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Archives (2001)
King in red and green
by Maria Rowena Briones |
October-December
2001
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Among the tropical ornamental plants, Ti plant
or Cordyline terminalis, is known as the king. This
indoor plant is popular because of the delightful combination
of shades of red and green in its leaves. This is also known
as a 'good luck' plant in Hawaii.
 Growing
this plant, be it small or large scale, is easy. If the place
is cool and elevated, you can just prepare the soil and stick
the sturdy stem cuttings of the Ti plant. With enough water
and minimal sunlight exposure, Ti plant can grow on its own.
The Institute of Plant Breeding of UP Los Baños
specified two methods of propagating Ti plant, aside from
sticking it in the soil and just letting it be.
For small-scale production of Ti plant, kulob
method is practical. Instead of planting directly the
cuttings on the ground, it is planted on the soil in polypropylene
plastic bags. The plastic bag provides the plant with the
right temperature to encourage root growth.
If you want to produce Ti plants in a large
scale, you can use the plastic tent method. This method uses
a soil bed made of polyvinyl plastic and a roof support or
tent to maintain moisture and high humidity.
Ti plant can be grown from tip stem or nodal
cuttings. For tip stem cuttings, place them in transparent
6 x 11 inches polypropylene bags, individually or in groups
with two to three inches distance from each other. Equal mixture
of sand, coirdust or burnt rice hull and sawdust is used as
soil. Woody cane pieces from grown Ti plants can also be used
for propagation. Cut the lower half of the cane into five
to eight cm long nodal cuttings and immerse them in a fungicide
solution before planting them in pots with sand and coconut
coir dust as soil.
Ti plants grow roots after three to four weeks
of planting. To hasten rooting by one week, treat the cuttings
(tip or nodal) with any of the following concentrations before
they are planted on the soil: 100 ppm indole butyric acid
(IBA); 100 ppm alpha napthalene acetic acid (ANAA); or 100
ppm Hormex or quick root powder.
Since moisture is crucial to the growth of Ti
plants, they should be watered everyday to keep the soil and
leaves moist. The plant should not be exposed to full sunlight
since this might damage the leaves and alter its distinct
color and form.
You may apply fertilizer (14-14-14) two weeks
after transplanting. Apply at least one tablespoon of fertilizer
for every four liters of water twice a month. As the plants
grow older, apply fertilizer weekly. Urea (46-0-0) maybe applied
once a month at one tablespoon per four liters of water.
This is practical for those producing Ti plants
in a large scale. Otherwise, with the sun, the rain and soil
nutrient, Ti plants can also grow healthily.  More Articles:
Vol. 3 No. 4 October-December 2001
»»
Outstanding technologies identified in nat'l R&D week
»» Thailand,
Philippines convene for agri cooperation
»»
Prospects for the ornamental industry in the new millennium
»» UPLB
scientists develop new hybrids of Philippine ornamentals
»» New management
techniques for exportable foliage plants
»» In
focus: a date with the "king of cut flowers"
»» Brighten
your homes with aglaonema
»» King
in red and green
»» Cashing
in with the 'lucky bamboo'
»» Turfgrasses:
the preferred ground cover
»» Catching
the invisible enemy with ELISA
»» Grow
dracaena godseffiana the easy way
»» Bromeliads:
the exotic plant
»» Wag that
fish-tail fern
»» Mass
propagating the 'doņas' through kulob system
»» Beauveria
mold bioinsecticide: safer control against orchid pests
»» Orchids
and mycorrhiza: a lesson from the wild
»» Controlling
white rust in chrysanthemums
»» Ways to
enhance palm seed germination
»» Prolonging
the vase life of cut flowers with ethylene adsorbent and Florafresh
»»
Mass producing the fragrant kamuning
»» The
national RDE program for ornamental crops
»» GMA
presents 2001 Gawad Saka awards
[More
2001 Articles]
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