If you are planning to buy a bird of paradise plant. Then before buying it you should learn about its growing needs.
The indoor environment is different from the natural growing habitat of indoor plants.
Bird of paradise is a plant that produces beautiful leaves. It is easy to care for because it needs less light and less fertilizer.
I have years of experience growing indoor plants. In this article, you will learn about the basic care and maintenance needs of this plant.
Light Needs
It needs plenty of bright light but you should not expose your plant to direct sunlight. This will result in a sunburned plant.
Place it near the sunny window and make sure it gets bright light for 5 to 7 hours per day.
If the light in your grow room is not sufficient for the plant. Then you can take the help of grow light. These are the lights that are made to grow plants in the absence of sunlight.
The good news is, that plants cannot differentiate between a grow light and natural light.
They just need the full spectrum of light to grow. These grow lights are designed to emit a full spectrum of light.
Plants absorb it easily and convert it into food.
I prefer using LED grow lights because these are less expensive, need less care, and have a long life span.
Watering
Use filtered water for watering birds of paradise plants. The tap water contains chlorine and fluoride. These substances are not required by the plants to grow.
Therefore, to save your plant from these unwanted ingredients you should only use clean drinkable water.
Always check the soil moisture level before watering it. You can use your finger to test the soil moisture or you can use the soil moisture testing kit to measure the exact moisture in the potting soil.
In the summer season, your plant needs more watering sessions than in the winter season. Because summer is hot and in hot weather due to high respiration plants need more water.
Pruning
You need to prune your plant a few times a year because it is a medium to fast-growing plant. The growth rate highly depends upon the growing conditions.
Under ideal growing conditions, it can easily grow 3 to 5 feet tall.
For trimming your plant, you should use sterilized tools only. To sterilize them you can use rubbing alcohol.
Common Problems with Bird of paradise
Dehydrated Plant
Dehydration is common with birds of paradise. Because excessive use of water can lead to root rot. Therefore, grows often give less water to their growing bird of paradise.
It becomes dehydrated and lack of water is the main cause of birds of paradise brown spots.
Remember that overwatering and underwatering both are equally harmful to the plant. To make a balance between watering applications. Always check the soil before watering.
Curling leaves
Too much bright light is generally the cause of the curling leaves of birds of paradise. When the high-intensity light strikes its leaves. The water stored in the leaves starts evaporating.
Hence the leaves become dehydrated but they need water to flourish.
Therefore, the leaves start curling themselves to hold the amount of water that is left.
To prevent such conditions, place your plant in a medium bright light. This way your plants use less amount of water and fertilizers.
To boost your plant health you should always use filtered water for indoor plants.
Conclusion
Growing and caring for a bird of paradise of simple and easy. Before buying this plant, you should decide on its permanent place first.
Expose it to bright light and give a limited amount of water. Your plant will grow healthy and disease-free.
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