Aglaonema 'Stripes'

A striped hybrid from the Florida programme

Richard J. Henny, Robert T. Poole and Charles A. Conover developed Aglaonema ‘Stripes’ through the University of Florida programme from Aglaonema ‘Manila’ and Aglaonema nitidum ‘Curtisii’. The cultivar was introduced in 1988. Its recorded ancestry ultimately comes from wet tropical forest Aglaonema of Southeast Asia and Malesia.

Care for the silver-banded foliage of Aglaonema ‘Stripes’

• Light: Medium to bright filtered light supports the strong silvery-white vein bands and the green tissue between them. Move the plant gradually after a darker period, since direct sun can leave narrow dry marks along the firm blade. Give the upright stems room for their outer leaves to arch.
• Watering: Check the lower root ball as well as the surface, especially in a taller pot around established stems. Water when the mix has begun to dry through and the pot is clearly lighter. Saturate the root zone evenly, drain it completely and let current growth and room conditions set the interval.
• Temperature, humidity and airflow: Keep it at 18–27 °C and above 15 °C. Around 45–60% humidity is normally enough. If humidity stays below about 40% and tips 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 coco coir or peat, small bark and perlite or pumice in a stable draining pot. Let a newly delivered plant settle in its original pot. Repot after roots fill the container, choosing a pot only slightly larger than the root system.
• Leaf care: Clean from the central vein toward the pointed tip while supporting the firm blade. Use the clear green intervals to look for pest stippling, then check the stem joints for mealybugs and scale.
• Propagation: Divide a rooted shoot from the multi-stem plant, keeping its cane base intact. Sections of firm stem with a sound node can also root in warm airy mix under filtered light and gentle moisture.

Folded long leaves and an unstable stem on Aglaonema ‘Stripes’

• Folded leaves: Long blades crease where they touch walls, packaging or neighbouring pots. Keep healthy damaged foliage and give emerging leaves more clearance.
• Surface deposits: Round marks that lift with a damp cloth are dried water. Support the blade while cleaning and stop if the mark remains within the tissue.
• Unstable stem: Movement above wet mix indicates decay around the base or roots. Find the boundary between firm and soft tissue before cutting or repotting, then preserve a healthy rooted stem section with at least one viable node. After the soft section has been traced to firm tissue, remove soft tissue and preserve a firm rooted section.
• Pests: Check along the undersides and midribs for thrips or spider mites and around the stem joints for mealybugs and scale.

Pet safety: Aglaonema ‘Stripes’

Aglaonema ‘Stripes’ 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.

The Greek roots of Aglaonema in ‘Stripes’

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.