Chloranthus

Family. Chloranthaceae.

Origin. Central and South America, Madagascar, Asia.

Description. Chloranthus are perennial evergreen herbaceous plants or subshrubs with aromatic leaves. The leaves are green, with branched veins, elliptical or oblong-lanceolate, arranged oppositely, often in whorls, on short petioles. The edges of the leaf blades have small teeth. The flowers are inconspicuous, small, white, collected in multi-flowered branched or cylindrical inflorescences on the tops of the shoots.

Height. Up to 1.5 m.

Home care

Temperature conditions

Moderately heat-loving crop, grows well at air temperatures of 14 - 18° C. Does not like extreme heat. Pots can be placed on north and west windows.

Lighting

Shade-tolerant, prefers partial shade and does not tolerate direct sun - it leads to brown burns on the leaves. Grows well with artificial lighting. 

Care

Wipe the plant from dust with a damp sponge in a timely manner, this will keep the leaves shiny.

Substrate

Chloranthus grows well in drained, loose, nutritious soil, which contains a fairly large amount of organic matter. A mixture of leaf humus, peat, with the addition of coarse sand or perlite to improve drainage is suitable. 

Feeding

During the period of active growth, once a month with fertilizer diluted by half. Do not feed in autumn and winter. 

Purpose

Great for landscaping even the most shaded corners of the house.

Flowering time

Spring Summer. 

Air humidity

It tolerates fairly dry air in heated rooms, but will look more lush with periodic spraying with water at room temperature. 

Soil moisture

Water abundantly during the growing season, however, allow the soil to dry out before the next watering to a depth of 3 - 5 cm. Reduce watering in autumn and winter. 

Transfer

Repot in spring into fresh substrate as needed.

Reproduction

Propagated vegetatively, using semi-lignified cuttings.

Note

In China, flowers and leaves of the plant are added to tea to flavor it.

Pests and diseases

Dry and damaged leaves may indicate too much fertilizer. In this case, do not fertilize the plant at all for a month, and then dilute the fertilizer well. You can cut off damaged leaves at soil level. If there is excess moisture, the leaves turn yellow and may even fall off; stagnation of water at the roots leads to rotting of the bulb.

Spider mites may appear.