Petunia is a tropical plant that canmeet in countries such as Uruguay, Brazil, Argentina, some species have been seen in North America. Petunia belongs to the number of perennials and is a relative of tobacco. The plant got into the culture in the eighteenth century, and breeders started breeding hybrids about a hundred years ago. Now this flower is especially popular as a balcony plant. It is decorated with verandas, terraces and grown on flower beds. What is the secret of popularity? In surprisingly beautiful colors and simplicity of cultivation.
Description
Petunia refers to bushy plants, stemswhich can be spread along the ground, but can have an erect form. The maximum height of this plant is seventy centimeters. The stems and branches of petunia are covered with oval leaves no more than twelve centimeters in diameter. They can have a dark green or just a green tint, as well as stems, are pubescent. As for the flowers, they have the shape of a funnel and are located one by one on thin peduncles. Color can be very diverse, depending on the variety. There are not only monochrome flowers, but also with a combination of several shades.
There is a petunia and a fruit where the seeds are stored.If you plan to grow petunia on a balcony, then you need seeds of a garden hybrid, which was bred by breeders from wild rose or violet petunia. This flower begins the flowering period in July and does not end before the first frost. Although petunia is considered a perennial plant, in culture it is grown as an annual.
Cultivation from seeds
Perhaps, every gardener wants to learn all the secretsgrowing petunias from seeds, and it's not as difficult as some might think. You can plant seeds for seedlings as early as the end of February, but only on condition that you have the opportunity to artificially prolong the light day. However, most gardeners start growing petunia seedlings no earlier than mid-March.
When planting, save the planting material is notcosts, as petunias need a long light day, but at such a time of the year such conditions are difficult to ensure. In this regard, the seed germination is not too high.
Before landing, choose a good soil.it should be sufficiently nutritious, loose and light, so that the shoots can be easier to break through. You can buy a substrate in a special store, or you can prepare it yourself. To do this you will need:
- Leafy or turfy ground is two parts.
- Overripe humus - two parts.
- Peat - two parts.
- Sand is one part.
A layer of land that will be located on top,it is necessary to sift, only so the seeds can lie on it evenly. Soil, in which you plan to plant the seeds of petunia, a day before planting should be fairly abundantly watered.
Conditions for germination
Seeds for planting are mixed with dry sand anddistribute evenly over the surface of the substrate. It is not necessary to deepen them, it is enough just to smoothly level the soil surface. And also pour the seedlings, it is better to use the sprayer, so as not to "drown" the planting material. After watering, the container with seeds is covered with a dense oilcloth or glass to create a greenhouse effect. The seeds germinate in the room at a temperature of at least twenty-three degrees.
In a week you will be able to observe the appearancefirst shoots. For such petunia growing conditions are that they need to be opened twice a day for ventilation and at the same time sprayed with water. During this period it is very important that the humidity of the air is high, but at the same time there is a risk that the plants can get a "black leg". To prevent this, make sure that no condensation appears on the film or glass, and as soon as you find it, immediately turn the glass over to the other side, and it is recommended to wipe the film.
The glass is removed only when on the seedlings will appear one real, strengthened leaflet. And also at this moment watering is reduced, and the top layer of the soil is covered with dry sand.
Seedling
Выращивание петунии в домашних условиях obligatory spiking of her sprouts. This procedure is carried out only when four genuine leaflets appear on the shoots. Beginning of picking, without wetting the soil preliminarily, is strictly forbidden, since it is possible to damage the tender roots and stems.
Заранее подготовьте торфяные горшочки, которые will be filled with a substrate that has the same composition as the previous one. Seedling gently pride with a stick and pull out a leaf. Try to do everything without unnecessary movements, so that the earth's clod of earth does not fall off. Cultivation of petunia in a peat tablet or pot starts with the fact that the dipped seedling is covered for a few days with paper.
Care of seedlings
Now for the gardener comes the most responsiblemoment. It is at this stage that the cultivation of petunia (photo attached) requires special attention. The main thing to watch out for is the moisture content of the soil. It must always be in a state of moderate humidity and in no case should it be allowed to dry out. It is impossible to say exactly how many times it will be necessary to water the saplings, since several factors influence this. It is better if, as a result of your own observations, you determine the frequency yourself. After each watering, gently loosen the soil around the petunias.
Для подкормки вам понадобятся внекорневые и root fertilizers that must be alternated. The first fertilizer is applied a week after the pick. There are many complex fertilizers that can be used to fertilize petunias. Twenty-five grams of any fertilizer you choose must be diluted in ten liters of water.
Before planting seedlings in the openground, you need to prepare it for life on the street. To do this, you can take out the pots of seedlings for a while on the street or, a few days before planting, transfer the flowers to a cooler room. Depending on the variety, the flowers will bloom in two or three months.
Landing time
Usually growing petunias at home(photo in the article) ends up being planted in open ground. Choose for this fertile sandy or loamy soil. The plant will be very grateful to the gardener who adds humus or compost to the soil before planting. But if there are no such components, it is better not to add anything at all. Because some growers replace compost with manure, and it contributes to the development of various fungal diseases.
Petunia will feel good only onthe area where the sunlight will constantly fall. Planting petunias on the street is possible only when you are sure that there are no night frosts. Usually, this is the middle of May. Try to calculate the time so that the time of disembarkation fell in the evening or at least on a cloudy day.
Landing technology
Some gardeners prefer to plant petunias that are already in bloom. Such plants usually bloom until November. Because of the small size of the flower, his place in the flowerbed is a curb.
As for the transplanting, beforeremoving seedlings from pots, you need to moisten the soil well. This is necessary in order to make it easier to pull out a flower, do not damage the stem and keep an earthen ball on the roots, with which the petunia is sent to open ground. Bushes are placed at a distance of thirty centimeters from each other. After planting, the plants need to be watered well, and the next day, mulch the soil surface.
How to care
Growing and caring for petunia does not requiregardener no supernatural skills, but some rules still need to learn. Adult petunia can tolerate extreme heat and drought quite well, but this does not mean that you can forget about watering. Just the opposite. Moreover, large-flowered varieties need a lot of water, small-flowered require a little less moisture, but there is a need to regularly make it.
Petunia has very delicate flowers, and thereforewatering it is necessary only under the root, because the water streams can damage the inflorescences. The next day after watering is also very important, since it is necessary to loosen the soil so that a crust does not form on its surface, and remove the existing weeds. But all these moments are not as important as top dressing.
Feeding
From fertilizer directly dependshow beautiful your petunia will bloom. The first fertilizers can be applied within a week after the seedlings have been planted in open ground. It is recommended to use complex fertilizers with a high content of potassium. Bring them every ten days until mid-August. The use of organic fertilizers is also allowed, but not often. The best choice would be a mullein infusion. The use of fresh manure is strictly prohibited, as it contributes to the beginning of the process of decay.
Reproduction by cuttings
Everyone is accustomed to the fact that petunia multipliesseeds, but there is a second way - grafting. It is used not for all varieties, but only for terry, ampelous and mini-petunias. The process of reproduction of the first can only begin with the onset of spring, but the two remaining species are suitable for year-round reproduction.
Для черенкования вам подойдет только маточная petunia, which cut the top, where there should be at least four leaves. But before disembarking, their number is reduced to two, and yes even shortened by half. Planted cuttings can only be in a substrate that is used for planting seeds. But in this case, the top still needs to be filled with a two-centimeter layer of sand impregnated with a solution of the fungicide. Each cutting must be at a distance of two centimeters from the next; after disembarking, the container must be covered with glass. In this case, there is no need for growth stimulants, however, cut cuttings should be immediately placed in the substrate, since the ability to root they decrease per minute.
Pay special attention to the soil that is constantlyshould be wet. It is advisable that you spray the cuttings from the sprayer twice a day, but keep the air humidity under control. Because, if you dilute the dampness there, then there is a risk of mold or "black leg". Within two weeks, the cuttings are guaranteed to take root, if, of course, you can provide them with the right care. When you are sure that the seedlings already have rather large roots (about one and a half centimeters), they can be transplanted into separate pots with a diameter of five centimeters. When the seedlings will be on five of these healthy leaves, they should pinch so that the bushes become more magnificent. A cut-off cuttings can also be used for breeding. Pinching can be repeated again, but not earlier than two weeks after disembarkation.
After forty five days, another one is held.transfer. On this, choose pots with a diameter of thirteen centimeters. In the rest, the conditions for growing seedlings of petunia from cuttings do not differ from seed.
Diseases and pests
If you follow all the recommendations regardingplant care, then pests and diseases will not disturb your flowers, but no one is immune from this. It happens that petunia leaves start to turn yellow or dry. These are obvious signs of diseases such as late blight, blackleg and others. You can fight them with the help of treatment with drugs that can be purchased in a special store.
Various pests can also occur:aphid, spider slug mite, thrips. Slugs are afraid of the smell of bleach, so it is best to place a few jars of it between the beds. Bordeaux liquid or drugs purchased in stores can declare the fight against the rest of the insects.
The best prevention of all these problems is the correct course for the plants.
How to collect seeds
Look in advance at the flowers and tick ongarden those plants that you would like to see in the flowerbed next year. Lower buds are more suitable for collecting seeds, since they ripen more quickly. From the moment of bud formation to the full maturity of the seeds, approximately two months will pass.
Помните, что семена у петунии очень мелкие.You can simply cut them together with the box and store until the moment of disembarkation, but it will be better if you shake them out of the box and place them in separate bags. If you store planting material in a dry and warm place, then it will not lose its germination for four years.
Conclusion
As you can see growing petunias at homeconditions (photos of seedlings attached) is not so difficult. If you learn a few mandatory rules, then you will certainly succeed. Petunia has always been and will be an ornament to any flower bed. Moreover, it can be planted not only in the open field, but also on the balcony, veranda and even in the house. And the technology of cultivation in any place is absolutely the same.
