Bacopa

Family. Scrophulariaceae. 

Origin. South Africa.

Description - what the flower looks like. The genus Bacopa consists of approximately 80 species of annual or perennial, evergreen, herbaceous plants.

The stems can be erect or creeping, depending on the species, and become woody with age. Young stems are pubescent.

The leaves are green, not large, arranged oppositely or collected in whorls, and when damaged they emit a pleasant lemon aroma. The leaf blade has sparse pubescence.

The flowers are often single, axillary, with 5 round or pointed petals, in shades of white, lilac, pink and blue. Flowering is abundant.

An interesting feature of the genus is that it can include both succulents, which easily tolerate prolonged drought, and aquatic plants that grow half or even completely submerged in fresh water bodies. 

Height. Often does not exceed 15 cm, but the length of the shoots can reach 30 - 60 cm. Bacopa develops quite quickly; only some aquatic varieties are characterized by slow growth. 

Bacopa - care

Growing in open ground

Growing bacopa requires compliance with certain agricultural techniques.

The seeds of the plant are sown in open ground in the second half of May - when the threat of late frosts has passed, and seedlings are also planted at the same time.

When growing seedlings, use the seed propagation method described below with a slight difference - before planting in open ground, the temperature can be lowered to 18 - 20 ° C during the daytime, decreasing at night to 14 ° C.

Plants are pre- hardened by placing them in fresh air for several hours during the day. Over the course of several days, exposure to fresh air increases and fully hardened flowers can remain outdoors for 24 hours. 

The place for planting bacopa should be shaded from direct sunlight during the daytime, but the plants can take sunbaths in the morning and evening.

The main requirement for outdoor placement is protection from strong gusts of wind, which can damage this plant.

The distance between plants should be maintained taking into account the varietal characteristics - large plants should be located at a distance of 20 - 30 cm from each other, while compact varieties can be planted every 10 cm. 

Caring for adult plants in open ground involves timely loosening, weeding and watering.

To maintain an attractive appearance, weak stems and wilted flowers are promptly removed. 

For keeping in the winter months, select a cool room with a temperature of 12 - 15 ° C. If the sutera becomes unsightly at this time and its appearance leaves much to be desired, then stem cuttings are simply cut from the bush and rooted at the end of winter.

A very attractive feature of bacopa is that even the heaviest rains cannot spoil its pleasant appearance.

Reproduction of bacopa, growing from seeds

Bacopa is propagated by vegetative stem cuttings during spring and summer or by seeds in spring, as well as by air layering.

You can collect the seeds yourself - to do this, the stems with ripened seed pods are thoroughly shaken over a sheet of paper. Seed collection should be carried out in calm and dry weather; sowing is carried out in the spring. 

1. Seeds are sown in early spring in loose, well-moistened, nutritious soil. Freshly harvested seeds have the highest germination rate; after 2 - 3 years, it decreases significantly. 
2. The planting material is only slightly pressed into the soil with your fingertips, without covering it with soil on top. Seeds need light to germinate.
3. The seedlings are covered on top with a transparent plastic cap or glass and placed in a warm place, shaded from direct sunlight.
4. At temperatures not lower than 20° C, the first shoots can be noticed within 10 - 15 days.
5. At this time, the shelter can be removed little by little, gradually increasing the ventilation time.
6. With the appearance of the first true leaves (3 - 4 leaf blades), the young flowers peak - they are planted in separate small containers and watered regularly.
7. After picking - after about 10 - 14 days, the plants can be fed with a weak solution of mineral fertilizers with a high nitrogen content - to form good green mass.

The most favorable temperature for development at this time will be 22 - 26° C.

2 - 3 weeks after the first picking, you can carry out a second one, and the plants are planted so as to deepen the stem by about 1 leaf node - this way the babies will be stronger and squat and will form a larger root system.

In young bushes, shoots are pinched in a timely manner so that they branch better.

In open ground, plants often self-sow. 

Cuttings take root quite easily even in a glass of water - only sections of the strongest and strongest shoots are used for propagation.

It is advisable to carry out vegetative propagation using cuttings in the spring or in the first half of summer - during this period of time the plants have a lot of energy for development. 

Plants rooted in water slightly stop their development when planted in the substrate - thus, their root system adapts to new living conditions.

1. To root in the ground, cuttings about 10 cm long are separated from the mother plants with a sharp sterile instrument, the lower leaves are removed and the base is dusted with growth hormones.
2. The lower part of the cuttings is immersed in a well-moistened mixture of peat and river sand so that one leaf node remains under the surface of the soil or water. It is at the leaf node that new roots will appear.
3. To reduce moisture loss, cover the cuttings with a transparent plastic cap or plastic bag on top and promptly moisten the substrate with a fine spray. Make sure that the bag does not come into contact with the leaves and stems of the flower.
4. The cover is removed when the first signs of new growth appear.

It is believed that bacopa takes 2-3 weeks to take root. The successful completion of the rooting process will be indicated by the appearance of new, young leaves and shoots.

With the appearance of 2 pairs of new leaves, the top of the shoot is pinched to form lateral branches.

Interestingly, the highest percentage of successful rooting is in plants with white flowers.

The first buds appear on plants obtained from cuttings approximately 2 - 2.5 months after successful rooting. 

Air layering - long shoots are pinned to the surface of the soil and lightly sprinkled with earth. After some time, roots will appear in the leaf nodes and new shoots will begin to grow.

Using this method, you can get several young plants from one shoot at once. 

Soil 

Loves nutritious, well-drained soil with a high organic content, based on peat.

A good amount of humus, leaf and turf soil is added to the mixture. The soil should easily allow moisture and air to pass to the plant roots and have a slightly acidic pH.

To improve drainage, coarse river sand, perlite or vermiculite are added to the substrate.

When it blooms

The flowering period is long - it can last several months of summer until mid-autumn.

The buds appear in waves throughout the entire period - with some short breaks.

Diseases and pests of bacopa

• Fungal diseases occur when there is insufficient ventilation, cool or too humid conditions during the winter months.
• Flowering will be less abundant if bacopa is grown in partial shade.
• If you keep the sutera in too warm conditions during the winter months, its shoots will become elongated and loose, and their lower part will lose leaves and become bare.
• Fertilizing with nitrogenous fertilizers causes an abundant growth of green mass to the detriment of flowering.
• The leaves of the plant turn yellow when the summer heat comes too much.
• Sutera does not bloom in insufficient light or excess nitrogen in the soil.
• Bacopa does not grow - if there are no signs of growth for several winter months, this is normal.

Among the harmful insects, the plant can be attacked by aphids, spider mites, and whiteflies.

Care, pinching 

Regularly pinch the tips of young shoots for better branching, remove old and diseased branches. Remember that all work must be carried out only with a sharp, sterile instrument.

Remove spent buds to maintain an attractive appearance and to encourage plants to produce new flowers.

Shoots that are too long can be shortened by about a third of their length - this formative pruning is carried out when the flowering fades before the onset of winter.

Take the plants out into the fresh air during the warm season, placing them under cover from direct sun, strong wind and rain.

Lighting 

The plant is very light-loving and needs shading only during the daytime in spring and summer. In the morning and evening, bacopa should be exposed to direct sunlight for about 5 hours daily.

Periodically rotate the pot with the plant a quarter turn around its axis so that the long shoots do not lean only towards the light source, and the bush remains symmetrical.

During the dormant period, the development of bacopa slows down, and flowering stops and it will be possible to choose a less lit place for it. 

Watering bacopa

During the flowering period, keep the soil evenly moist. Adult plants tolerate both short-term stagnation of moisture and slight drought.

If the soil dries out for a long time, flowering in bacopa may stop and will only resume with the start of regular watering.

Those varieties that grow in ponds in their natural habitat do not tolerate drought at all - it is better to grow them in marshy soil or even an aquarium.

For irrigation, use water at room temperature, pre- settled for several days or filtered. 

Growing conditions - temperature

In spring and summer, normal room temperature is quite suitable for maintaining this plant. During the rest period, it is advisable to keep the house in a cool place at a temperature of 12 - 14 ° C.

When grown in open ground, bacopa can withstand short frosts down to -5 ° C.

Fertilizer 

Top dressing with water-soluble fertilizers for flowering plants can be done every 2 weeks in spring and summer. Stop applying fertilizers during the dormant period - in autumn and winter.

For fertilizing, you can use both mineral solutions and organic substances - for example, well-rotted cow and horse manure.

Fertilizers are applied only after abundant watering - in moist soil.

In the fall, plants are watered with a solution high in potassium and phosphorus and feeding is stopped until spring. Resume fertilizing only when the first signs of new growth appear. 

Spraying 

To increase humidity, use a room humidifier or a tray of wet gravel.

You can surround a pot with a plant with well-moistened sphagnum moss - by evaporating from its surface, water will naturally humidify the atmosphere for a long period of time.

The bush prefers ventilated rooms with good air flow. 

Transfer 

Replant bacopa annually in fresh soil in the spring, before flowering.

1. The plants are removed from the old container and shaken off any remaining soil.
2. The root system is carefully inspected and, if necessary, old and rotten roots are cut off.
3. Select a pot for planting with large drainage holes. For growing bacopa, a shallow and wide bowl is more suitable, since the root system of this plant lies superficially.
4. The flower is placed in the center of the new pot and sprinkled with fresh substrate around the perimeter.
5. After transplanting, water the plants thoroughly until the soil is completely soaked. Excess moisture is removed from the pan.
6. If the soil has settled significantly after watering, add the required amount of substrate.

Purpose

Bacopa is extremely good in hanging baskets or as a ground cover.

This species is quite capable of competing with ampelous pelargoniums or petunias. 

The plant is ideal for landscaping balconies.

Note, useful properties

The plant is believed to contain antioxidants and consuming its leaves helps develop memory and brain activity. It has been proven that people who take bacopa extract age slower and remain active longer.

Unfortunately, it often happens that plants lose all their attractiveness with age - they bloom less profusely and bare stems in the second year of cultivation - replace such specimens with new ones obtained using cuttings or seeds. 

Varieties:

Bacopa caroliniana

A perennial, herbaceous, small-flowered plant with erect, abundantly branched stems at the base. The leaves are oval, glossy, green, sessile, arranged in opposite pairs. The flowers are blue, solitary, appear mainly in the upper part of the stems, reminiscent of forget-me-nots. This is one of the tallest types of bacopa, reaching 50 - 100 cm.  

Bacopa monnieri

A perennial herbaceous plant with thick, powerful, often lodging stems with numerous lateral shoots. The leaves are sessile, green, glossy, oval or spoon-shaped, thick, juicy. Flowers adorn the plant in the summer months and appear on the tops of the shoots. Each flower consists of 5 round or slightly oblong white, blue or lilac petals. The plant is believed to improve memory and learning ability, relieve anxiety and stress, and is also used as a tonic supplement.

The green mass of this variety is used in drugs that help with Alzheimer's disease.

Bacopa cordata

A perennial, evergreen, large-flowered ground cover with thick, lodging stems, the height does not exceed 10 - 20 cm. The leaves are small, dark green, heart-shaped, with large teeth along the edge of the leaf blades. The leaves are arranged in opposite pairs on short petioles. The flowers are quite large, attractive, white, pink, lilac, purple. Flowering is abundant and long lasting. 

Bacopa diffuses​

Attractive herbaceous plants up to 20 cm high with abundantly branched, thick stems that can reach 1 meter in length. The leaves are dark green, up to 2.5 cm long, rounded, on short petioles. The leaf blades have large teeth along the edge. Flowers appear mainly in the warm season on the tops of shoots; they can be simple or double, painted in white, cream, pinkish or lilac. The plant is often grown as an attractive ampelous plant, forming a profusely flowering, dense ball. 

Bacopa madagascariensis

An evergreen perennial with strong, thick, erect, slightly branched stems 1 - 3 m high. The leaves are light green, fleshy, oblong-oval in shape. The leaf blades are entire, can reach a length of 1 - 3 cm. The flowers are funnel-shaped, with blue or purple petals fused to each other.

An interesting feature of the plant is that it can grow half in water, while the upper part of the shoots is in the air. This variety is often used in aquarium farming.

Bacopa lanigera

An attractive evergreen plant, the main distinguishing feature of which is the presence of very dense, but short, light pubescence on the stems and leaves. The stems are erect, thick, succulent, weakly branched - side shoots often appear at the base of the plant. The leaves are glossy, green, ovate, arranged in opposite pairs, sessile. The leaf blades are entire, reaching a length of 2 - 3 cm. The flowers are solitary, axillary, funnel-shaped, with wide pinkish or purple petals.

In its natural habitat, it is half submerged in fresh water. When grown at home, it serves as a good aquarium decoration. 

Bacopa myriophylloides

A widespread variety in the aquarium hobby, it is a thick, fluffy bush with thin, vertical shoots branched at the base. The leaves are light green, thin, reminiscent of pine needles. The flowers are small - white or light blue.

This species grows very quickly and fills the free space of the aquarium.