Multifaceted in its color scheme, the garden beauty petunia is able to decorate any place. On the balcony, window sill, in the flowerbed of your summer cottage or garden, at the entrance of the house - petunia will everywhere look elegant, to the place. In addition to this, this annual is very unpretentious, and even a novice amateur gardener can master growing petunias from seeds at home.
There are a great variety of varieties, varieties of this flower, however, all of them (bushy or flowing cascade) are distinguished by an indescribable delicate aroma, which becomes even stronger by the evening. If you decide to decorate your garden with petunias, then you need to take care of the seedlings in advance.
Petunia - growing and care at home
If you can provide seedlings with additional highlighting, then you can sow seeds already in early February. Since in winter daylight hours are very short, this adversely affects the germination of sprouts. But if you have fluorescent lamps (for example, tubular fluorescent lamps LD-60), then you can safely get to work. It is worth considering that ordinary lamps are not suitable for seedlings - they provoke overheating of the sprouts, contribute to the extension of the stems.
Before growing petunia from seeds, take care of the presence of light, loose soil saturated with micronutrients. You can use ready-made purchased soil, or you can mix the turf land itself, mature (rotted) manure, peat (equal parts), adding a little sand to the resulting mixture.
The top of the soil on which the seeds will be sown must be sieved. The soil itself needs to be shed well just before landing. Petunia seeds are mixed with sand, evenly poured over the soil, irrigated from a spray bottle, covered with plastic wrap to create a mini-greenhouse. The temperature for seedlings should be at least 20-25ºC, otherwise the seeds simply will not sprout.
The first shoots appear in a week. This is the period when they need to be surrounded by increased attention. Daily irrigation (preferably two times), ventilation are mandatory. It is important for brittle sprouts to provide proper hydration, but care must be taken to ensure that there is no excessive moisture. To prevent seedlings from contracting a “black leg” (a common disease of seedlings), daily remove accumulated condensate on the protective coating of the mini-greenhouse.
If you periodically arrange irrigation “baths” for sprouts from a weakly colored potassium permanganate solution, then provide additional protection for your petunia. When the seedlings will delight you with the first pair of cotyledon leaves, you can remove the protective film, add a little sand on top of the soil, and water less often.
When the seeds are of good quality, correctly collected, stored, the seedlings are dense, friendly. However, there are situations when the seed can fail: if after two weeks there are no results, then one should not expect the appearance of good seedlings. This factor must be taken into account in order not to lose time, strength.
Growing petunia from seeds at home necessarily involves picking. An exception is the method when peat tablets are used when growing seedlings. After the sprouts gain strength, acquire five to six full leaves, they can be planted in separate containers. This process is called picking, it must be done very carefully so as not to damage the fragile root system.
From this time, seedlings need to be accustomed to periodic hardening. At first, 10-15 minutes of plants staying where it is cool - 10-15ºC - with a subsequent increase in time will be enough.
If you want future bushes of petunias to be lush, densely branched, then be sure to pinch (you can do it more than once). To do this, crop the stem growth point at the level of about the 5th leaf - this technique provokes the growth of new shoots from the axils of the remaining leaves.
When the seedlings gain strength, maybe. even give the first flowers, petunia can be planted on a flower bed.
Cutting petunias
Cuttings are an excellent, effortless way to propagate this flower. A high percentage of rooting, simple maintenance of the bushes are the advantages of this method.
To do this, cut off the upper cuttings from a full-fledged, strong plant, about 10-12 cm long. It is worth mentioning that on this occasion the opinions of experienced gardeners are divided, as some advise to select side shoots that are located at the root of the plant for cuttings. It is worth noting that both options work well, give subsequently a positive result.
Propagation by cuttings of petunias is carried out closer to the fall (end of August-September). The lower leaves are removed from the segments of the stem, and they themselves are briefly immersed in a container with a solution of a biostimulating drug, for example, Kornevin. After this, the cuttings are planted in glasses, shade them. The soil (or sand) where the cuttings were placed should always be moist. Pure vermiculite can also be used.
Roots of the shoots are formed already on the 7th or 10th day. After rooting, the cuttings can be transplanted - small pots with a diameter of 12-15 cm are just right. Here, petunia can survive the winter. Top dressing with complex fertilizers of rooted cuttings is very important.
How to save petunias until next year?
There are two ways to save petunia for the winter - a uterine bush or cuttings.
Adult plants will feel comfortable where there is enough light. The humidity level for them is also important. The ideal temperature for wintering is 10-15 ° C, if it is less, it’s not scary, the main thing is not to lower than 0 ° C. For this, plants need to be dug up, placed in pots before the onset of the first cold weather (September-November), the most optimal time for this is mid-August. All dried, spoiled leaves should be removed. You can do it more radically - cut all branches to 10-12 cm. To comfortably survive the winter, it is enough to water the petunia 2 or 3 times a month.
If everything is done correctly, then, starting in mid-February, you will be able to admire the flowers. With the advent of color, you can enter mineral dressings, more frequent watering. In spring, bushes land on the street. They again delight you with their beauty and aroma.
Also, petunia can be preserved for the winter by grafting - propagating and growing new young plants. According to the reviews of experienced gardeners, young petunias give more abundant flowering than second-year bushes.
Cutting the plant for the winter period is better towards the end of summer / beginning of autumn, while the vital activity of the petunia has not yet slowed down. The process of cutting the cuttings, their rooting is already described above. Care of cuttings can be corrected by some additions: pruning leaves, installing a vapor barrier.
For better development, the cut stems are covered with a plastic glass with holes made on top (for ventilation). Leaves can be cut with scissors in half - this will reduce moisture loss. Remember to ventilate the mini-greenhouses daily.
After about two weeks, new shoots will begin to appear from the axils of the Chubuk - this is a signal that the rooting was successful. After this, the vapor barriers are removed, and subsequent actions with cuttings are no different from standard seedling care.
Such cuttings begin to bloom closer to the end of winter or with the beginning of the calendar spring. When stable heat occurs (+ 10-12 ° C), plants are planted in areas.
Ampelic Petunia
Any variety of petunias is beautiful in its own way, but it is ampelous varieties that are considered the most luxurious, the most popular. They differ from bushy species in that ampelous petunia has long stems, which, when hanging down, form “waterfalls” of flowers. Such plants are planted in hanging pots, pots or fixed on metal grids, inventing a variety of floral designs.
If ampelous petunia is provided with appropriate care, then the length of its branches can reach 2 meters. However, meter-long shoots are the norm for middle-range plants.
Care for ampel varieties - regular watering, top dressing. If very hot days come, then a two-time watering is recommended. There is one point here - when watering suspended flowers, a full-fledged impregnation of an earthen coma with moisture is not always carried out. This happens because budding gardeners want to avoid the unattractive puddles on the floor under the pots. Such partial watering leads to drying out of the lower layer (while the upper one remains moist), due to which the roots do not get proper saturation with water. This nuance leads to inhibition of plant development, loss of decorativeness.
For the best result, it is advisable to completely immerse the containers with petunia in water once every 7 days, so that the soil will be completely soaked. Just as with bush varieties, it is necessary to avoid excessive waterlogging, observe the golden mean - the soil should be moistened, but not very. However, if you initially add hydrogel to the soil for ampelous petunias, you can greatly reduce the frequency of watering.
It is recommended to feed ampelous petunia with phosphorus or potassium fertilizers (once in 7 days). This process can not be combined with the main watering - this can lead to burns, even to the death of the plant. It is better to water the petunia in the morning, and closer to dinner, top dressing on moistened soil.
Pinching is a prerequisite for ampelous varieties, it must be done at least once in 7 days. Withered flowers, ovaries with seed bolls need to be removed so that the plant’s forces go to the laying of new inflorescences, and not to the formation of seeds.
Petunia ampelous and cascading - difference
Ampelic petunia is also called cascading, but sometimes a controversial situation arises with the definition of this sortogroup. Some gardeners claim that in cascading petunias, when growing, the branches are directed upwards, and only then they go down. And in ampelous shoots fall down, the flowers have a slightly smaller size.
Therefore, this factor can be considered as an intermediate stage of plant development - until the branches have gained strength, weight, they stand upright. The size of the flower can also be determined by the variety, shape - petunias have both small and large flowers. Looking through multiple photos, videos, it is impossible to distinguish ampelous petunia from cascading, based on this, it is permissible to apply both names to the same species.
Whether you choose ampelous petunia or prefer bush - you need to be responsible for all stages of breeding.
Growing petunia from seeds at home is only the first step of this informative, beautiful hobby that can make your summer house a subject of pride, admiration.