How to care for Ji Yulu
Let's talk about how to care for Ji Yulu and the detailed indoor maintenance and planting methods for green plants and flowers. Follow the editor to take a look!
Ji Yulu prefers a cool semi-shaded environment, with its main growing period in the cooler spring and autumn seasons. It requires a certain level of humidity, is drought-resistant, not cold-resistant, and dislikes high temperatures, humidity, intense sunlight, and shading. It is afraid of waterlogging in the soil. In production, it is usually cultivated in pots or beds in a greenhouse. Let's take a look at how to care for Ji Yulu together!
Temperature for cultivating Ji Yulu
Ji Yulu thrives in a warm winter and cool summer environment. When temperatures are high in summer, the plant enters a dormant or semi-dormant state with slow or completely halted growth. It should be placed in a ventilated, cool, and dry area, avoiding intense sunlight and prolonged rain, and excessive watering should be avoided, with fertilization stopped until the cool autumn returns for normal management.
In winter, if the minimum nighttime temperature is around 8°C and the daytime temperature is above 20°C, the plant can continue to grow, and normal watering should be maintained. If watering is restricted, the plant will enter a dormant state. It can tolerate low temperatures of 3°C to 5°C, even short-term temperatures of 0°C, but if it is exposed to temperatures below 5°C for an extended period, the leaves will have frost damage, especially the outer leaves, which will turn white and cannot be restored to their original state.
Therefore, it is best to maintain a winter temperature above 5°C for Ji Yulu.
Adjusting lighting for Ji Yulu
Ji Yulu is sensitive to light. If the light is too strong, the leaves will not grow well and will appear light reddish-brown, and strong direct sunlight can even burn the leaves, leaving unsightly scars. If the cultivation area is too shaded, it will cause the plant to become loose and not compact, with thin and long leaves, poor transparency of the "window," and such plants are difficult to restore to their original appearance, only waiting for the current batch of elongated leaves to fall off and new healthy leaves to grow.
Plants grown in semi-shaded areas have thick and full leaves with high transparency. Therefore, a layer of shade net can be added from May to September, and the shade net should be removed from October to the following April to provide full sunlight.
Choosing the right soil for cultivating Ji Yulu
Ji Yulu is suitable for growing in loose and fertile soil with good drainage and aeration, containing lime and coarse particle-sized sandy soil. A mixture of 2 parts of deciduous leaf soil and 3 parts of coarse sand or vermiculite is commonly used for planting, and a small amount of bone meal is added. For high-end varieties like 'Ji Yulu Zhourong' and 'Mao Yulu,' artificial materials such as red jade soil, orchid stone, and planting stone can be used, but an appropriate amount of peat soil should be added to increase the organic matter content of the soil.
How to care for Ji Yulu
Watering Ji Yulu
During the growing period, water when the soil is dry and water thoroughly, avoiding waterlogging and especially avoiding prolonged rain to prevent root rot. However, it is also not suitable to let the soil dry out for too long, as although the plant will not die, the leaves will become shriveled and the leaf color will dull.
When the air is dry, water can be sprayed frequently on the plant and its surrounding environment. During the growing season, a transparent colorless beverage bottle with the top cut off can be used to cover the plant for maintenance, creating a humid environment for growth, which can make the leaves plump and the "window" more transparent.
However, during the high-temperature summer season, the beverage bottle must be removed to avoid plant death due to heat and humidity.
Fertilizing Ji Yulu
During the growing period, plants with vigorous growth can be fertilized once a month with decomposed dilute liquid fertilizer or a low-nitrogen, high-phosphorus, and potassium compound fertilizer. New plants or plants with weak growth do not need to be fertilized. No fertilization is needed during the dormant period of high summer temperatures or low winter temperatures. Fertilizing should be done on sunny mornings or evenings.
Repotting Ji Yulu
Since Ji Yulu's roots secrete acidic substances, causing soil acidification and root aging, it is advisable to repot once a year in spring or autumn. If the plant stops growing and the leaves become shriveled during the growing period, it is likely that the roots are damaged and should be repotted and the roots tidied up immediately.
When repotting, cut off the aging, hollow roots and shorten the long roots, retaining the strong white new roots, and then plant with new growing soil. The newly planted plants can be sprayed frequently but should be watered less, which can help the plant recover growth quickly.
Since the flowers of Ji Yulu have low ornamental value, if not leaving seeds, the flower stem can be pulled out from the base to avoid consuming too much nutrients. Note that the flower stem should not be cut with scissors but pulled out by hand to avoid leaving residual flower stems between the leaves, which could negatively affect the growth of new leaves.
Preventing diseases and pests in Ji Yulu
The main disease is root rot, caused by poor permeability of the cultivation material and long-term soil waterlogging. Therefore, the cultivation environment should be improved, and well-drained soil should be used. Additionally, long-term waterlogging in the center of the plant can cause rotting.
If the soil is not changed for a long time, the aging and hollowing of the roots can cause physiological diseases in the plant, leading to停滞 growth, shriveled leaves, and unfitness. In such cases, the soil should be changed promptly. The main pest is root mealybug, which can be controlled by high-temperature treatment of the soil before planting and adding insecticides to the soil.
The above (Green Plant Enthusiast Network) introduces how to care for Ji Yulu and detailed indoor maintenance and planting methods for green plants and flowers, hoping to bring help to your life!