Haworthia is a genus of dwarf succulent plants from the Xanthorrhoeae family, the Asphodelidae subfamily. The flower is named after E. Haworth, who discovered it in Africa - the place of origin. Many varieties are grown indoors.
Description of Haworthia
A miniature plant, reaching a height of 15 cm. It grows slowly, but is a long-liver: the average life expectancy is 20-30 years. Under good conditions, forms a large number of children around itself.
In haworthia, the stem is almost invisible. The leaves are dense and fleshy, collected in sockets. There are various forms: lanceolate, triangular, oval, needle-shaped. And also various shades: snow-white, blue, brick, brown, light green, dark green. There are flat or volume spots, stripes, strokes.
On elongated pedicels, small whitish flowers grow. They are collected in spike-shaped inflorescences. Blooming at home is rare. And if it does happen, the plant is often depleted and dies. Therefore, when a peduncle appears, it must be immediately cut off.
Types of haworthia for indoor breeding
Home care for many varieties is not difficult. Popular types for indoor breeding:
| Title | Leaves | Flowers |
| Pearl (pearl-bearing) | Thick, lanceolate, grow up to 7 cm. Dark green with snow-white growths resembling pearls. | Small, greenish on a peduncle 30 cm. |
| Striped (most popular variety) | Dark green, hard, up to 10 cm. The outer side is smooth, with growths forming strips from the inner region. | Small, inconspicuous, on brown pedicels. |
| Chess | Triangular, without stem, up to 3.5 cm, thickened, growing spiral. The outer side is flat, the bottom is convex. With a pointed end, denticles on the sides. Green with a checkerboard pattern. | Whitish-green, panicled. |
| Big band | Linear-pointed, narrowed and fleshy, 5-10 cm. Dark green, on the one hand monochromatic, on the other - with intersperses that form stripes. | White, located on a brown peduncle. |
| Lemon leaf | Rigid and compacted, in the form of a wide triangle. Dark green or yellow, on both sides covered with wavy "warts". | Snow-white, medium-sized. |
| Rainwardt | Small and thick with cloves, growing vertically. Lanceolate up to 3.5 cm. On the inside there are whitish growths. There are few of them from the outside. | Greenish yellow on an elongated peduncle. |
| Long pointed | Sealed and wide, assembled in star-shaped sockets. There are transparent “windows” on the outside of the plate. | Whitish, unremarkable. |
| Mougana | Cylindrical, growing up. Everyone has the same length. | White-green, collected in inflorescences in the form of a brush. |
| Spider-like | On the contour there are processes that resemble spider webs. Sometimes this weave is dense, spherical, completely covering the greenery. | Miniature, white. |
| Cooper | Rough, oval, arranged in three rows. | Small in size, light green. |
Haworthia care at home
In the wild, a variegated desert plant calmly waits for drought. It is used to the extreme conditions of South Africa: high air temperature, scorching sun. When maintaining a home, this must be taken into account.
The necessary conditions
Requirements for growing a house:
| Factor | What is necessary |
| Location | At the south windows. The room needs to be ventilated, but not create drafts. In summer, the pot is best taken out onto the loggia, terrace. In the open area you need to protect from rain, strong gusts of wind. |
| Lighting | Bright light is needed, especially in winter. It is necessary to create additional lighting with fluorescent lamps. Direct ultraviolet rays adversely affect the decorative foliage, so in summer you need shading. |
| Temperature | Optimal - + 23 ... +27 ºС. It tolerates higher temperatures, but stops in their development. |
| Air humidity | Does not play an important role. Suitable ordinary air in the apartment. |
Landing
Newly acquired plants are not left in the transport container. The soil in it is not suitable for the development of haworthia. A suitable substrate for succulents with neutral or weak acidity is suitable for planting. It can be prepared independently from sand, peat, deciduous humus (2: 1: 1) or from an equal amount of clay, sand, crushed shell rock.
Young specimens are transplanted once a year. Adults - once every two or three, if the root system becomes crowded in the old capacity. When the rhizome rots, transplantation is necessary immediately.
The pot is taken a little more than the previous one. If it is too loose, the root system will begin to develop rapidly, and leaf growth will stop. In addition, soil acidification will begin. When transplanting, you can use the same capacity, but with new soil. The pot must have drainage holes.
Step by step:
- Spread a drainage layer of expanded clay, chipped shards.
- The roots are inspected, in the presence of rotten or dry processes they are removed. The cut site is treated with fungicide, left for 24 hours.
- The bush is placed in a pot, slowly filling up the substrate. The earth is not compacted, because the root system is very fragile. To evenly distribute the soil along the walls of the cache-pot, they pat or hit the surface with the bottom. The formation of small voids in the pot is acceptable.
- The earth around haworthia is collected in the form of a cone.
- If everything is in order with the rhizome, moderate watering. With a damaged root system, this can not be done a week after transplantation.
Step-by-step landing in the florarium (glass container):
- The vessel is washed and wiped with a cloth moistened with alcohol.
- Be sure to lay out the drainage layer, since the tank has no holes.
- They fill the soil, add activated carbon to it to prevent mold.
- They clean the roots of the old earth, planted in the recesses in the soil.
- Add decorative elements (stones, shells, colored sand, etc.).
- Water the composition with a little water. Next time moisturize no sooner than a month later.
- They put the florarium in a lit place with good ventilation.
Breeding methods
Haworthia bred:
- kids
- cuttings;
- seeds.
Haworthia propagation methodsAt home, the first method is usually chosen. Haworthia regularly gives affiliated rosettes rooted near the mother bush. Separate children (with a well-developed root system) and plant them separately in the spring.
Propagation by cuttings occurs as follows:
- Carefully cut off the formed sheet at the base.
- Damage is treated with fungicide or charcoal.
- Leave the stalk to dry for 2 days.
- The shoot is planted in a small container with a sand mixture. Until the plant takes root, the soil is not watered.
- Rooting will occur in a month, after which the shoot is transplanted into a permanent pot.
Haworthia is rarely bred with seeds, because this method is more complex and less productive. In addition, the varietal qualities of the mother plant do not pass to seedlings. Reproduction by seeds is as follows:
- A shallow container with loose soil or wet sand is prepared.
- Distribute the seeds on the surface and push them into the ground.
- Cover the container with polyethylene or a glass jar.
- Seedlings are placed in a room with good light and a temperature of + 20 ... +25 ° C. Regularly open the pots for ventilation, remove condensate from the walls.
- After the appearance of the first shoots, the shelter is removed.
- The shoots are transplanted into a permanent pot after 3-4 months or next spring.
Problems in maintaining Haworthia and ways to resolve them
In the absence of proper care, unpleasant phenomena occur. They are eliminated by adjusting the content:
| The problem with leaves, etc. | Cause | Repair methods |
| Sluggish to the touch. The plant is stretched. | Lack of light. | The pot is rearranged in a well-lit place, fed with any purchased mixture for cacti and succulents. |
| They are twisted into a spiral, dry from the ends. | Cold, maybe the plant is in a draft. | The pot is rearranged in another place, protected from drafts. |
| Turn yellow or blush. | Excess fertilizer, especially phosphorus-containing mixtures. | Revise the feeding regimen. |
| Wrinkle, become covered with brown spots, darken. | Burn. | Affected leaves are removed. The plant is shaded. |
| Soft, watery, shapeless. | Excessive moisture. | Watering is stopped for 2 weeks. |
| Dark and rotten. |
| Rearrange in a warm place, reduce the amount of watering. |
| They are stretched, bent, the pattern is blurred. | The room is hot. | The pot is transferred to a cool room. The room is often aired. |
Fighting diseases and pests attacking haworthia
Haworthia can be affected by diseases and pests. Prevention and control measures:
| Disease / pest | Signs | Treatment | Preventive actions |
| Gray rot | On greens grayish-ash spots. The leaves are going nowhere. |
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| Mealybug | White sticky marks on the leaves. You can notice the insect with the naked eye. It’s harder to find on the roots. | 2-3 treatments with purchased preparations of Actara and Confidor with an interval of 5-7 days. When the roots are affected, watering with the same poisons. | Spraying with anise, wormwood, cumin, coriander extract every week. |
| Thrips | Settle on the bush and in the soil. You can notice with the naked eye: look like dark flies. Life traces: brown plaque with silver highlights. |
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| Slug | The plants contained on the street are affected. Eat greens. |
| Inspection for insects. |
Benefits of Haworthia
Haworthia is believed to bring positive energy to the home. A pot with a plant is recommended to be placed in the kitchen or on the desktop. The flower charges with vital energy, improves mental abilities, helps in work. With its presence in the room a person gets tired less.
Leaves have an antiseptic, bactericidal effect. They are beneficial if they are applied to the cut site with the top layer. Due to this, the risk of developing inflammatory processes, the penetration of infectious agents is reduced, the damage heals faster.
