Common names: achiote’ Lipstick plant’ Anatto.
scientific name (Anatto)
Lipstick plant
Bixa orellana
lipstick plant tree. hardiness 10_11 (native) of the Lipstick Plant tree.
Tropical America:
description of Lipstick Plant trees
Tree. (Anatto) Lipstick Plant One of the small evergreen trees, the leaves are simple, white, elongated, with a heart-shaped base, pointed top, and a full edge.
As for the flowers, they are hermaphrodite pink or white in color, found in clustered inflorescences. The fruits in the Lipstick Plant are brown boxes covered with thick, soft hairs. The box contains one row of bright red seeds. When the fruits ripen, the seeds produce a red to orange pigment known as Lipstick pigment. Plant.
Lipstick (Anatto) Plant Propagation.
Lipstick (Anatto) Plant trees are propagated by planting seeds, which are planted during the early spring, noting that Lipstick Plant seeds need about 45 days to germinate, where the seeds are planted in planting trays or planting boxes that contain the appropriate agricultural environment.
It is preferable that the environment be composed of peat moss + compost + silt in a ratio of 2: 2: 1 provided that the seeds are planted and carefully observed until the appearance of the true leaves and the formation of a suitable root system.
Where it is spread in planting bags or suitable pots, then it is placed in larger pots so that it can be planted in sustainable land.
Lipstick Plant Watering.
Lipstick Plant trees need moderate irrigation without excessive or thirsty, but irrigation is done according to the plants’ need for irrigation, depending on the nature of the soil and the environmental conditions in the region.
Lipstick Plant light requirements.
Lipstick Plant trees are light-loving trees
Where trees must be planted in sunny places in order to grow well and be a suitable group of greenery and give good fruits.
Where it is known that light is very important for the process of photosynthesis in which the plant uses the energy it derives from the light that reaches the mechanism in the representation of carbon dioxide + water to build carbohydrates and other nutrients, and plants differ from each other in their needs for light, some of them need to bright light for long periods, while others need light for shorter periods.
Therefore, it is necessary to know and be aware of the trees’ need for light so that good growth and fruits with good specifications can be obtained.
Lipstick (Anatto) Plant trees Fertilizer.
Lipstick Plant needs organic fertilization on a regular basis, provided that organic fertilizer is added to the trees during the winter service in December or January.
Well-degradable organic fertilizer
After adding fertilizer to the soil, the soil is stirred very much, and then watering is done.
The Lipstick Plant trees are also fertilized with neutral chemical fertilizer NPK 12 – 12 – 12 (nitrosine – phosphorus – potassium) at a rate of 200 gm in two batches, provided that the first batch is during the month of March and the second batch during the month of August. Humic acid can also be used at a rate of 1 cm per 10 liters of Water once every 6 months. Amino acids can also be added to increase growth with the same amount of humic acid, but at different times.
Planting of Lipstick Plant (Anatto) in home gardens.
Lipstick Plant is one of the most beautiful ornamental trees that are grown in home gardens, in the entrances on both sides or in the
middle of flower beds.
Lipstick Plant (Anatto) Uses .
1- Annatto trees are planted as ornamental trees in public gardens and private gardens of homes.
2- In the past, the Native Americans used it to make a red paste that they would paint their bodies with to expel insects.
3- The dye extracted from the seeds is used to color all kinds of cheese, as well as as dyes for textiles.
4- Dry fruits are included in home decoration works.
5- A drug is extracted from the leaves and roots together to treat epilepsy and dysentery.
