Melaleuka, or tea tree, belongs to the myrtle family, and, despite its name, has nothing to do with tea. This genus combines a large number of species (about 200) evergreen trees and shrubs.
General information
Surely each grower roughly represents what a tea tree looks like.
This is a large beautiful evergreen plant that grows with age into a small sprawling tree. Some types of melaleuka have very short petioles, others do not.
Tea tree
Egg-shaped leaflets are located through one on each side. Fragrant flowers are combined into loose cylindrical or spherical inflorescences. Flowers consist of 5 bunch bunch of stamens. The falling of the petals is at the very beginning of flowering. Subsequently, the flowers give way to strong closed capsules with seeds that lean very tightly against the branches.
The tree has a rather unusual flaky bark of light color.
Interesting! In some species, the bark tends to exfoliate from the plant with thin, but rather wide layers. For this reason, melaleuka got its name - paper-bark tree.
Another important feature of the tea tree is its healing properties. The plant is rich in essential oils that actively fight against germs, viruses and fungi.
For reference! In the first half of the 20th century, official medicine recognized the healing properties of melaleuka.
Melaleuka: home care
For home gardening, it is recommended that you choose the smallest types of tea tree, as they are much easier to grow and easier to care for. For example, they include the regular leaf melaleuka, the smallest member of the family that can be used to form bonsai.
The tree has elongated and narrow leaves similar to coniferous needles. According to the reviews of flower growers, melaleuka of this species is an unpretentious plant, but for regular and abundant flowering, it needs to be looked after correctly.
- Watering
In the wild, melaleuka grows on the banks of small rivers and in marshy places. Therefore, it needs a systematic plentiful watering. When the earth is completely dry, the plant may die. However, water stagnation can also harm the tree, as they provoke rotting of the roots.
It is necessary to water melaleuka with soft settled water. To soften hard water from the tap, acetic or citric acid (in a small amount) is added to it.
If wintering turned out to be pretty cool, then the intensity of watering should be slightly reduced. Watering should be after a slight drying of the upper layer of the substrate.
- The soil
To grow a tea tree, a neutral or slightly acidic well-drained soil substrate is suitable.
To make an earthen mixture, it is necessary to mix peat (2 parts) with turf soil (1 part) and sand (1 part).
Important! If the soil is prepared for beautiful melaleuka, then more sand should be added to the substrate.
- Fertilizers
Tea tree needs periodic top dressing. From mid-spring to mid-autumn, feeding is necessary every two weeks.
For this, mineral fertilizers are used, which are mixed with irrigation water in the proportion specified in the instructions.
- Humidity
In order to grow melaleuka, high humidity is required. In winter, containers with plants must not be left near radiators.
The tree needs frequent spraying.
In addition, you should use trays with wet expanded clay or pebbles.
Home Care
Pruning
Indoor tea tree needs systematic annual pruning. The shape of the plant after the procedure can be absolutely any, since it largely depends on the desire of the grower.
The tree is very susceptible to uniform changes, so it can be molded both in the form of a bush and in the form of a tree. In addition, pruning allows you to get rid of faded branches, which often spoil the appearance of the plant.
Young trees do not need pruning. For better branching of the bushes, they should be cut at 10 centimeters high.
Note! In the process of tree growth, each new stem should be pruned, until the desired degree of branching is established.
Allocate only 5 types of pruning tea tree. They differ in that as a result of the application of each of them, the plant will look different.
Trimming Types:
- modeling;
- light
- deep
- heavy
- under the root.
Modeling pruning is used to accelerate the growth of buds in young plants, improve and streamline branching, develop a "skeleton" of a tree, as well as to strengthen the lateral branches and the formation of tiers. Lateral branches strengthen the tea bush, increase the bearing plane of the bush and help to survive low temperatures during frosty periods, which positively affects productivity.
Easy pruning increases the number of kidneys. This type of pruning is used for plants intended for cultivation of this raw material - tender buds. It is worth noting that after a certain number of procedures, the kidneys coarsen, and with this, the plant's nutritional strength is significantly reduced. During this period, deep trimming will be most acceptable. For this, 10-15 cm of branches are cut from shrubs along with foliage. This allows the tea tree to more easily deal with stress, and also helps to regain strength.
Tea tree pruning
Heavy pruning and pruning are designed to rejuvenate the plant. Some types of trees, upon reaching a certain size, begin to show signs of aging. In this case, light cropping methods do not help, so heavy cropping is used.
About 30 cm are cut from the plants, and if the tree is quite tall, then you can trim to half its growth. In case of a serious disease, the shrub is cut to the root, no more than 10 cm remains above the ground. Pruning of this type is sometimes used before transplanting the plant.
Transplant Features
Young tea trees are developing quite quickly, so they need an annual transplant. For adult plants, one transplant in 2-3 years is considered the norm.
With each subsequent procedure, you need to pick up a new pot that exceeds the previous one in volume. If the growth of melaleuka is too large, it is necessary to produce a partial pruning of the root system, followed by transplantation into a new container.
Important! When transplanting, sufficient drainage must be used.
The composition of the soil mixture should include peat (2 parts), sand (1 part) and turf land - an earthen layer of small fallen twigs, dry leaves and grass residues (1 part).
Tea tree transplant
Breeding methods
There are two ways to propagate melaleuka in a pot: seeds or cuttings.
Seeds
In order to propagate a tea tree by seeds, you need to do the following:
- Pour boiled water into the container and soak the seeds in it. Duration of soaking - three days. Water needs to be changed daily.
- Discard the popped up seed. Deepen the remaining seeds into a thin layer of slightly acidic soil. Cover with a film or glass top.
- Organize daily half-hour airing.
- When watering, make sure that the earth does not dry out and does not sour.
- After 2-6 weeks, the first shoots should occur.
Cuttings
In the case of propagation by cuttings, the algorithm of actions is as follows:
- Choose a number of lignified processes up to 8 cm long.
- Plant the cuttings in vermiculite (wet) and place them in a well-lit place.
- Cuttings can be fed phytohormones. They significantly accelerate growth.
- Perform regular watering, avoid shortage or excess moisture.
Healing properties
Tea tree essential oil is an excellent antiseptic, a powerful anti-inflammatory and antiviral agent. It has a number of useful properties, here are some of them:
- Relieves depression and stress. Melaleuka oil activates the brain, strengthens memory and improves the perception of reality.
- Antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal properties. Oil can act as an alternative to a number of medicines for colds and flu. It contains compounds that fight bacteria, viruses and fungi.
- Anti-inflammatory and regenerative effect. Tea tree oil weakens inflammation and stimulates the function of white blood cells, which play a significant role in the healing process.
- Antifungal properties. The oil contains compounds that fight the growth and spread of mold on vegetables and fruits.
- Antioxidant properties. Tea tree essential oil, among other things, has antioxidant properties.
The healing properties of malekuki
Note! In case of individual intolerance, the use of essential oil is prohibited.
Despite the fact that the tea tree is still a rather rare phenomenon that is not often seen in the home environment, one can still note a trend towards its popularization. Increasingly, there are gardeners who, in search of the exotic, opt for this particular plant. However, few of them, even after planting it in a pot, realize the value of this treasure.
