Identification: Please help identify this beauty

Discussion in 'Indoor and Greenhouse Plants' started by XkytsuneX, Feb 7, 2008.

  1. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    I'm kinda new here, and really only came here for help identifying this plant. Bought it at Market Basket, and all it said was tropical plant. Any help identifying it, as well as any care tips, would be appreciated. The plant is small, probably young, and is a nice emerald in color. The leaves are fairly thick, though not succulent, and have raised ridges in symmetrical patterns down the leaf, on which there are silver spots that seem to glitter a bit. The leaves sprout alternatingly in pairs up the stem, and the newer leaves are a lighter green, though they all have the silver. The stems are a paler green, and seem to be fairly hardy. Here are a couple pictures of it. Thank you for your time!
     

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  2. Rhynno

    Rhynno Active Member

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    Looks like you have a Pilea cadierei there, otherwise known as an Aluminum plant (might be Pilea Bronze instead but I doubt that). Likes bright light or semi shade, you'll want to shield it from direct summer sun though. Some books say to water liberally from spring to autum while others say to never get the soil too wet. At very least don't over water in winter. Also, be sure to use tepid water. If you have a bottle mister you might want to spray it once in a while or set it on a tray of moist pebbles for extra humidity. Feeding should be done from spring through summer only.

    These little guys tend to deteriorate as they age so you might want to restart them from cuttings after a few years. Best of luck with your new plant!

    Ryan
     
  3. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    Also, any care advice for a polka dot plant and a...white line I think it's called? The card that came with it said that cuttings are sold as lucky bamboo. Green bamboo-looking leaves with white variegated stripes along the edges. The polka dot isn't doing as well as it could, so any advice would be appreciated.
     
  4. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    Thank you, Ryan!
     
  5. joclyn

    joclyn Rising Contributor

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    the aluminum plant is pretty easy to take care of. bright indirect light seems to work best and keep the soil slightly moist - don't let it completely dry out and don't totally sog it out. use a well-draining soil.

    polka dot plants need bright indirect lighting and a bit moister soil. they can get leggy, so pinch back the new growth tips every 6 weeks or so and the plant will stay bushy rather than growing long and spindly. regular potting soil should be fine.

    lucky bamboo isn't a bamboo, it's a draceana. can be kept in water (that's how it's usually sold) or it can be planted in soil. bright indirect lighting - too much direct sun for more than an hour or so a day will scorch the leaves. i've kept mine in water and they've been doing well for years now - i have no idea what kind of soil would be good. other dracs that i have are in a very well-draining soil that i let dry out a little before rewatering. the same will probably be fine for the 'lucky' bamboo.
     
  6. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    Thanks for the advice! The 'lucky bamboo' came in soil, so in soil it shall stay. I have three real bamboo plants that came in and stayed in gravel, and they're doing just fine with lots of water. I have all of my plants at a north-facing window which I open for a few hours a day. I was wondering why my little polka dot was becoming more of a vine than a bush. Any advice as to how and where to pinch off the growth? The bamboo, polka dot, 'bamboo,' and aluminum are my first plants.
     
  7. joclyn

    joclyn Rising Contributor

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    it's too cold to be opening the window now!! all three of these plants are 'tropical' and won't do well if they get cold!! basically, anything under 50 would be harmful to these plants. anything under 40 (for more than an hour or so) would cause permanent damage.

    for the polka dot just pinch off the new growth as it comes out at the top. you can use your fingernails or a small pair of scissors. when you tip it regularly, it causes the plant to grow outward instead of upward.
     
  8. Rhynno

    Rhynno Active Member

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    Just like Joclyn said :).

    I have a little polka dot plant too right now. They seem to be pretty hardy little guys. It got nipped by the cold when I took him home so a few leaves fell off but stems really bushed out after that. I've heard of ones that have almost grown back from the roots! Still, these little guys can also deteriorate after a few years so, like the pilea, you might want to restart them from cuttings.

    Your dracaena sounds like a dracaena sanderiana or a ribbon plant but I'm not at all sure (you should be able to google a picture to check it out). As Joclyn said they tend to like well drained soil (usually kept slightly moist), light shade, average warmth, decent humidity (some varieties are very easy going about humidity though, not sure about yours). Also, most dracaenas leaves naturally fall off after two years but are replaced by new top leaves so they tend to get a bare trunk as the age.

    Cheers,

    Ryan
     
  9. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    Thanks for the info! I won't open the window again unless on a warm day! We have a window quilt that does an excellent job of keeping the cold out. I'll start pinching leaves off my polka dot (who is decidedly female...she came in a pink pot, and she's pink, and she just feels female) next week. Just anywhere on the stem would do?
    I think the trip home was what did it for the little bit of poor health in her. I live in New Hampshire, and it took about twenty minutes to get home.
     
  10. joclyn

    joclyn Rising Contributor

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    just pinch back the new growth. i usually wait until the new leaflets are between a 1/4 and a 1/2 inch tall and then nip them.

    if you want to take a cutting to root it, cut about halfway down - making sure there are leaves left on the stem so that that part will continue to grow.

    i'm not sure whether soil or water is the preferred medium for rooting the polka dot. i've tried both and have not been successful - i've also not been successful with keeping the main plant alive either :( so, as much as i love it, it's just something i admire from afar now (4 tries with no lasting success).

    it comes in a white-dot variety as well. the two look really nice potted together!
     
  11. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    I'll have to try that! If I can find a white one. Right now I love my pink one.
     
  12. Rhynno

    Rhynno Active Member

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    Apparently it also comes in ones that have pink leaves and green spots (or white as the case may be) but I've never seen them myself :(.

    Also, if these guys like you I have found that I treat my jasmine sambac the same way (except a bit more light) if you're looking for other similar-needs plants.
     
  13. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    Jasmine sambac...I'll have to look for it. Do you have any photographs, so I know what to look for?
    EDIT: Also, when I said I open the window, I don't literally mean open the window...I mean open the curtain.
     
  14. joclyn

    joclyn Rising Contributor

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    aaahhh!!! okay, that makes more sense. i didn't actually question to clarify because i know more than a few people who always open windows up a bit - even if it's 10 below.

    opening the curtain is fine - just do so at a time of day that will be appropriate for the light needs of the plants. you wouldn't want to scorch leaves or heat the plants up too much. yes, even in the cold winter the sunlight is pretty intense - actually more so than in summer because it's at a lower angle. i just burned one of my succulents because i moved it so it would get more sun - darn thing is sunburned on one side now...
     
  15. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    Hehe, okay. I guess I will open the window! In the early afternoon until sunset. 'Cause that's when I wake up. About 2 every day. Do you by chance have any advice about my roses? I have a thread in the Rose forum, but it seems no one's looking. My roses are dying, and I really want to try to save them. They're an indoor plant, and not doing well at all, but it's far too cold to plant them outside...it snowed today.
     
  16. XkytsuneX

    XkytsuneX Active Member

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    Would having it next to a running fountain help it?
     

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