ZZ Plant

Commonly this plant is known as ZZ plant, but the original name is Zamioculcas Zamiifolia. It's really a great tongue twister and very long to pronounce, hence we cut it short and call it ZZ plant. This plant is a great air purifying plant which we'll discuss in detail. We might have seen this plant in many of the houses, the reason being it is considered lucky in Feng Shui, which is believed to increase luck and fortune. But we can only get it’s benefits, when we will keep this plant healthy and happy. So, before moving towards it’s benefits, let's discuss how to keep it healthy and what are it’s requirements.

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Benefits of ZZ plant: 

It Has Traditional Medicinal Uses: 

This plant not only looks attractive but also comes with a bunch of advantages. The roots of ZZ plants contain a good amount of steroids and antioxidants, which people in eastern Africa used to treat ear-ache. It also contains very essential nutrients, which is used to treat the inflammatory conditions. However, before it’s intake we should always consult a well known herbalist. 

A lucky charm in  Feng Shui: 

It’s believed in Feng Shui, keeping ZZ plants in our interior brings luck and prosperity. The right directions like Southeastern, Southern, and Eastern corners of homes are considered to be the door for luck and prosperity. This will also help in enhancing the positive energy in house.

Removes Pollutants & Improves Cognitive Function: 

According to studies, ZZplant is one of the great air purifiers, along with Dumb cane, Dracaena reflexa, Dumb Cane and Snake plant, Pothos, Jade, Echeveria, English Ivy, Peace lily, Lucky bamboo and boston fern. It absorbs bad components of air like benzene, xylene, trichloroethylene, and formaldehyde, which can provoke cancer and are harmful for the human body. These pollutants tend to cause nausea, headache and fatigue. As it also absorbs maximum amount of Carbon dioxide at night, which helps in achieving a good mental health, increase in productivity, concentration, positive thinking and a sound sleep. 

Ornamental look: 

Actually this beauty can be placed anywhere based on its size, whether on a rack, or near the entrance (one plant each side of the door), or even on a coffee table will surely grab the attention of anybody. ZZ plants can grow upto 3 -4 feet and with that along with the glossy, big, dark green leaves, it pursues the ability to get a natural touch to our interiors. As this plant does not demand much light, so small ZZ plant keeping in our bedroom can also be a great option.

Adaptable in Nature: 

ZZ plant is one of the hardy plants known and is super easy to maintain. Which is why it is also one the best plants for beginners. Below are it’s needs which makes this a toughest plant.

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Water: 

We can put a quote for this plant: “Gardeners who don’t water often, this plant loves them the most”. By now you could have understood that, this plant is very hardy and very difficult to make it die. It thrives more when not being cared for much. Crazy right? The people who travel too often or are just beginners, this plant will cooperate with them better. Reason being, it’s roots contain rhizomes: a potato shaped structure, which contains a lot of water, proceeding with the fleshy roots. So, even if we do not water it for a couple of weeks, it will still remain healthy and green. However, if we’ll regularly water this plant, it will die soon. The best way for watering is, let the soil dry upto 2” - 3” deeper, then water the soil. This will prevent the decaying of the soil, which will result in healthy plants.

Soil: 

Soil and water pursue a very deep relationship. We should always water the plant according to it’s soil type. If the soil is too water retention (>50% of garden soil and clay or cocopeat) and we water this in every couple of weeks, without checking the soil. Then in this condition, the plant will die soon. Hence, we should always use the correct soil for every plant according to its requirements and water it accordingly. 

For ZZ plants, we should consider a porous soil, which we use for a succulent plant. For this we can take 1/3rd part of garden soil, 1/3rd part of any compost (organic or cow dung) and 1/3rd part sand. We are taking sand because we don’t want to retain soil for a longer time. Which is why we aren’t using cocopeat, which helps to retain moisture in soil, and for this plant it's a big NO. Even if we put 50% of sand, it will work well. 

Sunlight requirement: 

ZZ plants don't really need direct sunlight, rather it is a medium to low light plant and can grow efficiently in just indirect low sunlight or any kind of light. If we place this in an open place with direct sunlight, it’s leaves will gradually turn dark brown and the plant will die soon. We can place this inside our house also, where it can get indirect sunlight or just fluorescent tube light will also work.

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Temperature and Humidity requirement: 

It can easily thrive in normal temperature very efficiently, more preferably, 18 degree C to 28 degree C. Normally, the temperature a human is comfortable with, this plant also likes that kind of temperature. If we talk about humidity, it likes 40% - 50% humidity, but again, it can also adjust itself in low or high humidity conditions. However, in low humidity, if we mist this plant regularly once in every two days, then it’s leaves will be lush green and healthy. 

Repotting and Propagation: 

ZZ plant is a very slow growing plant, from sapling, it will take around 2 to 3 years to reach 1’ to 2’ of height, which is why it doesn’t require frequent repotting. When we notice if the roots are coming out of the drainage hole or the existing pot has got root bound, that’s when this plant needs to get repotted. 

If we talk about propagation, we are all willing to multiply from one plant we purchase. For the propagation of the ZZ plant, we mainly have two procedures, 1. Root division while reporting the plant 2. Water  propagation, by cutting healthy leaves and keeping it in a container of water. After a few days we’ll see the roots are coming out of the leaves and then place it in a soil mixture that we have discussed above.

Maintenance:  

The most attractive part of ZZ plant is its big waxy dark green leaves. So, to maintain them, we should regularly wipe them up with a wet soft cloth, to get rid of the accumulated dust. Along with this, we will also often see the white substance started collecting on the leaves. That is the salt zwe see started accumulated over the period of time. So to get rid of that, we can rinse the cloth in vinegar or lemon juice and water while wiping out the leaves. This will help in removing the salt easily and will keep leaves green and shiny.

Hope you like reading this article and found it helpful. Do share feedback and pics of your plant on the feedback_benefitsallaroundyou@gmail.com. Feel free to share the article on your social media to spread awareness about the benefits all around you.