Aglaonema ‘Spring Red’

A pink-veined cultivated selection

Aglaonema ‘Spring Red’ is a horticultural line combining lime, deep green and a red-to-pink central vein. No breeder or parent combination is known, and its selection site and introduction date have not been established. The cultivated line cannot be traced back to a named species range or a particular wet tropical forest habitat.

Care for Aglaonema ‘Spring Red’

• Light: Medium to bright indirect light is suitable. Lower light slows growth and keeps the pot wet longer; strong sun through glass can scorch the leaves.
• Watering: Water when the surface feels dry and the pot is noticeably lighter, after checking that the root ball below is no longer wet. Small pots and brighter, warmer positions dry sooner. Wet the whole root ball and let the pot drain.
• Temperature, humidity and airflow: Keep it at 18–27 °C and above 15 °C, especially when the substrate is wet. Around 45–60% humidity is usually sufficient. If humidity stays below about 40% and edges keep drying, move the plant away from heating or use a humidifier. Normal room airflow is enough; avoid cold draughts and direct hot air.
• Feeding: Use a complete houseplant fertiliser at a low dose every three to four waterings during active growth. Feed less often whenever growth slows, regardless of the season, and never fertilise a dry root ball or a stressed plant.
• Substrate and repotting: Use an open mix of coco coir or peat, small bark and perlite or pumice in a draining pot. Let a newly delivered plant settle in its original pot. Repot when roots fill the container or the mix compacts, using a pot only slightly larger than the root system and keeping the stems at the same depth.
• Leaf care: Wipe dusty leaves gently and turn the pot occasionally if light reaches it mainly from one direction.
• Propagation: Division is simplest: separate a basal shoot after it develops its own roots. Cane sections with at least one healthy node can also root in warm, lightly moist substrate.

Scorched or curling leaves on Aglaonema ‘Spring Red’

• Scorch: Dry pale marks that appear after a move to stronger light are permanent sun or heat damage. Shift the plant into filtered light and use the sunburn guide to compare the distribution.
• Curled leaves: Check moisture through the root ball, recent temperature changes and both surfaces for pests. Use the leaf-curl guide to compare the symptoms, and leave developing leaves to open on their own, keeping the soft folded tissue undisturbed.
• Pests: Inspect for thrips scars, spider-mite stippling or webbing, and mealybugs or scale around the petiole bases.

Pet safety: Aglaonema ‘Spring Red’

Aglaonema ‘Spring Red’ is not pet-safe. Aglaonema contains insoluble calcium oxalate crystals, which can cause immediate mouth pain and irritation, swelling of the mouth, tongue or lips, drooling, vomiting and difficulty swallowing if chewed. Sap may also irritate skin and eyes.

‘Spring Red’ and the name Aglaonema

Aglaonema combines Greek aglaos, meaning shining or splendid, with nema, meaning thread or filament. Botanist Dan H. Nicolson rendered the resulting name as “shining stamen” in his monograph of the genus. Heinrich Wilhelm Schott established Aglaonema on 8 September 1829 on page 892 of issue 108 of Wiener Zeitschrift für Kunst, Litteratur, Theater und Mode.