Irezine is a great accent plant. For its blood-red foliage with pink veins, it received the common names Red Leaf and ... Beefsteak. Ideal for all types of containers, including balcony boxes, hanging baskets and container compositions. Saturates flower beds and borders with bright colors, diversifies the color scheme in rockeries. Used in rain gardens and atriums. In flower beds, it gives an excellent combination with such plants as balsam, morning glory sweet potato, kochia, sedum.
These plants were very popular in the middle of the last century, when carpet beds were often decorated in cities. Therefore, they can be considered vintage plants in some way.
The popular species - Linden's irezine and Herbst's irezine - are perennial tropical plants. They are not cold-hardy and are grown as annuals in temperate climates. In general, they are unpretentious and low-maintenance. They are also grown as indoor plants.
More about these types - on the page Irezine.
Lighting... Irezine is a light-loving, fast-growing plant that forms dense bushes. Withstands partial shade, but at the same time becomes not so bright.
Temperature... Irezine is not cold-resistant, the temperature + 2 ° C is already destructive for the plant.
The soil a loamy or clayey plant is suitable, but well-drained. Moderately fertile soil is sufficient, although the plant is very responsive to fertilization. Undemanding to soil acidity, tolerates pH 6.1-7.8 well.
For containers, you can simply take compost.
Watering regular so that the soil is completely wet. If irezin grows in a pot, then so much water is needed so that it comes out of the drainage hole. The plant prefers moist soil, but is heat resistant, tolerates short periods of drought without watering.
Top dressing applied every 2 weeks - with a complex mineral fertilizer for decorative deciduous plants. Or you can simply mulch the soil with compost or rotted manure.
Pinching... At the initial stage of development, plants can be pinched over 3-5 nodes to stimulate tillering.
Reproduction... Recently, seed-propagated varieties of irezine have appeared. However, they are rare, so cuttings remain the main breeding method.
Irezine is not cold-resistant (it can withstand temperature drops only up to + 4 ... + 10 degrees). Therefore, for the winter, cuttings are taken from plants for rooting in indoor conditions. Cuttings root easily and quickly in water or sand. Plants obtained from such summer cuttings grow, of course, not as bright as in the open field (due to a lack of light on the windowsill). But this allows you to save mother liquors for spring cuttings, which is carried out in February-April.
Read also the article Irezine in room conditions
Pests and diseases... Irezine is rarely ill. However, it can be susceptible to powdery mildew, it can be affected by aphids, and in indoor conditions - by a spider mite.
