| Life form | Grassy, ampel |
| Family | Gesneriaceae |
| Origin | Colombia |
| Ease of cultivation | Lightweight, suitable for beginners. |
| The size | Height up to 20-60 cm. |
| Growth rate | It grows quite slowly throughout the year. |
| Lifespan | With age, the plant loses decorativeness, therefore, in 2-3 years, it is desirable to rejuvenate the colyrium. |
| Temperature | In the summer: 73,4-75,2 ° F, in winter no less than 59 ° F, the plant is thermophilic and can die at low temperature. The plant should be protected from drafts. |
| Humidity | Spray the air around the colouration, avoiding moisture on the flowers and leaves, on which stains can form from the water. It is better to place the pot in a pallet with moist pebbles and do not spray the plant or use other methods of enhancement humidity. Keep plants away from radiators. |
| Lighting | Scattered light. Suitable for the east and west windows, should be shaded from the direct midday rays. In bright light the leaves of the colerium turn yellow and twist. With lack of light, there is no flowering. |
| The soil | Suitable light breathable slightly acidic soil. For own soil, you can take 2 parts ground sheet, 1 part coarse sand or perlite, 1 part peat, 1 part humus, you can add charcoal. It is mandatory to use drainage. |
| Watering | During flowering regular watering, approximately every 3-4 days, the top layer of the soil should dry slightly between watering. Use only soft warm water. With the onset of autumn watering cut, in winter to water 1 time a week. Water should not, if possible, get on the leaves and especially on the flowers. |
| Fertilizer | From April to September, once a month, a liquid fertilizer, diluted two-fold. You can use fertilizer for orchids. |
| Reproduction | The colonies are multiplied by dividing the rhizomes during a spring transplant. You can divide the rhizome in autumn.Seeds of cola are planted in January-February in a mixture of leafy soil and sand and are not sprinkled with earth. Cover the container with glass and germinate the seeds at a temperature of 71,6-75,2 ° F. The glass is removed every day for airing. Shoots usually appear on the 10th-12th day. After about 2-3 weeks they are dived. The plant is also spread by stems. At the same time, the flowers and the lower leaves are removed from the cuttings. To get a large plant, it is better to drop a pot into the 10-cm pot filled with a mixture of peat and sand, just 3 cuttings. Cuttings can (but not necessarily) be treated with hormones. Place cuttings in the conditions of scattered light. Rooting lasts 4-6 weeks, after which the plant can be transplanted to a permanent place. |
| Bloom | Blossom from May to September with tubular flowers of red color stains inside. |
| Transfer | Transplanted once in 2-3 years in the spring, while not necessarily increase the size of the pot. The pot should be low and wide, too deep pots are not suitable for coloring.Be careful not to damage the fragile roots of the cola. |
| Features of care | The needles should be cut at the end of flowering to a height of about 20 cm. Dry leaves and flowers should be removed in a timely manner. The plant does not tolerate drafts. |
| Difficulties | Even if the colony has been over-dried, its rhizomes often remain alive, and after a while the growth of the plant is resumed. The roots of the plant often allow the plant to survive adverse conditions. Sometimes, after a long flowering period, the leaves of the the plant begin to die. In this case, it is necessary to reduce the watering purposefully and allow the plant to dry completely, cut it off at the base, and subsequently, periodically moistening the substrate, to give new growth to the rhizomes.The plant can be affected by mealybug and thrips, aphids and spider mites. Brown spots on the leaves appear when watering the plant with cold water overnight. The plant is strongly stretched when there is a lack of lighting. Leaves can turn yellow from excess fertilizer. Leaves curl and fall in dry air. |
| Air cleaning | – |
| Toxicity | – |
