Takka - home care, photo species and varieties

Tacca is a perennial plant belonging to the Dioscoreian family. In the tropics, a flower is called a black lily or a bat due to external similarity. The homeland of Takki is the countries of Southeast Asia: India and Malaysia. The size of this herb in home growing conditions can reach 60 cm.

The growth rate of taka is quite high. A plant is rarely seen at someone's house due to the difficulty of growing it. Therefore, taka will be suitable as an indoor flower only for experienced gardeners. The flowering of a perennial tack is observed year-round: several small black flowers are collected in the center, and large bracts surround them.

See also how to grow indoor Tabernemontana and slipway.

	High growth rate.
	It blooms throughout the year.
	The plant is difficult to grow. Suitable for an experienced gardener.
	Perennial.

Useful properties of taka

Tubers of plants in tropical countries are used for the preparation of confectionery, as they contain a lot of starch. But these tubers need to be able to process correctly: they also contain a special toxic substance - toccalin.

Tacca Chantrier. A photo

Takka berries are eaten, fishing nets are weaved from stems. Useful properties of taka for medicinal purposes are used only by doctors with great experience, since the plant can be harmful if used improperly.

Taka: home care. Briefly

Temperature mode	High: in summer at least 23-25 ​​degrees, in winter - at least +18 degrees.
Air humidity	For the successful cultivation of taka, an increased level of humidity (60-90%) is required.
Lighting	For growth, bright diffused light is needed, the pot is placed in a bright place.
Watering	It is plentiful in the summer, and in the autumn it is reduced to 1 time in 3 weeks.
Soil for taki	At home, growing requires light airy soil with a slightly acidic environment.
Fertilizer and fertilizer	In spring and summer, fertilize once every 2-3 weeks, the rest of the year - once a month.
Taki transplant	Once every 2-3 years, the best time for a transplant is early spring (March or early April).
Breeding	Most often carried out by children of basal shoots, can be propagated by seeds.
Growing Features	It does not tolerate drafts, it requires a lot of space for growth.

Taka care at home. In detail

Flowering taki

The plant is able to bloom throughout the year. The flowers are black and small; they look like buttons. They are collected in the center, and outside, large bracts of a similar color hang on them. Long threads (up to 70 cm) go down from the flower.

Temperature mode

The plant in the natural environment grows in the tropics, so it is necessary to provide homemade takka with an optimum comfortable temperature regime for growth and reproduction. In the summer, the temperature in the room should be from 20 to 30 degrees, from autumn it is recommended to maintain the temperature at 20 degrees.

The main rule: in the room where this tropical flower is located, the temperature should not be less than 18 degrees. A light breeze favorably affects the plant due to a rush of fresh air, but drafts should be avoided.

Spraying

For takka at home, high humidity is required, so its leaves and flowers need to be moistened daily with a sprayer. Dry air has a bad effect on the flower, so if possible, you need to put a humidifier in a room with a takka.

Lighting

The plant feels good in a bright place, but it is advisable to shade it. It is also necessary to protect the takka from direct sunlight (it can cause burns). It is best to put the pot on the windows of the southeast or west side.

Watering taki

In the summer, a lot of fluid is required: watering should be carried out regularly, the water should be warm and soft. Between watering it is imperative to pay attention to the soil: the top layer of the soil should dry out, but the whole earth should never be dry. Excess fluid from the sump is recommended to be removed.

Leaves with a lack of moisture begin to slope down, their turgor decreases. In autumn, a plant such as taka can have a dormant period at home: at this time it should not be watered abundantly - it will be enough 1 time in 3 weeks.

Taki pot

For a plant, it is best to choose those containers that will correspond in size to the size of the transplanted divisions. It is better if the pot is slightly larger - a wide and shallow container is suitable for this. If the plant is already very large, then a closer look is at the ceramic flower pot: then the plant will not roll over.

Priming

The best option for takki is loose soil, which easily passes air. Gardeners also use a soil mixture that is sold for orchid cultivation. You can make soil for takki at home: for this you need to mix turf and leafy soil (1: 2 ratio), add sand and peat (1: 2) to them.

Fertilizer and fertilizer

It is recommended to fertilize the plant in the spring and summer, you can extend it until mid-autumn. In winter, taku is not fertilized. For dressing, classic flower fertilizers are used, but only at half the dose from that indicated on the package. You need to enter them into the soil 1 time in 2 weeks.

Taki transplant

It is carried out only if such a need arises. The best time for this is spring: the roots of takki after wintering are most ready for transplanting. A pot for a new plant is better to choose a slightly larger size than the past: a wide capacity is suitable for this, but not very deep.

Before transplanting a tack, you need to lay out a drainage layer at the bottom of a new pot.

Pruning

It is produced as necessary: ​​dry foliage and flowers are removed from the plant. If the plant is preparing for propagation, then before dividing the rhizome, you need to trim off everything that rises above the surface of the soil.

Rest period

Falls in the fall: September-October. During this period, the plant should not be transplanted; takka care at home is also limited: watering is now carried out every 3 weeks.

Growing taka from seeds

The flower has many seeds that can be used for propagation. Before sowing, they must be prepared: the seeds are placed in warm water for a day. In the future, loose soil is used as soil, the seeds are planted to a depth of 1 cm.

To maintain a high level of humidity, the container after transplantation is covered with a film to form condensate. For faster growth, the temperature should be quite high: at least 30 degrees.

The first sprouts appear after sowing after 1-9 months: the time depends on the seeds and the characteristics of their care.

Breeding takki division of the rhizome

In order to transplant the taka by dividing the rhizome, you must first cut the leaves and stems of the plant that rise above the surface of the earth. Next, very carefully, using a sharp knife, you need to divide the rhizome of taka into several parts.

The slice must be treated with crushed charcoal, after which all rhizomes must be left for a day to dry. The selection of the pot is carried out according to the size of the dividers, it is filled with air soil.

Diseases and Pests

During the breeding period, the following problems may occur:

• the tips of taka leaves turn brown - this can occur both from excess moisture and from exposure to dry air;
• the leaves of the takka darken, but remain soft - excess moisture during watering;
• rot taki roots - excess moisture.

The plant is infrequently affected. The main pests are a spider mite, with excess moisture, rot appears.

Types of homemade taki with photos and names

Leontolepteca Tacca (Tacca leontopetaloides)

Tacca leontolepiform (Tacca leontopetaloides) - has the highest height: it can reach 3 meters. The leaves are also quite large, up to 70 cm in length and up to 60 in width. The flowers of this species of takka are purple-green in color, above them are two large bracts of pale green color. They are very long, can be up to 60 cm. After the flowering period has ended, berries are formed instead of flowers.

Whole-leafed or White Bat (Tacca integrifolia)

This species has leaves with a mirror-smooth surface that are inferior in width to the previous species: they reach 35 cm, but the leaves can be up to 70 cm long. There are two white bedspreads on top of the leaves, their size is no more than 25 cm. The flowers are most often black-and-white purple, may be purple. In their place after flowering, again, fruits are formed.

Tacca Chantrier or Black Bat (Tacca chantrieri)

This species of takka has a certain similarity with the previous species, due to their close relationship. The plant reaches a height of 100-120 cm. The leaves at the base take a folded shape, quite wide. The flowers of the Chantriere taka are brown-red in color; there can be up to 20 of them on one plant. The bract is burgundy in color, externally the flower of both the whole leaf and Chantrye resembles a bat, where the name comes from.

Watch the video: Pangolins: The Most Trafficked Mammal You've Never Heard Of. National Geographic (May 2024).