| Life form | Shrub, tree |
| The family | Meliaceae |
| Origin and Distribution | China, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam |
| Easy growing | Very unpretentious. |
| Size | At home to 1.5-2 m, in nature – up to 20-30 m. |
| Growth rate | High enough, for a year grows by about 50 cm. |
| Lifetime | Perennial |
| Temperature | The content is at normal room temperature from 64,4 to 77 ° F. The plant is sufficiently resistant to colds, can withstand a short drop in temperature, even to 14 ° F. In winter, it can provide a period of rest, placing in cool conditions at a temperature of 50-59 ° F on the northern sill. In this case, watering the flower should be extremely rare. |
| Humidity | It can adapt to different humidity conditions, but its higher level is preferable. It is advisable to place the pot in a pallet with wet claydite, especially in winter when the heating is on. When sprinkled with hard water on the leaves, unattractive traces remain, which are then hard to wash off. |
| Lighting | The brightest scattered light is preferable, the content on the eastern and western window will fit, and you can also place the pot near the southern window. More light stimulates abundant flowering and enhances the aroma of flowers. |
| Soil | A well-drained fertile soil is required, for example, from peat, sand, garden soil, you can add semi-decomposed needles. The optimum pH level is between 5 and 6. |
| Watering | It should be moistened as the surface of the substrate dries, the soil between the irrigations should not dry completely. When watering, you should wait until the water starts to drain out of the drainage holes. Excessive moistening can lead to decay. At the same time, with insufficient watering, the leaves lose the turgor and hang, after moistening they quickly restore the form. However, if you often forget to water in time, the lower leaves will begin to fall. |
| How to fertilize | It is required to feed during the growth period approximately every 2 weeks. To stimulate flowering it is necessary to use fertilizers for flowering plants. |
| Reproduction | Aglaya is difficult to reproduce with the help of cuttings. Nevertheless, in the spring, half-aged cuttings about 15-20 cm long can be rooted. Before germination, they must be treated with corn root. Rooting in the water lasts about 2 weeks. According to the observations of the majority of florists, during the summer period the cuttings practically do not take root. Seed propagation can be used, however, it is rather difficult to obtain seeds, since the plant is dioecious, that is, male and female flowers are on different individuals. |
| Flowering | The flowers are small yellow in the form of miniature balls, have a pleasant sweet lemon scent. Aglaya is sometimes called a Chinese perfume plant. At the same time, some growers say that they do not smell the flowers of Aglaia. Explain this contradiction by the fact that the fragrance is felt not close to, but at some distance from the plant, mainly in the morning. In this case, the room conditions are of great importance: the humidity level and the temperature. At home, sometimes there are problems with flowering, then the aglaia is used as decorative. |
| Transplant and care | Transplanted as the size of the root system increases: when the roots fill the entire pot, the flower should be transplanted into a larger one. Young specimens are transplanted annually. It is better to use clay pots. It responds well to summer outdoor maintenance: the plant can be taken out on a balcony or in the garden. In spring it is desirable to prune the flower, but it is undesirable to cut off all the newly formed shoots of the past year to the base, it is necessary to leave them at least partially. It is required to delete all dead and damaged branches. It is also useful to pinch the plant during the growth period for its greater branching. At present, there are compact varieties that almost do not need formation. Can be grown in a bonsai culture. If you do not turn the pot during the growth period, the crown will be asymmetric. |
| Difficulties | Aglaya is extremely resistant to pests. The flower growers noticed that even when they are among plants infected with a mite or scab, it does not become infected. There is a danger of defeat by mealybugs. Under the most unfavorable growing conditions, it is unlikely, but possibly the appearance of a spider mite or aphid. |
| Toxicity | Not poisonous. |
