Zebra Plant
The Proper Care and Feeding of a Zebra Plant
It was the great naturalist and taxonomist, Carl Friedrich Phillip von Martius, who, traveling with the wedding party of the future Emperor of Brazil, Pedro II, first discovered the Zebra plant (Aphelandra squarrosa) in Brazil. He would detail its peculiar appearance in his work, Flora Brasilianis, a work so massive that Martius would not survive to see it to its completion.
The Zebra plant, however, with its distinctive striped leaves that give it its name, has become a popular exotic houseplant. Like all transplanted native species, however, the Zebra requires a bit of extra care to insure it thrives in its new country. If you want to see your Zebra plant flower, you will have to be especially attentive to its needs.
Climate: Whenever taking care of a species of plant or animal that you have transplanted from another environment, it is always useful to consider its native environment when deciding on the proper care of your visitor. The Zebra plant grows in the World’s hothouse, the Amazon. For this reason, it needs warmth—at least in the high 60’s—and wetness.
Ideally, a mechanical mister would work best for keeping your Zebra at its ideal level of humidity. A simple spray bottle set to mist will do the trick as well. Just spray once every one to two hours during the day or when you happen to be about the house.
Lighting: Again, you have to think of the Zebra plant’s native Amazon, of the lush vegetation it thrived in for thousands of generations. This was a warm environment, but an environment where the sun’s light did not directly strike its striped leaves because of all the competing vegetation above and around it. So, if you want to remind your plant of its natural origins and give it the best chance to flower for you, then you should keep your plant near a window veiled by a light lacy curtain that will strain the sunlight for it.
Be careful not to over do it—if you live in a particularly foggy climate, like say San Francisco, just keeping your plant in the window on foggy days should be ideal. In the Arizona desert, this would be a wholly different matter.
Watering: You want to keep the soil moist. Remember again the Amazon and how much rain it receives—they don’t call it a rainforest for nothing.
But if and when you get the Zebra plant to flower, stop keeping the soil moist. Just water it weekly during its flowering period and when it is done, return to normal watering.
Flowering: The flowering of the Zebra plant is a most unusual thing. Out this green plant rise these yellow cone-like structures that look nothing like the rest of the plant to which they belong. These almost pineapple looking growths are a sign that your plant is in full health and you should cherish them—the Zebra is fussy houseguest and doesn’t flower promiscuously. You have clearly done something right.
Pruning: To keep your plant flowering, you should prune its fading, damaged, or dieing leaves. Your Zebra will overstrain itself trying to keep its less healthy members alive if you don’t cut them loose. This will also create more stalks and increase the chances of your plant flowering more abundantly. Be careful, as always, not to over do it. You don’t want to jeopardize the health of your plant by over-pruning.
Food: To help your plant grow, give it a balanced fertilizer mix.
The Zebra plant is a great indoor houseplant. Treat it well and it will give you a great exotic conversation piece for years to come.