Peperomia Polybotrya is a rare plant that you can easily grow outdoors and indoors. Rare peperomia plants are costly plants but they are easy to care for. In this article, I will explain Peperomia Polybotrya care, maintenance, propagation, and commons problems.
It needs bright light, and comfortable room temperature with mild fertilization to grow healthy. Average humidity and correct watering technique are the secrets to 100% success.
Let’s start
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About the plant
Peperomia Polybotrya is commonly known as Raindrop Peperomia or Coin-Leaf peperomia. It only grows 12 inches tall in an indoor environment. This makes it the best piece of decoration. Even you can grow it in your office and place it on your office desk.
The raindrop peperomia plant belongs to the pepper family. It has more than 1400 known species. It is naturally found in America and Africa.
As the name suggests (coin-leaf) it has round coin-like heart-shaped leaves. Actually, leaves are more like a coin.
Peperomia Polybotrya Care
Polybotrya peperomia needs a good amount of light, water, and fertilizers to grow. The normal humidity and temperature range will be perfect. You just need to be careful in the winter season when the temperature drops below 55 degrees F.
Because your Peperomia Polybotrya cannot handle cold winds and cold temperatures. Now let’s discuss every single growing factor in detail.
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Light
Because it is a short-height plant it only needs a limited amount of indirect bright light. Do not put it on the sunny window or the leaves will burn. But you can expose your plant to the morning sunlight. Because in the morning time the sun emits low intense light.
These light rays are very beneficial for all types of houseplants. After the morning you need to move it to a secure place. Where direct sunlight cannot touch your plants.
This is a time-consuming practice and moving the plant pots frequently is not possible for busy schedule people.
Therefore, place it few feet away from the direct falling sunlight and it will thrive happily.
2 hours direct and 6 hours indirect light is good for caring a Peperomia Polybotrya plants. You can also use LED grow lights for growing indoor plants. These lights emit light rays similar to the sun. The good news is growing lights do not need maintenance and repair.
Watering Peperomia Polybotrya
Watering is the main concern when people choose indoor plants. Coin leaf peperomia plants do not need much water. In fact, they like to live in little dry conditions.
The reason is their beautiful thick leaves. This plant stores a good amount of moisture in its leaves.
Then it slowly uses this moisture to full fill its watering needs. From this habit it is clear that you need to water it less.
How to water Peperomia Polybotrya?
To water your raindrop peperomia plants you need to check the moisture in the soil. The potting soil has to be half dry before thinking about watering Polybotrya.
Deep watering is the best technique. First of all, let half of the potting soil dry then water it thoroughly until the water starts coming out of the bottom hole. Then stop watering and let it drain the excess amount of water.
After 30 minutes empty the bottom tray of the pot (saucer). Place it back under the plant and let it thrive.
Drinkable water is good for watering indoor plants. This water does not contain heavy minerals and salts. Such water increases the life span of a plant and boosts plant immunity.
Soil
For best results use well-draining soil with excellent aeration. Soil is the real foundation of a healthy peperomia.
For raindrop peperomia care and maintenance. You should use a normal houseplant potting mixture. Such soil has brilliant ingredients in the formula that make the soil ideal for all houseplants.
If you are thinking about making the potting soil at home. Then do not forget to add peat, perlite to the formula. Also, sterilize your garden soil before adding it to the Peperomia Polybotrya plant pot.
Sterilization is a simple technique where we use different tools to kill harmful pathogens in the soil.
Temperature
Generally, we have our home temperature between 50 to 80 Degrees F. This range is good for Peperomia Polybotrya care and propagation.
Summer will not be a problem because it can tolerate 85 degrees F. The real issue comes with cold winds. Raindrop peperomia plants cannot survive in a low-temperature environment.
This plant has small roots that start freezing when the potting soil gets cold. So, you need to keep the plant in a warm room on winter days. After the winter season, you can put it anywhere in your house. The only condition is bright light and a good flow of fresh air.
It is best to install a temperature monitor device in the room for the safety of your plant. Do not put it close to the heating vents. Keep it away from the direct flow of heat vents. The artificial hot air put negative effects on the plant’s healthy and it starts wilting.
Humidity
It has no requirement for particular humidity. The normal range of our home humidity is enough for Peperomia Polybotrya care. Generally, we have humidity between 45 to 70 %.
If in case the room humidity goes below the suggested level then you can group the plants to increase it.
If you are living in desert areas then you must need to use a plant humidifier or pebble tray method.
Fertilizing Peperomia Polybotrya
The best part is this plant needs a nutrient boost only in the growing season. Stop fertilizing it in winter. Because in the cold days of winter indoor plants stop growing and they take rest. Fertilizing at this time will only result in fertilizing burns.
I use general-purpose houseplant liquid fertilizer by Dyna grow.
Simply add the liquid nutrient to the water as per the instructions in the bottle. Then after diluting the solution pour it directly to the base of the plant. Do not spray it on the plant stems and leaves.
Fertilize only once in 30 days, Light fertilization is the key to success.
Repotting
If you are using a medium-sized pot then you will not need to repot it even at once.
Because Coin leaf peperomia has small roots. They need less room to grow. Moreover, these roots are weak compared to other peperomia plants.
Disturbing the plant frequently will eventually kill it.
Therefore, no repotting is required but you do need to change the pot when you just bring it home. The garden stores use low-quality small-size pots. After shifting to the new pot, it can easily stay there for 3 years.
Use terra cotta pots if you are using your garden soil mixture. In fact, you should only use terra cotta pot for indoor plants. There have tiny pores for well-draining and good air circulation.
Propagation
For Peperomia Polybotrya propagation you have 2 options one is stem cutting propagation in water or soil. The second is leaf propagation in soil. Leaf propagation is the least successful method therefore we will stick to stem cutting propagation of Peperomia Polybotrya.
- You need a healthy stem with one or two leaves.
- There must be one or more leaf nodes
- Once you cut such stem then put it in the glass of water.
- Here you can also use soil, put it in the pot in the potting soil and keep the soil moist.
- Then place the glass of water or pot in a warm humid place.
- For guaranteed success cover the pot or glass with a plastic cover.
- Make sure the cover does not touch the top of the stem there must be some room for it to grow.
- Change the water of the glass once in 7 days.
- Keep the soil moist all the time, use a spray bottle to mist the soil.
Toxicity
This plant is not toxic to pets and humans. Even the sap of the plant and its leaves do not contain any toxic chemicals. Some peperomias are mildly toxic to pets and humans therefore choose the plants carefully.
Pests and diseases
Root rot is the main concern and is the result of overwatering. If you follow a good watering routine. Your plants will not face root rot issues.
Let’s say your plants are already infected by root fungus. Then immediately take them out of their pots and cut the infected parts of the roots. Change the soil of the pot and plant them back in the same pot after washing it with soap.
Mealybugs and Red spider mites are the common pests of raindrop peperomia plants. Once you find them on your plants. Take immediate action to get rid of them.
Use isopropyl alcohol to manually wipe them from the leaves. If the problem is worst then you can use insecticidal soap to wash your plant. But you will not need to use it because it is a short plant and rubbing alcohol will kill all the pests in seconds.
To prevent pest infestation and many fungus diseases. Spray neem oil on the plant twice a month. Neem oil is 100% safe to use on all types of plants.
Do not forget to dilute it before use according to the instructions.
For the best Peperomia Polybotrya care keep the surroundings of the plant neat and clean. Your plant will grow healthy and strong.
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