Aluminum plant (Pilea cadierei)

Pilea cadierei, a rather curious plant that surely as soon as you see it, you will think that it belongs to the species that produces watermelon. However, this is not the case.

But still some interesting facts about this plant are worth checking out. After all, you can have it in your home, both in the garden in the favorite window you have. So stay until the end.

General data of the Pilea cadierei

Can you imagine telling a friend or neighbor if they know the Pilea cadierei? Most likely, you don't know what you're talking about. But I assure you that If you mention the plant to him by its common name, he probably knows it.

Thus, this plant has two names by which it is known. The first one is aluminum plant and the second one is watermelon pilea. Yes you google photos of the plant, you will understand why it has this second name.

Despite its design that at first glance seems more than all ornamental and does not have flowers, in fact it does, only that they are very small and not so flashy. If you wonder, the origin of this plant is in China and Vietnam.

Now Pilea cadierei some consider it a semi-bush species. This species does not stand out for its flowers, unlike others that you can find on this website, but rather for the design of its leaves, the pattern they have and their colors.

Before moving on to the characteristics, it is necessary to remember that there are variants of this plant. That is, there are many other species and types. The difference between them is that their place of origin varies.

General characteristics

To make the features easier to digest, we're going to highlight them directly so that we can talk a bit about other important points. Among all its features, the ones that stand out the most are:

• It is a semi-bush plant that reaches a maximum height of 60 cm.
• Its growth depends a lot on the amount of light receiving.
• It has green branched stems that give the plant a leafy appearance with dense foliage.
• Its leaves have a silvery gray color that covers a large part of the leaves on its upper side.
• The length of each leaf is between 4 and 9 cm long and they have an elliptical shape.
• The color that stands out the most in the leaves is silver gray along with a striking and bright green.
• Its flowers are very small and are not so showy. In addition to it is difficult to see the plant bloom when planted in pots.

Care

The good thing is that it is a plant that does not need much care. The key is in the following:

It is a sunny plant but you can also have it in a semi-shady place. Avoid having it directly in the midday sun. It supports a minimum temperature of 14 ° C, although if you do not water it during the winter, it can withstand temperatures lower than this.

It can withstand the heat but never have it directly under the sun as already mentioned. The humidity of the soil has to be medium, and irrigation has to be controlled. During the summer you can spray the leaves a little, In addition to watering them only two or three times at most during the summer.

If you like this plant a lot and want to multiply the amount you have, you can do it using cuttings. Of course, make sure you have them in a place where there is half sand and half peat. Then you must cover with some plastic and keep it at a temperature between 18 and 22 ° C.

On the other hand, sometimes it tends to grow too long to the sides. So you have to trim the tips. In this way you will give the plant a much more compact appearance if you have it in a pot, and if you have it directly on the ground, you can let it decrease as much as you want.