Egyptian star, a bouquet in a pot or just pentas - all these are the names of the same beloved evergreen dwarf shrub of the Marenov family.
In nature, there are more than 50 species of this plant, but it is one of them, called the lanceolate or herbaceous, that has successfully learned to grow at home.
It is he who pleases his owners with frequent and long flowering almost all year round in the form of multi-colored five-pointed stars. We will talk about pentas and ways of its reproduction in this article.
Description shrub
At home, pentas often reaches 50 cm in height. His shoots are upright and weakly branched. The leaves of this plant are opposite, have a bright green color, rather wide, oval.
The length of one leaf varies from 5 to 8 centimeters. Their surface is wavy, pubescent, with a pronounced central vein. Pentas flowers are his main decoration.
They can be of various colors depending on the variety. Its red, pink, purple, beige or white flowers have the shape of five-pointed stars and are collected in large dome-shaped inflorescences with a diameter of up to 10 centimeters. 
Your home is also beautifully decorated with plants such as calceolaria, chlorophytum, monstera, zephyranthes, geranium, spathiphyllum, cactus, violet, hibiscus, chrysanthemum, orchid, anthurium.
Growing conditions
If you want to become the owner of this wonderful plant and grow it at home, you should follow certain recommendations.
Temperature and humidity
For normal growth at home, pentasu perfectly fits an average room temperature of 20-25 ° C. In winter, it can be safely grown on a windowsill, since during this period the plant needs some decrease in temperature (up to 16-10 degrees), besides, it is not afraid of drafts or sudden changes in temperature. 
The only thing that can harm the plant is strong cold wind currents that can freeze the leaves, so that when you ventilate the room in winter, it is better to remove this flower from the window.
Important! If the growing temperature is too high for pentas, it will “show” it to you with dry tips of the leaves and too elongated stems.
This plant is very fond of moisture, so you need to ensure that its rate in the air did not fall below 60% during the entire period of growth.
This can be achieved by placing a container with water next to a flower, setting the pot in a pan with always moist expanded clay, or often and regularly spraying the leaves of the plant, trying not to fall on the inflorescences.
Lighting
Pentas loves bright light and grows well even in direct sunlight, so he often has a window sill of a southern window as his permanent “residence”.
However, it is necessary to keep an eye on the plant, and in the event that during the summer period you began to observe burns on the leaves of your plant, it is still better to shade the window. At this time of the year, the pot can be taken out to the fresh air of a balcony or terrace. 
But in the winter, on the contrary, if your flower is noticeably stretched out and lost stability - this indicates a lack of light. In this case, it is advisable to use special fitolamp for plants.
The soil
Choosing the soil for pentas, you can take ready-made soil for flowering plants, or you can prepare an earth mixture yourself. For this you will need a leafy and soddy soil mixed with sand, in a ratio of 2: 2: 1.
The main thing - remember that this flower loves a nutritious, fertile, loose soil, the acidity of which ranges from 5.5 to 6.5.
Important! Remember that the pentas pot must be small in size, and a thick layer of drainage must be present at its bottom. It will not allow water to stagnate in the ground and prevents souring and rotting of the roots of the plant. Expanded clay is ideal for this purpose.
How to propagate pentas: landing rules
There are two popular ways to propagate this flower: seeds and grafting.
Seeds
This method is good because it is suitable for any season. It is light enough and in order to propagate pentas in this way, you need to purchase flower seeds at any specialty store, sow them on moist soil without burying, and leave them in a sunny place so that light, heat and moisture generously stimulate the seeds to germinate. . 
If you keep the air temperature around 25 degrees, and the humidity is at least 60%, in 2-3 weeks you will receive the first shoots of your future subshrubs.
Stem cuttings
For reproduction of pentas in this way, you can use the cuttings that you have left after rejuvenation or pruning of your plant, or cut off new ones.
The main thing is that the trimmed stems should be at least 5-8 cm long. The minimum temperature for this kind of breeding should be 16-18 degrees.
Cuttings can be preliminarily held for several hours in water or planted in prepared, moist soil immediately. Rooting should occur in 8-10 days. After the roots of the plant occupy the entire pot, it is transplanted. 
Home care
Pentas does not require special labor-intensive care measures for normal growth and flowering at home. All you need to do is reduced to a standard set of procedures.
Watering
This shrub loves watering and needs it regularly, especially during the period of vigorous growth and in the summer. To do this, use distilled water at room temperature, without chlorine.
Watering is worth every time, as you noticed that the top layer of soil began to dry out. The main thing is to remember that it is dangerous to pour a flower, because stagnation of water in a pot provokes rotting of the root system of a flower. In winter and during the period when the flower does not bloom, watering is minimized.
Did you know? In the modern world, there are special flasks for automatic irrigation that can be used for pentas in the summer period for people who forget or are unable to regularly water their indoor flowers. The mechanism of such flasks provides for watering the soil with water in the right quantity for a particular pot with a flower.
Top dressing
If you want to prolong the flowering period of your pentas, you can add a complex mineral composition for flowering plants, such as Clean Leaf or Master, to the water for irrigation.
This will enrich the soil with phosphorus and provoke the formation of new buds. In winter, the plant does not need additional feeding.
Pruning
Since this shrub grows rapidly and reacts to various negative factors by lengthening the shoots, it regularly needs pruning to maintain shape and fluffiness.
The stems should be kept up to 50 centimeters high, and the tops pinch to preserve the pomp of the plant. However, it should be remembered that pruning and pinching can be carried out only during periods of rest, that is, when the shrub does not bloom.
Transfer
This flower grows quickly, so a young plant needs regular transplantation once a year, for an adult a two-year interval is suitable. Usually this operation is carried out in the spring. 
Each time when transplanting, you should take a pot with a diameter slightly larger than the previous one, giving the plant roots more space for growth. After the plant takes a pot with a diameter of 20 cm, it is recommended only to change the top layer of soil.
Did you know? In the wild, pentas hails from Africa, and more specifically from the island of Madagascar, known to everyone from the same cartoon. At home, this exotic flower is widespread and has a large number of species and varieties, differing in shape and color of leaves and flowers.
Plant Diseases and Pests
Leaf chlorosis is a disease that most often affects pentas. To combat it in the early stages, when a leaf is first detected, that is, if the leaves become yellow for no reason, it is worth fertilizing the soil with preparations that help increase the amount of chlorophil in the green of plants, so-called chelate fertilizers, such as Hydro Vera or Hydro Flor ".
Of the pests, the greatest lovers of domestic plants are the scythe or spider mite.
To combat them, you can use chemicals such as "Fitoverm" or "Aktellik" or treat the plant leaves with folk remedies, such as medical alcohol, a solution of soap or infusion of garlic or onion. 
It is enough to wipe the leaves with a solution and rinse with warm water. If necessary, the procedure can be repeated.
That's all you need to know about growing a beautiful, healthy, lush pentas flower that will delight you with its lush, bright bloom for a long time.
