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millwig

Newbie needs help

4 years ago

Starfish like, No ID. Base was buried very deep. Must repot and original depth doesn't seem right. Help..

Comments (16)

  • 4 years ago

    Welcome Millwig, Pictures always help. Re-potting is easy but watch the watering afterwards. They like being on the dry side.

    millwig thanked Stush2049 Pitts. PA, zone 6
  • 4 years ago

    "Starfish-like" sounds like a Sansevieria Boncel. Sometimes professional growers plant plants too deeply in pots. But -- not hard to tell where the plant ends and the roots begin. I recommend adding something like washed perlite or pumice to your soil, so water drains easily. Sans do not like to sit and be wet.


    Probably the expert grower here is Stush, who wrote above. I have learned about 80% of what I know of Sansevieria just from him.

    millwig thanked robinswfl
  • 4 years ago

    Again I apologize for any/all possible duplicate messages. Still can't seem to get photo in with an opening discussion. But can add w/ comment. SIGH.. I hoped to get ID help with several new sans I got at bargain $. Is it wrong to message directly? Don't want to bore or offend.


  • 4 years ago

    Night owl?


  • 4 years ago

    robinswfl Too kind.

    Right on with ID and since it's blooming, It's life cycle is over. Plant will start to produce many new off sets or pups. Old plant will continue on for some time before dying. Also Night Owl is what some nurseries call that Sans. hahnii plant. I call it Hahnii Silver Marginata. Both name are okay.

  • 4 years ago

    Boncel momma must die? Disappointed. So do they all eventually bloom? I have another. How about this little guy?


  • 4 years ago

    Regarding the boncel plants I have had -- it wasn't like the mother plant toppled over. It will remain, as Stush says, for quite awhile and will reproduce. Just leave it.


    The plant you call Night Owl and Stush calls Hahnii Silver Marginata seem to be appearing more profusely in the marketplace lately. One of the large commercial growers is sending them to market, even beyond the big box stores. I found several in a small, local nursery story.....I think they were in Altman pots, but I can't remember exactly. They had special tags labeled "Sansevieria Silver Star" and something that said "This is a Silver Star plant." Probably all one and the same. Mine was 2 pups......and it has since grown 3 more so I divided it. VERY pretty Sans variation.


    Stush, by the way -- to this day, I still use your combination of alfalfa and potassium on my Sans. I segregate a gallon jug of water especially for the Sans, mix in 3 alfalfa tablets and one opened capsule of potassium, let it sit overnight. Since most of my Sans get watered at the same time, they all get watered from the same jug of water. They really do love their alfalfa!!! THAT is when I get the most pups! Thank you, Stush!

  • 4 years ago
    last modified: 4 years ago

    Must add that the alfalfa draws mice and chipmunks and rabbits to try to eat the soil due to the taste of this. I just bury the pills into the soil about half way. Most of my hahnii are so pot bound now that I am afraid to use it.

    Strange thing about sans blooming is some bloom almost immediately while the same kinds takes years to bloom. Don't know just what triggers it to do this. I actually hate to see a bloom stock knowing this is the end of it's life cycle. With Agave and Yucca death is the following year. Just after the plant starts to look it's best.

  • 4 years ago

    Thanks for the input. Alfalfa? Another time. Can you help with pinguicula in pic, has spots. Hate to cut it. Home depot loves to overwater and leave out overnight.


  • 4 years ago

    Is this a pinguicula, right?


  • 4 years ago
    last modified: 4 years ago

    No, I doubt it is a pinguicula. First of all, Home Depot would never get one or sell a pinguicula. Big Box stores buy from Altman or Costa Farms and they even grow those rare varieties. But also, it doesn't look like a pinguicula. It looks too big. I have a pinguicula that has delivered 4 pups, and each one of them is considerably smaller. Check out photos online for Sans ehrenbergii or Sans Blue Kew, or just stream through them and look for something that closely resembles yours. Pinterest is a good source for visual. So it Etsy. Here is a link to a collection of Sans on Flickr that you can use to identify.

    https://www.flickr.com/groups/1379516@N20/pool/


    My recommendation is, leave the spots, unless you can absolutely determine it represents a fungus. I only see one spot and it looks to me like damage from -- who knows? Something mechanical.

    Don't cut leaves without a lot of thought and knowledge first. Every plant is going to have something a little unslightly. If it isn't a disease, don't reach for your scissors. You have a beautiful Sansevieria here. My advice is.....don't kill it with "kindness." Give it what a Sansevieria needs (fresh air, moderate light or even bright light, fast draining soil, no over-watering) and let it flourish by itself.

  • 4 years ago

    Ehrenbergii would be a better guess. Gibsonia home depot has surprised me this year. I bought 3 different spiky plants. Now to Identify or treat if necessary.

    Francisii?


  • 4 years ago

    It looks like something chewed the outer surface off. Sun damage? Just trying to keep them going.. is a Neem il regiment beneficial?

  • 4 years ago

    Never got anywhere with Neem. So far they look fine. Some dead on the tips but you get that some times. It should grow out and when bigger, you could remove the dead sections.

    Good advise from Robin. For some sans, ID could be a problem. If it looks like it and you like it, okay.

    millwig thanked Stush2049 Pitts. PA, zone 6
  • 4 years ago

    Looks a lot like a Francisii to me. I have one that is a crawler for sure. It shoots out new plantlets on stalks and stolens. I have it in a rectagular planter and have to lay heavy stones on the stolens to get them to root into the soil. Once they do, I can divide the plant into multiples and give some away. It's a pretty plant but.....frankly, sometimes it's a nuisance with all the sprawling growth.

    millwig thanked robinswfl
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