Columnea

Family: Gesneriaceae. This is an attractive plant with long pendulous shoots; its leaves are small, partly leathery, or soft and covered with hairs. Its tubular flowers are conspicuous, salmon-red or fiery red in color.

Columnea: care and maintenance: Columneas require a warm, humid, bright but not sunny location. During the growing season the temperature should not drop below 18-20° C; in addition, Columnea needs abundant watering and feeding (preferably water-soluble complex fertilizers at a concentration of 1–2 percent). Transplanting Columnea is done in spring. For this a moisture-permeable, loose, humus-rich soil mixture is needed (for example, turf or leaf soil with the addition of coarse peat crumbs, bog moss and sand). Single garden soil or a ready-made substrate will also do.

Propagation of Columnea: By cuttings of stems and shoots in April. In small pots filled with a mixture of peat and sand, about 9 cuttings are planted and covered with a glass dome. At a soil temperature of 20-22° C they root in approximately 3-4 weeks.

Characteristics of Columnea: The future flowering of Columnea is encouraged by a gradual lowering of the temperature to 14-15° C in December-January; at temperatures above 15° C bud formation is delayed. When the flower buds exceed 5 mm in size, the temperature can be increased again to 18-20° C.

Pests and diseases: These plants react poorly only to mistakes in care: too dry air, stagnant dampness, or watering with water containing lime.