Commonly used TERMINOLOGY
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GROWING SUCCULENTS and BROMELIADS for PLEASURE

Growing succulents and bromeliads is a very absorbing interest and rewarding hobby. As your collection grows, to more then just a few plants, you will need to learn their names, all Latin. Initially this will be a little difficult, but it will become easier as your collection grows.

Always try and buy plants with the correct names. Tag each plant and start a plant register to keep a good historic record. This will become more interesting as you progress and learn.

There are many books and internet resources for obtaining plant culture material. You can also ask your horticultural friends how to grow the plants or look them up in the Society's library.

When bringing new plants into your collection from other sources, always check and quarantine for pests, diseases and repot if necessary.



FLOWERING

Once the succulents and bromeliads have reached their flowering stage, they will flower regularly every year and some will even flower twice a year, if grown correctly. Some can flower, after the second year from being raised from seed.

Surprisingly, some plants produce their magnificent flowers in winter, when little else is flowering.



CLIMATE

The climate can be very different, including hotter, drier, wetter and humid, than that experienced by succulents and bromeliads native to other parts of the world. Many introduced succulents and bromeliads will dehydrate in our hot sun without any cover shelter, especially if planted without protection or against westerly buildings.

For landscape plants, sun protection might mean planting where they will have some afternoon shade, or under the broken cover of a shrub or tree. For plants in pots, the problem is more critical, because pots heat up more than plants in the ground.

Some succulents and bromeliads from cooler climates may grow better in full shade and some may even grow in winter, needing little water or light during our long, hot summers. Some will do well unprotected throughout a mild winter.

Many succulents and all bromeliads will freeze and be damaged in light frosts.




POTTING, RE-POTTING and MOUNTING

When potting, use pots that are the right size for the plant. All these plants require very open and free-draining compost. Tap the compost gently around the roots, as it will settle when the plant is watered later.

Re-potting should be considered about once a year at the beginning of their growing season in early Spring. When the plants have outgrown the pot or not growing well, re-potting should be considered. After re-potting, never water until the plant has settled down for week or two in warm weather.

As many bromeliads are epiphytic plants in habitat, they thrive in an airy location, when mounted on cork, branch or tree. These can be firmly attached by tying with fine strips of material, nailed or glued into position.



PROPAGATION

Most succulents and bromeliads can be grown from either seed or cuttings. They reproduce by having their flowers pollinated to produce seeds, that when ripe are dispersed in the local vicinity.

Cuttings for bromeliads are usually from offsets or pups, removed when they are about one third the size of the "mother", while succulents often grow from very small sections of stem and even individual leaves. To achieve the best results, both succulents and bromeliads strike more easily and flourish, in the warmer months of spring.



LIGHT

Most plants including succulents and bromeliads need the best light to grow successfully. This light is user to convert there food into energy with photosynthesis.

Succulents and bromeliads can be successfully grown directly in the garden, in a greenhouse or even in a pot on a window sill, but you have to be careful.



WATERING

Check your plants requirements first and don't ever over water. Succulents and bromeliads require minimal water to survive and stay in good health. These are very resilient plants and can go a long time without water.

If required, water freely in Spring, Summer and Autumn when the plants are growing. Water the plants in the early morning, with a thorough drenching and soaking. Very few plants grow in the winter, so minimal water should be given. Don't water on cool or wet days.

Watering with some additional mild fertilizers is recommended for good plant health. Any fertilizer low in Nitrogen, but high in Phosphorus and Potash is very suitable for all succulents and bromeliads.



PESTS AND DISEASES

Succulents and bromeliads have very few pests and diseases, in our local region.

The most common pest is the grass hopper. It will hatch and eat huge amounts of plant material, causing damage and unsightly disfiguration.
Scales of both the hard and soft varieties are natural foliage infesters and can easily be killed with systemic insecticide.
The very small mealy bug can attack the plant and its roots. Water with systemic insecticide will usually eradicate them.
Butterflies and moths can lay their eggs and these hatch into caterpillars, which eat the plants.
Aphids are sap sucking small soft insects that can cause stunted growth to plants.
Snails and slugs can eat the most succulent foliage causing unwanted damage.
The red spider mites are very destructive and hard to detect on the underside of the foliage, in hot, dry and unventilated conditions.
Other pests can be uncontrolled dogs, cats, birds, rats or mice.

Diseases in our local region include :
Crown or root rot is the natural ground disease Phytophthora cimmamomi which is widely spread throughout the warmer climates of the world and attacks many plants including pineapples.
Fungus are often responsible for the damage to seedlings grown in unsterilized material.



PROBLEMS

An important warning. Never use white oil or copper based compounds on bromeliads, as it will kill them.
Hail, ice and frosts will badly mark and burn the plant's leaves.