Why grow Adam's Rib?

One of the most used plants in decoration, the Adam's Rib, gives any environment an air of elegance and tropicality. Its exuberant dark green leaves and unique shape are the mark of this ornamental plant, which besides being very beautiful has a symbolism of longevity, hope and good luck according to Feng Shui.

Being a plant of easy cultivation and good adaptation, the Adam's Rib is a great choice for places with little sun incidence or for those people who don't have much time or skill for plants. In this article, we will learn more about this plant so widely used around the world and understand its symbology and how to cultivate it. Check it out!

History of the Adam's Rib plant

The Adam's Rib already begins its exuberance by its scientific name: Monstera deliciosa. With intense green leaves and remarkable format - they remind us of a heart, wide, rounded and with unique cutouts, the Adam's Rib is present in decorations and gives a tropical air to the environment. Let's get to know it more deeply, its origin and family. See below!

Source

Its scientific name Monstera deliciosa comes from Latin and means "monstrous", a reference to its unusual shape, and delicious because of its edible fruits. It is a native plant from Mexico, from the tropical climate of the Americas. It became known as Adam's Rib because of the cutouts in its leaves that resemble ribs.

Being from the tropical climate, the Adam's Rib transforms any monotonous environment into a place full of life, elegance and personality. It can reach up to 20 meters high in nature, but if cultivated indoors it usually stays between 2 and 3 meters.

Family

The Adam's Rib is from the family of the Araceae, from which we can distinguish the Anthurium, the Milk cup, the Imbé and the Peace Lily. The characteristic of the family are the wide leaves, which can be terrestrial or aquatic, with inflorescences which form a spike, generally surrounded by a petal.

In the case of the Adam's Rib, the fruits are surrounded by a white petal, very aromatic. They are edible and their flavor and aroma are compared to a mixture of banana and pineapple. However, the fruits take more than a year to ripen and, in closed environments, this plant may not bloom.

Benefits of Adam's Rib

Besides adorning the environment with its beauty and elegance and purifying the air, the Adam's Rib is highly recommended by Feng Shui to attract good energy, being a great choice in places with little incidence of sunlight, where other plants might not have a good adaptation. Let's see what this plant can attract to your home!

Longevity

According to ancient Chinese philosophy, the Adam's Rib symbolizes long life and honor to the elders. It is a great choice to balance denser energies between family members, as it is believed to have the ability to improve relationships and strengthen emotional bonds.

In addition, its rounded, dark green leaves inspire relaxation and can be placed in the living room, dining room or where the family gathers.

Luck

Although it is a tropical plant, the Adam's Rib is very appreciated by the Orientals. They are very indicated to attract good luck and prosperity in business. To achieve this benefit, it is ideal to have the plant in the entrance room of the house, near the door.

Because of its accelerated growth and its search for the high - since it is a climbing plant, the Adam's Rib symbolizes the expansion of ideas and the realization of dreams, as well as the search for happiness.

Hope

In Hawaii, it is said that the Adam's Rib leads to a ray of hope, because of the sunset on the South Island. Through its hollowed out leaves, light passes through, thus symbolizing hope in the midst of chaos.

In its natural habitat, the Adam's Rib is born on the darkest side of the forest, for there are the most robust trees capable of providing firm stems through which it can climb until it reaches the light above. This movement makes its symbolism one of determination and the search for light in times of shadows.

Used in Feng Shui

The Adam's Rib is a plant often indicated by Feng Shui because of its unique characteristics - the round-shaped leaves, which resemble hearts, transmit peace, union and balance, added to its crevices that allow the passage of the sun, symbolizing hope, and its rapid growth upwards, indicate determination, courage and good luck.

Besides, they are easy to cultivate and can be placed in environments with little sun incidence, ideal to have inside the house or at work, always near the entrance door.

How to grow the Adam's Rib

Despite being a medium to large sized plant, the Adam's Rib has an enormous ability to adapt, and can be cultivated even by those who don't have great gardening skills, or by those who don't have much space or sunny places at home.

Let's understand below what are the main tips to take care of an Adam's Rib and keep it healthy and beautiful. check it out!

Avoid sun

One of the main reasons why the Adam's Rib is very suitable for indoors is because it doesn't like full sun, so a bright area for it is enough. Besides, it can't stand very low temperatures, so the ideal is to keep it in a climate above 13 degrees. Only in winter it tolerates direct sun for some hours.

If grown in gardens, choose to place it under shrubs or trees that cast shade and protect it from intense sun and cold.

Seasons for cultivation

Nothing prevents it from being grown in all seasons, but being a tropical plant, the Adam's Rib develops better in spring and summer. Avoid leaving it in environments where it gets cold or strong winds, prefer to keep it indoors in winter.

It is a great choice for winter gardens, those green spaces indoors, as they adapt very well to low light, transmit joy and life and prefer locations protected from cold.

Pruning season

The ideal season for pruning the Adam's Rib is spring, as it will grow more strongly during this season. It is important to prune carefully to maintain the buds, removing the leaves starting with a straight cut at the base, close to the branches. If any leaves are damaged, it is possible to partially cut them off.

Special care should be taken when disposing of the leaves, as their sap is toxic and can cause skin irritation and be quite dangerous if ingested.

Humidity and watering

The Adam's Rib needs to have the soil always humid, but never soaked. The ideal is to check the soil and water when it is getting dry. In the summer, the watering can vary from two to three times a day, depending on the size of the pot, and less in the winter.

In addition, it is important to fertilize at least once a year with organic fertilizer such as compost or humus. Cleaning the leaves regularly with a damp sponge is also a good habit to remove dust and prevent them from drying out.

How to make seedlings

As the Adam's Rib has roots in the stems, to make seedlings is very simple - just cut a few centimeters below these roots and prepare the soil to be placed with organic fertilizer. The seedling can be kept in water until it has a few centimeters of root and then be placed in the soil.

Because it is a poisonous plant, the ideal is to handle it with gloves because the sap can cause skin irritation. It is very dangerous if ingested, so it is important to take care to leave it away from small children and pets.

Why does Adam's rib have that name?

Due to its wide and jagged leaves, the plant Monstera is known in Brazil as Adam's Rib, because its shape resembles human ribs with the definition of vertebrae. Due to its beauty and exuberance, it is widespread around the world as an ornamental plant and has strong symbols of good luck, prosperity and longevity.

The Adam's Rib can still be linked to the beauty of Paradise mentioned in the Bible, where Adam lived with Eve according to the Hebrew myth. Large tropical vegetation and lush fruits illustrate our imagination of paradise, so not only its shape can be linked to Adam but, at a guess, let's say it also has a paradisiacal origin.