One of the most popular domestic plants in Russia is the Crassula (Crassula), better known as the money tree. Its dense rounded plump leaves are very similar to coins. In addition to decorating the interior, it is believed that a tree grown with love can bring good luck and financial prosperity to the house.
Crassula is a generally unpretentious plant, it is not difficult to take care of a tree even for beginner gardeners or those who are always busy. The main and main element of caring for a fat woman at home, ensuring her health and successful growth, is competent watering. Feeding is carried out with special mixtures once every half a month and only in the summer, when the plant is actively developing.
Features of watering
The more magnificent the crown of the tree and the fatter its leaves, the more active the welfare of the family grows - so followers of Feng Shui. In addition, the abundant foliage of the red grass neutralizes negative energy. Proper and timely watering, carried out with a good attitude and love, can turn a young sprout into a full-fledged money tree.
This plant, like any living organism, has its own requirements for water quality. For example, its root system does not tolerate watering with cold tap water. Before moistening the soil in a pot, let the water settle and warm to room temperature. It should be stored in an open container so that the chlorine added to the tap water disappears. Irrigating melt water, obtained by freezing in a freezer and subsequent thawing, will affect the flower’s health even better - this removes chemical impurities harmful to plants.
Watering a Money Tree with a Watering Can
Watering the plant should be very moderate, it is recommended to carry it out from a watering can with an elongated nose, the water should pour slowly, without forming puddles in the basal zone. If the liquid seeps into the pan under the pot, it should be drained with a rag (and not left to re-drink, as is done for other indoor flowers) a couple of tens of minutes after watering.
Additional Information. After moistening, the topsoil must be loosened to supply the roots with air.
The second way, how to water a money tree, is to supply water through a pallet in several passes until the substrate is completely saturated. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that excess moisture does not remain in it, otherwise the roots may begin to rot.
Watering the fat woman at different times of the year
In order for the tree of wealth to always be magnificent and pleasing to the eye, the conditions and intensity of watering should be differentiated depending on the time of year.
Being an African native and representing the genus of succulents, a money tree with the help of leaves, twigs, and the main trunk can store a large amount of moisture, so that in dry periods it will be spent a little. Therefore, for the health of a fat woman, lack of moisture is easier to tolerate than its excess.
Watering a Money Tree Through a Pallet
In the cold period, the plant comes to rest. It is necessary to keep in order not to water the "poor flower" once again, even if the soil near the trunk seems completely dry.
When spring arrives, the money tree, like most plants, begins sap flow, it begins to grow and actively form new leaves. During this period, it is necessary to increase the number of irrigations, depending on the growing conditions and type of fat.
A fat woman can go without water for quite a long time; in no case should it be watered daily. Two waterings a week are enough, in the cold season - even less (the required minimum is a couple of times a month). However, it is necessary to focus primarily on the state of the soil substrate in the pot for each particular plant: whether it is dry or still wet. Ideally, it should remain moist in the middle and dried in the upper layers.
How often to water a money tree in summer
How often is it necessary to water a money tree in the summer? Many inexperienced lovers of indoor flowers believe that at this time the plant should be watered as often as possible. However, it is desirable to limit the amount of humidification to a couple or three times every ten days.
Money tree is watered more often in summer
It is necessary to monitor the condition of the soil substrate in the root zone, because it can be dry while the ground under it is still wet. If at the same time you start watering the money tree again, the roots can rot, because they are very sensitive to excess moisture.
Important! If the plant in the hot summer still began to lose foliage due to rotting of the roots, it can be reanimated by removing dead parts and replanting it in a dry substrate, gradually moistening it to the entire depth of the pot.
Watering in the autumn-winter period
In the period after a hot summer, it is advisable to keep the soil in the containers where the money tree grows, dried. Watering is done once a week, because autumn is considered a preparation for wintering the plant with a slowdown in sap flow and entry into a dormant state.
In winter, the frequency of substrate wetting is significantly reduced. If a tree hibernates at room temperature, in heat, it is enough to give it water once a month. If the plant in this period is in a cool room, you can not water it at all.
Money tree in winter almost no need to be watered
At this time of year (from November to March) the flower is resting, gaining strength for the new season. At the end of winter, the fat girl is again transferred to warm conditions and begins to be watered more often.
If you look after the plant in this way, the green pet will actively increase the fleshy green mass of leaves - "coins."
Is it possible to spray a money tree
In addition to watering the area of the root system directly, many houseplants (for example, spathiphyllum, tradescantium, chlorophytum, etc.) require cleaning the leaves of dust, moistening the air around them by spraying them with a spray.
Money tree is not so finicky, it is not necessary to spray it regularly. However, if the room is too hot or the air is dry, you can slightly spray the plant from the atomizer with simple, standing (or better melt) water in the absence of direct sunlight.
Note! When spraying, it is advisable to cover the soil in the root zone and the near-stem circle with a piece of polyethylene so that moisture does not penetrate the substrate and does not lead to its unnecessary moisture.
Sometimes you can spray the foliage of a pulp from a spray bottle
Coin-like leaves can be periodically wiped off from accumulating dust with a damp cloth. It is also necessary to ensure proper air flow, i.e. ventilate the room where the pot of fat is standing.
How to determine if a tree needs watering
It is easy enough for beginner gardeners to answer this question - just look at the soil and gently try it with your finger. If he feels dryness deeper than one phalanx, it is necessary to water the tree.
If you are guided only by an external examination, you can make a mistake, because often the topsoil may look dry, and under the crust the substrate will even be waterlogged. In such a situation, the fat woman does not need additional watering, but in the loosening of the upper layer.
It should be remembered! In the cold season, the soil will dry more slowly (which is why in winter significantly reduce the number of watering), and in the hot summer season - faster.
If it is not possible to water a fat girl (for example, when leaving on vacation), you can pour moist expanded clay on the ground. It will dry excess moisture and give it away if necessary.
Optimal temperature and humidity in the room
The determining factor in deciding how often to water a fat woman is the conditions for its cultivation. So, in the summer, when a container with a plant is on the balcony, in hot air, it will have to be watered more often because of the increased speed of drying of the soil.
The optimal temperature indicators for the active growth of the money tree are from 19 to 25 degrees Celsius. If the temperature exceeds this limit, the shoots of the money tree are too extended, and the rounded leaves become small. For the autumn period, the temperature can be reduced to 15 degrees, in winter, when the flower is sent for wintering, it is enough to maintain plus five degrees of heat. However, at lower temperatures, the plant may die.
The fat woman feels great outdoors
A sufficient level of illumination also affects the success of the growth of new "coins" - leaves, otherwise the plant will lose its foliage and will dry out. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that direct sunlight does not fall on the fat woman, otherwise burns will appear on the leaves. To avoid this situation, in the summer you can lower the plant from the windowsill to the floor near the window, because it will be a little cooler there, but the optimal level of illumination will remain.
Fresh air to the trees is to their liking, so pots with them can be placed on the balcony or in the garden in the shade of a tree crown.
How to water a money tree after a transplant
The need for a money tree transplant occurs when the roots of the plants become so long and branched that they will braid the entire earthen lump in the pot. Such plants move into a larger vessel in diameter. Planting young fat women in a new place should be done every year, older plants - every three to four years. You should not make a mistake often for beginning growers - immediately plant a young flower in a large pot. Indeed, in such a container, after each watering, moisture will accumulate due to slow drying, which will significantly increase the risk of rotting of the root system and death of the plant. The transplant is best done in the spring, when active sap flow resumes in the tree.
It is important to follow the step-by-step irrigation schedule after transplanting the fat. The main rule is to give less moisture than transfer it.
It should be remembered! Money tree easily copes with drought, while waterlogging can destroy it.
After transplanting, watering is carried out in two ways:
- In emergency resuscitation (for example, after flooding) and drying of the damaged roots in the air, the plant should be watered very little and immediately after the rhizomes are placed in the substrate;
- With a planned transplant, it is imperative to water the new "tenant" in a day or a couple. In this case, the soil mixture will settle slightly, it should be added to the desired level and watered again (avoiding stagnation of water in the sump).
Watering after transplantation is necessary in a day or two
In many houses, a money tree, or Crassula, flaunts on the window. It is believed that it brings good luck and financial well-being. In general, this plant is unpretentious, the main thing is to properly water it and observe the temperature regime. The amount of watering varies according to the seasons of the year: in the summer in the heat it is a couple once a week, in the winter when the flower goes into hibernation, once a month is enough. If these conditions are observed, the tree will delight its owners with lush "fleshy" foliage in the form of coins.
