Oxalis Triangularis (Purple Shamrock) Crucial Care Tips and CRAZY facts
Oxalis Triangularis (Purple Shamrock) Crucial Care Tips and CRAZY facts
If you’re interested in popular and trending house plants, then this is the right place for you. I have been looking for an oxalis plant for what feels like forever now, and I’m incredibly excited that I finally found it.
Anyways, I’m looking forward to sharing some crucial care tips for these plants along with some interesting facts. Of course, I’ll also be sharing a few propagation pointers. There’s a lot of information here, but I’ll be quick and to the point.
So let me share everything I know with you about the oxalis plant.
Table of Contents
Purple Shamrock Plant
First, I just need to say the color of these plants is a breath of fresh air. Otherwise known as the purple Shamrock plant, its purple foliage is a welcome difference from green plants, and I might even say those pink foliage plants too.
Before jumping into some crucial care tips, did you know that some varieties of these plants are edible? It’s crazy but true; you can actually eat the purple portion of these plants as well as the corms, which are basically the little bulbs, a part of their root system down below.
Also, did you know these plants are extremely responsive to light? They even close up at
night. Butterfly by day, pyramid by night. I mean, it’s completely fascinating. So, as you can gather, these plants like two-phase light.
Some Interesting Facts
Did you know that some oxalis species can launch their seeds many feet away at an optimal angle with a velocity of over four meters per second? Crazy, I know. Don’t take my word for it; I found some scientific research on this, published in the Scientific Journal Nature in 2020, explaining all of this. Mind-blowing, right?
So, it’s becoming quite clear that these aren’t your ordinary house plants. So, how best to care for them? Let’s get into that right away.
Light
When it comes to light, oxalis do best in indirect light. That being said, some direct light is totally okay. Now, these plants can become dormant in the winter months, especially if they’re exposed to cooler temperatures.
So that’s definitely something you’re going to want to keep in mind, especially when you’re thinking of where to place them.
Soil & Water
Now, they need well-draining soil. I’ve used a combination of perlite, peat moss, and a little bit of sand or grit mix as well. You’re going to want to water the oxalis plant as soon as the topsoil becomes dry.
That being said, if yours does go dormant in the winter months, you’re not going to want to water it very frequently, probably once every three or four weeks tops. Now, a well-balanced slow-release fertilizer is ideal for oxalis, just remember, less is always more when it comes to fertilizer. You can always go back later and add.
Basically, you just want to add those little pearls to the top of the soil. Once you water it, the pearls will feed the plant. They decompose and release fertilizer slowly, hence the term slow-release fertilizer. So, repotted in that well-draining soil.
I’ve added some of those slow-release fertilizers. Almost good to go.
Propagation
When it comes to propagation, once you have a larger plant, the ideal method for propagating oxalis is probably by division.
That’s just breaking apart the plant into probably two pieces with the roots, the corms, and that portion of the plant separating it in half. This is a common technique for outdoor gardening and plants more so than house plants, but it is the best way to propagate these plants.
I hope the article was helpful. Now you know some crucial facts and consideration about houseplant Oxalis. Don’t forget to try them if you have a oxalis plant.
 *(Include an image of droopy leaves)* Some plants, such as calatheas, prefer moist soil at all times; otherwise, they develop that signature brown tissue damage on the leaves. The annoying thing here is that the damage cannot be reversed and can only be cut away, leaving you with a damaged plant. If the soil of your plant is bone dry, you'll notice that it's pulling away from the sides of the pot. This is because the soil has shrunk due to a lack of moisture, so make sure you are not letting this happen by watering a little more frequently. #### Signs Your Plant is Overwatered (darkgreen) Overwatering plants is a really common way that people kill their plants. Beginner plant enthusiasts often have a common misconception that houseplants need lots of water, but the reality is that these plants are native to hot climates where they may get periods of drought followed by large rain which rehydrates them. **Yellowing leaves** (red) can indicate an overwatering problem as well as an underwatering problem. If you are watering your plant too often and the soil is always wet, this can lead to root rot, which will begin to affect the leaves of your plant. **Limp and mushy leaves** (red) also indicate that you are overwatering your plant. This is particularly true with succulents such as Echeverias. Echeverias store water in their thick leaves and have difficulty storing excess water if you are watering your plant too often. This leads to mushy plants that eventually fall off.  *(Include an image of yellowing leaves)* Philodendron and Pothos plants tend to get mushy leaves that fall off if the soil is consistently soggy. My Philodendron Birkin recently developed some new brown leaves that fell off because I was overwatering it. Whereas crispy brown edges on leaves indicate an underwatering problem, if the whole leaves are turning brown, this tends to mean that the plant tissue is rotting due to too much water. You may also notice some water droplets on the ends of the leaves of some of your plants. This is the plant perspiring excess water through its leaves and can indicate that you are giving the plant too much water. Now, this tends to happen on plants that prefer drier soil, and I notice it quite often on my Philodendron Birkin and my Tradescantia Nanook. **Increased presence of fungus gnats** (red) can also be a sign that your plant is too moist. Fungus gnats like a moist top two inches of soil to breed and lay their eggs, so if your soil is wet, it creates a breeding ground for gnats. If you see lots of flea-like flies jumping around the top of your soil, I would just dial back on the watering and let the top two inches of the soil dry out before watering again. #### Watering Tips (darkgreen) It is important to allow the soil of your houseplant to dry out between waterings. This prevents the possibility of over-watering, which is one of the most common reasons people kill their plants. **Check the soil moisture** (red) before watering your plant by sticking your finger two inches into the soil. If it feels wet, leave it a few days and then check again. An even better way to check the soil moisture is to invest in a moisture meter. This device needs no batteries and tells you exactly how much moisture is in the soil, giving you control over watering your plants.  *(Include an image of a moisture meter)* When you identify that your plant needs water, make sure you give it a thorough soaking. Take your plant to a sink area and soak the soil four or five times until water drains out of the bottom each time. This ensures that all the soil in the pot gets moistened and there are no dry patches. **Bottom watering** (teal) is a method that has changed the health of my plants since I implemented it a couple of years ago. Place your plant in a container of water and let it absorb moisture from the bottom up. This method prevents water from getting on the leaves, which can cause leaf tissue damage. I hope this article was helpful. Now you know when to water your plants and when not to. Apply this knowledge to your plants and see the growth. Happy gardening! --- Incorporating these visual and formatting enhancements will make your article more attractive and engaging for your readers.](https://growinggaze.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/pexels-artempodrez-7242495-scaled.jpg)
