Senecio MANDRALISCAE

Senecio MANDRALISCAE - Blue chalksticks, Senecio mandraliscae.

Senecio is one of the most unusual genera of wonderful plants in the numerous Aster family (Asteraceae/Compositae), the varieties of which include more than 3,000 diverse specimens. Perennial, rarely annual herbaceous plants, subshrubs, shrubs, or small trees, they are widely distributed in various climatic zones across all regions of the globe. Many species of this plant look completely unlike one another, but nevertheless belong to the same family and are close relatives.

Their shoots are glabrous or pubescent. The leaves are also very diverse in shape - from elliptical to obovate, entire and dissected, lobed, pinnately lobed, and alternate. Inflorescences are flower heads (capitula), from small to large, solitary or several in corymbs or panicles. Many representatives of this enormous genus are known in cultivation, grown in open and protected ground as ornamental plants, bred for cut flowers, as potted plants, and also used in flower arrangements.

Blue chalksticks grows up to 45 cm (17.7 in) in height. The leaves are bluish in color and have a shape reminiscent of a sharpened pencil, measuring up to 10 cm (3.9 in) in length. As it spreads, it forms a fairly dense mat. In summer, it blooms with small inconspicuous white flowers.

Seeds are sown superficially into a cactus mix diluted by half with sand. They are moistened with a spray bottle, covered with film, and germinated in the light, but not in the sun, at a temperature of 20-23 °C (68-73 °F). Seedlings need ventilation. It is necessary to avoid waterlogging and drying out of the sowings. Seedlings are pricked out at the cotyledon stage, one by one into 5 cm (2 in) pots.

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Senecio prefers a well-lit location with some direct sunlight. Placement on an eastern or western window is well suited. In the spring-summer period, it prefers a temperature of 22-26 °C (72-79 °F); from autumn, the temperature can be gradually lowered, and in winter the plant can be kept at 12-15 °C (54-59 °F); the temperature must not drop below 7 °C (45 °F). It tolerates the dry air of apartments well and does not need additional humidification.

During the growing season, Senecio is watered moderately with soft settled water, a day or two after the upper layer of the substrate dries out. From autumn, watering is reduced; in winter, watering is extremely rare or withheld entirely. Overwatering is very dangerous. It is fertilized from March to August with succulent fertilizers twice a month. The potting soil should be nutritious, loose, with a neutral pH. A mixture of leaf soil and sand in a 2:1 ratio is suitable. Ready-made substrates for cacti or succulents are also suitable. Young plants are repotted annually in spring, mature plants every 2-3 years. Senecio plants are propagated by cuttings, layering, and seeds.