How to Take Care of an Abutilon Plant

How to Take Care of an Abutilon Plant

Belonging to the Mallow Family, Abutilon plants have an immense and unique beauty, which helps them stand out from other plants. Their downward-facing red and yellow flowers, along with the bright green leaves, are the signature look for this plant. Not only does the plant look impressive with its maple leaves, but plant care for it is relatively easy for anyone to manage. Here is the complete breakdown and analysis for taking care of Abutilon plants.

 

Common Names

  • Flowering Maple
  • Parlor Maple
  • Room Maple
  • Indian Mallow
  • Chinese Lantern Plant
  • Velvetleaf

 

What Soil Works Best for Abutilon Plants?

what soil works best for abutilon plants

Well-draining soil with some compost works best for this plant. Ensure that the soil is never soggy since that can lead to root rot. Having moist soil works best for this plant as it doesn’t need much water.

 

How Much Sun Do Abutilon Plants Need?

Indian Mallow houseplants can have a few hours of full sun during the day but generally only need partial light. The growing season for this plant to produce flowers is from early spring to early fall. If you keep the plant inside your home, you should place it in front of a south-facing window. While the full sun works for this plant, make sure you don’t leave it in an area where the leaves start to burn.

 

What Temperature Works Best for Abutilon Plants?

What Temperature Works Best for Abutilon Plants

A Flowering Maple does best with temperatures over 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Be careful about leaving this plant near a cold window or an AC unit since those are cold temperatures. This plant prefers to be in warm climates whenever possible.

 

When the weather becomes cold, you should move this plant, if it is outdoors, inside your home or office if you live in a cold environment. The process of moving the plant indoors, if it was outdoors, is overwintering.

 

Do Abutilon Plants Enjoy Humidity?

Being native to the rainforests in Brazil, Abutilon plants enjoy humid environments. Some ways to increase the humidity around Parlor maple are using a humidifier or placing the plant on a pebble tray. Consider putting the plant in a bathroom with a shower. Placing the plant in a bathroom with a hot shower keeps this indoor plant healthy all year round due to the humidity.

 

How Often Should You Water an Abutilon Plant?

How Often Should You Water an Abutilon Plant

An Abutilon plant needs watering when the top inch or so of soil becomes dry. Don’t overwater the plant so that the ground becomes soggy. Finally, ensure the plant is in a suitable pot with drainage holes to reduce the risk of waterlogging and root rot.

 

What Size Does Chinese Lantern Plants Grow to Typically?

A mature Chinese Lantern plant can reach up to 8 feet in height. However, if you keep the plant indoors in a container, you can expect the plant to be smaller than that. When the indoor plant starts becoming too big for the current area in your home, you can prune the plant to better fit your environment.

 

What are the Most Common Bugs?

Common bugs that might infest this plant include spider mites, aphids, whiteflies, scale, and mealybugs. If you notice that these pests are on the plant, you will want to remove them with neem oil.

 

Most Common Diseases

Mold and root rot are common diseases that occur with this plant. Common reasons for mold and root rot are keeping the plant in a partial shade area that never fully dries out the soil. Not allowing the soil to dry and watering the plant then creates mold.

 

To combat mold or root rot, you will want to remove the plant from the current container and soil. Next, you can shake off and remove the mold pieces from the plant and place them in fresh soil. Finally, place the plant in an area that will receive a few hours of direct sunlight each day and gradually give the plant a bit of water as it settles.

 

How Often Should You Repot Abutilon Plants?

how often should you repot abutilon plants

It is best to repot a Chinese Lantern plant in the spring every other year to promote healthy growth. You should use a slightly larger pot than the previous home and put the fresh potting mix in the new container for repotting. Placing the plant into a larger pot helps promote new growth since there is more room for the roots to grow within the slightly bigger container.

 

How Do You Propagate Abutilon Plants?

Propagation occurs by taking the tip cuttings off the mother plant, usually about 3-4 inches, and then placing it in a new container with soil. One tip is to place a plastic bag over the plant in the new container with a few holes to mimic a hot and humid environment, which the plant will want. You will want to place the plant in an area with the sun for a few hours and mist it every week or so.

 

After a month or so, you can check if any flowers form via this propagation method.

 

What is the USDA Hardiness Zone for this Plant?

The USDA hardiness zone that works best for this plant is eight and above. Typically speaking, keeping the plant in this zone area and giving it plenty of sunlight will make this a fast grower.

 

Can You Prune a Chinese Lantern Plant?

can you prune a chinese lantern plant

The best time to prune a Room Maple plant is during the winter. Pruning the plant in the winter helps promote new and healthy flower growth in the spring.

 

Conclusion — How to Take Care of an Abutilon Plant

In summary, taking care of an Abutilon plant is straightforward. It needs a few hours of direct sunlight, a humid environment, and watering when the top inch of soil becomes dry. Ensuring that the plant has the right conditions will allow it to be healthy and robust, which is rewarding since the look of this place is unique. Not only is the look of the plant unique, but it also works as a great gift to give to others when you propagate it!

 

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