not risk it.
• If a tree has grown and it has become crowded in a pot.
• When waterlogging the soil. If not transplanted, the roots will rot and the myrtle will perish.

Soil selection

The key to successful indoor tree cultivation is a good land for myrtle: what soil is needed, experienced flower growers have already installed. Soil is needed acidic, fertile. It is allowed to buy a finished substrate or mix it yourself. Example composition: turf, humus, peat and sand in a ratio of 2: 2: 1: 1. Perlite, brick chips, and small pebbles are suitable for the drainage layer.

If you do not forget about the rules of transplantation, then the plant will certainly thank elegant flowers with a delicate aroma

Pot requirements

Myrtle at home will feel comfortable in a small pot. Its diameter should be sufficient to accommodate the root system, but not large. The material can be anything, but the most spectacular will look myrtle tree in a clay pot.

Instruction manual

Here is a step-by-step description of the transplant process:

1. Water the plant per day.
2. Gently get the tree, holding on to the trunk and supporting the crown.
3. Try to clean the roots from the ground, straighten, remove damaged.
4. Pour drainage into the pot, then the substrate.
5. Place the seedling in the center of the container.
6. Sprinkle with soil.
7. Tamp carefully.
8. Abundantly irrigate.

Breeding options

Two popular methods are used - seed and cuttings.

Seeds

Sufficiently long and laborious way. Seeds are placed in a container with a substrate consisting of equal parts of sand and peat. Abundantly watered. Sprinkle on top of the same soil mixture, then cover with glass.

Myrtle seeds can be obtained from fruits

A container with seeds is put in a cool place (temperature - not higher than +18 degrees). Air every day, water - as needed.

Cuttings

A more popular method among gardeners. The preparation of cuttings is carried out at the end of winter or in the middle of summer. Young cuttings are cut from the mother plant to a length of 7-19 cm, the leaves are removed.

They are treated with Epin, planted in the soil and moistened. To create a greenhouse effect, cover with a PET bottle on top. After 3 weeks, rooting will occur.

Popular diseases and pests

Indoor myrtle is unpretentious, but some diseases and insects can cause damage to the plant. It is important to notice the problem in time and take action.

Foliage begins to dry up and fall off when there is a lack of light, violation of the watering schedule, soil poverty, nitrogen deficiency in its composition. You need to properly care for the tree and this problem can be easily avoided. With excessive lighting, the leaves turn yellow and lose their luster.

The main pests: aphids, mealybugs, scale insects, thrips. They are removed manually, if there are a lot of insects, they use insecticides. For prevention, the leaves are dusted with tobacco powder.

Such is the fragrant myrtle that feels great in urban apartments. Those who cultivate this guest from the Mediterranean, note that the air in the room becomes clean, and infectious diseases visit the family much less often.