How to care for the old stem of the red-backed pepper cress succulent
The editor answers for the netizens about how to care for the old stem of the red-backed pepper cress succulent and the green plant flower introduction of the red-backed pepper cress succulent cultivation method, let's follow the editor to see!
The red-backed pepper cress is a succulent plant of the Piperaceae family's pepper cress genus (also called the Peperomia genus), native to the tropical regions of South America, also known as snow pepper cress, belonging to a small variety, with a plant height generally not exceeding 10 centimeters. Its leaves are highly fleshy, with short petioles, leaf shape like bananas, but with a groove in the center of the leaf surface, the back of the leaf is convex like a keel, the front is blunt, without a leaf tip, except for the green leaf surface, the rest of the plant is dark red, and it can even turn deep red in a bright environment with some temperature difference, making it highly ornamental.
The main attraction of the red-backed pepper cress is its small plant size and thick leaves, as well as the perennial red on the back of the leaves. However, the growth habits of the red-backed pepper cress are different from those of general succulents. If we do not understand it and still follow the same care method as other succulents, the chances of successfully raising it are very low, and some plant friends even manage to kill it shortly after getting it.
Growth habits of the red-backed pepper cress:
Firstly, the red-backed pepper cress does not require much light, and it can be maintained in a bright diffused light area, unlike the succulents of the Crassulaceae family that need to be kept outdoors all the time. This characteristic of the red-backed pepper cress is very similar to that of the Sempervivum genus' jade dew, so friends who lack sufficient light and cannot keep plants outdoors can consider getting a red-backed pepper cress to raise, and it will not disappoint you.
Secondly, the red-backed pepper cress does not tolerate direct sunlight, and it can be kept outdoors when the temperature is not high, but once the temperature exceeds 30℃ in summer, it should be moved to a shaded and ventilated area with diffused light, otherwise its leaves may suffer severe sunburn within a few hours. If the red-backed pepper cress is exposed to the sun like the succulent varieties such as fireworks, Stromanthe, and Allen in summer, it can easily be sunburned to death in extreme high temperatures.
How to care for the old stem of the red-backed pepper cress succulent
Furthermore, the red-backed pepper cress, like other succulents, dislikes humidity. In the spring and autumn growing seasons, the potting soil can be kept slightly moist, but in summer and winter, watering must be restricted, especially in high temperatures when watering once every ten to fifteen days around the pot edge is sufficient, and ventilation should be enhanced after watering, otherwise the roots of the red-backed pepper cress may be dampened and then suffer root rot and black decay.
In addition, the red-backed pepper cress is not suitable for being controlled with high particle content like the succulents of the Crassulaceae family; it prefers loose and fertile soil. Therefore, we need to adjust the soil when planting, suggesting that only volcanic stones should be kept as hard particles, and the rest should be adjusted to soft particles, such as diatomaceous earth, Hinoki stone, akadama, and kokejin, and then add 30% peat soil and 20% rice husk charcoal. This way, the red-backed pepper cress will definitely grow lush and leafy.
Also, as a succulent plant native to tropical regions, the red-backed pepper cress is extremely sensitive to frost. When the temperature of the care environment drops below 10℃ in winter, it should be moved to a non-outdoor area, and once the temperature drops to around 5℃, the red-backed pepper cress must be brought indoors, or it may easily freeze to death.