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The presence of evergreen coniferous trees in a house or apartment not only has a positive effect on air quality, but also creates a special warm and cozy atmosphere in the home. There are a large number of ornamental coniferous plants that are small in size and adapted for home cultivation. Fir in a pot is an ideal plant option that can decorate any room. Caring for such a fir at home is quite simple and even for those who do not have rich experience in growing ornamental plants.
Is it possible to grow fir in an apartment
There are no particular difficulties in growing fir at home, since these trees take root perfectly in almost any natural environment.
Do not be afraid that the fir in the house will be too hot. Having a southern or even subtropical origin (the birthplace of fir is the Caucasus and Central America), plants generally have good tolerance for a wide temperature range (from -30 ° C to + 35 ° C). They are able to do without water for quite a long time, and it is much easier for them to endure droughts than excessive waterlogging.
Varieties of fir in a pot
Currently, there are several dozen varieties of decorative fir adapted for home cultivation. At the same time, there are also ordinary varieties that at home change their usual life cycle, their growth slows down significantly. So for trees in open ground, the average growth rate is 30-50 cm per year, in room conditions they decrease to 4-6 cm per year.
A photo of various types of indoor fir is presented below:
Currently, the most popular varieties for growing in an apartment are the following breeds:
Nordman fir
Its dwarf variety, Golden Spreader, reaches a height of no more than 10 m in 1 years. At the same time, its crown is very dense and dense. The diameter of the crown at this age is also about 1 m. The needles have a brilliant golden-green color on top and a white-matte bottom.
Fraser fir
It has a conical dense crown. Shoots move up from the trunk at a slight angle. Under natural conditions, the height of trees reaches 15-20 m, at home – about 10 times less.
Upright fir
It is a variety of Nordmann fir, which has a longer trunk and a more elegant crown. At home, it reaches 1.5-2 m. Growing such a fir in a pot is quite problematic, since you will have to literally fight with its growth.
golden fir
Sometimes it is called Korean, although this is not entirely true. In general, the term “golden” can mean several species of this plant, both having a constant golden hue and changing the color of the needles during the change of seasons. In an apartment, such a change in the color of the needles can rarely be seen, since the conditions for keeping the plant, as a rule, do not change.
The original golden fir has a permanent color of green-yellow or gold. It belongs to the dwarf breeds, the growth of which rarely exceeds 1 m.
gray fir
Another name for the plant is decorative single-colored fir. Usually its height does not exceed 1.25 m. The tree has an asymmetrical crown. The needles are thin, relatively long and dense. Often, due to the external similarity, this plant is confused with decorative spruce.
Optimal conditions for growing fir in an apartment
First of all, it should be remembered that the growth of fir at home in a pot is to some extent not entirely natural for this plant, therefore, for a long and long life, it will need to comply with certain conditions.
First of all, this concerns the composition of the soil for the plant. Unlike pines and spruces, which can grow on almost any soil (moreover, they prefer acidic soils), fir and thuja are calciphiles. That is, for them, the norm is slightly alkaline, or, in extreme cases, neutral soil. And if in the first years of life the plant can grow in soils dominated by peat (rich in nutrients, however, a very “acidic” component), then in the future, its amount should be reduced.
The soil itself should be moderately moist, without stagnant water. Excessive moisture can very quickly lead to rotting of the roots and death of the tree.
Room temperature, as well as air humidity, in principle, can be any. Excessive constant air humidification is undesirable for the plant. The optimum temperature for indoor cultivation is from + 20 °C to + 25 °C.
How to transplant fir into a pot
It is advisable to immediately transplant the purchased tree into a new container. But this does not apply to plants purchased in the winter. They require an acclimatization period of about 1 month.
Flowerpot selection
It is advisable to choose the volume of the pot for fir in the range of 5-10 liters. A smaller volume will not be enough for a plant, in a larger one, the plant will direct most of its energy to the growth of the root system, which, of course, will affect not only its growth, but also its attractiveness.
On the other hand, larger pots contain more nutrients, and after a while the plant will restore its exterior. In addition, a larger amount of soil is able to retain moisture for a long time.
At ¼ of the height of the flowerpot, it is necessary to lay drainage from expanded clay or small pebbles. The presence of a pallet, about 7-10 cm high, will also be mandatory.
Every 2-3 years it is necessary to transplant the plant. Do it in the middle of autumn. In this case, the diameter of the pot should be increased by 2 cm. The plant is transplanted together with a clod of earth. At the same time, the old soil is not washed out or cleaned, so as not to injure the root system. Fertilizers are applied 15-20 days after transplanting under a tree.
Soil Preparation
Slightly alkaline soil can be obtained in various ways. It is best to take loam or leafy soil as a basis. The use of peat-containing substrates is allowed, but their amount in the total volume should be small. The approximate composition of the soil may be as follows:
- humus – 2 parts;
- sod land – 2 parts;
- river sand – 2 parts;
- peat – 1 part.
It is advisable to sprinkle the soil in a pot on top with a layer of river sand 1 cm thick or mulch from sawdust or needles.
Planting fir in a pot
There are two ways to plant homemade decorative fir in a pot: cuttings or using seeds. The seed method is more preferable, since cultivation during vegetative propagation is too long – from several months to a year, and the rooting result for some plant varieties may be doubtful.
The seed planting method is divided into several stages:
- It is necessary to collect seeds from fully ripe cones.
- Before planting, the seeds are stratified – they are kept in the refrigerator at temperatures of + 2-5 ° C for about a month.
- Immediately before planting in a pot, the seeds are soaked in water with a temperature of + 20-25 ° C.
- Seeds are sown in spring (preferably in April). Planting seeds in the ground should not be done too deep, 1-2 cm is enough.
- Immediately after planting and watering the seeds, the pot is covered with a film and placed in a warm and shaded place. When shoots appear, the film is removed, and the pot itself is exposed to sunlight.
- If the seed was planted in a special “seedling box”, it should be picked, that is, transplanted to a permanent place in a pot. This can be done only when the height of young plants reaches 8-10 cm.
If a choice is made in favor of growing with the help of cuttings, the algorithm for planting decorative fir in a pot will be as follows:
- The preparation of the material begins with the selection of lignified shoots on an adult plant. They must be without flaws, various injuries, traces of rot and other damage on the shoots must be absent.
- Cuttings are cut from selected shoots, their length should be no more than 12 cm.
- The lower part of the cutting is cleaned of needles and moistened in a solution of a root growth stimulator.
- The cutting is placed in a mixture of peat and sand (in a ratio of 1 to 1), after which it is covered with a film. Remove the film only after rooting.
Over time, you will have to change the composition of the soil, since peat is an acidic environment, and fir prefers slightly alkaline soils. This is a rather complicated procedure, since it is associated with the risk of damage to the root system. Therefore, planting is carried out in a separate container of a small volume, which is necessary only for rooting the cutting.
In the future, the whole plant with an earthen clod is transplanted to a permanent place in the soil of the appropriate composition. This is also one of the reasons why fir seed production is preferred.
How to care for fir at home
Caring for indoor fir at home is the usual activities for watering, fertilizing and pruning the plant. Moreover, the latter is rarely used for most ornamental varieties, since the plant has a low growth rate, as a rule, its naturally formed crown does not need special treatment.
How to water fir in a pot
Watering the plant is carried out according to the usual pattern for ornamental plants. The soil is watered with warm water (2-3 ° C above room temperature) to a state of medium moisture. Usually watering is done once a week. A pot of 5-10 liters will require no more than 0,5-1 liters of water per watering.
Watering is done under the root. It is better not to use a drip tray; moreover, all the water from the pan should be removed 30 minutes after the end of watering. In winter, the frequency of irrigation does not change, but the amount of water decreases by 1,5-2 times.
An alternative to watering would be to spray the plant every 3-4 days with a spray bottle.
How to feed
Since the plant has a small amount of soil, caring for room fir involves fertilizing. Top dressing is done several times per season. Usually, 3-4 feedings are enough for a plant with a complex preparation for ornamental coniferous plants (for example, Kemira wagon).
Trimming
In most cases, fir care at home does not involve intensive pruning of the plant. Most ornamental varieties were selected on the basis of independent crown formation.
However, sanitary pruning, as well as pruning of overly fast-growing shoots, should be present (and in some varieties, for example, Nordman or Upright, it is mandatory). The optimal time for pruning is mid-spring.
Rules for caring for fir in a pot in winter
Usually, the conditions for keeping fir in winter are not much different from those in summer. Just do not place a pot of wood near heating appliances or in places of high humidity (for example, in the kitchen). In addition, in winter, the plant should be watered with less intensity, and fertilizing should be completely abandoned.
In some cases, it is possible to take fir outside the premises in winter in order to bring its conditions closer to natural ones. They do it for different purposes. For example, to stimulate the color change of the needles or increase the number of cones in the next season.
The plant normally tolerates such procedures, however, the basic rules for their implementation should be followed in order to avoid its death.
It must be understood that in a limited volume of the pot, the soil freezes much faster than in natural conditions. We can say that if you expose the plant for a long time to frost, the soil will freeze completely, which will lead to the death of the plant. Therefore, such procedures should not last too long.
If there is a desire to let the plant “enjoy” the frost, this should be done for short periods of time. For most of the winter, fir in this case can stand in some place at home, where the temperature will be quite low, but not below zero. Thus, it will be possible to keep the fir in a pot until spring.
Diseases and pests of room fir
Fir has a high resistance to most diseases and pests. The only serious problem in terms of disease is the fungus provoked by excessive soil moisture.
If the plant has been attacked by a fungus, it should be treated with any fungicide. The best solution in this case would be treatment with a 1% solution of copper sulphate, followed by transplanting the plant into another soil. In the future, in order to avoid the recurrence of such cases, watering the tree should be reduced.
Of the pests, the cone leafworm and the shoot moth should be noted. These pests will have to be treated with insecticides or acaricides (for example, Aktar, Caesar, Commander, etc.).
Conclusion
Decorative fir in a pot is one of the best solutions in modern floristry. It can fit perfectly into almost any interior. Caring for fir in a pot at home is simple and can be done with a minimum of time and material costs.
