How to raise succulents in greenhouses

Planting and transplanting?

The best time for planting and transplanting is before the dormant period of the plant ends and the vigorous growth period has not yet arrived. Depending on the climate in different places, it is appropriate for winter dormant species to be carried out from early to late March, and for summer dormant species from late August to mid-September. However, there are no restrictions on newly introduced plants, plants that are not growing well, plants that are too crowded and need to be divided into pots, and those that need to be repotted before being exhibited. This can be done as long as it is not a hot summer or a severe winter. ?Cultivation soil should be prepared in advance. Those that have been steam sterilized should be spread out to dry to make them slightly dry, while those that have been exposed to the sun should be sprayed with water or medicine to make them moist but not too wet. The pot and the broken pot pieces that line the bottom of the pot should be washed, and new mud pots should be soaked in water. Except for a few plants with fleshy roots, the pot should be as shallow as possible. If the area of ??the shallow pot is too large, several plants can be planted in one pot. When potting large plants, you should put more drainage at the bottom of the pot. You can arrange the size of the water particles to put them in several layers, and put the largest ones at the bottom. After the drainage is placed, first put coarse-grained culture soil and then fine-grained culture soil. After placing the plant, add soil while lifting the plant slightly upward to stretch the roots. Do not add too much soil at once. Use a bamboo skewer along the edge of the pot. Tamp the soil evenly, and finally tap the pot a few times to level the soil. ?The roots of plants that are planted or transplanted must be carefully inspected, and black dead and semi-dry roots with nodules and no root hairs must be cut off. Healthy roots should be shortened appropriately. When transplanting many spherical species of cacti, you can cut off all the roots and leave only the base, and then dry the roots upward for a few days before planting. This will make the roots more abundant and the new roots more absorbent. It is best to cut off part of the root system and let the roots dry for a while. Do not water them immediately after planting. Roots will grow faster in moist soil (you can water them in a circle appropriately, but do not need to water them thoroughly). However, the air humidity should be maintained and properly shaded. When watering is necessary, water it enough at one time. If you find water leaking out of the bottom of the pot immediately after watering, it means there are pores in the pot soil. You can insert it with a bamboo skewer after it dries. If you still don’t see water leaking out of the bottom of the pot, then It may be that there is too little watering, but it may also be that the bottom of the pot is too tightly padded and must be replanted. ?There are advantages and disadvantages to whether the surface of the potting soil is paved with gravel or not. When watering after laying gravel, the pot soil will not contaminate the plants, but it is difficult to judge whether the pot soil is wet or dry. For succulents during their aestivation period, laying a layer of gravel on the pot soil will help reduce the temperature of the pot soil. It is best to lay a layer of gravel on the pot soil with thick, drooping leaves that rot when exposed to water. During the exhibition period, you can temporarily lay a layer of gravel on the pot soil for photography. Generally, there is no need to lay gravel. ?

2. Watering and spraying To master the watering techniques of succulent plants, you must first understand the dormancy habits of each species. Excessive watering during the dormant period will easily cause the plants to rot. For example, if you water dormant Lithops in summer, the plants will rot immediately. If you water dormant cactus in winter, it will cause root rot or be susceptible to freezing. Although it grows in winter, It doesn’t necessarily rot, but it will rot in the spring. ?Secondly, we should carefully observe the growth of each plant. Some people think that some plants are lacking water when they see red leaves, dry leaf tips and old leaves. In fact, this phenomenon may occur if the light is too strong, the pot soil is short of water for a long time, the root system is damaged, the root neck rots, the root neck is bitten by insects and then automatically repairs the scab, resulting in poor water transportation. Therefore, being familiar with the growth conditions of plants is very helpful for mastering watering techniques. Generally, plants that grow particularly vigorously and plants in the flowering and budding stage have higher water requirements, and their watering should be timely as much as possible: while some plants with basic growth The old and large balls that have been stopped need to be watered less frequently. ?Finally, when watering, you should consider the temperature, air humidity, greenhouse ventilation, the size and material of the pot, whether the roots extend down to the sand bed, etc. The purpose is to help determine whether there is a lack of water in the pot. When cultivating other potted flowers, you can generally decide whether to water or not based on whether the pot soil on the surface is white. However, in succulent plants, judging based on this will cause errors, because the cultivation soil of succulent plants is usually mixed with sand, vermiculite, and pumice. , shell powder and other substances can easily cause the surface of the pot soil to turn white. Especially when the proportion of these substances is large, the surface of the pot soil will often turn white the next day after watering, but at this time, the pot soil below is not short of water at all. Some experts pointed out that when the surface of the pot soil is 1 cm dry and the lower part of the pot soil is still moist, the absorption of the roots of succulents reaches the maximum value. If you follow the routine and water the pot soil as soon as it turns white, it will cause Excessive watering affects the growth of plants. ?The best time for watering is early morning in summer, before noon on a sunny day in winter, and in the morning and evening in spring and autumn. Under normal circumstances, do not pour water from the top, otherwise there will be unsightly spots on the sphere over time. The hairs of the trichome type are easy to be contaminated and adhered. Water accumulation at the growth points such as the green flower palm will cause rot. When pond water splashes on plants, algae can easily grow, which is as unsightly as moss. Under normal circumstances, watering must be sufficient. To this end, the soil must be loosened frequently so that the pot soil can easily absorb enough water evenly. ?In addition to timely watering, the air humidity of the cultivation site is crucial. Some cultivators use fish tanks or glass boxes for closed cultivation, and water them 2-3 times a year. Some even water once for a year after repotting. However, the air humidity in the box is very high, the fog is rising, and the glass is completely condensed. water droplets. In this way, the plants will not feel lack of water and will grow well. Of course, this approach only applies to some types.

There are many ways to increase air humidity, such as placing a reservoir or water tank in the greenhouse, sprinkling water in the walkways, etc., or spraying directly on the plants. Rainwater is the best water for spraying. Tap water should be left for a day before use. Other water is best. It's best not to spray water droplets very finely. The amount of water sprayed should be controlled so that the water droplets will not gather into a stream on the surface of the plant, but should stop when there are droplets of water on the surface of hairs, thorns, and leaves. Especially in dry weather. It can be sprayed several times a day.?

3. Fertilization?

Fertilization is generally carried out in spring and autumn, and stops during the high temperature period in midsummer. If there is heating in winter, some plants will continue to grow or grow in winter. Flowering species can be fertilized, but most species should never be fertilized. The concentration of fertilizer should be controlled to be light rather than thick. It is better to apply several times more than to take the risk of applying heavy fertilizer all at once. Taking oil cake as an example, the concentration can be controlled as follows: after crushing the oil cake, add water 8-10 times. After it is fully decomposed, take the clear night and dilute it 20-30 times before use. In addition to oil cakes, commonly used organic fertilizers include pigeon manure, chicken manure, bone meal, etc. Human excrement can also be applied to plants used as rootstocks, but they must be fully decomposed. Chemical fertilizers such as urea, ammonium sulfate, potassium dihydrogen phosphate, etc. can also be applied, but do not apply them directly to the plant stems and leaves. After application, spray water once. For home cultivation, a variety of commercially available solid and liquid flower fertilizers can be used according to instructions. Some commercial flower fertilizers are mixed with a certain amount of hormones, which can promote the growth of crab claws and other plants after spraying. ?Do not fertilize newly potted plants within a month. Do not use salty vegetable soup, fresh milk, or soy milk. Before fertilizing, the pot soil should be made as dry as possible, and some plants with poor growth or root problems should be removed and placed separately, and then the soil should be loosened before fertilizing. ? 4. Heatstroke prevention and cold resistance?

(1) Heatstroke prevention: When the temperature exceeds 30 degrees Celsius in summer, the temperature in the shed often reaches above 40 degrees Celsius. If such high temperatures are allowed to continue, it will be very harmful to the growth of succulent plants. Therefore, in summer, try to ventilate and cool down as much as possible. In addition to opening doors and windows, mechanical ventilation should be used around noon. In addition to opening the doors at both ends of the film greenhouse, the film underneath can be rolled up by tens of centimeters to facilitate air convection. At the same time, shading should be strengthened and 2 layers of shading net should be used on sunny days in summer. The hotbed glass should be painted white, and the top glass window can be raised when the temperature is high. The thermostat should have its flaps and ear windows open and shaded. ?But temperature control measures often conflict with air humidity, light, etc. Therefore, water spraying and spraying should be strengthened after ventilation. To increase air humidity, shade nets or curtains should be removed on rainy days. Some succulent plant cultivators in Shanghai often pull up and remove the sunshade net several times during the rainy days. This operation is labor-intensive but very beneficial to plant growth. ?Summer dormant species (currently mainly refers to Apricotaceae and a few Crassulaceae plants) are most afraid of high temperatures, and the above general measures alone cannot achieve the effect of preventing heatstroke. In the case of unconditional mechanical cooling, the following soil methods have a certain cooling effect:?

① Spend the summer in the water tank, that is, place the potted plants in the water tank to help you spend the summer safely. The sink must have a certain depth and have an overflow at a certain position to take away heat through the continuous flow of water. Invert empty pots or place bricks in the sink. The overflow should not be higher than them, and then place potted plants on them. ? ② Bury the plant and the pot in the sand bed. The sand in the bed should not exceed the root and neck of the plant. Inject water into the bed regularly. ?

③Put it in the pergola. The so-called pergola refers to a large shed with a translucent roof and all sides open or covered with a sunshade net on the west. The roof material is fiberglass tiles, glass or film, which must be shaded, and then the plants are placed in the pergola. It is best to surround the pergola with grass or shade. If you combine the pergola with the sink, the effect will be more ideal. ?

(2) Cold resistance: Most terrestrial cacti (referring to plants cultivated from their own roots) and succulent plants of the family Daceae, Romaceae, and Agaveceae that are dormant in winter. Just put it in a film greenhouse, cold greenhouse, hotbed or warm box to overwinter, and keep the pot soil dry until spring comes. Generally speaking, as long as there is enough sunshine, you can survive the winter safely even if the night temperature occasionally reaches 0 degrees Celsius. ?Succulents that do not go dormant in winter must maintain higher temperatures. Foreign reference books say that the temperature is above 10-12 degrees Celsius. According to the author's practice, watering can be normal when the temperature reaches 7 degrees Celsius: if it can only maintain 5 degrees Celsius, it must be kept dry. However, because Lithops and other plants are producing new leaves at this time, it is best to keep them above 7 degrees Celsius. ?For most species of the genus Anthropodium, foreign reference books require maintenance of 12-15 degrees Celsius. However, according to practice, as long as the pot soil is kept dry and the sun is sufficient, it can survive the winter safely if the temperature is above 5 degrees Celsius. If it can be maintained above 10 degrees Celsius, you can continue to water it to make it bloom and bear fruit continuously, and the flower base will also look particularly beautiful. ?Grafted plants using Tianzhi as rootstock currently account for a large proportion of general cultivators and enthusiasts. Even ordinary citizens who cannot be called enthusiasts like to get a few grafted plants, and their damage rate is the highest in winter. What was damaged was not the ball as a receiving favor but the ruler as the stock. After the rootstock is damaged, the colored balls will also be damaged. Although the non-colored balls can be re-cutted or grafted, the growth will always be affected. Therefore, overwintering in Liangtianchi is one of the keys to succulent plant cultivation. ?Measuring Sky Ruler, also known as Triangular Pillar, Triangular Arrow, often referred to as Triangle, is an epiphytic type, but it is less cold-resistant than Epiphyllum and Lingjian Lotus, which are also epiphytic types. It can tolerate cooler temperatures than succulents that continue to grow through the winter, and requires more light than them.

In the case of insufficient light and improper management, even if the indoor temperature is high, it will freeze to death. So can the ruler be safely overwintered in home cultivation? The answer is absolutely yes. According to experience, in Shanghai and Nanjing, as long as there are basic conditions (mainly sunlight) and appropriate management measures, you can survive the winter without heating. The basic condition is to have a south-facing balcony, which is well-sheltered from the wind, and preferably a sunny yard. If there is no balcony or yard, as long as there are south-facing glass windows, and the glass windows are high, the sunlight can shine 2 meters away indoors in winter. With such conditions, the following overwintering measures can be taken: ① In autumn, it must be managed properly, the root system should be maintained well, the stem meat should be strong and the surface should be dark green, not dry and not burned by the sun, nor should it turn yellow-green due to lack of fertilizer and light. The transplant should be completed by mid-to-late October at the latest. Watering should be controlled from mid-November and usually stopped completely in early December. ? ② Build a south-facing hotbed in a sunny yard. Only the top cover should be made of glass. Place the potted plants directly on the soil or other bedding materials. The seams in the glass windows should be tightly blocked. Put thermal insulation covering on the glass windows at night and remove it in the morning, even on cloudy days. It doesn't need to be covered when it rains. It's best to put a rainproof film on the covering before it snows. But sometimes it snows and you don't need to cover it at all (spring snow). If you don’t have a yard, you can use a double-glazed thermostat on the balcony. There should be semi-moist matting at the bottom of the thermostat. Keep the box airtight throughout the winter and cover it with a covering at night. ③ For rooms without a balcony, potted plants can be placed in the window, 10-70 cm away from the window. The bottom of the pot should be at the same level as or slightly lower than the bottom of the glass. Don't place the potted plants too densely. The principle is to ensure that the ball, triangle, and potting soil can fully see the light. Starting from late November, plants with semi-dry pot soil and pots can be covered with plastic bags. Do not seal them first. After a few days, wait until the water in the pot soil has evaporated almost before sealing (basically sealing). Don't water it all winter. If the plastic bag is dirty, change it at noon when the temperature is higher. ?④Don’t rush to open the shed for watering when spring comes. Be sure to wait until March 10 before watering for the first time. Until then, short-term shade is available when temperatures are unseasonably high. ?⑤ Prevent and control pests and diseases before the hotbed and incubator are sealed. ? 5. Prevention and control of pests and diseases?

(1) Pests: Pests and other harmful animals that harm succulents mainly include red spiders, scale insects, whiteflies, nematodes, rat mites, snails, mice, etc. . ?

① Red spider mites: Red spider mites mainly harm cacti, and sometimes also harm succulent plants of the family Dajiaceae, Romaceae, Asteraceae and Liliaceae. The areas near the growing points of plants and between ridges and valleys are the most susceptible to being sucked by spider mites, and the mutant plants are also susceptible to damage. After the plant is infested by red spider mites, the epidermis will turn rusty and the growth will be weakened, which will not only affect the viewing effect but also make the plant less tolerant to cold in winter. Since it is difficult to see clearly with the naked eye, it is often too late when discovered. Prevention and treatment methods: First of all, prevent the cultivation site from being too hot. Secondly, spray pesticides before the high-incidence period, once every 10 days. The drug can be Oxygen. Fruit, dichlorvos, etc. If sealed insulation is used in winter, it should be sprayed thoroughly before sealing. ? ② Scale insects: They cause a wide range of hazards. Particularly susceptible to damage are cacti such as Crab Claw, Prickly Pear, Phyllostachys genus, Trichoderma genus, Trichoderma genus, Opuntia spp. Succulent plants of the genus Curcuma. Baiyunge, a columnar species that is not widely cultivated at present, is also highly susceptible to scale insects. Its peak period is earlier than that of spider mites, and it often reproduces in large numbers in early spring. However, its harm is also easy to control, that is, it is often concentrated on only a few plants. Sometimes one plant is covered with scale insects, but the neighboring plant has none. ?Prevention and treatment methods: Mainly check frequently, scrape off immediately when found, and then spray dimethoate mixed with dichlorvos to kill. For example, mixing a certain amount of carbofuran in the culture soil has a preventive effect, but the efficacy is only 3 months. ③ Mealybugs: mostly parasitic on the young parts of plants. The damage is not great, and it mainly damages species such as Dianthus striata, Unicorn horn, Portulaca striata and Asteraceae. Mealybugs are oval in shape, 2-3 mm in length, and covered with white powder. They mainly occur in Shanghai during the plum rainy season. After the plant is damaged, its growth will weaken, and there will be large areas of unsightly black powder on the stems and leaves. ?

Prevention and control methods: In addition to improving environmental ventilation, you can also use Marathon 500 times solution or dimethoate mixed with dichlorvos 1000 times solution to kill them. After spraying for 2 days, use strong water flow to wash away the dead insects together with the black powder. Lose. ? ④ Root louse: also called root mealybug. The appearance is similar to whiteflies, but they often crawl from the bottom of the pot into the roots when the pot soil is dry during the dormant period of the plant, so they are not easy to detect. When the damage is severe, not only will there be white floc at the roots, but the soil near the roots will also turn white and become less permeable to water. ? Prevention and control methods: Repot the plant regularly. If the insect plant is found, cut off the roots and re-root. Putting a small amount of para-dichlorobenzene crystals on the bottom of the basin when going to the basin can prevent the crystallization of dichlorobenzene. If it is not easy to repot, you can pour 1000 times of Marathon emulsion into the soil or bury it with carbofuran. ⑤ Nematodes: Their harm to succulent plants is mainly manifested in two aspects: First, they harm newly unearthed seedlings, drilling into the root neck of the seedlings to bite the cotyledons; second, they destroy new roots and secrete stimulating substances in the new root tissues, causing The cells in the root divide abnormally to form a lump, generally called a root nodule. When the root nodule ruptures, it often rots, causing the plant to die. ?

Prevention and control methods: The culture soil must be thoroughly sterilized with steam, and using high temperature to kill nematodes is still the most effective method at present. Roots with tumors should be completely cut off, washed and dried before planting, and the cut roots should be burned. The introduced seeds should be sown separately and observation should be strengthened; the roots of the introduced seedlings should be carefully inspected.

?⑥Slugs and snails: They can harm young plants. When the glass of the seedling pot is not tightly covered, slugs will burrow into the seedling pot and bite the upper part of the seedling. When the air is particularly humid, snails will appear on the tender stems of celestial rulers and the ridges of spherical species, causing ugly scars on the skin, especially for large balls such as golden amber. It would be a pity to be bitten, so they should also be eaten. Pay attention to prevention and control. ?

Prevention and control methods: Avoid excessive moisture in the environment, and remove weeds around the greenhouse and in the seedbed in the pots. There are currently prevention and control drugs, which can be sprayed around the seedbed and pots according to the instructions.?

⑦ Rat worm: Also known as woodlouse, also known as watermelon worm. It is hidden in the soil of the sand bed and is active at night, and the activity is more rampant when it is wet. It eats new roots and young parts of the plant. When the plant has wounds, it often bites in groups and causes rot, which is very harmful. ? Prevention and control methods: In addition to placing carbofuran in the seedbed basin and sand bed, you can also spray it regularly with killing chrysanthemum resin, which is very effective. Usually, artificial hunting can be combined with soil loosening. ?

⑧ Rats: Like to eat small, thornless balls and Lithops and Lithops species. Since thornless peonies (Peony genus), Hua Cong, Moon World, Black Feather Jade and Lithops are all rare species at present, special attention should be paid to prevention and control. Not only that, when the activity is rampant, holes are drilled at the root necks of large balls planted in the ground, and the big balls are hollowed out from the inside. ?

Prevention and control methods: There should be a cement isolation layer around the greenhouse and at the border with farmland. If there are ventilation windows in the lower part of the greenhouse, there should be a metal mesh. If there is a trench for laying pipes inside the greenhouse, it should be covered. You can usually put some poison to trap rats on the walkway. Some people like to put oilseed meal or even beans as fertilizer on the ground planting seedbed. This approach is not advisable because they may cause root burn when fermenting, and at the same time, they may attract mice to destroy. ? (

2) Diseases: Compared with insect pests, diseases are more destructive. Diseases often occur in large areas, and once they become sick, they often rot quickly and cannot be rescued. At present, the diseases that harm succulents include the following:?

① Spot disease: The common one is black spot disease, and Aloe, Cactus, Trichosanthes, and Jin varieties such as Peony and Zhulijin are most susceptible to the disease. . Spreads quickly under conditions of insufficient light and excessive humidity. Once black spots occur, they will gradually expand and increase, causing the entire plant to lose its ornamental value. After a certain period of time, the entire plant of Crimson Peony and Zhu Lijin will rot, making it impossible to save it. ? Prevention and control methods: Mainly strengthen the management of exotic plants. Especially when plants are introduced from southern my country, it is best to spray them once before shipment. At least they should be sprayed immediately after shipment. When watering, be careful not to pour water from the top, and the environment should not be too humid. Once a diseased plant with black spots is found, it should be removed immediately, sprayed with fungicide and exposed to direct sunlight. If the black spots are near the top of the ball, you should not hesitate to cut off the diseased area at the top, so that at least half of the ball can be saved for growth. ? ② Red rot: This is a disease caused by bacteria. It invades through wounds and threatens the entire plant along the vascular bundle. Spherical cacti are the most susceptible to this disease. If there is red rot in the soil after the root neck of the plant is bitten by rats or the bulbs are removed from the lower part of the sphere, it will rot quickly. It is usually too late when discovered. If the wound is not treated in time during cutting and propagation, or the conjunctiva is not dried due to humid weather, it is easy to be infected with red rot at night. At first, there are only a few small russet spots, and then they increase and expand, and finally they all rot. It is also easy to get red rot when the pot soil is too moist and incompletely decomposed fertilizers are applied. ?

Prevention and control methods: The culture soil should be treated properly and undecomposed liquid fertilizer should not be topdressed. Usually, ventilation conditions should be improved to prevent excessive humidity, and fungicides can be sprayed everywhere regularly. ? ③ Sclerotinia: The fungus invades from the roots, causing the base of the stem to soften and rot. The most common disease is white silkworm. White silkworm is the most susceptible to the disease. In severe cases, the whole plant rots quickly but sometimes only the base rots. The lignified vascular bundles and upper stem tissue are intact. When the disease occurs, white hyphae can be seen densely spread like spider webs on the soil surface, and pink sclerotia can be seen in the rotten parts of the diseased plants. ? Prevention and treatment methods: Pull up the damaged ruler, cut off the rotten part, dry the intact part and then cut it again. Discard the potting soil. For ground planting, you can expose the soil to the sun or use hay to burn it on the soil surface. Spraying with a thicker fungicide is also effective. Newly unearthed seedlings are sometimes infected with white silkworm disease. They should be observed frequently. When an injured seedling is found, remove it immediately, remove some of the surrounding seedlings, and then spray fungicides. ④ Rust disease: Small edema-like spots appear on the stem epidermis in the early stage, with the center turning yellow or reddish brown, and then gradually expanding to the surroundings, as if wearing rust-colored "armor". It is different from epidermal corking (aging) in that it spreads quickly, and the color is dark in the center and light in the periphery, with raised rust spots. ?

Prevention and control methods: Mainly strengthen ventilation, avoid pouring water on the top of the plants, and spray fungicides every two weeks during the growing season.