How To Grow And Propagate Papyrus Plant

Papyrus plant is an aquatic plant that grows upright and hard in shallow water. The leaves of papyrus plant grow from the bottom of the plant and cover the lower part of the stem, which can be as high as 3 ~ 4 feet, the stem is not long, and the leaves can be as high as 15 feet.
The flowers are fan-shaped and grow in clusters at the top of the stem. Papyrus plant was originally born in China, southern Europe, northern Africa and Asia Minor. Papyrus plant is an important part of ancient Egyptian civilization. The ancient Egyptians used this grass to make writing carriers. It was used by the Greeks, Phoenicians, Romans and Arabs for 3000 years. It was not until the 8th century that Chinese papermaking was introduced to the Middle East that papyrus paper was replaced. So can we grow and propagate Papyrus plant and how to take care of it? Let's see it together.

Papyrus Plant Quick Info

Botanical/Scientific Name	Cyperus Papyrus
Common Name	Papyrus
When to Grow/Bloom/Harvest	Plant in spring
Uses	Make sails, cloth, mats, cords
Origin	Egypt
Light Care	Afternoon shade and morning sun
Soil Care	Moist, fertile soil in pots
Temperature Care	Between 40 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit
Humidity Care	Do not require extra humidity
Watering	Water it daily
Pruning Care	Remove errant or broken stems
Fertilizer Care	Balanced liquid fertilizer diluted by half
Propagation	Division
Toxic	Not toxic
Flower Color	Green

Papyrus Plant Care in Detail

Papyrus Plant Watering

Papyrus plant is a plant that likes water very much. We can put papyrus plant directly in water for maintenance, but we should give it proper light to avoid the maintenance environment and excessive shade, otherwise it will stop growing and even wither its leaves.

Papyrus Plant Soil

It is best to plant papyrus with peat soil. Of course, you can also dig some soil in the swamp to conserve the soil. Generally, peat soil is mixed with some sand, and some clay and compost soil can also be added to keep the soil with good water holding capacity.
Growing papyrus plant does not need to choose too complex soil. We can cultivate it directly with peat soil and perlite. Perlite can be put less to avoid poor water retention capacity.

Papyrus Plant Light

If we want papyrus plant to grow better, we need to give papyrus plant as much light as possible. When water evaporation is fast in summer, we can properly shade it to avoid withering of branches and leaves caused by too high water temperature.
Papyrus plant likes sunshine, because papyrus plant can grow in a humid and hot environment, especially resistant to high temperature. It can be maintained with potted plants or as aquatic plants. It needs appropriate sand to grow in water. The maintenance position should have sufficient sunshine, which is especially easy to cultivate.

Papyrus Plant Temperature

Papyrus plant is a tropical plant. It is afraid of cold. The minimum maintenance temperature should be kept above 5 degrees. We can plant papyrus plant in the yard. As long as we avoid frost all year round, it can grow all the time and stay green all the year round. Moreover, papyrus plant is non-toxic. There is no need to be afraid of children or pets when planting this plant.

Papyrus Plant Humidity

Papyrus plant likes the warm and humid environment all year round and is afraid of excessively dry and cold environment. As long as there is water in the maintenance position, coupled with the warm and humid environment all year round and sufficient sunshine, papyrus plant can grow well.

Papyrus Plant Fertilizer

Papyrus plant needs very little fertilizer. We only need to give a little diluted fertilizer and water every month in spring and autumn. The concentration should be more than half lower than usual. We can't give too much or too thick fertilizer.

Papyrus Plant Propagation from Division

Papyrus plant propagation from division can be carried out all year round. We can choose terminal inflorescences as cuttings, and mature and flowering inflorescences are preferred. We can cut off the radiation branch of papyrus plant, keep 1-1.5cm of the base, and directly insert it into the basin soil. We should cover the center of the radiation branch with soil, water and moisturize it, and place it in a bright place. Papyrus plant grows roots faster in spring and summer. When the long roots of divisions germinate, we can apply slow-release fertilizer thinly and put it in an environment with sufficient sunshine. You can also put the flowerpot in the water basin for a long time, or keep the medium moist, which is conducive to growth.

Papyrus Plant Benefits

Papyrus plant is mainly used for planting at the edge of garden waterscape. It can be planted in multiple clumps and pieces, and a single plant can be planted in clumps and alone. The landscape effect is also very good. Papyrus plant is densely clustered, with elegant stems and leaves and good group effect. The bracts arranged radially at the top of a single papyrus plant are like exploding fireworks, green or brown yellow, which is very strange.

What part of the papyrus plant is used to make paper?

The raw material for the production of papyrus paper is the stem of papyrus. We can first cut off the hard green outer skin of the sedge stem, cut the light colored inner stem into long strips of about 40 cm, and then cut into thin slices. The cut slices should be soaked in water for at least 6 days to remove the sugar.
After that, we can arrange these strips into one layer, and then cover it with another layer. The two layers of flakes should be perpendicular to each other. Spread these thin sheets between two layers of linen, beat them with a wooden mallet while they are wet, press the two layers of thin sheets into one and squeeze out the water, press them with stones and other heavy objects, and polish them with pumice after drying to obtain the finished product of papyrus paper.
Since only one side of the paper is used, sizing treatment shall be carried out on the writing side so that the ink will not leak out during writing. The ancient Egyptians first rolled paper into scrolls. Later, for convenience, they cut them into pieces to make transcripts. In this way, books appeared. Today, papyrus is occasionally used for painting, but water quality pigments can deform the paper.