What is the best way to water my Alocasia 'Regal Shields'?
There are plenty of viable ways to supply your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' with water. If you grow your plant in an indoor pot, for the Alocasia 'Regal Shields's in small pots, you can bring your potted plant to your kitchen sink. Then, use the faucet to add water to the container. By holding the pot in your hands, you should easily notice when the water begins to run through the pot’s drainage holes, at which point you can stop watering. The cold temperature will hurt the plants' root system, so please don't do this during winter or in cold climates. Most of the time, watering via your faucet is permissible for the Alocasia 'Regal Shields'. However, if the local tap water contains a high proportion of fluorine, chlorine or salts, you should consider using rainwater or lake water. Also, since the Alocasia 'Regal Shields' can respond well to overhead watering and watering directly into the soil, you can use a watering can, hose, or just about any tool you’d like to water it.
What should I do if I water my Alocasia 'Regal Shields' too much or too little?
If you discover that you have underwatered your Alocasia 'Regal Shields', your first step towards remedying the situation is to give your plant some water. Water deeply until excess water runs from the container’s drainage hole, or if you grow outside, water until the soil has become entirely moist. If you find your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is receiving too much water, begin by reducing your watering schedule. You also want to address the soil and container your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' grows in. If either the soil or the container makes it difficult for water to drain efficiently, your plant will likely become overwatered again. Resolve the issue by moving your plant to looser soils and/or a container with bigger drainage holes or a more porous material. Also check the location of the plant. If the plant is in places like a corner, then it is recommended to move it to a window or around a door to enhance ventilation. Making sure the plants are in a well-ventilated location can reduce the occurrence of overwatering to some extent.
How often should I water my Alocasia 'Regal Shields'?
The Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is not a species that requires consistent soil moisture. Instead, it is better to allow this plant’s soil to become dry between waterings. If you are like the many gardeners who grow Alocasia 'Regal Shields's in containers, you can judge whether or not it is time to add water by how dry the soil within the container is. For instance, if about top half of the soil in your container has become dry, it is time to add water. You can feel it by inserting your fingers or sticks into the soil or with soil moisture meter. For those who grow the Alocasia 'Regal Shields' outdoors, you can plan to do your watering about once every other week, provided it has not rained recently.
How much water does my Alocasia 'Regal Shields' need?
After waiting for the first several layers of soil surrounding your Alocasia 'Regal Shields'’s root to become dry(top half of the soil), it is time to add enough water to make them moist again. The amount of water it takes to achieve that goal depends on if you use a container, how large that container is, and how large your plant itself is. For a small Alocasia 'Regal Shields' growing in a small to a medium-sized container, one to two cups may be enough to dampen the soil sufficiently. As you would expect, the volume of water you supply should increase for a larger plant. The best way to make sure your plant has received enough water is to stick your finger or a trowel into the soil and feel whether it is entirely moist. Alternatively, you can water until you see excess water draining from the holes at the bottom of your container.
How can I tell if i'm watering my Alocasia 'Regal Shields' enough?
Overwatering and underwatering are both bad for the health of your Alocasia 'Regal Shields'. These two issues also manifest themselves in subtly different ways when they occur. Alocasia 'Regal Shields' that receives too little water may begin to develop yellow leaves. Underwatering may also cause the leaf margins to become brown and brittle. By contrast, Alocasia 'Regal Shields' that gets overwatered will often show yellow and brown marks on its leaves at the same time. Overwatering can also lead to diseases like root rot, some of which may also be visible on your plant. However, if you know the signs of overwatering and underwatering, you stand a good chance of correcting both issues.
How should I water my Alocasia 'Regal Shields' through the seasons?
During spring and fall, your watering schedule for the Alocasia 'Regal Shields' will remain relatively the same, which will involve watering this plant about once every week. During summer, you may find that the hot weather causes your plant to need more water than usual, especially if it grows where there is a considerable amount of daily light exposure. In the winter, if it's hard to find some warm places for you plant, your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' will enter a dormant growth phase, in which it will need far less water than usual. At this time, you may get by without watering your plant at all. If you do choose to water during winter, you should not do so more often than once every two to three weeks.
How should I water my Alocasia 'Regal Shields' at different growth stages?
After planting a new, young Alocasia 'Regal Shields' or after transplanting an older Alocasia 'Regal Shields', you will probably need to give this plant more water than usual. Young plants often need consistent soil moisture during the early stages of their growth to help them adapt to their new growing locations. Transplants also need more water for a brief time to overcome transplant shock. In either case, you may need to water multiple times per week until your plant has exhibited continuous healthy growth. In most situations, your water should be moderate and should never be significant enough to cause overwatering.
What's the difference between watering Alocasia 'Regal Shields' indoors and outdoors?
There are a few reasons why you may need to water an indoor Alocasia 'Regal Shields' more often than one that grows in the ground outdoors. First, indoor growing settings tend to be drier than outdoor ones, often due to the effect of air conditioning units. While thw size of the pot and the soil determines the warer accumulating ability. Additionally, when your plant grows indoors, it will rely on you entirely for its water By contrast, Alocasia 'Regal Shields' that grows outside can receive water from rain. If you are in an area with high rainfall, you may not have to give it extra watering. When there is not enough rain, you should water additionally to ensure that the soil does not dry out completely.
How can I prune my Alocasia 'Regal Shields'?
Pruning your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is a fairly simple process. First, you will need a reliable set of hand pruners or hedge trimmers. You may use a clean pair of sharp scissors if you don’t have pruners or garden shears on hand. It’s important to always clean your gardening tools before and after using them to prevent the possibility of spreading disease or infection to other plants. To prune your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' simply allow your plant to go dormant over the Winter. Some time between late winter and early spring – or when new growth starts to appear – take your clean pruners or trimmers and cut away any dying, damaged, yellow or declining foliage. Repeat this process until you reach the base of the plant or until there are no dead pieces left to cut. When pruning, be careful not to damage the new growth that may be emerging near the base of your plant. These parts cannot be restored and pruning can increase the ventilation of the plants and facilitate their growth. Any pruning that is done to this plant should be cut straight across the blades or stems. No angled cuts are required. Diseased leaf blade foliage can be removed as it appears. This could be done anytime when your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is growing.
What should I do after pruning my Alocasia 'Regal Shields'?
Once you’ve pruned your plant, you should dispose of the stems and leaves either by composting the healthy ones or throwing out the diseased parts. You can also fertilize just before or after pruning, which gives Alocasia 'Regal Shields' a little vitamin boost that can provide it the nutrients needed to better protect itself from any nearby pathogens or diseases. Do not water the Alocasia 'Regal Shields' immediately after pruning as this can lead to fungal infestation of the plants through the wounds. You don’t need much after care when you’re done pruning. It might benefit from light watering and some liquid plant food to encourage new growth.
How can I prune my Alocasia 'Regal Shields' during different seasons?
Early spring and late winter are the best times to prune your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' on a large scale. If you want to control the size of your Alocasia 'Regal Shields', you can prune them as you wish, but be careful not to prune more than a third of the size of the plant. Yellow and diseased leaves may appear during the summer months when the Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is growing vigorously and these types of leaves need to be pruned back immediately. These parts of the Alocasia 'Regal Shields' cannot be restored and pruning increases the ventilation of the plant and facilitates its growth.
When should I prune my Alocasia 'Regal Shields' through different stages of growth?
Strategic pruning is usually done at different times of the year or during certain stages of growth depending on the plant. However, knowing when to prune your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' depends on where you live and how established your plant is. For example, if your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is a new resident, it’s a good idea to wait until the plant starts to grow back before you start pruning. On the other hand, if your plant is already established, you will want to prune the dry or dead parts in plant before new leafy growth appears in early spring or late winter. This is the time of year when plants are dormant and pruning causes the least damage to them. This is also the best time of year to do more extensive pruning. It’s important to note that if Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is pruned too late in the season, it can leave new growth at risk for damage or disease. However, if your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is indoors this is not a problem and you can prune at any time. Since this can affect the long-term health and appearance of your plant, it’s important to keep this in mind when deciding when and how to prune. As your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' grows larger over time, you can trim it as needed after annual pruning. Dead, damaged, or diseased leaf blade foliage can be removed as it appears. This could be done anytime when your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is growing.
What type of sunlight does Alocasia 'Regal Shields' need?
Alocasia 'Regal Shields' typically needs full, indirect sunlight in order to thrive indoors. This means that the plant should be exposed to bright sunlight that doesn’t hit it directly from a window or another light source, like a grow light. You can easily protect it from direct sunlight by placing a sheer curtain between your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' and the window, or by placing it behind a part of the window with a dark screen.
How can I avoid damaging new Alocasia 'Regal Shields' with sunlight?
If this is your first time bringing your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' home, then it might be a good idea to try to ease it into the sunlight it needs, rather than place it in bright, indirect light right away. Over the course of two weeks or so, you can slowly move your plant into the sunlight to avoid shock or burning of the leaves from sudden intense light exposure. By easing it into the light, your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is much more likely to adapt to your home environment well.
How can I tell if Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is getting too much light?
Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is one that can easily sunburn with too much sunlight. In the wild, these plants only receive mild, dappled light, filtered down from tree canopies. While they need more light than that to grow in our homes, too much can certainly cause issues. If your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' is getting too much light, you’ll notice that the foliage begins to look bleached or washed out, the tips of leaves may turn yellow or brown and crispy, and it may even grow too quickly to support itself.
What should I do if my Alocasia 'Regal Shields' gets light damage?
Sunburn for plants is much less severe than sunburn for people. While it may look unsightly, crispy, burnt leaves can be removed if they’re too far damaged to recover, or over half of the leaf is damaged. However, you can also try trimming back the leaves just to remove any sunburn damage in an effort to save them, if there’s not too much discoloration. Move your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' away from its light source to avoid future light damage.
Does Alocasia 'Regal Shields' need different light during different growth stages?
While some plants may be ready to face the sweltering sun straight out of the ground, Alocasia 'Regal Shields' needs some time to build itself up enough to tolerate bright light. Propagated cuttings should receive only moderate indirect light, while new leaves during the growing season should be shielded a bit as well. The tender new leaves are more prone to sunburn than any other part of the plant.
How can I tell if Alocasia 'Regal Shields' isn’t getting enough light?
Fortunately, plants can communicate in their own language to convey whether they have adequate sunlight or not. Like most plants, your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' will tell you if it isn’t getting enough sunlight. The most visible sign is when your plant becomes particularly dark, or there is no new growth on the plant from one season to the next. You’ll also notice that leaves that do grow in may remain smaller than others, since there isn’t enough light to photosynthesize to support large new leaves.
How much sunlight should Alocasia 'Regal Shields' get each day?
Depending on how bright the sunlight is that your Alocasia 'Regal Shields' gets, the number of hours in a day may vary. If you have your plant in bright, indirect light, then there’s no need to try to restrict or increase the amount of time your plant gets this light each day. However, if light is less bright or further away from your Alocasia 'Regal Shields', then you can try to aim for at least eight hours of full light per day.