The Snake Plant’s History

Sansevieria (Snake Plant) is a perennial with a long history. This evergreen plant was named…

…after Italian inventor Raimondo di Sangro, Prince of San Severo by Swedish botanist Carl Peter Thunburg (1710-1771).

The snake plant has been grown for more than 250 years and has been in the US foliage trade since the 1920s.

Sansevieria or (san-se-vi-ah) in the Lily family, also known as one of the world’s most popular plants.

On the basis of molecular phylogenetic studies Sansevieria has been included in the genus Dracaena…

…which is native to tropical Africa in particular Madagascar, and southern Asia.

The 70 or so species formerly placed in the genus have been known by many common names….

…..including mother-in-law’s tongue, devil’s tongue, jinn’s tongue, bow string hemp snake plant, and snake tongue.

According to the APG III classification system, Dracaena is a member of the family Asparagaceae…

…subfamily Nolinoideae (formerly the family Ruscaceae).

It has also been placed in the family Dracaenaceae. With its durability, the Sansevieria makes an excellent choice…

…for apartment dwellers who typically have difficulty with houseplants due to limited lighting.

They should take a good look at snake plants. As the most tolerant of all decorative plants…

…Sansevieria can survive the harshest growing conditions, abuse and neglect. 

Simply put, sansevieria is a tough houseplant to kill. Snake plants are versatile, classic houseplants with sword-like foliage.

The great thing about this plant is that it’s a great plant for forgetful gardeners…

…and it’s an excellent air purifier plant for indoor environments.

Despite being a resilient succulent that can grow from 6 inches to several feet, snake plants have a number of health benefits.

Household plants are often strategically placed for decoration and to maintain good feng shui.

But did you know that some of these same plants also have some health benefits?

You might be surprised to learn that snake plants bring both health benefits and beauty to your home.

Keep reading to discover the snake plant’s benefits, how to care for one, and how to keep it alive.

Here’s the main thing!

The Snake Plant is native to arid regions of Africa, Madagascar, and southern Asia, and can often be found…

…in the shade of a larger tree or shrub. Many Snake Plant species resemble agaves…

…or yuccas which are also plants native to the same regions. Snake Plants use the Crassulacean Acid Metabolism…

…(CAM) photosynthesis process to survive heat and drought.

CAM-using plants absorb carbon dioxide during the day and release oxygen at night.

They close their stomata during the day to conserve water and open them at night…

…to store CO2 in the form of an organic acid. The plants use the acid for their photosynthetic needs the next day.

Snake Plants are extremely hardy and long-lived because of this. In the right circumstances, some people can live for decades.

Next up..

Light is a vital requirement for plants: it is necessary for photosynthesis, for information…

..in example when to bud, flower, germinate, and for their growth form. Natural light varies daily and seasonally.

Artificial light sources interrupt that natural cycle and may disrupt both the plants and the ecology they support.

These manmade light sources are concentrated along road verges and hedgerows…

…in gardens and in urban environments, which may represent a significant and potentially hitherto overlooked threat.

But before that here we have story from Jacob about his experience growing snake plant in artificial condition

Let us hear Jacob’s story

I had always loved plants. However, I never had the time to take care of them well enough….

…..to grow great looking plants like others did. Whenever I got a plant, it would wither and die within days.

This made me sad because I was sad for the plant too! My friend told me to have snake plant if you are the person…

….who are lazy to taking care of your plant. It’s great to having this snake plant around cause it’s not needed regular care.

But then one day my friend said that they could help me grow a snake plant in their bedroom…

…with some light from an LED light bulb, a.k.a using artificial condition to grow this plant.

It seemed like a good idea so I went over to their house and put the snake plant under the lamp…

…while we played games on their TV. And I never expected for this, but it’s actually work!

Man I can even imagine this thing can be works!

LED grow lights are a relatively new horticultural introduction, although NASA has been studying them for decades. Are LED lights better than traditional grow lights? That depends upon the crop on which they are used, as well as economic and energy expenditure factors. Just like fluorescent and incandescent bulbs, LED bulbs produce light that is needed by plants. Most plants need light waves of red and blue. The chemicals that control plant growth respond to both colors differently. Phytochromes drive leafy growth and are responsive to red light, while cryptochromes, which control plant light response, are sensitive to blue lights.”

Bonnie L. Grant, Certified Urban Agriculturist and author from gardeningknowhow.com

A new European-funded study poses the following questions: 

1. How much artificial light is there in the environment? 
2. How do plants sense light? 
3. How do plants respond to artificial light at night? Artificial lights sources (e.g. street lighting, vehicle headlights and faint ‘skyglow’2 ) vary in intensity, duration and spatial distribution. 

In this case, these sources were compared using a measure of intensity (illuminance, measured in units of lux)…

…and distance from source. For example, the leaves of a tree adjacent to a street lamp may be exposed…

…to up to 100 000 lux (a value comparable to daylight), yet roadside vegetation may experience only around 50 lux.

Illuminance is a useful proxy for the biological effects of light when information on the spectral power…

…distribution of light is also available. Plants have different behavioral responses to different wavelengths…

…of light with flowering, germination and photosynthesis being associated with exposure…

…to different parts of the visible light spectrum. Photoreceptors in plants use light to sense information….

…about the season and even the time of day which controls germination, growth and shade avoidance, for example.

Researchers have carried out a review of the evidence on the physiological effects of artificial light…

…..and its disturbance to the daily and seasonal patterns of plants and plant animal interactions.

Look for full spectrum bulbs with a mix of cool and warm wavelengths.

If you’re trying to grow houseplants indoors, you’ll find that some rooms of your house are low in natural light.

Sunlight is the perfect balance of wavelengths necessary for plant growth and blooming…

…but you can also use artificial light to help your plants along. In fact, low-light foliage plants…

…such as pothos and peace lily, can grow quite nicely in windowless offices with enough artificial light.

Keep going…

Plants use light to make food through a process called photosynthesis.

During photosynthesis, plants use the green chlorophyll, a pigment, to help convert carbon dioxide…

…water, and light into carbohydrates and oxygen. When they do this, they create the materials that they need to grow.

This is just one reason that plants are amazing: they never need to go to the grocery store!

Last but not least,,,

• Blue wavelength light for foliage growth.
• Red wavelength light for flowering and fruiting.
• Plants have little use for green wavelengths and reflect them back, which is why leaves appear green.

The visible spectrum of light contains many different colors. These colors are visible in a rainbow.

Plants use different types and colors of light in different ways. Plants use blue light to help grow their leaves.

When it is combined with blue light, red light helps a plant flower. The lights that we consider to be warm…

…household lights have a lot of red light. Green light is not particularly helpful to plants.

It is reflected off the plant’s green surfaces. Sunlight or full spectrum light gives the full menu of light to a plant.

An artificial full spectrum light bulb gives plants all of the light that they would have outdoors…

…so they can use it like they would use the sunlight. Sometimes a bulb can be better than sunlight….

….since much of the sunlight a plant gets inside the house is indirect light that is not very intense.

Plants grow toward the light, because this is their source of food. In nature, light generally shines downward.

A seed begins growing in the soil, and it grows up toward the sun. The competition for this light is fierce.

When a plant gets larger, it receives more light and may shade other plants below.

Why do plants grow toward the light? In part, this is due to gravity. Gravity gives plants a sense of “down” and “up”…

…and it means that plant roots grow down and plant shoots grow up even in the dark.

However, plants also need light, so they will grow in the direction of the light. If the light is to the side….

….this means that the plant first grows up, then grows over. It needs to grow so that its leaves are angled to the light….

…and this is harder to do than if the plant were growing up, when its leaves would naturally point upwards towards the sky.

See having Snake plant is good choice for you to have! It’s cool, its famous, it’s easy to have and care!

What else do you need? In this pandemic time like this, is a good choice for you to have an new activity…

…and having snake plant is a good choice for you to have!

Last thing for sure. This plant need to be care carefully, remember plant need the “love” too.

Alright that’s all for today! Do you have any questions about all of this?

Or do you want to add some method for growing snake plant with artificial condition?

Let me know your recommendation from the comment below.

I hope you can now take care your snake carefully and grow it big!

Thanks for reading this article! Bye!