Piggyback Plant

Piggyback Plant Care

Tolmiea menziesii

What is the plant

Tolmiea menziesii, the Piggyback Plant, stands out by its endurance and unpretentiousness, while the variegated foliage of fluffy bushes serves as a decoration for any interior; therefore, it is often cultivated as an ornamental plant.

Tolmiea menziesii is a compact perennial plant that, quickly growing into a green carpet, covers the lowest tier of forest plantations. In its natural habitat, the plant can be easily found in the American Northwest. It has several common names such as youth on age, thousand mothers, and Piggyback plant.

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Humidity

High

Lighting

Part Sun

Temperature

12°C - 20°C

Hardiness zone

7a - 9b

Difficulty

Medium

How to Care for the Plant

Water
During active growth, T. menziesii should be watered abundantly. Weak and drooping foliage indicates a lack of moisture or an unsuitable temperature.
Pruning
To stimulate its growth, you should cut or pinch the shoot. Do not cut the peduncle before the end of flowering.
Fertilizer
This plant does not need fertilizers in autumn and winter, but in summer, the plant needs an increased supply of nutrients to develop leaf mass. In the active period, fertilize your Piggyback Plant after 18-20 days with mineral fertilizers, carefully spreading the solids before watering and dissolving the liquid ones in the water.

Disease diagnosis

Check your plant’s health

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Sunlight
In nature, the piggybacks are always under the canopy of the forest, so bright lighting is not suitable, and the plants constantly need fresh and humid air. In the home environment, place the plant on the north window.
Soil
Growing T. menziesii at home, you need to create soil conditions close to its natural background. The composition of the soil mixture must include leaf soil and coarse sand. Add humus, turf, and peat soil to the mixture to increase moisture content and nutritional value.
Propagation
Under artificial growing conditions, the Piggybacks reproduce vegetatively. Seed propagation is impractical but sometimes occurs.

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Temperature
The optimum air temperature varies between 54-68 °F (12- 20 °С), and in winter, during the dormant period, you can reduce the temperature to 50 °F (10 °С).
Container
For planting, choose deep pots, be sure to disinfect, and fill 1/4 with drainage of shards, expanded clay, and coarse sand.
Fun fact
The Piggyback Plant’s alternate reproductive strategy of forming plantlets on top of the current year’s leaves’ base (the petiole) is its unique ability.