| Life form | Herbaceous plant, succulent plant |
| Family | Portulacaceae |
| Origin | Central Asia, the south of Ukraine, the Far East |
| Ease of cultivation | Easy to grow |
| The size | 10-30 centimeters in height. |
| Growth rate | Grows in one year |
| Lifespan | Grown up as an annual |
| Temperature | In the summer: room, although the plant tolerates heat. |
| Humidity | Low, the Portolaca tolerates dry air. |
| Lighting | Bright sun, some direct sunlight. Suitable south window. In the shade, the plant does not bloom, weakly branches and grows. |
| The soil | Suitable light permeable shop soil for succulents with a slight addition of sand (pH 5.5-7). For a mixture of own preparation, take: 1 part of leaf land, 1 part of greenhouse land and 1 part of coarse-grained sand or perlite, it is better not to add peat. Good drainage is required. |
| Watering | The top layer of soil between waterings in the summer should dry up. Water approximately every 10-15 days. Over-watering is the main cause of plant death. |
| Fertilizer | In summer, feed a weak solution of fertilizer for cacti every 4 weeks. Portulac can not be fed at all. |
| Reproduction | Seed propagation is possible, which should be removed in advance from the plant as it ripens and dried in a paper bag. Germinate fairly easily. It is desirable to plant in a container with good drainage. From above it is better to pour a layer of sand, into it to a depth of 2 mm it is necessary to plant seeds. In the future, water them regularly and carefully, the soil should never dry up. However, in the case of stagnant moisture, the seeds can rot. Germinate should be in a bright environment.Easily propagated by cuttings 5-10 cm long. The lower leaves are cut off at a distance of 2.5 cm from the cut. Cut the handle must dry a little. Sprout in a sand poured on a layer of peat. Leaves should not touch the sand. The container is put in a warm bright place, the cuttings are periodically sprayed. Cuttings take root within a few weeks.Rooted cuttings are planted several times in a low pot. |
| Bloom | It blooms in summer with white, orange, cream, pink, etc. 5-petalled flowers with a diameter of 2.5-3 cm. |
| Transfer | The plant is grown as an annual, so it does not need a transplant. |
| Features of care | In summer it is preferable to keep in the air in a place protected from rain. Flowers should be removed in a timely manner. |
| Difficulties | It is affected most often by mealybugs. Root rot is possible with excessive watering, the plant ceases to grow, the leaves turn yellow and fall off. The stems are stretched, the leaves grow smaller with a lack of light. |
| Air cleaning | – |
| Toxicity | – |
