How to Grow and Care for Strelitzia Plant (Bird of Paradise)

Types of Strelitzia · Strelitzia reginae 'Glauca': This orange variety has powdery grayer foliage and stems. · Strelitzia reginae 'Humilis' or ' ... TheSpruce/LetíciaAlmeida InThisArticle Expand Care Types Pruning Propagating GrowingfromSeed PottingandRepottingStrelitzia Overwintering PestsandDiseases Bloom CommonProblems BacktoTop Thedistinctivebirdofparadise(Strelitziaspp.)isoneofthebest-knowntropicalflowers.Itiscloselyrelatedtothebananaplant.Thebirdofparadise plantisnamedforcloselyresemblingthetropicalbirdofthesamename.Itiseasiertogrowthanmanytropicalplantsandmakesforavigorous,rapidlygrowingindoorplant.Itcanbemovedoutsideinthesummerandthrivesoutsideforhalftheyear.Birdofparadise typicallyflowersinthelatewinterorearlyspring,butitcanfloweratothertimesoftheyearwhenprovidedoptimalconditions.Theseplantsgrow withuprightleavesemergingdirectlyfromthesoilandhavenotrunk.Thelargeleavesrangefrom12to18incheslongandcangetsplitsintheleafwhenexposedtowindyconditionsorbrushedagainstinabusyhallway.Strelitziaistoxictocatsanddogs. CommonName Birdofparadise,craneflower  BotanicalName Strelitziareginae,Strelitzianicolai Family Strelitziaceae PlantType Herbaceousperennial MatureSize 3.5-6ft.tall,3-4ft.wide SunExposure Fulltopartial SoilType Loamy SoilpH Slightlyacidic BloomTime Latewintertoearlyspring FlowerColor Orangeorwhite HardinessZones 10-12(USDA) NativeArea Africa(SouthAfrica) Toxicity Toxictopets BirdofParadiseCare Strelitziaarebeautifulplantsthatcanbesuccessfullygrowninside;however,thebiggestdrawbacksaretheir size;theycangrow5to6feettall.Theseplantsneed3to5yearstomaturebeforetheyflower.Theyworkwellinmassedplantingsoutsideorasaspecimenplant inwarmclimates,wheretheirflowersriseabovethefoliageforanimpressivedisplay. Thetricktosuccessfulgrowthindoorsisbrightlightwithdirectsun,regularwatering,andwarmth.Feedtheplantwithcompostearlyinspringbeforenewgrowthbeginsandfertilizeeveryweekduringthegrowingseason.Toincreasesurvivalrate,growtheplantinacontainerthatcanbemovedoutsideinwarmsummermonthsandreturnedinsideduringthewinter. TheSpruce/LetíciaAlmeida  TheSpruce/LetíciaAlmeida  TheSpruce/LetíciaAlmeida JulietteWade/GettyImages Light Thisplantneedsbrightlight,includingsomedirectsunlight,tobloomwell.However,itrequiresshieldinginthedirectmiddaysummersun,whichcanburntheleavesofyoungerplants.Agoodpositionisinaroomwithwindowsfacingeastorwest.Avoidroomswithonlyanorth-facingwindow. Soil Userich,well-drainedpottingmixforpottedplantsoracompostmixture.Ifusingapot,makesureithasampledrainageholestoallowwatertoflowthroughthesoilandoutofthepot. Water Keepthesoilcontinuallymoistthroughouttheyear.Whileitshouldnotbewaterlogged,expecttowateritdailyinthespringandsummerasitlosesmoisturethroughitsbigleaves.Youcanwaterituntilyouseethewaterdrainingfromitsdrainageholes,butmakesureitdoesnotsitinapoolofwater.Ifoverwatered,theplantwilldevelopcrunchybrownleaves.Ifunderwatered,theleavesfarthestfromthecenterwillturnyellow. TemperatureandHumidity Birdofparadiseprefershighhumidity.Youmightwanttokeepaspraybottlehandytomistitifyourhomeisdry.Keeptheairtemperatureabove60degreesFahrenheitinthewinter.Thisisnotacold-tolerantplant,anditrecoversslowlyfromfrostdamage. Fertilizer Thisplantisaheavyfeeder.Feeditinthespringtimewithslow-releasepelletsorweeklyduringthegrowingseasonwithliquidfertilizer. TypesofStrelitzia TherearefiveStrelitziaspecies,butonlytwoarecommonlygrownasindoorplants:S.reginae(orangebirdofparadise)andS.nicolai(whitebirdofparadise). Strelitziareginae'Glauca':Thisorangevarietyhaspowderygrayerfoliageandstems.Strelitziareginae'Humilis'or'Pygmaea':Thisorangevarietyonlygrowstoabout3feetinsize.Strelitziareginae'Ovata':Thisorangevarietyfeaturesroundedleafblades.Strelitziajuncea:Theleaflessbirdofparadiselacksleafblades,soitsstemsandleaveslooklikereeds.Strelitziacaudata:This25-foot-tallspeciesgrowsinthehigherelevationsofSouthAfricaandisalsocalledthemountainbirdofparadise.Itbloomswithwhite-and-bluepetalledflowersandistherarestandhardesttoobtain. Pruning Birdsofparadiseflowerslastforaboutthreeweeksbeforedroppingtheirpetalsanddying.Removeoldordamagedplantmatter.Thisisthebestwaytothintheleaves.Removetheleavesbypullingthemofforusesharpcuttinginstruments.Sterilizetheimplementsinbetweendifferentplants.Ifaleafappearsmostlyhealthy,leaveitintact.Ifyourplanthasgrownreallylarge,andyouneedtodosignificantcuttingdown,useloppers,handpruners,orapruningsawintheearlyspring.Donotusehedgetrimmers,whichleaveraggedcuts.Youcancutallleavesandstemsdowntojustabovetheground.Iftheplantremainstoocrowded,uselong-handledprunersandremoveselectedstemsandleaves. PropagatingBirdofParadise Thebestwaystopropagatebirdsofparadisearedivisionandsowingseeds.Divisioniseasierandquickerthangrowingfromseed.It'sbesttousematureplantsthathavebeenpreviouslybloomingforatleastthreeyears.Here'showtodividestrelitzia. Topropagatebydivision: Dependingonthesizeofyourplant(anditsrhizomeorundergroundrootstructure),youwillneedlargerinstrumentslikeashovelandsawforin-groundorlargeplants.Forsmallerplants,youcanuseasharpknife.Ifpottingthedivision,youwillneedanewpotandawell-drainingpottingmix. Youcanalsoremovethenewgrowthoroffshootsatthebaseoftheplantthathasatleastthreeleavesanddividetherhizomebelowgroundwithashovel,saw,orknife. Repotinanewcontainerwithawell-drainingpottingmix. HowtoGrowStrelitziaFromSeed Bepatientwhengrowingstrelitziafromseeds.Itcantaketwomonthsfortheseedstogerminate.Soakseedsinroom-temperaturewaterfor24to48hoursbeforeplanting.Removeanyorangestringymaterial.Nicktheseedwithaknifeornailfile.Planttheseedinawell-drainingpottingmixabout1/2to1inchdeepandatleast3inchesapartfromotherseeds.Placethecontainerinawarm,indirectsunlocation(atleast80degreesFahrenheit).Coverwithaclocheorplasticwrap,keepingthesoilmoistbutnotsoggy.Oncetheseedlinggerminatesandproducestwotothreeleaves,transplanttoa6-inchpot.Onceyourplantreaches6inches,itisreadyforamorepermanenthome. PottingandRepottingStrelitzia Birdofparadiseisarapidly-growingplantthatneedstoreachacertainsizebeforeitblooms.Abirdofparadisethatis3to4feettallgrowswellina10-inchpot.A5-to6-footplantusuallythrivesina14-inchpot.Repotiteveryspringintothenext-size-uppot. Onceitreachesmaturity,allowittobepot-boundsothatitwillbloom.Youcandivideitbythetimeithasmaturedorbloomedatleastoncebutdoitinfrequentlysincecrowdedclumpsproducethemostblooms.Repottingdisruptsthebloomcycle. Overwintering Ifitgetsbelowfreezingwhereyouliveforaprolongedtime,youmightkillthisplantifyoudonottakeitinsideforthewinter.However,ifyouliveinanarealikezone9,whereitonlydipslowforshortperiods,youmaybeabletooverwinteryourplantoutdoors;butitwillneedhelptosurvive.Tooverwinteroutdoors,cutthestemandleavesdowntojust12inchesabovetheground.Covertheentirestemandrhizomeareawithalayerofmulch,thenleaflitter,andstraw.Coverthatwithbreathablerowcovermaterialandstakeitdown.Assoonasspringarrivesandthethreatofthelastfrostisgone,removethetoppings. CommonPestsandPlantDiseases Monitortheplantforaphids,scale,andwhiteflies.Ifyouseethem,useinsecticidalsoapforcontrolandapplyittotheundersidesoftheleaves.Systemicpesticideisalsoeffective.Ifyouusesystemicpesticide,theplantwilldistributeitfromitsrootsthroughtoitsleavesandflowers.BirdofparadiseisalsosusceptibletoBotrytiscinerea(graymold).Flowersandleaveswiththisconditionwilldevelopdarkspotsfollowedbyalayerofgraymold.Removetheaffectedpartsoftheplantandallowthemtoairout. HowtoGetStrelitziatoBloom Onceyourplantisatleastfourtofiveyearsold,itismatureenoughtobloom.Tospurflowering,keepitpot-bound.Giveitalotofsun (atleast6hoursoffullsunlightorbrightlight)andfeeditonschedule.Oneofthemostcommonreasonsabirdofparadisefailstoflowerisinsufficientlight.Theseplantsshouldalsobekeptevenlymoistthroughoutsummer,butallowthemtodryoutbetweenwatering. CommonProblemsWithStrelitzia Streliziaisarelativelyeasy-goingplantwithveryfewissues.Itismostpronetorootrotandinsectsthatpreyontheplantwhenitsoptimalconditionsarenotmet.But,ifit'snotoverwatered,keptfed,andgivenamplelightandaircirculation—itcankeepmostproblemsatbay. WiltingorBrowningofLeaves Themostcommondiseaseaffectingstrelitziais rootrot.Whentherootsoftheplantsitinwaterorthesoilgetssoggyforaprolongedamountoftime,afungusthatcausesrootrotcanovertakeaplant.Itcanbeavoidedbylettingthesoildryoutbetweenwaterings. Anothersignyouhaverootrotincludesarottingsmell.Someplantscanbesavedifcaughtearly.Tofixrootrot,pulluptherootball,cuttingawayblackened,moldypartsoftherhizome,applyafungicideaccordingtotheinstructions,andrepotinasterilizedcontainerwithfresh,well-drainingsoil. CurlingLeaves Curlingleavesareasignofunderwatering.Youcanavoidthisproblembygivingmorewaterandmakingsurethatthewaterrunsfreelyfromthebottomofthepot.Thisthoroughwateringensuresthatalltherootshaveaccesstowater,butmakesurethattheplantdoesn'tsitinthatwater.Soggysoilcancauseotherproblems. YellowingLeaves Yellowingleavescanmeanseveralthings.First,iftheoccasionleafturnsyellow,andtheplantisamatureplant,itcanbethenormallifecycleoftheleafofthatplant.However,ifmanyleavesbegintoyellowitcanbeasignthattheplantdoesnothaveamplehumidity,itneedsmorenutrients,oriftheyellowedleavesaretowardtheoutsideoftheplant,it'snotgettingsufficientlywatered.Increaseeachofthosefactors—oneatatime—toseeifthatsolvestheproblem. SlitsorBreaksintheLeaves Thisplant'sleavesarelarge.Ifyourstrelitziadevelopsslitsorbreaksintheleaves,especiallyifyourplantlivesoutsideforsomepartoftheyear,it'snaturalandnormal.Theplantdevelopsslitstoallowtheplanttocirculateairarounditsleavesandroots.Windandbreezescontributetoslitting.Aircirculationkeepsmoldandotherpestsfromsettlingin. FAQ Arestrelitziaeasytocarefor? Strelitziaiseasy-growingbuthasafewrequirements—likeregularfeedingandwatering.Ofthetropicalorsubtropicalspecies,it'soneoftheeasierspecimenstokeepwithrelativelyfewpestproblems. Howfastdoesstrelitziagrow? Strelitziaisaslow-grower,sometimestakinguptofiveyearstomatureandflower. What’sthedifferencebetweenbirdsofparadiseplantsStrelitziaversusCaesalpinia? Althoughboththeseplantsarecalledbirdsofparadise,theyareverydifferent.Strelitziathrivesinwarm,humidregions.Meanwhile,caesalpiniadoesnotlikehumidity,preferringarid,hotlocations. FeaturedVideo RelatedTopics Perennials ArticleSources TheSpruceusesonlyhigh-qualitysources,includingpeer-reviewedstudies,tosupportthefactswithinourarticles.Readoureditorialprocesstolearnmoreabouthowwefact-checkandkeepourcontentaccurate,reliable,andtrustworthy. AmericanSocietyforthePreventionofCrueltytoAnimals."BirdofParadise."Aspca.org.N.p.,n.d.Web. BirdOfParadise.ArizonaStateUniversity. ManagingPestsinGardens:Birdofparadise,Giantbirdofparadise—Strelitzia spp.UniversityofCaliforniaAgricultureandNaturalResources. 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