Growing a houseplant that will bring you wealth and happiness!

Pilea peperomiodes, sometimes called the Chinese money tree, is a tree that should bring you money, wealth and happiness, or at least the saying says so. Well, if that will not happen in the next year, at least you will have a beautiful houseplant at home. It comes from southern China and it is very easy to propagate. If you know someone who already has this plant, you can save money and get this plant from a friend. The plant is not very popular and you rarely see it in stores and it is not the cheapest either.

Suitable for beginners

If you want to start growing this “moneymaking” plant, you do not have to be an experienced gardener. You just need to provide the right conditions and your plant will grow. It grows quickly and will delight you with beautiful green leaves and lots of side offshoots that you can use to propagate the plant . If you live in a colder climate you need to grow it indoors as a houseplant, because it cannot handle cold weather. Temperatures should remain above 12 °C even in winter. Choose a bright spot which gets a bit of direct sunlight during the day.

Photo: Pixabay

Replanting

When you bring the plant home, you do not necessarily need to transplant it but if you want to have a more decorative flower pot, go ahead. The right time to transplant is when roots start to grow through the bottom of the pot. Prepare a substrate consisting of compost and perlite in 2:1 ratio. The pot must have drainage holes at the bottom. Spring is the best time to transplant.

Watering and fertilization

The top few centimetres of the soil should be dry before watering. Do not water too much! Limit watering in winter, but do not skip it completely. Fertilize once a month – but use a very weak diluted fertilizer for indoor plants. Wipe dust from leaves from time to time – this will keep them beautiful and shiny. Some gardeners spray water mist on leaves, but it is not necessary. The plant searches for light, so you may want to rotate the pot from time to time.

Propagation

The plant is rather expensive and if you want to save money, try asking someone who already has the plant. Since the plant has plenty of offshoots it should not be a problem. There are plenty of small plants around the base that you can use. Use fork and carefully dig them out and put them in water. About one centimetre deep. Roots should appear within few weeks and as soon as they do you may start planting. Seedlings will grow fast.

Source: https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/how-to-grow-pilea-peperomioides/

Preview photo: Pixabay