Le Zamioculcas (Zamioculcas zamiifolia), unique species of the genus eponymous, is originally from Zanzibar. He has a nickname that is very easy to remember, namely ZZ plant because of his Latin initials. This beautiful tropical shrubby plant with tuberous rhizome belongs to the family of Araceae. It does not exceed 1.20 m in height. Its evergreen foliage consists of leathery leaves of a bright green. As easy to cultivate as the Philodendron whose low cultural requirements are similar, the Zamioculcas can be used as an indoor plant in our latitudes and brings a highly refined touch to a room or the veranda. aesthetic. Let’s take a look at the best growing conditions for the ZZ plant and see in detail how to care for it.
Growing a Zamioculcas
The ZZ plant should be grown in a large pierced pot filled with a mixture of peat and potting soil, but good garden soil lightened with river sand is fine for it. Its culture medium must be well drained. This is why it is recommended to place a layer of terracotta shards, clay balls or gravel at the bottom of the pot. Avoid planting a Zamioculcas in soil that is too heavy or in ordinary potting soil because the drainage cannot be sufficient. This may cause leaf spots to appear and negatively affect plant growth.
On the exhibition side, we ideally reserve for our Zamioculcas a bright location but we make sure to protect it from direct sunlight. If you have no choice but to install it in the immediate vicinity of a south-facing bay window, the best thing is to install a curtain.
Note, however, that the Zamioculcas is not really not demanding since it is satisfied with a rather low luminosity. On the other hand, the ambient temperature must be at least 18°C and it is not desirable for it to exceed 26°C.
Maintaining your ZZ or Zamioculcas plant
This plant is suitable for people who do not have a green thumb because of its low needs. She grows very well without the need to devote a lot of time to her.
Fertiliser
From March to October, i.e. during the growing season, the ZZ plant must receive a dose of liquid fertilizer for green plants every four weeks, to be diluted in the irrigation water. This promotes its growth and preserves its good health. In winter, fertilizer inputs should be suspended.
dust off
It is important to regularly remove the dust that accumulates on the leaves of Zamioculcas. A wet sponge is quite sufficient. No need to use a gloss product for green plants. It is even frankly not recommended, especially if it contains wax, silicone or oil, because this ends up blocking the light but also obstructing the stomata and preventing the plant from breathing. via its leaf system.
Cleaning a Zamioculcas simply with water therefore makes it possible to preserve the beauty of its foliage with a glossy appearance, but also the plant health since it breathes much better when its leaves are perfectly clean.
mist
The leaves of the Zamioculcas like to benefit from a moderate humidity, which may be lacking in our houses and apartments where the humidity level is lower than that which can be measured in the natural environment of this beautiful exotic. So we think from time to time spray the plant with waterif possible non-calcareous and at room temperature, even if tap water does not pose any particular problem.
Take out the ZZ plant in the summer
It is welcome to install his Zamioculcas away during the summer period, which can do him the greatest good if and only if we have the possibility of placing him in the shade because the direct rays of the sun are not at all favorable to it. His stay outside must be of short time because this plant does not present no hardiness. It does not tolerate temperatures below 15°C.
We are careful, and it is better not to leave it outside if we plan to go on vacation in September or October, because in many of our regions, it can start to get chilly during the night, which which could be fatal to him. Anticipation is therefore in order.
Bouturer
It is easy to multiplier this type of plant, either separating the tuft after a few years, or cutting leaves it is enough to plant at 50% of their height in a good nutritious soil that is watered every 6 or 7 days. Generally, recovery only takes a few weeks.
Pests and diseases
The ZZ plant deserves its reputation as strong plant, easy to grow. She is indeed highly resistant to insect pests. Only the scale insects are to be feared. These parasites withdraw by hand. In case of heavy infestation, it is necessary to spray the plant with a mixture of water, black soap or vegetable oil and repeat the treatment every 3 or 4 days for 2 weeks. It is important not to let scale insects invade a ZZ plant as they feed on its sap and eventually weaken it, compromising its growth.
A Zamioculcas can get sick if it is too much water. We usually see a yellowing of foliageand softening of petioles and in the most serious cases, a rhizome rot. To save the plant, it is crucial to repot it without delay in healthy soil, and to suspend watering until you notice an improvement in its condition… if it is not too late because drowning a plant ZZ can really put it in jeopardy.
Watering a Zamioculcas
If there is a plant that is not very complicated in terms of watering, it is the Zamioculcas which adapts to the lack of regularity and even to drought. However, it is better to adopt good habits for this plant to be resplendent. One watering per week in summer is more than enough and in winter it is better to water every three weeks since the plant is at rest, or a little more often if the room is overheated.
The larger a Zamioculcas, the more water it needs during the growing season, which is between March and October, all things considered. It is therefore according to the size of the plant and that of the pot that the frequency of watering is regulated, but the most important thing is to check the state of the substrate. He must be able partly dry out between two waterings.
The moderation is therefore appropriate, including for a major subject. Whatever the conditions, the ZZ plant should never be drowned and the saucer must be emptied after each watering because the excess humidity at the level of its roots is harmful and causes the plant to soften. Anyway, the Zamioculcas stores water in its caudex in the form of juices, that is to say in its tuberous rhizome. This allows it to hold out in times of scarcity.
Repot the Zamioculcas
Every three years, in spring, it is useful to repot your ZZ plant in order to completely renew its substrate, without forgetting the drainage layer with which the pierced bottom of the container must be covered. We take this opportunity to offer him a bigger jar if necessary in order to encourage its development.
It is also possible to be satisfied with a surfacing every 2 years, again in the spring, in order to limit the handling of large, relatively heavy bins. It consists of remove 5 or 6 cm of substrate on the surface by simply scraping and then bringing a few handfuls of good soil mixed with peat for example or any other nutrient-rich growing medium and appropriate to the species. During repotting or surfacing, essential to keep the plant in good health, it is advisable to be delicate because a muscular manipulation risks causing the breakage of the petioles.
The Zamioculcas is among the most beautiful indoor plants and arouses growing enthusiasm because of its graphical port of great elegance. Raised in good conditions, it has no physical defects, no spots, no withered, wilted or damaged leaves. It can even produce greenish spathes from which emerge a kind of light brown ears. It can go completely unnoticed, so little that it flourishes in the middle of the leaflets. Admittedly, the ZZ plant flower is not of transcendent beauty, but at least it has the merit of existing and constitutes proof that the Zamioculcas is doing well.