Desert indoor plants. Lesson summary "traveling through the desert with indoor plants"

“Rules for caring for indoor plants” - Grass-like plants have long, narrow leaves collected in a bunch. Feijoa fruits are rich in iodine. Plants according to the planned plan are planted in a container with a substrate. Globular plants. A characteristic feature of a modern interior is the use of vertical planes. Climbing and hanging plants are an excellent element of window decoration. Shadow. Hanging Gardens. Green pharmacy. Conditions for keeping indoor plants.

“Names of indoor plants” - Primroses. Bryophyllum. Cyclamen. Agave. Pelargonium. Primrose. Aspidistra. Chlorophytum. Amarylis. Certification of indoor plants. Sultan's balsam. Calla. Begonia Rex. Plants. Network Creation. Violet. Aucuba. Ficus. Dracaena. Ivy. Plant passport. Sansevieria. Azalea. Zygocactus. Cyperus. Coleus. Clivia. Asparagus.

“Indoor Plant Garden” - Bromeliads. Palm trees. Increasing motivation to study indoor plants. Pests and diseases. Ferns. Decorative leaf plants. Bulbous plants. Houseplants. Cacti and succulents. The meaning of indoor plants. Main groups of indoor plants. Decorative flowering plants. Agricultural technology for indoor plants. Watering.

“Indoor plants and flowers” ​​- Caring for indoor plants. Places in the interior. Dishes for flowers. Indoor plants in the interior of a residential building. Lighting in the room. Propagation of indoor plants. Climbing plants. Tall, spreading plants. Aloe. Plants with fleshy modified stems. Plants need to be watered daily. Large plants. Introduce students to the role of indoor plants. Wild plants. Plant care.

“Plants for the home” - Orange. The bulk of indoor plants. Coffee. Pepper. Houseplants of the subtropics. Distribute indoor plants into 3 groups. The meaning of indoor plants. Climate of subtropical regions. Aloe. The history of indoor plants. Jasmine. Tropical rainforest zone. Houseplants. Riddles about indoor plants. Ficus rubbery. Houseplants of tropical rainforests.

"House plants" - Hippeastrum. Chrysalidocarpus. Cyclamen. Dieffenbachia. Vanka is wet. Azalea. Poinsettia. Cactus. Monstera. Ficus. Primula acalius. Ivy. Aloe. Hoya. Begonia. Laurel. Homemade rose. Saintpaulia - violet. House plants.

Among indoor plants, the original inhabitants of the driest places on the planet have always enjoyed special love. The well-deserved reputation of desert stars is explained simply: no other plants can boast of such ease of care and endurance. Although not all succulents and cacti belong to crops found naturally in semi-deserts and deserts. Even so, the choice among true desert endemics is very large - from bright blooming stars to modest living stones.

The special character of plants native to deserts

The natural conditions of the desert areas of our planet are so harsh that only extremely hardy plants have been able to adapt to them. But there are by no means a small number of them: hundreds of species of the hardiest plants thrive even where everything around seems lifeless, competing for precious moisture with representatives of the fauna that are no less well adapted to drought. Low and uneven humidity with sharp changes in precipitation between seasons, very low air humidity, scorching sun, extreme hot African or more moderate North American temperatures have led to the fact that in the process of evolution, plants adapted to desert areas have acquired exceptional features:

• the ability to be content with a minimum amount of moisture, sometimes hundreds of times less than for inhabitants of even a temperate climate;
• variable metabolism - the ability to absorb carbon dioxide at night and close the stomata to stop the evaporation of moisture;
• a sharp change in periods of active growth and complete dormancy - seasonal, pronounced vegetative activity, followed by deep “sleep”;
• absence or minimal number of stomata, leathery leaves protected by a waxy or fatty coating.

Cacti and succulents are often associated with desert plants; to many, all plants from these groups seem the same in character. But not all succulent crops come from deserts and even semi-deserts. After all, many succulents migrated to rooms from mountainous regions, where the problem of lack of nutrients, moisture and sudden temperature changes is no less pressing, although we are talking about completely different climatic conditions. Most popular cacti and almost half of succulents grow in the subtropics, in mountainous and even forest areas. So not all succulents are from the desert, but all desert plants are definitely succulents. They are able to store water reserves in shoots or leaves, have fleshy water-storing tissues and thick skin, and few stomata. All these adaptation mechanisms are most clearly manifested in cacti.

Indoor plants of desert origin have not lost a single feature of their natural ancestors, even if we are talking about decorative forms and varieties that have undergone long-term selection. It is believed that adaptation to extreme conditions of deserts and semi-deserts is irreversible. Such plants, even in the interior, remain ordinary inhabitants of deserts, accustomed to far from typical humidity, temperatures and lighting.

One of the key features of desert plants is their extremely narrow “specialization.” Such crops have adapted to the difficult conditions in deserts to such an extent that they can no longer adapt to any other conditions, having lost their ability to acclimatize. Their entire metabolism is structured completely differently than that of plants from other climatic zones. Those who want to grow desert plants should study their character well: in order to succeed and admire the drought-resistant stars for many years, they will have to recreate the conditions they are already familiar with. Standard care will not work for such plants.

All indoor plants that came to us from desert places are united by other characteristics:

1. drought resistance;
2. sun-loving up to the need to be in direct sunlight, extreme sensitivity to any shading and insufficient lighting;
3. thermophilicity;
4. love for differences in night and day temperatures;
5. the need for a long and strict period of dormancy for subsequent flowering.

There are many similarities in caring for desert crops. Such plants require careful and infrequent watering; during the resting phase, they can often do without it at all. Feeding for desert stars is rare, and the substrate must be specific - light, sandy or rocky.

Let's take a closer look at the brightest desert stars, which are especially popular in modern interiors.

1. Star cactus astrophytum

Astrophytums ( Astrophytum) are one of the most colorful desert cacti. These are slow-growing plants with massive ribs that make the unbranched stems look like a star when cut. The soft hairs are collected in tiny tufts, which gives the cacti a unique “pointed” pubescence. The cactus blooms indoors, surprising with large yellow flowers with a red throat and a pubescent tube.

Distribution area: USA and Mexico.

This is an easy-to-grow cactus that does not like transplanting or deepening the root collar. It is distinguished by its light-loving, drought-resistant, and demanding soil composition.

2. Invulnerable prickly pear

Capable of creating entire thickets and impassable areas, prickly pears ( Opuntia) in indoor culture lose their aggressiveness. These cacti are found in different conditions, but it is not for nothing that they have become a symbol of the Mexican deserts. The flat, segmented stems, often teardrop-shaped or oval-shaped, are surprising with spines and thin bristles, which, due to the jagged edges, can be very difficult to pull out of the skin. Unique rooting abilities and a powerful superficial root system make this cactus very tenacious. And single bright flowers in a half-bloomed state are reminiscent of roses.

Distribution area: Australia, Central and South America.

Growing prickly pears will not cause any difficulties even for novice gardeners. Cacti develop quickly, love abundant watering in spring and summer, and very little in winter. Prickly pears are not afraid of sudden temperature changes; they can spend the summer in the garden and are very light-loving.

3. “Hedgehogs” of echinocacti

One of the largest spherical cacti, which loses its spherical shape only at a very advanced age, flaunts numerous ribs and golden spines. In room conditions, echinocactus ( Echinocactus) not only does not reach its true size (in nature, echinocacti can exceed one and a half meters in height), but it almost never blooms. But the beauty and symmetry of the plant, decorated with densely arranged colored spines - gold, red, orange or golden brown - is so unique that the popularity of the “hedgehog” cactus does not seem so surprising.

Distribution area: deserts of Mexico and the USA.

Growing echinocacti is very simple, but you need to ensure that the substrate is light and slightly acidic, the lighting is the brightest, and wintering is cool. Echinocacti are watered even in winter only once a week, but this cactus does not tolerate sudden changes in humidity and will prefer to spend the summer in the fresh air.

4. New varieties of boring aloe

A few decades ago aloe ( Aloe) was going through a period of undeserved oblivion, but today it is again included in the list of the most fashionable succulents. Boring and faceless specimens of ordinary aloe vera are history. Today, flower growers around the world have paid attention to amazing varieties and types of aloe, which are ready to give odds to even the most original indoor desert stars. Looks like a bizarre creature of the deep sea aloe Marlota (Aloe marlothii), flower-shaped elegant rosettes aloe variegated (Aloe variegata), unique aloe multifolia (Aloe polyphylla) with its leaves arranged in a complex spiral in flat rosettes, etc. - these are the new favorites. But all aloes, without exception, remain succulents with fleshy leaves, collected in a basal or apical rosette, with a crescent cross-section, a pointed tip, sharp teeth along the edge of the leaves and bluish patterns.

Distribution area: deserts of Africa and the American continents.

All aloe - both old and newfangled - are amazingly unpretentious. They love annual transplants, fresh air and cool wintering. Like all desert stars, aloes are sun-loving, but somewhat more tolerant of low light. They require fairly abundant summer watering and do not really like feeding.

5. Fan Gasteria

The stems of these succulents, shortened to the point of being completely invisible, allow you to admire only the beauty of the leaves. In some species of Gasteria ( Gasteria) they are located in dense classic ones, while others have double-row rosettes of striking symmetry, in which tongue-shaped leaves, often with a rounded tip, seem to have been manually laid out in “stacks” or fans. Old leaves of Gasteria lie down, while young ones can be almost erect. White warts give dark, tough leaves a variegated effect. And the daughter rosettes formed in very large numbers make it easy to propagate the plant or grow it in “colonies”.

Distribution area: deserts of Africa.

Gasterias are fast-growing succulents that will need to be replanted annually. Gasteria prefer to overwinter in cool conditions. But otherwise they are unpretentious, shade-tolerant, easily forgive mistakes and are watered quite abundantly in the summer.

6. Blooming miracle - lampranthus

Among gardeners, these plants are still better known by the old name of the most common species - oscularia deltoid (Oscularia deltoides), but also other representatives of the Lampranthus genus ( Lampranthus), which included oscularia, deserve attention. These are unique shrubby succulents with strongly branching shoots that lie down with age. They form real leaves, although the greenery looks unusual. Gray-blue, thickened triangular leaves with jagged edges make these succulents one of the most original. But the real show of lampranthus begins only when flowering starts. Small chrysanthemum-shaped flowers of pink or lilac colors bloom in such numbers that it is sometimes impossible to see the special green oscularia underneath them.

Distribution area: deserts of South Africa.

The most difficult thing in growing lampranthus is choosing the right watering. Even in summer they are carried out rarely and very carefully, but in winter they are almost stopped. This succulent should spend its dormant period in the cold, but bright lighting is a measure that plants need all year round. Without access to fresh air, it is very difficult to grow lampranthus.

7. The thinnest otton shoots

The most unique of the Otton succulents ( Othonna) is a plant whose true desert character is not easily recognized even upon close examination. Lodging and drooping thin purple shoots are combined in this unique plant with long and thick leaves (with a length of up to 7 cm, the diameter of the leaf reaches 3 cm). The leaves are arranged in rare pairs, gracefully spaced, and captivate with the beauty of their elongated teardrop-shaped (or lobe-shaped) shape. The round cross-section of the leaves is not their most unusual feature. After all, the waxy coating on the fleshy greens seems special. This succulent even blooms, releasing small yellow baskets of flowers, which make it obvious that the plant belongs to the Asteraceae family.

Distribution area: deserts of South Africa.

For all its outlandish beauty, ottone is one of the easiest succulents to grow. Even in summer, the plant is watered about once a week, avoiding overwatering. Not just light-loving, but sun-loving Otton loves light soil, cool wintering and fresh air.

8. Round-leaved portulacaria trees

Compare portulacaria ( Portulacaria) with another tree-like succulent - Crassula - would be a big mistake. After all, portulacaria are special plants. Shrubs, which in indoor conditions develop in the form of densely branching, amazingly beautiful, compact trees, look amazingly impressive. Round, fleshy leaves with bright colors sit opposite on fleshy, drooping shoots. The plant is easy to shape, even creating silhouettes reminiscent of bonsai, and the presence of several variegated forms allows you to choose plants to your liking.

Distribution area: deserts of Africa.

Portulacaria love to spend the summer outdoors and are not afraid of even the midday sun. They are easy to grow, because even in summer the plant prefers moderate watering, and they are fertilized very rarely.

9. Guatemalan miracle - Hechtia Guatemala

One of the most unusual plants not only on the list of desert stars, but also among exotic indoor crops. The shortened stem is not visible under the stunning rosette, which looks artificial. In dense “bundles” of hechtia ( Hechtia guatemalensis) collected long and very narrow linear leaves that can stretch up to half a meter. The spiny edge, grayish color, scaly bottom and reddish coating turn Hechtia Guatemala into a sparkling star in bright light. But this succulent also manages to surprise with its flowering - panicles of white three-petaled flowers.

Distribution area: deserts of Central and South America.

Growing this original crop is easy. To flower, it needs to be provided with a cool winter, the light regime must be stable, and watering must be very careful. Otherwise, hechtia is a typical unpretentious succulent, surprising with its endurance

10. Silver pebbles of pachyphytum ovifera

One of the most unusual and “precious” indoor plants, pachyphytum ( Pachyphytum oviferum) surprises with its texture, shape, and color. Shortened shoots are not visible under obovate, round or oval in cross-section, resembling either outlandish pebbles or decorative pebbles, leaves reaching 5 cm in length and 3 cm in diameter. The fleshy, waxy leaves are grey-white, but their texture makes them appear bright silver in the shade, with a hint of rose gold in bright light. They seem to be strung or scattered in slides on the soil, seeming like an artificial decoration of the interior. Silver pachyphytums also bloom in an original way, producing bright red flowers on long pubescent pedicels.

Distribution area: deserts of the American continents.

Growing this silvery miracle is no more difficult than any ordinary succulent. In summer, pachyphytum will not refuse a place on the balcony, but even there it is content with scanty watering, it is sun-loving and magnificent in any temperature. Even a cool winter is needed only for flowering.

The unusual appearance of adenium and comparisons addressed to its flowers with a rose, lily or star are the reasons for the increased interest in the plant from the African deserts. At the same time, adeniums, caring for them at home, are not at all difficult, very unpretentious.

A little knowledge, diligence, attention, and your indoor pet will respond with lush flowering. And the unlimited possibilities of pruning and shaping allow you to grow a truly unique specimen.

Adeniums have a very recognizable appearance. A thickened stem, a small rosette of dense leaves crowning the top and large flowers of all shades from white to deep purple.

Plants, which in nature are not spoiled by semi-desert conditions, adapt perfectly in the house, bloom and even allow experiments on themselves. The result is bizarre adeniums, shaped like octopuses, mangrove trees or abstract green sculptures.

The secret to successfully caring for adenium at home is simple and lies in providing maximum sun, loose soil, and regular but moderate watering.

Temperature and humidity for adenium

Adeniums can be called one of the most “heat-resistant” indoor plants. A comfortable temperature for them is 30–35 °C. A decrease of 3–5 units does not cause discomfort, but prolonged cooling of the air to 18–20 °C causes the plant to slow down growth, stop flowering, and begin preparing for the winter dormant period.

Signs of a depressed state are also noticeable in a room that is too warm. A temperature of +38 °C when caring for adenium at home is often critical if the air humidity in the room is not high enough. Moisture helps the flower to withstand the heat, but in the cold it, on the contrary, causes problems.

The minimum permissible temperature for keeping adenium in a room is +10 °C. If the air continues to cool, the risk of damage to the measles system and its death from decay increases significantly.

Adeniums are characterized by pronounced periods of hibernation or dormancy, when the plant:

• partially or completely sheds leaves;
• stops growing;
• does not form new buds.

A peculiar sign for a flower is:

• decreasing daylight hours;
• cooling to 16–20 °C.

“Hibernation” helps the plant recover and create a foundation for future flowering. Therefore, for the entire period, the temperature for adenium is maintained at about 12–16 °C and watering is radically reduced. It must be remembered that plants cannot tolerate even slight frosts. As in the photo, when caring for adenium at home, you can do without spraying and special measures to increase air humidity.

Lighting adenium when caring at home

Adeniums are light-loving; unlike most indoor plants, they do not need shading and feel best on the south and east side.

In summer, the more sun they receive, the more magnificent the flowering will be, the denser and healthier the crown will be. In winter, conditions do not change, but if there is not enough light, the shadow can be partially compensated by maintaining the temperature within 15 ° C or for a long time.

Striving towards the sun, indoor adeniums lean towards the window. You can restore the beauty of the crown by rotating the flower. Over time, the stem will straighten again.

It is advisable to maintain the light regime for adenium, which comes from the equatorial zone of the planet, close to natural values. That is, from autumn to spring, in order for the plant to receive light for 12–14 hours, it will need lighting.

Soil for adenium and its replanting

The soil mixture for adenium should be light, very loose, nutritious and permeable to moisture and oxygen. The acidity level that is comfortable for the plant is pH 5.5–7.

Today there is a sufficient range of ready-made substrates based on peat or coconut fiber on sale. For adenium, soil for succulents or universal soil with the addition of loosening and structuring components is suitable.

If the purchased soil is too dense or seems poor, you can mix the soil for adenium yourself by taking:

• 5 parts of finished substrate;
• 3 parts of leaf soil with a high humus content;
• 2 parts vermiculite, river sand or perlite.

A good addition would be crushed charcoal, which can act as a natural component of soil or.

The recommendations of large manufacturers involved in growing adeniums indicate the composition of the substrate for this crop. A portion of perlite is added to three parts of crushed tree bark. Such soil for adenium perfectly allows air and moisture to pass through, never becomes compacted and can be considered universal. However, it does not contain too many nutrients, so the gardener will have to think about feeding his pet frequently.

This is also caused by a significant proportion of foam balls, brick chips, charcoal and other leavening agents, which are added to increase the airiness of the substrate.

Adenium is most often transplanted in the spring, when active growth begins. The new pot should not be too large, otherwise the plant may delay its long-awaited flowering. However, even in a container that is too tight, it is difficult to achieve a harmonious shape of the caudex trunk.

If the reason for replanting the adenium was the formation of its bizarre roots, the plant is not watered for 5–7 days or moistened very carefully. Healthy adeniums, for example, seedlings transferred to separate pots, can be watered as usual.

How to water adenium?

The watering regime for decorative natives of Africa depends on:

• depending on the time of year;
• on air temperature;
• from the container of the pot;
• from the soil selected for adenium;
• on the location of the plant and its growing season.

During the period of active growth, the plant needs a lot of water, and the higher the temperature, the greater the needs of adenium.

In hot weather, the soil in the pot should be slightly moist. This will help the flower maintain vital activity and not lose flowers. There is no need to spray adenium.

Cold weather is a sure sign to the gardener that watering needs to be reduced. Excess water often causes disease and death of the root system. How to water adenium to be sure of the optimal amount of moisture?

In summer, at a comfortable temperature, a new portion of water is needed when the top layer of soil has completely dried out after the previous watering. In winter, in a cool room, you need to water the flower sparingly, when the substrate dries completely. In a warm room and while maintaining growth, adenium is watered as usual, but somewhat less frequently.

Trimming and forming adenium

To make the crown dense and branched, gardeners resort to forming and pruning adenium.

Often this is simply necessary, since in many plants the apical development is dominant and does not allow other shoots to develop except the central one.

Removing the tip activates dormant lateral buds and initiates branching. As a result of such pruning at home on adenium:

• the amount of foliage increases;
• more buds are formed;
• the crown turns out leveled, voluminous and dense.

Usually, after pruning, more than three buds appear, and the thicker the cut stem, the denser the growth that forms along the edge of its “stump”.

Also, pruning adenium at home is used to rejuvenate adult plants, some of the branches of which noticeably weaken with age. It is carried out every two years, shortening the shoots to 5–8 cm.

Formation of the adenium caudex

Adenium is a rare plant that allows the gardener to form not only the above-ground, but also the underground part. Pruning and shaping the adenium caudex allows the grower to grow incredible specimens.

The flower is extremely “loyal” to all manipulations of a person who can intertwine the roots, cut off part of them or completely remove the bottom of the plant in order to grow a new root system of a given shape.

Most often, bonsai like a mangrove tree are formed on the basis of adenium. For this:

• choose a grown seedling with a thick stem base;
• the root of the plant is cut off at the site where the caudex narrows;
• the resulting cutting takes root again in water or a loose mixture of perlite and vermiculite.

When the plant acquires roots again, it is transferred to a wide pot on light soil for adenium. A pre-prepared round plate of thick plastic is placed under the cutting. The roots are straightened and fixed to give the desired shape. Then the roots are sprinkled with soil one or two centimeters.

Care after such formation of the adenium caudex consists of more frequent, usually moderate, watering and regular checking of the position of the roots. To do this, the plant is replanted twice a year, straightening the rhizomes and removing unnecessary ones.

Video about the rules for caring for adenium at home

Goals:

• familiarize students with indoor desert plants (names, distinctive features of some plants, features of life and placement);
• cultivate interest and love for indoor plants.

Materials and equipment:

• living objects - indoor plants (aloe, chlorophytum, cyperus, crassula, cactus);
• images of cacti in the desert;
• World map;
• flags for strengthening the name of the plant on the map;
• dates, aloe leaf;
• glass of water;
• multimedia equipment, PP presentation.

Progress of the lesson

I. Organizational moment

Children are sitting at their desks. There are images of the desert on the board. There are indoor plants on the table.

The lesson is accompanied by a computer presentation.

Teacher. Guess:

Breathes, grows,
But he can’t walk. (Plants)

Today's lesson we will devote to an unusually beautiful, fabulous creation of nature - plants. But not simple plants, but those that you can see on your windowsills.

Guys, do any of you know the names of the indoor plants in your class? ( Children's answers).

In late autumn or winter, when there is snow outside the window and the trees are devoid of flowers and leaves, at this time these plants delight us with their green splendor! Why is this happening? Why do we keep them at home and care for these plants?

II. Introductory conversation

To answer all these questions and get to know plants better, we need to go on a trip around the world. After all, these plants are real travelers, coming to us from distant countries!

"Journey!" That's the word!
It makes me want to sing with joy.
"Journey!" I want it again
To sit on Jules Verne all night.

Our path will lie through sun-hot deserts, where ugly but hardy plants lead an amazing life with almost no water. We will find ourselves in the gloomy wilds of humid forests, where among the huge number of giant plants we will hardly find our friends. We will travel around the world together with modest plants standing in pots on our windows.

This journey is extraordinary: it will be mental and at the same time real (which is happening now), because the plants we will meet during the journey are real, living, growing in your classroom or at home.

But before heading off to distant countries, it would be nice to first remember about our plants, how they live with us in the fall and winter. To do this, we, like real travelers, will fill out an “entry visa”, in which you need to answer questions and choose the correct answer.

The teacher gives students cards in advance to complete the task, in which children must write only the number of the correct answer. (Appendix No. 1)

The words are written in a column on the board: 1. Leaf fall. 2. October. 3. September. 4. Autumn. 5. Deciduous. 6. Conifers. 7. Maple. 8. Spruce. 9. Larch. 10. Kidneys. 11. Needles. 12. Winter.

Teacher questions:

Guess the riddle:

1. “I came without paints and without a brush and repainted all the leaves.”

2. The first month of autumn.

3. Leaves falling from trees.

4. Which trees have not shed their green outfit for the winter?

5. Maple, poplar, birch, rowan - what are these trees called in one word?

6. Evergreen plant.

7. What are the leaves of coniferous plants called?

8. What is the name of a plant whose needles fall off in the fall?

9. What remains on the branches in place of fallen leaves?

10. At what time of year do plants seem to go to sleep?

(Answers: 4, 3, 1, 6, 5, 8, 11, 9, 10, 12)

Immediately after recording the answers to the questions, students check their work.

– Now you can go on a trip to the native places of our house plants!

III. Main part

In today's lesson we will go...

But where - you need to guess the rebus. (Appendix No. 2)

Right! Into the desert. When they say “desert,” anyone will continue: “Sahara.” Sahara Desert means desert in Arabic. Before us is a huge sea of ​​sand, bright and hot sun, heat + 50Cº. There is a camel caravan, and any traveler is thirsty. But suddenly the camels stretch their necks and begin to run faster: there is a green dot ahead - an oasis! Green island among sand, water and palm trees! A wonderful plant in the desert!

1. Date palm.

Homeland - Africa, Sahara Desert.

Date palm. Its name means “bearing fingers.” Date fruits are compared to fingers ( fruit display). The Arabs say about her: “The palm tree is the queen of the desert, bathes her feet in water, and her beautiful head in the fire of the sun’s rays.” It grows in the desert only where water comes to the surface. For desert dwellers, date palms have been both their life and joy for many centuries. The shade from date palms protects from the sun. Palm tree trunks were used to make pillars and doors for houses, and roofs were covered with leaves. Mats, bags, and baskets were made from dried leaves. And they prepared food from the fruits - dates: juice, sugar, wine, and even baked bread. These fruits were dried, fried, and fed to camels. Undoubtedly, the inhabitants of the desert could not live without the date palm!

All “travelers” - students, write down the names of the plants they meet in their environmental diaries. They also attach a flag to the world map near the country where the houseplant grows.(Appendix No. 3).

But for this plant (demonstration of a houseplant) I can’t watch without excitement, it takes my thoughts to the most distant times. To find out all the most interesting things about this plant, we need to mentally travel back to those distant times in Egypt, when people who knew how to write were highly respected.

Beautiful hymns have come down to us over thousands of years on crisp yellow scrolls.

Dedicated to the Sun, scary tales and stories.
Egyptian scrolls with writing are called papyrus. Translated from Greek, papyrus means “gift of the river.”

2. Papyrus (cyperus)

Homeland - Africa, swampy banks of the Nile River.

These strange sheets of paper are called papyrus. This is a plant (point to it) and its name translates as “gift of the river.” It was from this that the so-called paper, papyrus, was made. In places where papyrus grows, the banks of the river form green thickets 3 and even 5 meters high. (Unfold and show papyrus).

The green wall is made of straight, triangular stems as thick as an arm. At the top of such a stem, a dense bunch of long and narrow leaves hangs to the sides.

Papyrus rhizomes taste like almonds. The Egyptians ate them raw and roasted.

On such strange paper, tied with laces, they wrote poems about the sun, fairy tales and stories. These scrolls were up to forty meters long and one meter wide. Some of them have survived to this day, and they are about 5 thousand years old.

Everyone remembers Chukovsky’s fairy tale “Doctor Aibolit”. And who will remember the name of the river in Africa, where the famous doctor hurried to treat animals? (Limpopo). You and I will go for Doctor Aibolit. Here in southern Africa, in the Karoo Desert, one remarkable plant grows, which probably helped the doctor treat the sick.

3. Aloe

Homeland - South Africa.

This is aloe show). It is sometimes also called agave, believing that it blooms after a hundred years. Aloe grows in the desert, where the plant has to live for a long time without water. And that’s why aloe leaves don’t even look like leaves. They are thick, fleshy, convex below and concave above. The edges of the leaf are jagged, but without spines. The juice in the leaves is bitter, but very healthy. If you cut or burn your finger, cut a piece of aloe leaf, cut it in half and apply it to the wound. It will tighten quickly. An infusion of aloe leaves with honey is drunk as a medicine that helps the body fight disease.

Experiment No. 1 “Why water flows so easily from aloe leaves.”

If you pour water on a leaf, the water rolls up into balls and the leaf remains completely dry. If you break off an aloe leaf and dip it in a glass of water, it will suddenly become shiny and as if silver. If you rub the leaf with your finger, it will turn bright green and smooth. It turns out that we have erased the matte gray coating of wax, the same as that found on plums (conclusion: wax protects the aloe leaf from wetting and thereby from large evaporation of moisture).

Now let's take a break and play game "One-humped camel"

The camel is the ship of the desert. It can go without food and water for a long time thanks to its humps, in which it stores moisture reserves. A camel can run very fast, but most often it walks sedately across the desert sand. This relay race involves 12 participants at a time. You need two magic balls for each team (6 in total). So, each pair, consisting of two participants, stands behind each other, bends down, and the second holds onto the belt of the first. A ball is placed on the back of the first participant and he holds it with one hand so that the balls “hump”They fell to the ground. After all, if a camel’s hump falls off, it means its reserves have run out and it may die. Holding the ball and not letting go, participants must make their way to the chair.

We continue our journey and let's look at this wonderful plant with hanging branches, at the end of which there are bunches of narrow leaves, then we will get acquainted with our neighbor aloe.

4. Chlorophytum

Homeland: South Africa, Cape of Good Hope.

It grows on the coast of South Africa - the Cape of Good Hope. And they call it chlorophytum, which translates as “green plant with tufts.” At the ends of each vine there is a small ready-made plant from which a new one can be grown.

One of the most popular succulents grown at home is the Crassula. Its tree-like branches are covered with shiny, plump, spoon-shaped green leaves that sometimes have a crimson tint at the tips.

5. Crassula arborescens

Homeland: Cape Province in South Africa.

This plant is also called “Money tree”. This plant is unpretentious and can adapt to minimal care, which is why it is very popular among gardeners. The fat tree received the name “Money Tree” because it is able to influence the financial situation of its owners and can even attract prosperity to the family. So, if you believe in such signs, be sure to get a fat woman and learn how to properly care for it.

Our next stop... But to understand where we landed, let's look at the strange plants that look like green sticks and balls covered with sharp spines.

5. Cacti

Homeland - Mexico.

We are in the country of cacti - Mexico. The cacti growing here reach enormous sizes and different shapes (columns, half a meter thick, balls, flat cakes). Cactus thickets look scary. The trunks look like monsters that are about to move and grab you with their terrible claws. So what is beautiful and interesting about them?

The cacti look fantastic ( show cactus). They have a large and thick stem, and instead of leaves there are thorns on it. Cacti look like huge hedgehogs. They grow in the desert where there is almost no rain. Their entire structure is adapted to accumulate and retain moisture. Cacti in the desert are like barrels of water. During rains, their roots quickly absorb water. And with the onset of drought, their small roots dry out, while the thicker ones remain alive. The cactus is a very hardy plant and can go without water for a long time. Cacti are quite edible. In their homeland, thornless cacti (there are some!) are used as livestock feed. People also eat them. They fry cacti, boil them, make juice and jam, the taste of which is very similar to the taste of an orange. And the Indians used to use one type of cactus with long spines as a comb. So green prickly balls have every right to stand and show off on your windows.

The most striking and characteristic feature of the desert is low humidity. Water vapor in the air of deserts cannot condense normally, therefore, the atmospheric humidity there is very low. Plants get used to dry air. Therefore, people from the desert (compared to some other indoor plants) sometimes need two hundred times less moisture, both in the form of water intended for irrigation and atmospheric water. Deserts are not exactly the same in different areas of the globe, so it is important to know which continent a desert plant comes from.

IV. Consolidation and generalization of material

Teacher: Our trip around the world with our houseplant friends has come to an end. We visited the deserts of Africa and Mexico. We looked into the old days, into the life of plants among the ancient Egyptians and Greeks.

Unfortunately, the world of plants is huge and we will not be able to learn about all the plants in one lesson. But what we heard is enough for us to answer the questions:

1. Think and answer why these plants look the same in winter as in summer?
2. Why do we call them indoors, because in their homeland they grow in the wild?
3. What are their benefits?

Children's answers.

Now we run down the plane and here we are at home, in the classroom. And the companions of our journey are here, with us, standing on our table.

V. Summary of the lesson

All real travelers love to talk about their observations. Let's try and remember the most interesting things about our plants.

– What did you learn new?

Used Books.

1. N.M. Verzilina “Travel with indoor plants”, publishing house “Children’s Literature”, 1958.