Pilea Depressa warms up your house and gives it more life than you could ever imagine. With its beautiful green foliage and climbing vines, your home will never be the same. The plant is easy to maintain. You can style it and display it at any point in the house.
The plant can survive both indoors and outdoors. The tiny creeper is what makes it stand out. You can place it in a basket in the fairy garden or terrariums. As if that is not enough, you can use it to cover up and replace the grass.
In this article, we’ll learn how to care for and grow Pilea Depressa to get the best look from it. But first, you need to know its origin.
The Origin of Pilea Depressa
Pilea Depressa is botanically called the Soleirolia Soleirolli or the Helxine Soleirolli. It belongs to the Urticaceae family. Pilea Depressa grows around 3 to 6 inches tall and forms moss- like that covers the ground.
It originated from the western Mediterranean. The plant has bright green leaves that are compact to the stem. During summer, the Pilea Depressa produces pale white flowers with no petals. The plant does best indoors and also on patios.
The Pilea Depressa is the largest flowering genus and also on the biggest genera family. As seen above, it thrives in the shade. Currently, they are found in tropical, subtropical, and in warm regions.
Features of the Pilea Depressa
The Stem and Foliage
The plant has foliage that is bright green with small succulent leaves. The leaves are 40cm big. The stack grows downward, giving the terrarium a breathtaking view. With the right support, the plant can also climb.
Evergreen
The beauty of a plant in the house is the green coloring. With Pilea Depressa, you are assured of evergreen foliage any time of the year.
Height
Pilea Depressa is a low growing plant. The plant grows as tall as 10cm and as broad as 5cm. For a mature Pilea Depressa, the height can go from 50cm to 100cm high and spread to around 40cm wide.
How Much Temperature Can Pilea Depressa Tolerate?
Since it is from the tropical and subtropical areas, it can tolerate warmer temperatures. But when the temperature changes drastically, it stunts growth. By keeping it indoors, you can maintain a steady temperature, helping it grow healthy and beautiful.
How Much Can it Tolerate Humidity?
Pilea Depressa likes humidity, an extra effort to make the surrounding moist will leave the plant looking bright and beautiful. You can spray it once in a while with water using a pebble tray or a spray bottle. Also, an indoor humidifier will work correctly.
Flowers
Late spring and summertime are when the Pilea Depressa produces their tiny star-like white followers, which are petal less. The flower is not as significant as the bright green foliage.
Drought-resistance
Due to their origin, the plants are not drought-resistant, but they prefer a moist area. So, ensure you water often as it will dehydrate and dry if it goes for a couple of weeks with no water.
Pressure resistance
The plant is delicate and can’t withstand a lot of pressure. If possible, place it in a high area where no one is stepping. If you have planted it to cover the ground and replace the grass, avoid stepping on it.
Pest Resistance
The plant is prone to pests attached by the whitefly, aphid, and the scale. The whiteflies hide under leaves and can damage a plant. You can use a yellow sticky card around the plant to catch the flying pest. Also, you can buy a commercial insecticide to use on the plant.
Growth
When it is under the right condition, the plant grows fast enough.
Toxicity
The Pilea Depressa is not toxic in any way. You can put them anywhere in the house with no worry. Your child and pets are safe around the plant, but it is best if they don’t eat it. The surface could be dirty and contain germs or a pest.
Pilea Depressa Care
You have planted your Pilea Deprssa, and now you need it to grow in the best possible way. Your intervention becomes crucial to the plant’s growth, where you are required to meet all its care and maintenance requirements.
Light
At the top of your care duties is to meet the plant’s light requirements. If you plant Pilea Depressa in an environment with low lighting, you will be doing it a disservice.
The plant grows better if you allow it to access a lot of natural light. However, be warned that the light needs to be indirect and do not expose it entirely to the sun since excess warmth dries up the leaves. If it’s morning sunlight, you can allow it to be directly exposed but limit the direct exposure duration.
Due to its light conditions demands, some gardeners refer to Pilea Depressa as Shiny Creeping Charlie. You need to construct a structure that provides the necessary shade for Shiny Creeping Charlie.
Water Requirements
Pilea Depressa has average water requirements. Whenever you are growing the plant during summer, it would be best to water it three times per week. These watering intervals will provide the necessary amount of moisture in the soil.
If you plant it in winter, water once every week. What is essential for a gardener is maintaining the top layers of your planting ground moist. Maintaining a 50% moisture level works best.
If you don’t want the roots of your Pilea Depressa to rot, avoid over-watering it. Similarly, if the planting area is not well-drained, ensure proper draining to prevent water stagnation around the plant.
To know if you should water the plant, look at the soil first. If it is halfway dry, you are free to water. Otherwise, allow two to three days before watering again.
The best watering technique for Pilea Depressa is bottom watering. This technique is beneficial depending on how tight and close to the soil your plants grow.
Temperature Requirements
As you continue to take care of your Pilea Depressa, you have to meet its temperature requirements. When the temperatures are extreme, either too cold or hot, your plant will not grow as expected.
It’s best to provide optimum temperature conditions of 15 to 25 °C(60 to 70 °F.
If you live in an area with temperatures below 12°C, you should look for a way to raise the temperature in your planting area. This is because Pilea Depressa is not a hardy plant that can withstand extremely low temperatures.
Humidity Requirements
Pilea Depressa demands a humidity range of around 50% for optimum growth. Whenever you find out that the humidity is below the 50% demand, it is best to add mist, especially during dry and warmer days.
Having a humidifier powered near Pilea Depressa terrariums during dry days helps in facilitating their growth.
Substrate Requirements
The best-growing environment for your Pilea Depressa is one that has a light substrate. It also needs to be well-drained. This type of soil does not retain excess water meaning your plant roots will not rot due to unfavorable soil conditions.
For this reason, planting the plant in sandy soils will favor their fast growth. Gardeners who mix the planting soil should make a mixture of sand and peat in a 1:2 ratio. A better alternative for sand is perlite, which also has a free-draining feature.
As you make this mixture, be sure to meet soil PH requirements between 6 and 7.5.
Fertilizer Requirements
Pilea Depressa is demanding when it comes to the rate of fertilizer application. If you add too much fertilizer, you compromise the plant’s growth. The best fertilizer application rate is once every month during spring and summer.
Houseplant fertilizer is the appropriate fertilizer to use. The fertilizer meets all the plant’s nutritional requirements without the need for additional fertilizers. Nonetheless, avoid using Howbeit added nutrition for your Pilea Depressa.
Pruning Requirement
If you are not careful about pruning, the plant will quickly grow out of control. This is because Pilea Depressa thrives, and since they grow tightly close to each other, they need pruning.
For an appearance that is easy on the eye, remove any dead leaves on the lower side of your plant’s vines. If there are excess leaves, you are free to prune them too.
Pilea Depressa Propagation
Are you worried about increasing the population of Pilea Depressa? Worry no more because this is one of the easiest plants to propagate. Most farmers use stem-tip cutting to propagate Pilea Depressa.
The first thing is to look for the most healthy plants on your farm and cut stem tips of about six inches long. Step two is filling a small container of about 5 inches in length with well-drained soil. Next, water the substrate so that the stem tips get a moist environment to grow in.
Step three involves sipping the stem to cuttings in growth hormone. Before you transfer them to the small container you have prepared, be sure to shed off the excess growth hormone powder.
The next step is planting the cuttings and watering them. Finally, cover the container halfway with a plastic bag.
Conclusion on Pilea Dpressa ‘Baby Tears’ Care
Getting a Pilea Depressa for your home is a good decision. It gives your home a beautiful bright look. Using the tips above, you know exactly what you need to do to ensure it remains healthy and beautiful.