Rose grape

Rose grape: how do you recognise it?

Habit

Upright, lush shrub about 1 m tall and wide with thick, angular stems. In the wild it grows as an epiphyte among tree branches.

Leaves

Large, leathery, oval, up to about 30 cm long, dark green with prominent pale veins; opposite.

Flower

Hanging panicles about 30–50 cm long with large pale pink bracts and small coral to pink flowers; from March to July.

Fruit

After flowering small, grape-like berries may form, but they are rarely seen indoors.

Roots

Fine, shallow and sensitive to too much water or cold: choose a small pot and an airy mix.

Flowering: March–July · Plants: April–May · Pruning: August

Why grow it?

• Spectacular flowering: hanging clusters of pink bracts and flowers, from March to July.
• Large, glossy leaves with prominent veins; a handsome plant even without flowers.
• Very decorative as a specimen plant in a warm, bright living room or conservatory.
• Evergreen, so attractive all year round.
• Flowers for a long time, many weeks a year, provided the conditions are right.

Rose grape: where does it grow best?

• Partial shade to plenty of bright but indirect light, for example at an east- or west-facing window; no full sun, which scorches the leaves.
• Airy, humus-rich potting compost based on peat and loam with bark and perlite; slightly acid to neutral.
• Evenly, lightly moist and in high humidity, about 60 % or more. Never wet or soggy.
• Warm, 18–25 °C, in winter not below 15 °C; no draughts and not directly above a radiator.

Light

Bright, out of direct sun

Potting soil

Multi-purpose compost or airy, humus-rich compost

Acidity

Acid or neutral

Watering

Moderately

Size

1 m tall, 1 m wide

Temperature

Minimum 15 °C

Goes well with

• Flamingo flower: Also a tropical flowering plant with leathery leaves and the same warm, humid spot.
• Calathea: Beautifully marked foliage that enjoys the same humid air and indirect light.
• Ferns: Soft, fine foliage in front, next to the large leaves.
• Orchid: Suits it for warmth, light and humidity, and flowers at a different time.

Rose grape: when and how to plant it?

Plant in April–May.

1. Repot only when necessary, in April–May, preferably as soon as a flower cluster has faded; the plant dislikes disturbance.
2. Choose a pot only one size bigger than the last, with a drainage hole: too much compost holds too much water.
3. Make an airy mix of potting compost, bark and perlite, with a layer of clay pebbles at the bottom for drainage.
4. Set the plant at the same depth as before and disturb the fine roots as little as possible.
5. Water with lukewarm, low-lime water and put it back in the same place.

Care

Water

Keep the compost evenly and lightly moist; let the top layer dry out slightly between waterings. Use lukewarm, low-lime water (rainwater is ideal) and never let water stand in the saucer.

Feeding

From April to September every 2 weeks, give a weak dose of flowering-plant feed. Do not feed in winter.

Humidity

Mist the leaves now and then with lukewarm water, or use a tray of wet pebbles or a humidifier. Brown leaf edges point to air that is too dry.

Position

Do not move or turn the plant once the buds have formed: it may drop them.

Repotting

Every 2 years in spring in fresh, airy compost; in between, replace the top layer of compost.

Tip: Do not turn or move it once the buds appear, and give it 6–8 weeks of slightly cooler, drier conditions (about 16 °C) in winter: that is how it flowers best.

Rose grape: when to prune it?

Pruning months: August.

When: Prune lightly after flowering, around August. Otherwise it is not pruned.

How:

• Cut faded flower clusters back to just above the next two leaves.
• Shorten long, bare or lopsided branches by about a third, just above a pair of leaves.
• Remove dead or withered leaves and shoots.
• Use healthy cut tips as cuttings if you wish.

Caution: Do not prune just before or during flowering, or in winter: you would cut off the flower buds to come.

Pruning: when and how · Pruning calendar and basic rules

Propagation

Cuttings

In spring or summer take tip cuttings 10–15 cm long with 2–3 pairs of leaves, set them in airy, moist cutting compost and keep them under clear film at about 24–26 °C. Rooting is slow and does not always work; bottom heat helps.

Seed

Seed germinates slowly and unevenly and the seedlings grow slowly. At home it is rarely worth the trouble.

Rose grape: how does it get through the winter?

• Not hardy: keep it above 15 °C all year.
• In winter water less and keep it a little cooler, at about 16 °C, for 6–8 weeks (December–February): this rest encourages new flower clusters.
• Give plenty of light, without full sun, and humid air; dry heating air and cold draughts are its worst enemies.

Diseases and pests

• Bud drop: Buds or flowers fall off after moving, a draught, dry air or too much or too little water. Keep the plant in the same place, at an even temperature and humidity.
• Brown leaf edges: Caused by dry air, hard water or too much fertiliser. Raise the humidity, use rainwater and feed more weakly.
• Spider mite and mealybug: Fine webbing or white, cottony tufts under the leaves. Rinse the plant under a lukewarm shower and wipe off mealybug with a cotton bud; repeat after a week.
• Root rot: Limp leaves despite wet compost and a musty smell. Let the compost dry out and water less; for rotten roots, repot in fresh, airy compost.
• No flowers: Usually too little light or no cooler, drier winter rest. Move it closer to the light and give it 6–8 weeks at about 16 °C in winter.

Through the year

• January: Winter rest: about 16 °C, slightly drier compost, bright. Do not feed.
• February: Still cool and slightly drier. Flower buds appear.
• March: Flowering begins. Move somewhere warmer (18–22 °C), water more. Do not turn the plant any more.
• April: Flowering. Water regularly and feed every 2 weeks.
• May: Flowering. Repotting possible once a cluster has faded. Keep the air humid.
• June: Flowering. Keep out of strong sun, water regularly.
• July: Last flowers. Cut off faded clusters.
• August: Prune lightly after flowering. Take cuttings.
• September: Stop feeding. Reduce watering slightly.
• October: Bright place, steady warmth. Check for spider mite.
• November: Less water, humid air. Away from radiators.
• December: Move somewhere cooler (about 16 °C) for the winter rest.

Did you know?

• The genus name honours José de Medinilla y Pineda, governor of the Mariana Islands in the early 19th century.
• In the wild the plant grows as an epiphyte or hemi-epiphyte in tree branches, high in the rainforest.
• The English name rose grape refers to the hanging flower clusters that look like bunches of pink grapes.