Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Nov 24, 2007
Google



Property Plus Hyderabad
Published on Saturdays

Features: Magazine | Literary Review | Life | Metro Plus | Open Page | Education Plus | Book Review | Business | SciTech | Friday Review | Cinema Plus | Young World | Property Plus | Quest | Folio |

Property Plus    Bangalore    Chennai    Hyderabad    Kochi    Thiruvananthapuram   

Printer Friendly Page Send this Article to a Friend

Happy to be home

With the arrival of Zamia you can have a lush indoor plant in your home, writes Hema Vijay

Photo : S. Thanthoni.

Nature’s gift: Indoor plant Zamia can survive less shade, but ironically, direct sunlight will kill it. -

Imagine having the cheering company of a lush indoor plant in your home, without having to watchfully move it outdoors so that it gets its dose of sunlight?

Well, it may not be impossible, with the arrival of Zamia into the city.

A variety of palm that goes by the name Zamia ferraica, this plant is a native of China, but is now being grown successfully in our tropical climate too.

A perennial slow growing plant, Zamia’s propagation is by root bulbs. The plant definitely needs its shade and needs to be kept indoors. It can survive less shade, but ironically, direct sunlight will kill it .

Expensive, a single plant would cost you Rs.1,000, but you can propagate them into many more at home.

Soil texture

Zamia requires a planter pot of about one to two feet depth.

The soil has to be exceedingly loose as this plant needs plenty of aeration.

About 500ml of water once in two days will do. Of course, if you see the plant drying up, pour more water and the plant will bounce back to green health.

Since the soil mixture is exceedingly light, you can not only use decorative ceramic pots to grow them in, but also happily lug it all over your house, if you like.

Not a flowering plant, Zamia, like a palm, is long stemmed and has branches with thick oblong, dark green leaves.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail



Property Plus    Bangalore    Chennai    Hyderabad    Kochi    Thiruvananthapuram   

Features: Magazine | Literary Review | Life | Metro Plus | Open Page | Education Plus | Book Review | Business | SciTech | Friday Review | Cinema Plus | Young World | Property Plus | Quest | Folio |


The Hindu Group: Home | About Us | Copyright | Archives | Contacts | Subscription
Group Sites: The Hindu | Business Line | Sportstar | Frontline | Publications | eBooks | Images | Home |

Comments to : thehindu@vsnl.com   Copyright © 2007, The Hindu
Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu