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Glossy and graceful
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The spider plant, with its delicate leaves and yellowish green flowers, can be raised in pots outdoors
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A SLENDER, evergreen shrub, Aralia elegantissima has elegant, digitally compound leaves of seven to 11 glossy, narrow-toothed leaflets. They are bronze-green in colour when young, but become nearly black as they mature. The leaflets are six to eight cm long and one cm across. The plant belongs to the family Araliaceae from South-East Asia and South America. The central stem and leaf stalks are mottled a creamy white.
As houseplants, Aralias can be grown in pots. They are prized because of their delicate leaves. They are not, however, easy to grow but can be grown outdoors as shrubs.
The plants need ample light but not direct sun. Keep away from draughts and dry atmosphere. Soil with equal parts of sandy loam, peat and leaf mould is ideal. Water regularly, but sparingly. Do not let water stagnate. Provide good drainage. Maintain a moist atmosphere just around the plant. Spray the foliage at regular intervals. Apply liquid fertiliser once in two weeks.
Propagation is by cuttings or layering. Small flowers appear in umbels but the plants seldom bloom indoors. Pruning helps produce new shoots if growth becomes spindly. Spraying or sprinkling foliage occasionally helps provide humidity. Re-pot after two or three years.
Aralia, also known as spider plant, bears yellowish green flowers on 30 cm-long umbels and spherical black fruit. New plants can be raised from seeds. These plants do not normally branch but tend to grow straight up from the central growing point. For a bushy effect, plant two or three small specimens in one pot.
CHITRA RADHAKRISHNAN
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