Whatās the deal with this Birds of Paradise boy?
I know a lot of people have suggested not completely to Greg and yeah I experienced that a lot where I didnāt. But Iām just confused cus first thereās the sun tip where one is as much sun as you can get and the other says itāll get it burnt so use shade š§. I had a grow light for a while. Fine. Now heās was supposed to be (temporary) spot to make room and to remember what pot Iām using when I pot up. Looks huge but only 2ā wider I swear. But I kept putting it off ngl but itās by a north facing window and is all of a sudden growing new leaves. It must be one of those that likes a snug pot, but now Iām scared to pot up. Maybe itās too tall? But Greg marked it as a hard to take care of plants and itās been all around inside and never cares. Who knows what the actual deal is, meaning like how to best take care of it, like basically the categories on Greg. Esp what kind of pot style does it like? Like size and material? #HappyPlants #PlantsMakePeopleHappy #PlantAddict #NewGrowth #PlantTherapy #NewPlantMom #GrowLights #PlantCorner #HappyPlants
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Best Answer
bOP are canopy plants in their natural habitat so they get dappled sun with some shade. I think Greg is suggesting mimicing that environment, although itās not quite clear. I have one of my white BOP plants facing a south window in indirect sun with supplemental grow lights and the other which is much larger is located in a West/NW window with indirect sun and supplemental grow lights. I water every 7 to 8 days. My soil mix is a combination of FoxFarm Ocean Forest mix, perlite, orchid bark and worm castings. Mine are 2 years old. It can take baby or immature plants up to 5 years to flower. Iām hoping my Tom and Tamara make it because I really would love to see it bloom after all my efforts. Mine are in 8 inch pots. If you are seeing roots out of the bottom or top of the plant pot or if itās been more than 2 years since the soil had been changed then itās definitely time to pot up. Mine were 4 inch when I got them and now they are huge.
@SageSolidGoldd and BOP are not particular about pot type. Both of mine are in plastic. Key thing is drainage, humidity and bright light
@Shells_Garden holy h***! Iām in love š. When you pot up do you still do the 2ā thing? Also, how far away are your grow lights bc mine seems way happier without them in a north facing window. My pineapple next too it has a grow light ( Iām gonna put it back outside when I pot up but I keep putting it off bc itās going into a 20ā dia 48qt pot.) but it doesnāt aim at it just barely hits one leaf, which is a little burnt to be fair, but is like three inches away so that makes sense.
My pot is 7.5 inches. I just checked, and no roots coming out the bottom but a little mold so definitely repot. I think itās been 1-2 years. But I think if Iām remembering right the old pot was too small, or maybe I just thought that because of the height, rookie move, if thereās mold that means itās not reaching the water with its roots right? So it sits then grows mold?
So maybe I actually need to go down.
Also if your huge ones like an 8in then mine should probably not be š .
Idk if this is true but I read somewhere a long time ago that when the roots get to the edge of the pot it makes the pot grow taller. Again tho, donāt know if thatās true.
P. S. When you say flowering, do you mean these actually grow flowers š²
My pot is 7.5 inches. I just checked, and no roots coming out the bottom but a little mold so definitely repot. I think itās been 1-2 years. But I think if Iām remembering right the old pot was too small, or maybe I just thought that because of the height, rookie move, if thereās mold that means itās not reaching the water with its roots right? So it sits then grows mold?
So maybe I actually need to go down.
Also if your huge ones like an 8in then mine should probably not be š .
Idk if this is true but I read somewhere a long time ago that when the roots get to the edge of the pot it makes the pot grow taller. Again tho, donāt know if thatās true.
P. S. When you say flowering, do you mean these actually grow flowers š²
@SageSolidGoldd Bird of Paradise is a flowering plant that grows striking, clumping, bird-like flowers with orange/blue or white/blue petals emerging from a beak-like bract depending on the variety you bought. Mine are white BOP. The flowers are very unique and will require the right environment to bloom but it is possible. See photo sample of flowers. I didnāt actually see a photo of your plant so I didnāt know the size of your pot. Yes you are correct, pot up means go from 6 to 8 inch pot or 7 to 9 etc. Mold can mean the soil is not drying out after each watering (overwatering) or it could mean the soil is old. If I get mold on top, I usually a scrape it off with a spoon and throw away. Then in sprinkle the top soil with cinnamon which is a natural anti fungal treatment. If you have mold and the soil is also pulling away from the edges of the pot or the water goes right through without soaking into the soil, then the soil has lost all nutrients and itās definitely time for a new soil. If your roots are still small, you donāt have to go a size up. You can just repot in fresh soil but if you are putting back in the same pot, clean and disinfect the pot before reusing it so you donāt transfer bacteria . Also cut back on watering frequency or the amount of water. I give my plant 1 1/2 cups water a week and itās an 8 inch pot. My grow lights are pretty close but it also depends on the light wattage. I have one with a 10 watt light about a foot and a half away and then I have e one with a 5 watt light only 6 inches or so away from the other one. I run my grow lights 12 hours but as I said, the amount of light it gets depends on the wattage and the strength of light source. I have many plants grouped in an atrium/indoor lanai space at the back of my house so I think that helps with replicating the tropical environment. Leaves will get brown as they age so it may not be the grow lights, it could just be the old leaves dying off to make room for new growth. Hereās a great website for more information on BOP https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-grow-strelitzia-1902742
