Storing Caladium fritillary in the fall is one of the most common reasons people call a professional aquarium owner. The other most common reason is simply because the leaves on the plant are starting to fall off. If you’re thinking of learning how to store caladium fritillary in the winter, there are several steps you can take to ensure you are storing your specimen properly so that it blooms as soon as spring arrives. Of course, knowing how to store and care for this particular plant is only half the battle – you also need to pick out a container that won’t freeze before the first bloom shows up.
When I picked out my containers for my fritillary, I didn’t realize how much water they would retain. This is actually quite common for this plant, as it normally enjoys about twelve inches of water. Because they live in such shallow waters, you really only need about three or four inches of water in each container, which will depend on how large your plant is. It’s a good idea to make sure that you have a good quality potting mix in your water too, since you don’t want your plants growing in nutrient free water. Don’t wait until after the plant starts blooming to change the pot or the leaves will simply die.
The amount of time you need to store your california fritillary in the fall depends largely on when you plan on taking it out of the ground. The most ideal time to get started storing your plant is around the fourth week of autumn. In the wild, the plant blooms about two weeks after it starts growing leaves. In most cases, you should take it out about one week earlier, but it really depends on the weather. If you can’t do it during the winter, you can store the fritillary a few weeks after it starts growing its leaves.
You should remove any fallen leaves from the pot, because they will decompose. In most cases, you need to clean the inside of the container using a solution of half water and half vinegar. Then, you need to fill the hole with new soil. Remember that you should only put enough soil in the hole so that it won’t be over crowded.
After your california fritillary has roots established in the pot, you can repot it with fresh medium. When you repot it, you should use medium quality potting soil in the base of the container. Your plant should have no more than three to four leaves on top of the soil, because they won’t get any sunlight to grow properly. Keep the new potting soil in place for about a month before covering the pot with a plastic bag. This prevents air from getting to the leaves and encourages new root growth.
Another thing that you need to do is to train your fritillary. To do this, you should pull some of the leaves until you can easily see the fritillary leaf stem. Then, you should tie these stems with a piece of rope or yarn. Just as you do when you are pruning your plants, cut off any dead branches or leaves. This will encourage the fritillary to grow and produce new leaves. After it grows, you should make another round of cuts along the stem, allowing about two inch gaps at each end.
To store your California fritillary, you need to mist the leaves with a water-soaked linen material. Store the fritillary in a location where the temperature remains around 60 degrees Fahrenheit. You should also add about one inch of salt to the water. This will help to repel insects from the foliage. When you do so, you will be able to take the fritillary outside in the evening to ensure that it has dried by the morning.
If you want to ensure that the fritillary stays healthy, you need to do some things on a regular basis. The first is to remove all of the leaves from the pot. Do this in the springtime. After the leaves have fallen off, you can move the fritillary indoors in a plastic pot. Before placing the pot inside, you should make sure that there are no leaves on the rim of the pot. Otherwise, the fritillary could be affected by dust.
