Can petunia be grown at home as a houseplant?

Don't know how to decorate your balcony, loggia, garden, or just the windowsill of your apartment? Then this article is for you. We will tell you about the beautiful petunia, which is perfect for decoration.

Petunia is a herbaceous perennial semi-shrub plant of tropical origin. It attracts attention with its large and bright colors. Combines harmoniously with other garden plants. Therefore, it is often used to decorate a garden or terrace. Quite often, flower growers choose it to decorate balconies, loggias and even apartment windowsills.

It is believed that adult petunia is very whimsical, and young sprouts are still fussy. But, despite this, if you approach the process of growing and caring for petunia correctly, everything will work out and you will admire its beautiful flowers for a long time, so in this article we will look at how to grow a plant without mistakes from "A" to "Z" ...

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How to cultivate correctly?

The best petunia growing technology is:

1. Large capacity.
2. Regular feeding.
3. Sufficient watering.
4. Removal of faded flowers.

This is the plant loves loamy soil, but it takes root just as well in ordinary garden soil, and some varieties even in simple soil. But it is best to grow a beauty in a fertile one, which consists of peat, turf, river sand, leafy soil. Another great option for growing is adding nitrophoska to the soil.

In the garden soil, the greenery of the plant becomes juicier and its growth accelerates, because they are very fond of a slightly acidic environment.

Growing petunias requires special light conditions. She prefers well-lit growing areas, however, blooms can fade in the scorching sun. Small blackouts are also needed.

Lighting is one of the main conditions for growing petunias. Therefore, well-lit areas with blackouts are ideal.

The soil in which the petunia grows should be moist, but not flooded. An excess of moisture will stop its growth. It is also important to ventilate the soil in which the plant grows. Growing these flowers will not be difficult if you just follow the conditions of lighting, watering and soil composition.

Can I grow a plant at home?

Can this plant be grown indoors? Yes, but it's more difficult than just in the ground.

Note! Most importantly, the soil in the growing container should be light and water-absorbing.

Therefore, great attention must be paid to the soil. To do this, it will be enough to mix simple garden soil with purchased soil on a peat base. It can also be planted in purchased soil, but after adding a hydrogel to it. The hydrogel must be prepared in advance. It should also be taken into account that such a substrate retains moisture for a long time and you need to be extremely careful with watering the plant. Water only as it dries, especially a recently planted plant.

Growing petunias in a pot or container also implies the correct selection of the container itself for growing. Shrub and terry petunias need 3 liters of land per plant. This means that 3 plants can be planted in a ten-liter container. Large containers retain moisture longer, so it is best to plant multiple plants in one large container. But ampelous, cascading petunias and sufinias need 5 liters per plant.

There must be holes in the container for excess moisture to drain out. If you choose the wrong container, then you can achieve beauty, but not for long. Petunias will first thrive, and then they will survive in such conditions. And they will not delight you with long and lush lashes and abundant flowering.

It is important to pick off the faded flowers from the plant. Secrets of growing petunias:

1. Seat selection - it should be a well-lit place with slight blackouts.
2. The soil - both ordinary garden and specially prepared using purchased peat-based soil, with the addition of hydrogel, turf, coarse sand.
3. Watering and feeding - water every day, especially if you see that the top lump is dry. Best watered in the morning and evening. Petunia does not like stagnant moisture, so take care of good drainage. Feed regularly with mineral fertilizers. The main thing is that it contains potassium and phosphorus - they are responsible for the development of flower buds.

Reproduction methods

Propagation can be done in two ways: growing seedlings from seeds and cuttings.

Seeds

This is the most common way to breed a plant, even at home. Buy seeds in the shell - they are easier to plant and they are much larger. To begin with, we prepare the soil and maintain the desired temperature at 22-25 ° C. We plant it in a container in which there is always a drainage. Before planting, the drainage should be disinfected with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. Carry out the same procedure with the soil; use special preparations to disinfect it.

Sow seeds into slightly damp but not damp soil. Before this, it is better to mix the seeds with river sand. Next, cover the container with seeds with glass or foil. We grow seedlings at a temperature of 22 ° C. To prevent the soil from becoming soggy, constantly remove condensation from the glass or change the film.

On a note. Don't forget about good lighting. As soon as small bushes appear and roots get stronger, you can plant it in open ground or continue growing in a greenhouse.

Watch a video about growing petunias. Sowing seeds for seedlings:

By cuttings

It allows the plant to grow much faster. It assumes the presence of an already mature plant. To do this, cut off the side shoots of the petunia. Then cuttings are disinfected and planted in small cups with light soil. We put it in a shaded place. Do not forget about moistening the soil and feeding with mineral fertilizers.Thus, the plant is prepared for wintering. In the spring, we plant it in open ground.

Watch a video about the propagation of petunias by cuttings:

Landing kit

• Priming.
• Planting capacity.
• Disinfectants.
• Seedlings for planting.
• Drainage.
• Mineral fertilizers.

Cultivation

At home

1. Sowing seeds - we prepare the soil in advance, warm it up, pour it into a container. We place the seeds in a container with heated soil (do not sprinkle them from the ground, they may not come out). We wet the ground from above. Cover the seeds with glass or foil. We put the container in a warm place with a temperature of 22 ° C.
2. Care in the first days after germination - appear on the 5-10th day. If the ground is dry, water it. Next, mix the containers onto the window (to keep it cooler). We ventilate from time to time (raise the glass or remove the film so that the fungus does not appear).
3. Dive - carry out only when the sprout has up to 3 pairs of leaves. Water the soil abundantly and carefully transfer each plant to separate cups.
4. Hardening - gradually lower the temperature to about 10 ° C, take out the seedlings for 10-15 minutes. We continue the procedure for several days, you can increase the residence time of the seedlings.
5. Pinching - we do it with ordinary scissors, carefully pinch off the growth point of the leaf located after 4 sheets from the bottom. This ends the cultivation of petunias at home. The plant has grown strong enough, hardened and expanded. Now we send it to pots, pots, soil.

In greenhouses

• Sowing seeds - we buy seeds in a special store. We purchase or prepare the substrate ourselves. It contains peat, sand, earth. Wipe everything well and pour with a solution of potassium permanganate. The wet mixture is kept in crates for several days. Before stuffing, we sterilize the boxes with peroxide or potassium permanganate, spill peat with fugnicides before sowing. Seeds are sown in peat, a layer of peat in a box is 2-3 cm and consists of fine particles, well sifted and even.

  Important! The seeds are not covered with soil so that light falls on them. We also provide additional lighting.

  We germinate at a temperature of 22-25 ° C. The required air humidity is 95-98%; to maintain it, we cover the crops with glass or polyethylene. The substrate should not dry out, so we often water it from a sprayer. The water should be kept slightly warmer than the substrate. After germination, lower the temperature to 18-20 ° C.

• Picking - we move the plants into cups. They are in them until the roots take up all the place. At first, the cups are next to each other, but as the seedlings grow, they are placed apart from each other.
• Watering and feeding - when the seedlings are dived, you need to make sure that the top layer of the substrate dries up for the next watering. Therefore, the cups are watered once a day or less often. Better to water in the morning and evening. We combine top dressing with watering.

Care rules

Caring for petunia does not require much effort from you. It is enough just to control the watering and feeding of the plant. You need to water at the root of the plant so as not to damage the delicate flowers. The next day after watering, you need to loosen the soil so that a crust does not form. Remove weeds. Feed one week after planting in the ground. We combine watering and feeding. We feed with fertilizers with potassium.

Problems, diseases and pests

Sometimes you may encounter a problem such as yellowing or drying of petunias. If you do not follow the rules of care, the plant can get sick:

• late blight;
• chlorosis;
• black leg;
• gray rot.

They need to be dealt with with special drugs. But it's easier to prevent them from appearing with proper care. If these rules are not followed, then in addition to these diseases, petunia can be affected by viral diseases. There is no cure for them - your plant will die. Of the pests, spider mites, aphids, slugs and thrips are dangerous.

Follow the simple rules for caring for petunias, then you will not have to worry about the health and beauty of your plant.It will always delight you with beautiful flowering.

What and how best to plant flowers in a street pots

Good afternoon dear friends!

Recently I looked at photos of beautifully decorated flower beds in German cities. I was always interested in the question, how do they get such lush beautiful flowers in pots and flowerpots? I tried to study this issue, looked at the advice of our experienced florists. It turned out that it’s not only about proper care, but also what flowers to plant in pots!

What flowers can be planted in pots

We all love beauty, especially self-grown flowers. Usually, in the country there is not much space to break large flower beds. In this case, it is convenient to plant flowers in pots. Even small flower arrangements in pots and flowerpots will embellish the site and create a mood. But even in large areas in landscape design, flowers in pots are necessarily used. It's so beautiful!

Moreover, not only classic ones bought in stores, but also, in principle, any old things or do-it-yourself containers are suitable as pots.

Let's find out first of all what kind of flowers you can plant in pots. These can be not only ampelous (strongly hanging) plants, but also others.

Both in hanging pots and in tall flowerpots, such plants look great as:

Of course, other flowers can be planted in pots outside: in the country and even on the balcony in containers or hanging pots.

How to plant flowers in pots

First you need to determine where the flowerpots will be located. This place will determine which flowers to plant.

For places where the sun will look only in the morning or in the evening, fuchsia and morning glory are suitable.

On the south or southwest side, it is good to plant, for example, petunias, violets, begonia.

How to plant flowers?

First of all, we will prepare the pots - we will arrange a drainage layer in it, it is better to use expanded clay, which must be poured onto the bottom of the pots with a layer of 2-3 cm. Then we pour a small layer of fertile soil. Ordinary land from the garden is heavy and in this case is not suitable. For flowers in pots, it is better to purchase special soil in the store. We place our plants on the ground. The distance between flowers planted in pots should be slightly less than is usually recommended when planting in open ground. Then fill the free gaps with earth. To the edge of the planter there should be 2 cm unoccupied with earth. This is necessary for convenient watering.

As the shoots grow, to form a lush, even bush, the pots must be turned in different directions in relation to the sun every two weeks.

But this is not all the rules, what and how to plant flowers in pots.

What to plant flowers in pots to create compositions

In Europe, it is not customary to grow monocultures in pots, that is, consisting of one type of plant, as we have only petunia or pelargonium. They like to combine these plants with each other. And it is right. The point is not only that interesting beautiful compositions are obtained, but also because many ampelous plants are very capricious. The most capricious is our favorite petunia. A few days of rain and petunia leaves a pitiful whip with drooping flowers, you have to pick it up so that it comes back to life. Therefore, to create an eternally beautiful flowering pots, you do not need to plant only petunias in it, but you need to combine plants.

The mixture always looks better than one plant.

We place 2-3 varieties of plants in one planter. We select them by color so that they are either in the same color scheme or contrasting. For example, red and green plants, yellow and purple or blue, purple and green plants go well.

We arrange the plants so that they look beautiful in pots and correlate with each other in height.

In the center we place taller plants, for example, three fuchsia bushes of different shades. They will become a bright accent of the composition due to their bright pink flowers.

Place hanging plants around the edges of the pots. You can add ivy or indoor chlorophytum to fuchsia, which feels great outside in the summer.

In general, flowers of green or white-green color go well with all types of ampelous plants.

As a planting, plectrantus, monkey loosestrife, tolmeya are very well suited.

Plectrantus interesting for the unusual colors of foliage and enlivens any composition. Very unpretentious, has great growth force, easily takes root at home. If any plant suddenly fell into the pots, then the plectrantus will always take up this space.

Loose mint - not a capricious plant, rooted well, completely undemanding to feeding. But in the sun or when it dries, it can turn yellow, so watering should be regular and sufficient.

Tolmeya - shade-tolerant culture, can grow in the light, and feels great in the shade.

Here are examples of flower arrangements in pots you can create:

In the country or in the garden, use several containers of different sizes and shapes, but from the same material, then the compositions will not be boring.

Here are some more examples of beautiful flower arrangements in the video:

How to care for flowers in pots

These delicate beauties require constant attention. Therefore, they need care, attention and care!

Let's remember these rules:

No way Do not allow the soil to dry out in pots. Watering should be done every day, and on hot sunny days - twice a day. Ampel plants also love spraying. Once a week, we place the plant in a pots completely in water so that the earthen lump is finally wetted. We make top dressing once a week., and potonia needs to be fed with each watering. If summer plants planted in flower beds are usually fed once every two weeks, then this is not enough for plants in pots in a confined space, we will never achieve such a gorgeous flowering and lush bushes without frequent feeding. You constantly need to remove faded inflorescences, which is at the same time pinching, as a result of which new shoots are formed.

Love your plants and they will answer you in kind!

Well, now we know what flowers can be planted in pots and decorate our balcony or summer cottage and what to do to make them bloom magnificently. But such compositions require a lot of care and time. That is why I do not dare to do them yet, although I really want to.

Author Olga Smirnova

Other interesting ideas for summer cottages and gardens:

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When to sow petunias for seedlings

They say that flowers are traces left by the light touch of the earth by the angels of heaven. Otherwise, how can one explain this miracle of nature, pleasing the eyes with the splendor of a rainbow that has spilled onto the earth, enchanting with a divine aroma, delighting with its fragile, sophisticated appearance, striking with its defenselessness and selflessness.

Table of contents:

• When to sow petunias for seedlings
• Strokes for the portrait
• Petunia flowers
• Growing petunias
• Seedling seeds
• Plant care
• Petunia, fortunia, surfiniya: sowing and care
• Reproduction of petunia
• Supplementing petunia seedlings
• Picking up petunia seedlings
• Winter storage of petunias in the house
• Petunia care and maintenance features
• Pruning petunias
• Golden mustache: growing and care
• How the golden mustache reproduces
• The first way
• Second way
• Conditions conducive to the good development of the golden mustache
• How to properly care for a plant
• Diseases and pests of the golden mustache
• Read more about the golden mustache:
• How to plant petunia correctly
• Growing seedlings
• Landing in open ground
• Reproduction of petunia
• Calibrachoa
• Growing Million Bells
• What is the difference between calibrachoa and petunias
• Growing and caring for calibrachoa
• Reproduction of calibrachoa
• Comments (1)
• Growing seedlings of flowers for sale, how to make money
• What to grow vegetables or flowers for sale
• What you need to grow flowers
• Top Selling Plants and Seed Flowers
• Top Selling Flowers - Petunias
• If you liked the article, share with your friends:

The rational thinking of a down-to-earth person is not given to understand the true purpose of colors, from which there is no practical benefit, but there is something more that is accessible to perception only at the spiritual and spiritual level.

Strokes for the portrait

A popular flowering plant that adorns our flower gardens is called petunia. The wild ancestors of the modern, well-known petunias live in America. More than 30 varieties are known, as well as hybrid variants, of this perennial herb from the Solanaceae family. Due to active flowering in the year of sowing, it is used as an annual, but with possible transplantation and subsequent storage in room conditions and propagation by cuttings.

The variety of shapes, colors and shades of petunias, which cannot be enumerated, are striking. The plant can be erect and creeping, as well as growing in the form of miniature bushes of a compact spherical shape - from 20 cm in height or spreading shoots up to 2 meters. Densely branching strong stems lining at the base with fleshy, slightly drooping, oval-shaped leaves, which are sometimes not visible behind the magnificently blossoming flowers.

Petunia flowers

Each of the fragrant funnel-shaped flowers, about 5 cm in diameter, is attached to the leaf axil by a strong pedicel. In place of the fading distant buds, new ones soon form, not stopping flowering until the very frost. In case of unfavorable conditions of temporary cold snap or insufficient moisture, petunia can slow down flowering, so that it can then actively resume it.

The color of the flowers is varied: from white and cream through all the colors of the rainbow to multi-colored with borders, stars or stripes and exquisite corrugation or thick fringes. The multi-flowered terry varieties are a bit like a carnation, while the large-flowered ones are very showy and look like a rose. The so-called excellent petunia flowers reach a diameter of about 12 cm, have wavy edges and dark-colored veins in the back of the throat.

Growing petunias

It is possible to collect the seeds of the plant by marking a few lower buds at the beginning of flowering. Petunia fruits are capsules with small grains. It will take at least 2-3 months to keep them fully ripe. But it should be borne in mind that hybrid plants are prone to surprises, producing flowers in the offspring of unpredictable color and size. It is best to buy hybrid flower seeds from leading florists.

The plant is widely used for seasonal decoration of windows, balconies, retaining walls, terraces and fences. With sufficient lighting, petunias can also be grown in the house, but gardens, parks, squares, courtyards and gazebos are considered its traditional place. It is impossible to imagine a beautiful flower garden without petunias, characterized by a cascading arrangement of flowers that completely cover the shoots and foliage. In this case, the color of flowers can be very diverse. The advantage of petunias is their long flowering from June until the first frost.

Seeds for seedlings

Petunia propagates by seed. however, to get a good flower garden in open ground, it is best to plant ready-made seedlings. Therefore, all novice gardeners are interested in the question of when to sow petunias for seedlings. Despite the fact that quite a lot of petunia species are known, it is recommended to sow petunia seeds for seedlings during February - March.

To obtain good seedlings, it is necessary to provide appropriate growing conditions. First of all, you should provide good lighting. In this case, the temperature in the room should be at least 23 degrees. Petunia seeds are very small, so shallow sowing is recommended.

Plant care

With proper observance of the light and temperature conditions, the first shoots can be expected in 7-10 days.It is also necessary to ensure moderate watering, avoiding waterlogging and drying out of the soil. After the emergence of seedlings, the temperature regime for growing seedlings should be about 20 degrees.

After the seedlings develop 3 true leaves, it is necessary to pick the seedlings for better growth of the seedlings. Timely planting of seeds as well as proper care are prerequisites for the successful cultivation of petunias. Therefore, when sowing petunia for seedlings, each amateur florist must decide individually.

It will take approximately 75 to 90 days for the seeds to germinate, grow stronger and bloom. An original method of sowing seeds on the snow has been proposed, so that they can be seen better, and the melted snow, absorbing into the soil, will pull the seeds along. The plant as a whole is unpretentious, feels good in sunlit places and, with sufficient watering, will delight the eye with long, abundant flowering.

Petunia, fortunia, surfiniya: sowing and care

Petunia is one of the most popular flowering plants for decorating balconies and gardens, for growing on city streets. Less commonly, petunia is grown in the house as a houseplant.

Now on sale you can find many different varieties and hybrids of petunia (Petunia), bred by breeders around the world. For convenience, the assortment of petunias is divided into groups according to typical characteristics. Terry petunias (Double), fortunias (Fortunia), multi-flowered petunias (Multiflora), large-flowered petunias (Grandiflora), ampelous petunias (Pendula) are very attractive.

The modern variety and color palette of petunias amaze the imagination! Among the abundance of elegant flowers, everyone can find plants "to their liking." The choice is huge - from the cascading one and a half meter giants with an abundance of flowers (surfinia, fortune, etc.), most often used as an ampel in hanging baskets. to dwarf petunias with dense double flowers, suitable for growing in small pots and window boxes. Compact varieties and hybrids of petunias are used as flowering indoor plants.

Reproduction of petunia

Petunia is usually propagated by amateur flower growers by seed. In some cases, while maintaining petunia uterine bushes in the house in winter, vegetative propagation is carried out in spring with young cuttings.

Surface sowing of small petunia seeds (under glass) is carried out from January to April. Light, water and air permeable soil is used for sowing. After germination, about 70 percent of the seeds are removed, because petunia seedlings do not like high humidity.

At an early stage of development of petunia seedlings, they are threatened by the so-called. "Black leg". Lodging of seedlings occurs as a result of waterlogging of the soil, especially in combination with low air and substrate temperatures, lack of lighting and high air humidity.

To prevent this disease, you can use a weak light pink solution of potassium permanganate (potassium permanganate) instead of ordinary water for irrigation. And it is better to sow seeds on top of a thin layer of calcined river sand. It is important to avoid thickening the crops so that the seedlings are well ventilated and try not to flood the plants.

When growing seedlings of petunias, special seedling boxes and pots with bottom irrigation (through a pallet) have proven themselves well. An additional advantage in their use is that the seeds and shoots of petunias are not washed out of the ground when irrigated, which can become a serious problem with conventional irrigation of crops from above.

I would like to separately touch upon the topic of seed reproduction and cultivation of cascade forms of petunias. The fortunes that I grow are very close to other favorite cascading plants - surfinia. Surfinia and fortunias reproduce quite successfully by seeds, but they require sowing as early as possible (no later than February), otherwise such plants in the middle lane simply will not have time to reach their peak of development and flowering in the first year. Their seedlings require additional lighting during the winter months. Otherwise, caring for seedlings to cascade forms of petunias is similar to representatives of other groups, with the exception of the planting scheme (this will be discussed below).

Supplementing petunia seedlings

When sowing petunias in the winter months (January-February), supplementary lighting of the seedlings is mandatory. Otherwise, they stretch out strongly and grow weak, often not at all viable, prone to diseases.

Most of the petunias sown in winter bloom in early May. This is convenient if you plan to grow petunias on a glazed balcony (my option) or on a closed terrace, where the plants are protected from frost and are in very comfortable conditions from early spring to late autumn.

If the use of additional lighting of seedlings in winter is impossible, then it is better to postpone sowing petunias until March. Daylight hours in March increase significantly, which has a beneficial effect on the development of seedlings. The flowering of petunias of March sowing usually occurs by mid-June or a little later (depending on the characteristics of the variety and belonging to a particular group).

In the photo: a variety mixture of petunias "Vanity Fair" F1; petunia variety "Baskin Robins"

Picking up petunia seedlings

It is recommended to dive for petunia seedlings in the phase of a pair of true leaves. However, in reality this is not always possible due to the tiny size of the plants during this period, so the risk of fatally damaging them is too great. Practice has shown that it is better to plant petunia seedlings for the first time when they already "have something to grab onto." As a rule, this is the phase of having 4-6 pairs of leaves (that is, usually one month after germination).

In general, the first month and a half are the most responsible in the life of a petunia and difficult for a grower. If during this time nothing terrible happened to your seedlings, then you can be sure that nothing dangerous will happen in the future with proper care of the petunia seedlings. This, of course, is a controversial opinion, but it has been suffered through personal experience.

Petunia seedlings should be dived either into separate pots (if planting in open ground is planned), or immediately into prepared boxes, hanging baskets and pots.

Since fortunias (like surfinias) are large plants, no more than 1-2 plants can be planted in a 2-3 liter pot. Fortune and surfinii are planted in boxes at a distance of at least 25 cm from each other.

Achieve the proper density of the crown of each plant (as well as obtaining dense, abundantly flowering plantings of petunias in general) by pinching the shoots in spring. If you try to achieve the desired density by increasing the number of plants with a closer planting of seedlings, then the result will be negative. This will lead to competition of neighboring plants for living space, for moisture, nutrients and light, which will inevitably affect the further growth of petunias and lead to a deterioration in their appearance and flowering.

In the photo: Fortune "Supercascade" F1; petunias semi-ampelous variety "Ramblyn" F1

Winter storage of petunias in the house

In its homeland of South America, petunia is a typical perennial. Therefore, you can grow petunia as a perennial plant in other climatic conditions, if you ensure optimal wintering indoors. Many growers keep their favorite petunias and surfinias, bought ready-made or obtained from seeds or cuttings.

With the seed method of reproduction of petunias from a mixture of varieties, one or two very interesting plants sometimes grow, which are very different from other seedlings in a rare color or flower shape. I want to preserve such unusual plants in order to enjoy them in the future. They do the same with terry petunias, which do not set seeds at all. In order to have the same terry petunias next year, you will either have to buy their seedlings ready-made, or again tinker with sowing seeds, and only from producers with a good reputation. After all, terry petunias from purchased seeds can be obtained only if the seeds are really of the first generation - F1 (alas, it is not uncommon when the cherished "F1" is written on the packet "for the sake of a word"). As a rule, the cost of seeds of true hybrid petunias of the first generation is several times higher than that of conventional non-double varieties, and the number of seeds in a package is inversely proportional to their increasing cost. Therefore, flower growers often strive to save their best petunias until the next season.

Uterine petunias, like many other flowering garden plants, can be kept indoors in winter. To do this, in the fall, before the onset of the first frost, the favorite plant should be strongly cut off and transferred to the brightest, but cool (not higher than 12C) room.

Watering the petunias stored in the house should be very limited during the winter months, however, the earthen coma should not be allowed to completely dry out. In the spring, with the beginning of an active growing season, in overwintered petunias bushes, they cut off all dried, curved, as well as weak overgrown shoots that appeared in winter. After that, the plant is transplanted into a fresh fertile substrate. After its rooting, they begin to gradually increase watering, apply top dressing.

In the spring, if you wish, you can try to propagate your favorite petunia variety with young green cuttings obtained by pruning the bush.

For petunias (including fortunias) and surfinias that have successfully overwintered in the house, flowering is much more abundant the next year, and it begins much earlier. I also use this method of winter preservation of plants in the house for petunias of other groups - small-flowered, large-flowered, terry.

Petunia care and maintenance features

Petunias are very grateful plants. The undoubted advantages of any petunias include their unpretentiousness, abundant and long flowering in response to simple care. Adult plants, despite such an exotic origin of petunias, are very tolerant of large temperature fluctuations. They adapt to different conditions and can bloom for several months in a row up to significant autumn frosts.

Petunias grow well on the balcony and in the garden - both in direct sun and in partial shade places. But with a lack of light, the flowering of petunias is not so abundant, and the plants themselves have a larger and more fragile appearance due to an increase in leaf mass, consisting of pampered shoots.

Unsuitable places for keeping petunias are open balconies on the upper floors of high-rise buildings, where strong winds often occur. Since the shoots of petunia are quite fragile, they often break and lodge under the influence of the wind, and the flowers are torn. When grown in such difficult conditions, special varieties of petunias of the multi-flowered group (multiflora), resistant to wind and rain, are suitable.

Not suitable for petunias and too shaded a place where the plants are very weak, and the flowering is scarce - the flowers are formed single, faded and small.

Excessively damp earth is not suitable for petunias, which must be taken into account when choosing a place for petunias in the garden, when caring for flower beds.

Petunias with a compact, lush bush and dense double flowers are used in indoor culture, and can also be grown on closed balconies and terraces. Plants of these varieties hardly tolerate strong winds and especially badly - rain. From the wind, their delicate double flowers tear, and after water gets in, they stick together into an ugly lump (which then, as a rule, does not straighten out any more). These features should be considered when choosing varieties and caring for plants.Terry petunias are watered only at the root so that moisture does not get on the flowers.

For watering petunias, it is better to use settled or boiled water. Plants are watered with warm water (at least 18 ° C), otherwise, although petunias do not die, they noticeably lag behind in growth when the suction roots die off due to hypothermia. This factor also often leads to yellowing and drying of petunia leaves. The optimal rule is that the water temperature for watering petunias should be 2-3 degrees higher than the ground temperature.

The frequency of watering petunias depends on many factors: the size of the container, the age and size of the plant, and the sun exposure. Remember that prolonged waterlogging is more dangerous for petunias than a lack of moisture.

Waterlogging of the soil at the beginning of the disease leads to yellowing of petunia leaves and brittle shoots, and then root rot and death of the plant occurs. The constant lack of water also leads to the loss of petunia leaves, to the crushing of its flowers; the intensity and duration of flowering decreases markedly.

Petunias are very responsive to regular fertilizing with complex mineral fertilizers. When growing petunias indoors, top dressing is simply necessary. Otherwise, with a lack of trace elements, petunias begin to turn yellow, and then the leaves begin to dry out. The same signs appear in petunias when watered with hard water (so-called chlorosis).

Another undoubted plus of petunias is that many harmful insects are not interested in it; in particular, the ill-fated spider mite. Insects do not like the pubescent shoots and leaves of petunias, which are sticky due to the viscous sap released. The latter factor gives a lot of trouble to the grower, since petunias need to regularly remove faded inflorescences that are sticky to the touch. But if this is not done, then the densely doubled varieties of petunias quickly lose their decorative effect, and in non-double petunias, the flowering intensity noticeably decreases as a result of the setting of seeds.

The faded petunia flower should be pinched off along with the peduncle. Sometimes it makes sense to remove part of the shoot (up to the first upper internode) if the flower on the shoot was the last one and there are no buds next to it.

Pruning petunias

During the growing season, petunias may require cardinal pruning several times, which these plants tolerate well.

Pruning petunias is necessary when the decorative form is lost, if too elongated or slightly leafy shoots have appeared; with a decrease in flowering intensity; with severe disease, etc. In this case, the bushes should be pruned (at least 10 cm from the ground), and then in just a couple of weeks the petunias will grow back and again acquire a compact appearance, again bloom profusely.

When growing petunias on the balcony, I usually have to carry out such rejuvenating pruning of the bushes twice: in July (after the first wave of flowering) and in August. By pruning, the attractive appearance of petunias is preserved during the autumn flowering period, which does not differ at all from the summer. I also note that regular pruning and pinching of petunia shoots is ideal for those who have few plants, but want to create the illusion of a large number of them.

The exception here is with urfinia, fortunia and other large cascading forms of petunias, which are drastically cut off only in early spring. The rest of the time, you should only slightly adjust the shape of the petunia bushes by pinching the long shoots. Otherwise, the cultivation of representatives of these particular groups loses all meaning - after all, the fate of large flowering cascades, and not squat dwarfs, is assigned to them with the skillful hand of the breeder.

And you should also be careful when pruning dwarf varieties of petunias (usually double and large-flowered). They are not always able to awaken "dormant" buds at the base of the trunk, and very often - on new shoots, forced by late pinching. Because of this, the size and quality of the flowers are noticeably reduced.

With proper care, petunias delight with long and lush flowering, rewarding growers for the trouble of growing seedlings. The characteristics of modern varieties and hybrids of petunias indicate that these plants not only have outstanding decorative qualities, but are also more hardy. Pictures on bags with expensive seeds of new petunias are very tempting, but time will tell what will come of them in reality.

All about petunia on the site

Golden mustache: growing and care

Golden mustache: growing and care

Houseplants for many of us are not just a hobby and hobby, but also the opportunity to grow a source of medicines for a variety of diseases on our own windowsill. One of these plants is fragrant callis or golden mustache. The Eco-Life website has already published more than one publication about the golden mustache, its properties and application (see at the end of the article). But before you apply it, you need to ... grow it. This is what will be discussed today. Moreover, it is not difficult to grow it, it is also quite simple to care for it, and in return you get wonderful decorations for your interior, and an excellent medicine.

How the golden mustache reproduces

Fragrant collision reproduces in small shoots or "whiskers" throughout the year. The most preferred breeding season is March-April. But if there is a great desire, you can start the process of development of a new plant at any other time. We act in stages:

The first way

• In the mother plant, one mustache is carefully cut off from the crown in several nodules. The lower leaves are completely removed, and the upper ones are trimmed by a third. In this form, the cutting should be left to dry for several hours.
• The prepared shoot is planted in well-moistened soil, and covered with polyethylene on top for rooting.

Second way

• A rosette of leaves with a small stalk is cut from one of the nodules. The cut plant is immersed in water. After a day, the shoot will develop a good root system, which is a signal to transplant it into the ground.

The soil composition of growing and caring for a golden mustache should combine compost and leaf soil and sand, taken in equal proportions. Remember to have a good drainage system. It is recommended to replant a young plant annually, and an adult needs to change the pot for a new one every few years.

See also: Decoction of onion and garlic peels for indoor flowers

Conditions conducive to the good development of the golden mustache

Golden mustache - a plant that has migrated to us from the tropics, loves warmth very much. In the summer, it will feel comfortable at an air temperature of 60C; in the cold season, the required minimum on the thermometer should show at least 160C. It is important to provide the golden whisker with good lighting. However, it is better not to put it in direct sunlight. In the shade, in principle, it can also grow, but you will not see beautiful and strong leaves.

It is better to put the pot with callisia in rooms with good air condition - bedrooms, living rooms, children's rooms. A kitchen or a room where people smoke often will not work for her. Choose a beautiful hanging planter for your golden mustache. His flowing mustache with rosettes of leaves will look amazing.

If you provide good conditions for the golden mustache, it can even bloom. Fragrant callis flowers have a white tone with a pinkish tinge, they smell very nice with a delicate and delicate aroma. When the plant has faded, small bolls (fruits) appear in place of flowers.

How to properly care for a plant

Watering, feeding and spraying on time - these are the basic requirements for the care and cultivation of a golden mustache. In the summer, the plant needs abundant watering, however, care must be taken that the ground is only wet, and not flooded with water. During the cold season from August to April, the number of irrigations is reduced to 2 times a week, making sure that the land does not dry out.

Water for irrigation golden mustache requires slightly acidified. This effect can be achieved by acidifying the water with lemon juice (1 teaspoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice is used for 1 liter of water).

To ensure the cultivation and care of the golden mustache at a decent level, it is necessary to constantly maintain high humidity. Try to spray the plant every day. If you suddenly notice that the leaves of callisia are beginning to turn yellow, this will indicate that the plant is overdrying (this often happens in the summer). In addition, yellow spots on the leaves can indicate too strong sun exposure to callisia. In this case, the plant needs to be shaded slightly. And it is better to simply remove the pot of callisia from direct sunlight during the hours of the active sun.

See also: How to grow lemon at home

Diseases and pests of the golden mustache

Poor plant maintenance will be indicated by signs such as dry leaf tips and brown spots. Thus, the plant signals a lack of moisture, the sun is too active, and that it needs fertilizing with mineral fertilizers. At the same time, the lack of sunlight will negatively affect the production of the very enzyme that provides the golden mustache with its healing properties. Therefore, you should try to find the perfect balance between the shaded and sunny sides of the room, or constantly transfer the plant from too bright sun to the dark side, and vice versa. The plant should be fed with mineral fertilizers for indoor flowers during the period of active growth.

Constant spraying of the plant and good air humidity are the main measures for the prevention of diseases of the golden mustache with red spider mites and thrips. But if, nevertheless, infection could not be avoided, the leaves are sprayed with a systemic insecticide, covered with polyethylene, and left in this form for several days. Observing these simple recommendations, you will definitely be able to grow a strong and beautiful plant that has a whole range of healing qualities.

Svetlana Frantseva "Golden mustache: growing and care" specially for the Eco-life website.

Read more about the golden mustache:

How to plant petunia correctly

Petunia is an amazingly beautiful plant that adorns plots, balconies and window sills. Gardeners love her for the fact that she blooms for almost the entire season. Petunia flowers begin to bloom in May and delight with their splendor until October. This is an unpretentious flower that grows easily at home. A huge variety of varieties from ordinary to terry and ampelous. possessing a unique color and aroma, able to satisfy the taste of even the most sophisticated gardener.

Growing seedlings

This unique plant is grown mainly in seedlings. Most people prefer to purchase ready-made seedlings, but you can grow them yourself. The seeds of this flower do not germinate well, so the choice of land must be approached responsibly. The soil for sowing seeds should be nutritious, well-drained and neutral. It is great if it is a mixture of sod land, well-rotted humus, river sand and peat.

In the container, which is intended for seedlings, it is necessary to make holes at the bottom so that excess water does not stagnate and cause rotting of the root system. Place a drainage layer on the bottom of the pots or drawer and fill them with sifted earth. The earth needs to be moistened and compacted a little.

Now you can sow petunia seeds, after mixing them with fine sand. It is not worth deepening into the ground, it is enough just to scatter over the surface, spray with water and cover with a layer of soil of 2-3 mm. The sown seeds must be covered with plastic wrap, paper or glass until the first leaves appear.

The soil should always be moist, to do this, moisten it twice a day at regular intervals.Petunia seedlings will feel comfortable with good lighting and an air temperature of + 22-24 degrees. In such conditions, the first shoots will appear in 10 days.

The first shoots are still very weak, so do not remove the film immediately. Let them gain strength a little. And until the real leaves appear, you should carefully remove condensation from the film and ventilate the plants. You can sprinkle some wood ash around the stem. Such care will save them from black leg disease and allow them to quickly adapt to environmental conditions.

A week after planting the seeds, you can apply the first nitrogen and potash fertilizers. The next feeding of seedlings in 2 weeks.

Landing in open ground

The grown seedlings of petunias are planted in open ground, when warm sunny weather sets in, the soil warms up well and frosts are no longer expected. This is usually mid-May. Landing begins with choosing a site on the site. Petunia prefers sunny areas. You can plant it in a sunny flowerbed or complement it with a flower-stone composition.

An area with loose and damp soil is ideal. Before planting, the land must be fed with any fertilizer for flowering plants. You can use grams of nitrophosphate per 1 meter of area.

Seedlings are planted at a distance of about half a meter between plants. It is advisable to plant in the morning or after sunset, so that the scorching rays of the sun do not injure delicate seedlings. Each bush under the root is plentifully watered with warm water and mulched with sawdust.

If you decide to immediately plant petunia seeds in open ground, then first, be sure to dig up the ground and feed it with complex fertilizers. Mix the seeds with fine sand and sow in the ground. Moisten crops thoroughly with the watering can spray nozzle. In warm weather, the first shoots will appear in 8-10 days.

Unpretentious petunia does not need frequent watering or any special care. It is enough to water it abundantly once a week and apply complex mineral fertilizers once every 2 weeks. Petunia does not like stagnant water, so make sure there is good drainage.

Reproduction of petunia

At home, the petunia that you especially like can be preserved and propagated. Reproduction of this flower occurs by cuttings. The plant grown in this way is no different from the mother bush and begins to bloom 2-3 weeks earlier than those grown from seed.

The bush that you have chosen for reproduction must be transplanted into a pot in August, and with the onset of cold weather, cut it, leaving no more than 15 cm, and bring it into the house. Such a flower pot is stored in cool conditions at a temperature of no more than +12 degrees and watered moderately so as not to provoke flowering. Observing these conditions, you can get good cuttings.

Plant propagation is best done in spring. Lateral basal shoots no more than 9 cm long are ideal cuttings. The lower leaves are removed from them, the upper ones are cut in half. The ends of the cuttings must be treated with a growth stimulant and planted in cups with soil.

When propagating by cuttings of petunias, it is very important to plant them as quickly as possible. Already an hour after cutting, they will not be able to take root. Caring for them is similar to caring for seedlings.

Whichever way you grow petunia. it will become a real decoration of your garden. This is a real find for gardeners. Its bright flowers with an extraordinary aroma will become an integral attribute of any flower bed, balcony or window sill.

"Million Bells" or Calibrachoa

Calibrachoa is a plant that has recently appeared on the balconies of our gardeners. Some even now, are suspicious of these balls, completely covered with small flowers-bells, similar to petunias. But, until 1990, calibrachoa was a real petunia and was included in the genus Petunia in all botanical books.

And in 1990 it was proved that calibrachoa has a different DNA structure. Petunia has only 14 chromosomes, while calibrachoa have as many as 18. In other words, despite their similarity, petunia and calibrachoa are completely different, albeit related plants.

Calibrachoa is an ampelous plant in a hanging planter.

Calibrachoa flowers are not more than 3 cm in diameter, their size is fully compensated by their number. It is not for nothing that the most famous varietal series of this plant is called "Million Bells". This name fully conveys the character of the plant, which grows in a hanging basket long shoots up to 1 m with a mass of flowers.

Growing Million Bells

The Million Bells varietal series includes about 18 varieties with pink, pink-lilac, purple, cherry, red, lemon-yellow, raspberry, dark yellow color.

At first, the flowers of the calibrachoa were purple - this is the "native" coloring of the plant. Later, when the plant interested breeders, varieties with red, white, pink, yellow, blue, brown colors were bred.

A distinctive feature of calibrachoa is that its flowers have a “throat” that differs in color from the corolla. The throat can be brownish or yellow.

As a rule, the calibrachoa flower is simple, resembling a petunia bell. But today you can see terry varieties, which are slightly inferior in the splendor of flowering to common calibrachoa.

What is the difference between calibrachoa and petunias

Sometimes calibrachoa in garden centers are sold under the name "ampelous petunia" "surfiniya", or something like that. There is no point in blaming the manufacturers for this. These names are addressed to consumers who do not know about calibrachoa, but are already informed about surfinia.

If you are also faced with such a situation, have never seen calibrachoa, and it seems to you that the sold "surfiniya" is exactly it, do the following:

- look at the size of the flower - it was already written above that in calibrachoa it is not more than 3 cm. But, this is an indirect "evidence", because in the Shock Wave, the flower is also not large;

- direct your attention to the pharynx (“throat”) at the base of the corolla. The pharynx sharply differs in color, as a rule, it is bright yellow;

- consider the leaves - this is probably the most direct and obvious difference between calibrachoa and petunia. Calibrachoa leaves are small (no more than 1 cm wide, 4 cm long), elongated, covered with short hairs. The same fluff is found on the stems;

- look at the stem. The calibrachoa stem is dense, prone to lignification. In petunia, it is herbaceous, flexible, in calibrachoa, it looks like a bush trunk.

Growing and caring for calibrachoa

Calibrachoa needs a lot of heat and light to grow well. Sunny terraces or balconies of southeast or south orientation are very good for calibrachoa. But without the searing heat. With an aggressive midday sun, the plant can burn out - you need to shade it during these hours.

Calibrachoa does not like strong winds, which can ruffle and tear the stems, as well as flowers. An open balcony on the very top floor of a high-rise building is not the best place for a plant. Calibrachoa is best grown in a sheltered location.

Calibrachoa are planted in balcony boxes, flowerpots, hanging baskets. One plant will require at least 3 liters of land. The substrate should be light, preferably with plenty of leavening agents.

Calibrachoa needs much less moist soil than petunia. On the contrary, moisture is unacceptable. Calibrachoa is easy to pour, and its delicate roots rot, and the plant itself dies. But the calibrachoa loves constant spraying. On hot days, do not be greedy for water and spray calibrachoa 3 times a day.

Throughout the growing season, caring for calibrachoa involves intensive feeding. Be sure to fertilize once a week. When budding and flowering calibrachoa, use formulations with a high content of potassium and phosphorus.

For constant flowering, wilted flowers need to be cut off so that seeds are not tied. In the second half of summer, when the flowering becomes weaker, you can prune the stems. This will be a good stimulation for the branching and laying of young buds.

Reproduction of calibrachoa

The plant propagates vegetatively, that is, by cuttings. This does not mean that the plant does not form seeds - but ... The problem is that from seeds the plant does not grow like its "parents". Grown from calibrachoa seeds, it may bloom poorly, flowers may be of the wrong color, small in size.

The best option is propagation by cuttings. To do this, in early autumn, cut off the apical cuttings 4 cm long from the mother liquor. Tear off the bottom leaves and plant in wet soil. For the cuttings to take root, place them in a greenhouse. Or, cover the stem with a plastic cup and open it for a few minutes daily.

In the "greenhouse" cuttings root well. Then you can take care of the calibrachoa cuttings like houseplants. They are unpretentious and survive the winter. In the spring, the apical cuttings are cut off from the grown bushes and re-rooted - from them calibrachoa is grown.

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Growing seedlings of flowers for sale, how to make money

Recently, many acquaintances have contacted me with one request: tell me what flowers can be grown to get tangible income. At the same time, not only women, but also men addressed. Once one of them shared: "Imagine, I brought extra vegetables from my garden to the market by car and sold less than a woman who was selling flower bulbs nearby." So the toilers of the land have to turn their gaze in the direction where you can earn more. And growing flowers is often the life-giving trickle that will help you get through difficult times. Moreover, it is not so difficult to retrain from a vegetable grower to a florist if you have the desire and ability to work on the ground.

What to grow vegetables or flowers for sale

Quite a few of my friends, who were growing vegetables in plastic greenhouses, switched to growing flower seedlings. And now, when I ask them: “Would you like to return to vegetables again? After all, people, probably, think more about what to eat and they have no time for flowers at all? ”They answer negatively. And they add: “Yes, people have begun to buy less flower seedlings, but they still do, because not everyone is left without work. And we wouldn't earn so much on vegetables anyway. "

This probably makes sense. Vegetables are grown not only by private traders, but also by KSPs and farms, including large ones, with which it is not easy to compete. But there are not so many farms that are engaged in the cultivation of planting material for flowers. I think that automated greenhouse complexes will not soon begin to appear in large quantities - after all, huge funds must be invested in them! So private traders still have a place to turn around.

Those who have been to the countries of Western and Central Europe could not fail to notice that almost every balcony and courtyard there is decorated with flowering plants. Most of all bright and lush flower arrangements I saw in neighboring Poland. And why are we worse? Especially when so many little-known species and new gorgeous varieties came to our flower market from the West! Over the past decade, people have increasingly begun to decorate their backyard plots with previously inaccessible plants and are already so used to it that they practically cannot deny themselves such pleasure. So it turns out that even with an unstable financial situation, they try to carve out a certain amount to buy the flowers they like.

And one more reason. The assortment of ornamental plants is huge - many times wider than vegetables. And you can pick up many species that grow well (for example, in a greenhouse) under the same conditions, which cannot be said about vegetables.With both of these factors in mind, you can always find the right plants for you and have a steady source of income.

To all that has been said, I will add that growing flowers is not only one of the ways to make money. This is also the many minutes of delight and pleasure that the beautiful creations of Nature give us.

What you need to grow flowers

Well, now let's talk about what needs to be considered when selling planting material for flowers and what ornamental plants you should pay attention to. Those who have a greenhouse have the most ample opportunities. Best of all, of course, if it is a stationary heated greenhouse. If you cannot afford one, build the simplest film one - believe me, your possibilities will expand significantly. You should also consider where you live. It is good if you live near a large regional center - here, as a rule, purchasing power is higher and there is a demand for expensive plants.

It is also not bad to have your own car - you will deliver the plants neatly and in a much larger volume to the place of sale (especially when it comes to flowering seedlings). But the lack of a car is not an obstacle to the implementation of your plans. For example, you can find wholesale buyers (the same landscapers) who will come to your home and pick up the grown products. The price in this case will be lower than if you yourself sold the planting material on the market. You do not spend money on delivery, payment for a trading place, and most importantly, there will be time for servicing and expanding your mini-production. And if you start selling bulbs or grow compact perennials, you will deliver such plants to the place of sale without a personal car.

I also want to give advice for those who live in small towns - make a luxurious flower garden in front of your house. If your site is fenced off with a high solid fence, plant beautiful vines that would be visible from the street, and set up a small flower bed from the side of the street. In general, make it clear that you have a lot of beautiful plants. Compatriots or visiting summer residents, admiring your flowers, will probably ask if you can sell this or that plant to them. And over time, the circle of your clients will only expand.

It should be borne in mind that trading in any planting material is a seasonal affair (of course, if you are not the owner of a flower shop). Plants are best sold in the spring - by this time you need to have the widest range of plants sold. In autumn, bulbs and flowering chrysanthemums go well, but the roots of perennials are not taken so willingly, complaining that winter is ahead. And even explanations that it is preferable to plant winter-hardy plants in the fall does not always help.

The period for the sale of plants, and, therefore, earnings, can be significantly extended. Since the end of February, they are already starting to buy lily bulbs (we will return to this later). In March, botanical crocuses blooming in pots and cuttings of shrubs rooted in the past season can be added to the lilies. From April to early June, the peak of sales, when it is possible to sell everything that is grown. From mid-June to August - the realization of flowering lilies. September-October is the period of sales of bulbous plants and rhizome perennials. In addition, from April to October, you can sell indoor plants grown from both seeds and cuttings. And, of course, you can always add surplus vegetables from your site to flower products - with a wide range of products offered, it is always easier to earn money.

Top Selling Plants and Seed Flowers

I want to focus on those plants that can be grown from seeds and which sell well. I'll start with indoor flowers. First of all, I would recommend you abutilones - they sprout without much difficulty, grow quickly, bloom in the year of sowing and are presented in a wide range of colors.For example, from a mixture of seeds, I got plants with white, cream, yellow and pink flowers, although orange-flowered plants are most often sold in the markets. And the variety series "Bella F1" is distinguished by its compact size and large (7 cm in diameter) flowers. In the future, you can propagate the most successful seedlings by cuttings.

If you have a greenhouse, you can sow tuberous begonia - it is always readily taken in a flowering state (you should only take into account that the seedlings bloom in days after the emergence of shoots). Blooming brugmansia always causes a sensation - believe me, if you endure selling one such plant, the whole market will gather to admire its huge fragrant flowers. In addition, brugmansia reproduces well by cuttings - it is enough to have one mother plant. Blood-red hypoestes and Blume's coleus sell well - their colorful leaves always attract attention. These plants also cut well.

The blooming fiery red kufeya, and, of course, hybrid fuchsia is easy to care for and invariably attracts the eye. Blooming passion flowers are no less delightful - just remember that the flower lasts only a day, so give the plant the opportunity to form more buds. You can realize zonal pelargonium from the “Black Velvet” series even without flowers - after all, it has extraordinary foliage! In addition, these plants are easily propagated by cuttings.

To sophisticated buyers, you can offer royal and Nikolai strelitzia (the second is especially rare), but you will have to wait at least four years for their flowering. Although it is possible to sell non-flowering specimens (the plants look quite presentable), showing a photograph of the flower. There is always a demand for philodendrons - double-peristalized and sello - with their beautiful large foliage.

The hybrid catharanthus "First kiss" grows very quickly and sells well - it can also be recommended as a flower bed, but after a period of flowering (albeit a long one), the plant is thrown away. For a wider assortment, you can grow powerful washingtonia palms, Canarian date and graceful chamedorea (only their seeds germinate, as a rule, for at least a month), and also asparagus, powerful grevillea, mimosa-leaved jacaranda, southern cordilina, cyperus alternate-leaved Asandra Splash you are unlikely to see it from your competitors.

Only those growers who have heated greenhouses will be able to grow full flowering seedlings of annuals.

Top Selling Flowers - Petunias

The most popular and best-selling in recent years is the hybrid petunia. Of the undersized large-flowered varieties (or rather hybrids), I would recommend the Limbo F1 variety series - the plants turn out to be very compact, with really large flowers of pure color. For several years now, petunia "Hit Parad F1" with large bright flowers has been in constant love among flower growers involved in growing seedlings. Petunia "Daddy F1" also sells well - its large flowers are decorated with bright veins.

The flowers of the still very rare petunia are very beautiful. But it is somewhat tall and its flowers are not resistant to adverse weather conditions, so warn buyers to plant the plant somewhere under a canopy. Despite certain shortcomings, there is always a demand for this new product.

Of the terry, the best petunias are Pirouette F1 and Sonata. The latter looks great in hanging pots. The ‘Wonder Wave F1 ″ variety series has been considered one of the most successful and popular ampel varieties of petunia so far. But last season, for the first time on the European flower market, ampelous petunia from the F1 Velvet series appeared (including in our country). It was grown by my friends and were delighted. And for the price of seeds, it is much more attractive than the "Wonder Wave F1". But inexpensive "Avalanche F1" is less in demand among buyers - its shoots are coarser and not very branchy.Therefore, it is better to grow it for personal use (for example, to decorate balconies), but for implementation in hanging baskets, still plant "Velvet F1" or "Wonder Wave F1".

Of the multi-flowered petunias, I would like to draw your special attention to Sonja Orchid F1 and Sonja Rose Star F1, these hybrids not only have an amazing color of flowers, but are also resistant to rain (no traces are visible on their flowers after raindrops, which is what most large-flowered petunias). In addition, these plants look very beautiful in hanging pots, forming lush hanging shoots up to 30 cm long, and in some cases they may well replace ampelous petunias.

The best-selling petunias are wine-red, purple, red, blue, pearl, wine-red with a white star and red with a white star, white-bordered varieties, as well as varieties with veins. There are buyers for petunia with a rare yellow color of flowers.

Posted in Floriculture. 4 March 2013

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Petunia (Petunia) is one of the most common flowers in flowerpots, flower beds and hanging baskets. This plant was first found in Uruguay in the vicinity of Montevideo in 1793. A little later, several dozen more species of petunias were discovered in South America. This flower became a godsend for breeders, and in 1834 the first hybrid petunia bloomed. Today, there are several dozen species and many varieties and hybrids of petunias, so it is easy to get confused in the complex taxonomy of this plant.

Petunia is a perennial. However, in culture, it is more often grown as an annual plant. Every year, seeds are sown in the spring, and in the fall, the fading petunia is sent to a humus heap or thrown into the trash. Many amateur flower growers believe that in the middle lane this is the simplest solution. In the southern regions, petunia is self-seeding.

At the beginning of autumn, I regretfully look at the petunias that continue to bloom, which are soon destined to be in a humus heap. They are poorly adapted to the autumn cold and frost, so their lifespan is predetermined. Beautiful plants do not have time to fully develop their potential over the summer. Even in the fall, a lot of vitality remains in them. Petunias are capable of becoming a mother plant from which strong stem cuttings can be cut. Or a flowering houseplant competing with exotic flowers.

We transfer petunia to the house

In nature, petunia is a perennial plant that can be used in its cultivation and reproduction. To do this, in the fall, while the cold snap and frost have not yet begun (petunias that fall under them often die), we select several specimens, free them from long shoots and cut off all the spoiled leaves. The remaining bush should be compact and short. Not more than 15 cm in height. Better below. Before you bring petunia into the room, you need to carefully examine its leaves (especially their underside) so that the whitefly and the testicles laid by it do not get into the house. The end of summer and the beginning of autumn is the time of the massive presence of this pest on cultivated and weed plants, but we often do not pay attention to the inconspicuous small whitefly. Until she appears on our indoor flowers.

If a whitefly or its eggs are found on the leaves of petunia, then urgent measures must be taken before bringing the pot with the plant into the house. The best place for him is a cold light windowsill, a veranda, a glazed loggia (balcony), a light basement, etc. We are not talking about specially equipped places and greenhouses, in which queen cells are grown with additional lighting and the necessary moisture.

It seems that at first petunia is thinking about how she will behave further. Sometimes it suddenly wakes up, gives new shoots and even blooms. Or it stops growing, hibernating until the end of winter.It is important to create conditions for petunias so that young shoots do not weaken the plant. No growth stimulants and fertilizers are used during this period. The exception is Zircon and Epin (only if necessary).

In March (sometimes from the end of February), the container with petunia must be moved to the brightest place. It must be cool (not lower than + 6 ° С). We establish watering and feeding. This mode allows the mother plant to grow enough so that full stem cuttings can be cut in April.

In winter, the condition of the petunia sometimes deteriorates sharply. There are several reasons: either it is powdery mildew and its consequences, whitefly, etc. Often the plant loses strength in an insufficiently bright and warm room. Many troubles are associated with waterlogging of the soil. If the leaves dry up and fall off, and the stems turn black or dry out, then this is a clear sign: the petunia feels very bad. Normally, only partial yellowing of the leaves.

Cutting as a simple breeding option for petunias

Petunia is beautifully cuttings. Many times in the summer I stuck a broken off flowering shoot into the soil, and it continued to live. This property is used by professionals and flower lovers, collecting "tribute" from the mother plants, in order to then propagate the variety they like. Cuttings are cut with and without a heel. The minimum cutting size is 2 - 3 pairs of leaves.

There are no special tricks for rooting cuttings. They are planted to a depth of about 1.5 - 2 cm in a container filled with loose fertile soil, covered with a jar and kept in the light. In order for the cuttings to lose less moisture, it is enough to leave just a couple of leaves. The lower pair of leaves should be completely removed, the upper leaves should be shortened by ½.

Care comes down to watering and airing. Condensation must not be allowed. A convenient mini-greenhouse is obtained from the upper part of a transparent plastic bottle, in the lid of which holes are made with a hot nail or drill. Tall transparent plastic cups with holes at the bottom can also be used as caps. But spraying cuttings with water must be treated with caution. Excessive dampness, rot and mold often appear from this procedure. Some amateur flower growers root petunia cuttings in jars of water.

The temperature at which rooting takes place is about 22 - 23 ° C. It is good if there is bottom heating. For example, a battery located close to a windowsill. The first leaves of young shoots appear very quickly. Without additional lighting or sunlight, they grow weak. Rooted cuttings are pinched, which causes further tillering. During the winter, the cutting, which began to root in August - September, turns into a beautiful flowering bush. It is looked after as a light-loving indoor plant.

You can try another way to keep petunias in winter. I mastered it quite by accident. It turned out that my petunia by August grew into such huge bushes that they covered other flowers and took up too much space in the flower garden. I shortened them and put the bouquet of tops into a flower pot with garden soil. She put the pot near the house and from time to time watered the "bouquet" from a watering can. Petunia quickly rose, began to grow and continued to bloom. In September, I put the pot on a glazed loggia. In winter, I sprayed petunia several times with a highly diluted solution of cheap (!) Washing powder. It can be replaced with soda ash. I didn't want to use chemistry. This preventive measure made it possible to avoid powdery mildew, a bloom of which often appears in the autumn-winter period and destroys petunias. I cut off most of the buds so as not to weaken the plant. Individual flowers were left "for beauty." It would be possible to leave all the flowers and buds, but for this it would be necessary to organize a stronger backlight.

In May, I shortened some of the elongated shoots of the "bouquet", having received a lot of fresh cuttings. The overgrown petunia (the former "bouquet") was divided into several parts and transplanted into a flower garden. Petunia grows quickly and does not like tightness, so it is better to plant its rooted cuttings "for growth".

Conclusion

In winter, petunia can be preserved as a mother plant for further rooting of its cuttings. Grown from rooted cuttings (cuttings are carried out in August - September), petunia becomes an elegant flowering houseplant, which can later be transplanted into a flower garden, flowerpot or hanging basket and cut its shoots. The main problem associated with the health of petunias in winter is powdery mildew. But this is already a consequence of some oversights in agricultural technology.

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