How Do You Care For Anthurium Falcatum?

What is Anthurium Falcatum?

Anthurium Falcatum is a species of plant in the family Araceae. It is native to Ecuador. Its native habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. It is threatened by habitat loss. This is a very small Anthurium species with a compact habit. The leaves are dark green and can grow to 50 cm. It is rather slow growing and makes a good indoor plant as it rarely flowers.

Once flowering does occur, the inflorescence can be up to 20 cm tall and usually has between 2-4 flowers per node in shades of red, pink or white. Because of its small size it is usually grown indoors in a pot or hanging basket rather than giant planter box.

Numerous cultivars have been selected for floral characteristics, including ‘Red Star’. It is one of the most popular Anthurium in the United States. It can be propagated by dividing the crown (the area around the roots) into several crowns or by cutting a branch from a mature plant and sticking it into moist soil.

Roots will develop from nodes on stems and branches. With careful attention to watering, feeding and temperature this plant should flower within two years of propagation.

How do you care for Anthurium Falcatum?

The Anthurium Falcatum is a real stunner with its t-shaped glossy dark green leaves. It is quite simple to care for as long as you maintain a humid environment. You should consider the following aspects;

Soil

The plant needs a well-drained soil with high humidity. This is most easily achieved by growing it in pots, so you need to ensure a well-aerated potting mix. Make sure that the drainage holes are sealed properly. If possible you should use a potting mix with added nutrients such as Miracle Grow or similar. When the plant outgrows its current pot and you have to repot, make sure that you mix your new mix properly or else your plant will suffocate.

Light

When growing indoors you should position your plant in bright light with no direct sunlight. The plant can be placed in a south facing window, but never in a window has that received full sun.

When grown outdoors this Anthurium species can take full sun, but make sure that the soil is kept moist and that you provide shade from afternoon direct sunlight.

Temperature

Anthurium Falcatum can be grown in warm house temperatures that range from 65 to 70 degrees F. If this is not possible, then you should consider placing it outdoors during the summer months. Just make sure to bring it back indoors before the temperature drops below 50 degrees F as this plant is definitely not a frost tolerant plant.

Watering

Your Anthurium plant needs regular water to survive. Water enough so that the soil around the crown fills halfway to its rim. This ensures that your plant doesn’t get root rot and will also prevent your Anthurium from drying out.

The plant needs plenty of water, especially when the plant is in the growing phase. You should use warm water and be sure to let it run though the potting mix well. Make sure that you soak the entire root ball each time you water.

Alternatively, if you have enough pots, you can place your plant in a tray with rocks of similar sized in it. This way your potting mix will be able to absorb as much water as possible from the tray and keep your plant watered for longer periods of time.

Humidity

As your Anthurium plant is native to Ecuador, it is used to warm humid conditions. When growing indoors this factor can be reproduced by maintaining a high humidity level around the plant. You can achieve this by placing the Anthurium on a tray with pebbles and water that covers a few of the pebbles. Alternatively you should place a humidifier near your plant on a regular basis.

Leave the potting mix slightly moist at all times and makes sure that the potting mix stays moist. If there is not enough humidity in your indoor environment, your Anthurium plants leaves will become limp and easily turn brown.

Fertilizers

Feed your Anthurium species once per month with a balanced liquid fertilizer. Always feed in the morning and make sure that the entire root ball receives fertilizer. This will prevent the need of repotting. Any time you repot or rotate your plant, be sure to remove all of the old soil before you begin fertilizing again.

Repotting

This plant is a slow growing and will grow up to 20 cm in height with time. As long as the Anthurium is not grown in a giant planter, it should need repotting only ever 3-4 years. Repotting your Anthurium plant helps to keep the soil moist and prevents root rot. You should repot your Anthurium whenever it outgrows its pot and make sure that you remove all of the old soil before you begin again.

Propagation

You can start new plants from seed or from softwood cuttings. Softwood cutting are normally taken from leaf nodes, making it a little more work to propagate. This is especially true if you do not have a propagation tray in which you can place your cuttings, as the soil will be very soggy. However, this makes softwood cutting a little easier to propagate and would be a lot less stressful for your Anthurium plant than starting the plant from seed.

Pruning

This plant can grow quite large and can quickly become congested. It should be pruned regularly to maintain a healthy crown. Cut off 2-3 nodes of the crown or remove just above a node at the base of a leaf. You will also want to remove any dead or damaged leaves and keep your plant well watered during this time.

How often do you water your Anthurium Falcatum?

Watering your Anthurium plant is the most important factor in keeping the plant healthy. You should always make sure to keep the soil moist at all times, but especially when the plant is in its growing stage.

The crown of this plant may not be large, but it can remain wet for hours during the early stages of growth, so you will probably want to water your Anthurium every day or so. As this plant grows and the crown gets larger and larger, it will gradually need less water, but you should always keep the soil moist.

How much light does my Anthurium Falcatum need?

The Anthurium Falcatum is a tropical plant that requires bright light but no direct sunlight. If possible your plant should be placed in a southeast facing window that gets plenty of bright indirect sunlight.

If your Anthurium is placed in a south-facing window and you are maintaining a high humidity around the plant, you should be able to keep your Anthurium plant growing year round. However, the Anthurium will not tolerate direct sunlight and your plant could quickly die if it is placed in a window that receives full sun.

How can I propagate my Anthurium Falcatum plant?

Propagation of this plant is easy, as the plant can be propagated from leaf nodes. The easiest way to take softwood cuttings of the Anthurium species is to make a stem cut that runs parallel to a leaf, when your cut reaches the node you will want to chip it off, place it into a potting mix and place it on top of a pebble filled tray. The following are steps when propagating Anthurium Falcatum;

• Use a clean and aseptic sharp knife or pruning shears
• Remove the leaf node from the plant
• Take a stem cutting that has several nodes on it. Make sure that your stem cutting has no flowers and is free of any leaf nodes
• Using your clean, aseptic knife, cut off the leaf node parallel to the stem of the Anthurium
• Place your cutting in a propagating media and place in a propagation chamber (if you do not have a propagation chamber, you can use a plastic bag)
• Cuttings should be misted once per day until the new roots grow
• After about 14 days you should be able to remove the cutting and begin growing it as an independent plant
• If your cutting does not grow roots, you can try again by placing it in sandy rooting media and allowing root growth for 6-8 weeks. After that time place it in a propagating chamber and continue to mist daily
• Once roots have developed move your Anthurium out of the propagation chamber, keep it moist and begin growing it from seed or cutting.

How much humidity do Anthurium Falcatum?

As this plant is a tropical plant that is used in the aquarium industry, it can tolerate much higher humidity levels. Most aquariums maintain a minimum of 60% humidity, but most hobbyists choose to keep their tanks at 70-80%.

Placing your Anthurium in a humidifier or placing pebbles around the potting mix will help to maintain your Anthurium’s environment. Anthurium Falcatum can tolerate a bit of dry air, but it is generally easier to keep your Anthurium moist if you mist it regularly. Always make sure that your Anthurium has enough room in the tank to grow and have full sunlight.

How do I make Anthurium Falcatum flower?

This plant is most commonly propagated for its flowers, which are usually red, orange or yellow. The Anthurium species will bloom whenever the plant reaches maturity and will stop blooming after that time.

It should be noted that different colors of Anthurium have different cultural requirements. Most plants require a good amount of light to produce a flower, but white colored Anthurium have been known to flower in lower light conditions. The Anthurium will also start to flower when it reaches the peak of its blooming cycle.

A good amount of light is important for the Anthurium, but most importantly it needs adequate air circulation to promote healthy growth and flower production. The Anthurium bloom will begin developing at the tip of the leaf blade, where you will notice a small cluster of tiny white flowers forming on top. These plants should be grown in bright light conditions with high humidity.

Is Anthurium Falcatum air purifier?

Anthurium species have long been known to remove toxins from the air. Many Anthurium enthusiasts keep their plants in the bathroom, as they are thought to have a cleansing effect on the air.

These plants have also been shown to eliminate organic compounds from the air, like formaldehyde and acetone, and even kill off mold spores. Anthurium Falcatum is known to eliminate formaldehyde, acetone and organic compounds from the air in many industrial settings.

How do you prune Anthurium Falcatum?

• Anthurium plants are most commonly grown for their floral display, but these plants can become very large and may require pruning. There are three types of Anthurium cuttings that should be pruned when the leaf node begins to die off. The following are procedures when pruning Anthurium Falcatum, these are;
• Cut leaf nodes from the weak side of the plant
• Cut back new growth that is nearing the end of its life cycle
• Continue to prune the remaining leaves on your plant and the old leaf nodes
• After the old leaf node is removed, there should be a new leaf node that is growing nearby. You can either discard the old leaf node or place it into your propagating media to make a new plant.
• During the growing season, older leaves that are still alive can be cut away to allow the new growth to develop

Anthurium Falcatum will not tolerate hard pruning, thus it is important to only prune the old leaves and leaf nodes. For an Anthurium Falcatum, hard pruning is cutting a leaf off of a healthy leaf node.

For growers that want to create a more compact Anthurium Falcatum plant they can also trim away some of the branching stems. It is important to never trim away the main stem of the plant, as this will cause the Anthurium Falcatum to eventually die.

Proper pruning is also important for your Anthurium Falcatum health; an untrimmed Anthurium Falcatum can become overgrown with leaves.

Proper pruning will help with ventilation, helps to keep sunlight hitting most of the leaves and further promotes flower production in your Anthurium Falcatum.