Calla lily or water lily is elsewhere known as gannet flower, It is that plant with slender white flowers that are found in many countries. This post will explain its main characteristics, as well as its basic care.
Alcatraz flower
Of the Reinos of living beingsspecifically in the kingdom Plant, The alcatraz plant was described for the first time in 1826, which also has different names such as jug mouth flower, water lily, etc., its gannet scientific name es Zantedeschia ethiopica and together with other species it is part of the class Liliopsida, order alismatales, family Araceae.
La gannet plant It can be found in almost the whole world, it comes from South Africa and little by little it was distributed to almost all the continents, although it is toxic, although it really is if it is ingested or if its sap makes contact with the skin, other than that it has various uses and various meanings in various parts.
In Ethiopia it was declared a national flower, in Galicia it stands out during the May festival because it is used more than other species and in Latin America it is used to decorate tombs. The flowers of this plant are really attractive and even elegant, that is why they have an ornamental value and are a perfect decoration for gardens and closed spaces.
Uses
Being considered an ornamental plant, people usually grow these flowers to have them at home and decorate certain spaces, since they can resist a variety of conditions, they can be placed in shady places, they can be planted as a semi-aquatic species or placed near a window. . This as a plant, as a cut flower or in the company of other flowers.
Some research concludes that this plant is capable of preventing the growth of algae in wastewater, also that it has certain properties that allow its medicinal use, for example, in South Africa its leaves and rhizomes are used to prepare a slightly thick liquid that is applied on wounds or bites as a therapeutic treatment.
Even so, this is a species that is toxic in all its parts due to its calcium ethanediate crystals, which is why its sap can sometimes irritate a person's skin or lips and can even cause diarrhea. So it is not recommended to eat it.
Gannet Characteristics
- La Alcatraz flower it can be a perennial plant or it can lose its leaves at a certain time of the year, this will depend on the amount of rainfall that there is or not in the place where it was grown, although it is mostly perennial.
- La gannet leaf it is quite bright and occurs in large numbers throughout the plant.
- Its flowers grow on each branch in a way that allows them to be defined as spadices that on average measure four or up to 18 centimeters in length. These flowers are characterized by their uncovered yellow anther, surrounded by a spathe that can be of various colors, so that it is possible to find color gannets white, yellow, orange, violet, among others.
- They are tropical flowers, taking into account their place of origin, so they prefer places where the climate is tropical, subtropical or warm. In addition to that, they begin to emerge when spring is just beginning and continue until summer is about to end.
- These plants are monoecious, that is, on the same stem there can be both female flowers and male flowers, generally the latter are positioned above the female ones.
Reproduction
This plant reproduces by means of seeds, but also by dividing the rhizome. This is something that happens only at the time of flowering, that is, during spring. That is the perfect time to plant it and even to make a transplant, the latter is usually done when you want to move it to a larger pot because its roots begin to come out of the holes in the pot it was in.
This transplant may be necessary when you see its roots, if there is no way for them to come out because there are no holes for drainage, you will know that it is time to change it when they are a little over two years old in the same pot.
Care
This is a plant that does not require too special care, regardless of having some of the ttypes of gannets existing (if the plant is differentiated by colors), so that it can really be grown without much problem inside or outside the home, in a garden or anywhere where it has shade. However, it is important to take into account certain important aspects so that it can grow healthily and be a plant.
Lighting and temperature
As indicated above, the alcatraz flower can be located both inside a house and outside of it. The important thing is to prevent the sun from reaching them directly, they grow healthily only when they have shade or semi-shade, this can be seen when their leaves grow very well and in the right seasons their flowers begin to grow.
This does not mean that the shade must be absolute or that not even a ray of sunlight should reach them, as all plants need lighting, only that it should not be direct, there are places where sunlight is indirect, for example, under a tree that provides shade, a little near a window, etc. that is where it should be located so that it can give flowers at the right time.
In terms of temperature, they are very well adapted to places where the climate is tropical or warm, they do not really survive long frosts, but they are quite resistant to such extreme temperatures. Some people tend to 'swaddle' them with padding during the winter, this is only necessary if it is known to be extreme weather, otherwise it can be omitted.
Soil and compost
The ideal soil for the gannet flower to grow very well is the one that has at least 30% perlite in its mixture, so that it can have good drainage, taking into account that it likes to be well hydrated. If planting in a garden, ensure that the substrate has enough organic matter to make it a rich, fertile soil with good drainage.
Regarding the fertilizer to be applied, it is advisable to choose a fertilizer that is liquid, those that are made with algae extract or the one that contains guano, the latter has a good nitrogen load. It is important to pay the Alcatraz flower from spring to summer when they spend the most energy to make their flowers grow. In the winter it is not so necessary because this is the time when they remain at rest.
It is also possible to prepare them at home, there are many recipes that can be found on the internet, learning how to make them naturally can be of great help if you want to take good care of the garden and enhance the plant life cycle.
Irrigation
Throughout their flowering they need constant watering, taking into account that they give flowers annually, it is important to keep them well hydrated, in winter they do not give flowers, only in spring and summer, and when autumn is coming they must return to Reduce the frequency of watering. In the winter it is not necessary to water them too much, in fact, they usually wither during that season, but it is something normal that happens when they are at rest.
Before watering them, you can remove those flowers and leaves that are withered, after that you can start watering little by little (twice a week) until you return to the frequency that will ensure its flowering, which would be about four times a week. . As always, it is important to prevent the soil from becoming waterlogged or from drying out completely. To check this, insert a wooden stick into the pot or into the soil. If when you remove it, it has a lot of soil stuck to it, it is not necessary to water yet.
Plagues and diseases
As for the pests that affect this species, sometimes aphids and snails attack them, but this is not very common since it only happens when there is too much humidity. Even so, its condition should be observed from time to time to prevent it from getting sick and dying, starting with the bulbs of its flowers, there you can see if they are affected by a pest or not, in that case it will be necessary to uproot it completely to not spread to other parts.
They can get sick from viruses (where you can see that their leaves have spots), bacteria (when their leaves show a yellow coloration) or fungi (the leaves also turn yellow and their flowers grow deformed).