Ivory red is also called dragon tooth flower. The maintenance of ivory red requires great attention. The root system of ivory red is sensitive to moisture, temperature, oxygen and fertilizer concentration. Therefore, the potting soil must be prepared appropriately. Usually, garden soil plus leaf mold soil and compost soil are used. The proportion of the mixture is 2 parts of garden soil, 1 part of leaf mold soil and 1 part of compost soil. Seedlings that survive from cuttings should be shaded after being potted, and then given sufficient sunlight after 5-7 days. After about 3-4 weeks of growth, you can start topping, leave 4 to 5 leaves from the base upward, and cut off the branch ends to make 3-5 side branches. Form a pot with 3-5 flower heads. plant.

Pruning of Ivory Red

The maintenance method of Ivory Red potted plants is to change the pots every spring, and at the same time perform pruning and shaping, and cut off dead branches and short long branches to promote the formation of more flowering branches.

Watering Ivory Red

Watering: Water once a day in the morning and once in the evening in summer. As the temperature drops and evaporation decreases, the frequency of watering should also be appropriately reduced. Generally, it is advisable to wait until the potting soil is dry before watering. Watering should generally be done before noon. Watering after noon will cause the soil temperature to drop, which is detrimental to plant growth. And it needs to be watered thoroughly every time. The amount of water is measured by the slight flow of the drainage hole at the bottom of the basin. .

Ivory Red Fertilizer

You need to pay attention to Ivory Red fertilization. Ivory Red likes fertilizer and mainly needs more nitrogen fertilizer during the growth period. Insufficient nitrogen fertilizer will cause the lower leaves to fall off. In addition to applying slow-acting base fertilizer (rotten oil cake, chicken manure, bone meal, etc.) when potting, top dressing should be started 7-10 days after topping. It is advisable to use light topdressing fertilizer, avoid applying thick fertilizer, once a week. For top dressing, you can use fully decomposed cake fertilizer water and soaked hoof horn slices in water. When it is close to flowering, it is appropriate to add phosphorus components, such as superphosphate, nitrate phosphorus and other aqueous solutions. In this way, the bract leaves can be brightly colored.

During the growth period of Ivory Red, fertilize once every half month, add phosphorus and potassium fertilizer 1-2 times during the flowering period, and keep the pot soil moist in midsummer.

Ivory Red grows very vigorously. Under the conditions of reasonable water and fertilizer management, sufficient light and good ventilation, the plants will grow vigorously and tend to be taller. Although the branches are thick and the leaves are thick, the size and height of the plants will be imbalanced when they are cultivated in flower pots, which will damage the ornamental value. Therefore, chemical treatment and manual control can be used. Generally, 0.5% butyric acid hydrazide (B9) or 1,500-3.000ppm chlormequat (CCC) can be used to spray the leaves or water the pot soil to make the ivory red branches. The time is shortened and the plants are dwarfed.

The influence of ivory red maintenance temperature

As the temperature drops in autumn and winter, the pots should be moved indoors around late October. When the temperature is lower than 15°C, artificial heating is required and kept at around 15°C at night. After flowering, lower the room temperature to about 12°C to extend the viewing time.

Cultivation of ivory red in the family often fails or fails to bloom when the temperature drops in early winter because it cannot reach the temperature and light required for its growth. In order to allow it to bloom in advance under natural temperature conditions, artificial control of daylight length can be used. Specifically, the weathering begins in late August, with light blocking starting at 6 p.m. (covering it with a box painted inside black), and then uncovering it at 8 a.m. the next morning to provide 10 hours of natural light. After half a month, shorten the light to 9 hours. In this way, after 35-45 days of shading treatment, the ivory red will be as brilliant as brocade and as beautiful as clouds.

In winter, old plants should be replanted appropriately to promote new branches. When cultivating in the open field, fertilize by digging ditches every winter, and irrigation when the weather is dry to keep the soil moist: Ground diseases and insect pests in winter: If fusarium wilt, anthracnose and root rot occur permanently, Bordeaux liquid leaves can be sprayed 2-3 times, or Spray with 50% sterilizing wettable powder 1000 times. If the pests include root nodule nematodes, use 80% dibromochloropropane EC diluted for watering. If the branches are withered, they should be repaired in time to facilitate the germination of new branches in the next spring.