It is not for nothing that both landscape designers and ordinary gardeners love Lobelia. Properly planted lobelia can radically change appearance the entire garden plot. It is great for decorating ridges and flowerpots, and is used to create alpine slides. At the same time, growing this plant yourself from seeds is not at all difficult. For everything to work out, you need to know how and when to plant lobelia seedlings.
The term “Lobelia” unites a genus of semi-shrub, herbaceous and shrubby plants, among which there are both annuals and perennials - about 300 species in total. They belong to the Campanulaceae family, although now botanists classify them as a separate subfamily Lobeliaceae. It is interesting that in gardening and landscape design Only about 20 species are used.
Lobelias are native to the southern part of the African continent, but now they grow almost everywhere. In South Africa this plant is a perennial, but in Russia and other temperate countries it is usually grown as an annual.
Lobelia is a small spherical shrub, entirely covered with small and graceful bell flowers - no more than 2 cm in diameter. The flowers are axillary, located on short peduncles. They bloom so luxuriantly that they even cover the green leaves of the plant. The flowers are usually white, blue, blue, purple or pink. The flowering period lasts throughout the summer, starting in June. Fruit capsules produce seeds with very good performance germination, which lasts up to 3 years.
The stems are low - up to 20 cm, although selection has made it possible to obtain plants that grow up to 2 meters in height. They branch very luxuriantly, completely covered with small lanceolate leaves.
Lobelia is used in landscape design to decorate flower beds and ridges; it is often planted along the contour of flower beds and can set the background alpine slide. Looks very good in hanging planters or in flowerpots, is used to create flower carpets, as it has low stems. It has been used in floriculture and gardening for more than 100 years.
Pay attention! Together with lobelia, verbena, pelargonium, salvia and many other plants look good in the flowerbed.
Despite the fact that lobelia in Russia is considered an annual, it can be transplanted into pots in the fall and taken into the house. And next summer plant it in the flowerbed again. This makes it easy to turn an annual into a perennial. Lobelia overwinters well, although in an apartment it usually stops developing in anticipation of warmer weather.
Lobelia is rightfully considered one of the most important crops in landscape design, because it can decorate any flower bed. In addition, it is not capricious, unpretentious and can be easily grown from seeds at home.
Prices for lobelia seeds
lobelia seeds
Sowing time
Lobelia reproduces by seeds - that’s why you should grow it for your summer cottage it will have to be one of them. Since it grows and develops extremely slowly, you need to sow it for seedlings while there is snow outside if you want to get flowering plants at the beginning of summer.
Lobelia blooms no earlier than 8-10 weeks after sowing - this figure will allow you to calculate the approximate timing of this procedure. As a rule, you need to ensure that the seeds have already begun to germinate no later than April. In general, the sowing period for lobelia seeds varies from February to April, depending on the region where these flowers are planned to be used.
Note! Some sow lobelia even in January - this is done in order to obtain beautiful bush at the very beginning of summer, when the development of flower beds is just beginning. This will also allow you to immediately design borders along garden paths.
The difficulty in growing lobelia for seedlings is the following: since the crop is sown very early, the daylight hours are still too short. Therefore, it is important to illuminate the seedlings using lamps and lamps.
Attention! There is an opinion among gardeners that lobelia seeds sown in March germinate earlier and quickly catch up with seedlings obtained from sowing in February. You can check if this is actually true.
Soil and containers for lobelia
Before opening packages of lobelia seeds, you should carefully prepare the containers for planting and the soil in which the seeds will be sown. To please flowers, it must be airy, loose, and neutral in pH. Typically, those new to the world of gardening use potting soil purchased from gardening stores, but you can also make your own.
A soil mixture that includes coarse river sand (1 part), humus (2 parts), peat (2 parts) and turf (2 parts) is ideal as a substrate for cultivating lobelia. A little dolomite flour is added to the soil to reduce acidity. Lobelia also germinates well on soil created in the following way: mix vermiculite, humus and river sand or soil from the garden, sand and vermiculite. Lobelia seedlings will like both mixtures.
Pay attention! Not all gardeners advocate that organic matter must be added to the soil for lobelia. The fact is that with an abundance of humus in the mixture, the green part of the plants will grow, but flowering will be scanty.
They have become very popular recently. They will save you from the need to find containers for germinating seeds and picking seedlings, and you can plant young lobelias in the ground without removing them from the substrate. The most important thing is to remove the packaging film from the tablet before disembarking it for permanent residence.
Typically, wooden or plastic boxes. You can also use food jars. Any containers should be washed thoroughly with soap and water or soda. It is very convenient to sow seeds and then there will be no need to pick out small sprouts. Also, for example, it is good to use yogurt cups or small jars of sour cream.
The original way- lobelia seedlings in eggshells
Attention! Don’t forget to make drainage holes in each container for seedlings, otherwise excess moisture will accumulate in the container and the ground will become waterlogged. In a plastic container, drainage is most conveniently done with a thick nail heated over a fire.
Any soil, whether from a summer cottage or from a store, should be disinfected before use. It can be calcined in the oven, heated by steam (steamed), poured with boiling water or a weak solution of a fungicide. You can also use a hot solution of potassium permanganate in a rich color. After the soil has been spilled, it is allowed to cool and dry.
Prices for peat tablets
We sow lobelia
Often the sowing of seeds depends on the packaging in which they are produced by the manufacturer.
- Typically, lobelia seeds are produced in paper bags. In this case, sowing is carried out in the traditional and most in a simple way, that is, simply into the ground. It is convenient to first mix the seeds with sand and, pouring them onto a sheet of paper, gently sprinkle them on the surface of the earth.
Lobelia seeds are very small, 1 gram contains about 45 thousand. How to sow them in the traditional way?
Table. We sow lobelia traditionally.
| Steps, photo | Description of actions |
|---|---|
| First of all, the seedling boxes are filled with soil. The soil is compacted and sprayed with fungicides or potassium permanganate. |
| Lobelia seeds are poured onto a piece of paper and mixed with fine sand. Then, gently tapping the tilted sheet with your finger, you need to scatter the mixture over the surface of the wet soil in an even layer. They should not be buried in the soil. |
| Labels are glued or placed on each container with seedlings, on which the name of the crop and the date of sowing are written. |
| The seeds are covered with a sheet of glass or polyethylene and sprayed with a spray bottle a couple of times daily. It would be good if immediately after sowing the seeds it would be possible to spray them with a growth stimulator. The container with seedlings is removed to a shaded, warm place (18-20 degrees), after the first shoots it is transferred to the light. The first shoots will appear in about 6 days. |
If we talk about the middle zone, then it is preferable to grow watermelons here (as well as some other crops - for example, melon) through seedlings. In reality, there is nothing complicated in this process, the main thing is to know and how to do it correctly.
Another way to sow
You can sow lobelia seedlings in another way, which has been very popular lately. Growing “Moscow style” at first saves space in the house and allows you to germinate even capricious crops. This method is better known as. To do this you will need seeds, polyethylene, a glass, water and the paper itself.
Table. Germination of lobelia seeds in rolls.
| Steps, photo | Description of actions |
|---|---|
| Take a strip of polyethylene (or a plastic bag), from which a strip about 10 cm wide is made. 2-3 layers of toilet paper are laid out on top of the polyethylene. |
| All paper is wetted with water from a syringe or spray bottle. |
| Lobelia seeds are laid out on the surface of the paper at a distance of 2-4 cm. At the same time, they recede only 1.5 cm from the edge of the strip. When laying out the seeds, it is convenient to use tweezers from the manicure set. |
| The seeds laid in a row are covered with a strip of paper. |
| The resulting workpiece is rolled into a neat roll, which is secured with a thin elastic band. At this stage, a tag with the name of the variety and the date of sowing is glued to the film. |
| 3-4 cm of water is poured into a plastic glass, a roll of seeds is placed there, the entire container is covered with a bag to keep warm. After the first shoots appear, the plants can be fed by adding a little fertilizer to the water. |
| Young lobelias grown in this way are easy to pick. As soon as the first leaves appear, the roll is rolled out and the plants, along with a piece of paper, are cut off from the entire strip. Those seeds that have not yet sprouted can be wrapped back in cellophane and left in a glass. |
| The sprouts are picked 1 piece at a time along with paper into separate containers. |
Video - Planting lobelia for seedlings
Seedling care
In order for fragile and delicate lobelia seedlings to turn into strong plants, it is important to properly care for the seedlings. There are certain difficulties here, mainly associated with the small size of the sprouts.
Watering is done as the soil dries. You should not overwater lobelia seedlings, as this may cause them to get sick. But from a lack of water, the leaves quickly curl and wither, so drought is much more dangerous for them than waterlogging. It is important to water lobelia with settled water. room temperature. The most convenient way to do this is with a spray bottle or syringe, carefully applying water right to the root.
For lobelia seedlings, like other seedlings, ventilation is also important. The container where the seedlings are located should be opened slightly for a while every day. This will allow the plants to ventilate and at the same time get used to outdoor rather than greenhouse conditions.
Pay attention! The optimal temperature for lobelia seedlings is +13-17 degrees.
Light is important for seedlings, which is why winter time(after the first shoots have appeared) the lobelia is illuminated with lamps. Otherwise, the plants will begin to stretch towards the light source and bend.
At first, lobelia is in no hurry to grow - during the first 4 weeks, the sprouts increase in size slightly. But as soon as the seedlings reach 4 cm in height, they can already be planted in individual containers. Due to the tiny size of the seedlings, it is most convenient to plant them in bushes of 3-4 pieces. It is recommended to pick using a teaspoon or tweezers.
After diving, as soon as the sprouts stretch up to 7 cm, the tops are pinched. This is necessary for the formation of a bush.
Typically, lobelia begins to bloom while still sitting in “children’s” pots. It is transplanted into open ground when the danger of frost has passed (approximately the last two weeks of May). It is advisable to choose a well-lit place to form a lobelia flower bed. The culture prefers sandy loam and loam. The bushes are placed at a distance of at least 10-15 cm from each other.
This is how simple and easy it is to grow a charming lobelia, which will certainly become a real decoration of your garden. Her role cannot be underestimated - it is thanks to these wonderful little but lush bushes and sometimes it is possible to create that very atmosphere of completeness and completeness of a flower bed.
Lobelia seeds are very small, almost dust-like - 1 gram contains from 30,000 to 50,000! They are sown for seedlings at home - in the second half of March. Granulated seeds in the form of balls or sausages, which contain from 5 to 8 lobelia seeds, are sown immediately in cassettes, one per cell, in a small depression, which significantly reduces labor costs for picking.
For sowing, use purchased soil for growing flower seedlings or a mixture prepared independently in the fall, consisting of 2 parts of turf (or well-cultivated garden) soil, 2 parts of humus or compost, 2 parts of loose non-acidic peat and 1 part of river sand. The acidity of such a mixture should be close to neutral; if the acidity is high, lime or dolomite flour is added to it. The mixture is sifted through a garden sieve (screen) and stored in bags in a barn or closed greenhouse.
1. A couple of days before sowing, pour the soil into boxes and spill it with a fungicide solution.
2. To prevent seedlings from getting blackleg disease, it is advisable to dust the seeds with a fungicide by adding a little powder (at the tip of the label) and then shake the bag slightly, closing it and moving it away from your face.
3. When the soil dries and becomes slightly moist, carefully level it, lightly compact it with a board or wide ruler and scatter the seeds over the surface. More leveled crops are obtained if the seeds are pre-mixed with fine dry sand.
4. We install labels indicating the crop, variety and sowing date.
5. Do not sprinkle the seeds on top, cover the box with glass and spray it with water from a sprayer 1-2 times a day. You can add a light pink solution of potassium permanganate to the water. Immediately after sowing, the seeds can be sprayed once with a solution of a growth stimulator ( Epin, Zircon). It is advisable to turn the glass over 1-2 times a day so that condensation does not form above the seeds. The optimal temperature for germinating lobelia seeds is 18-20°C. After 4-6 days, as soon as the seedlings appear, move them to bright light and coolness. At the end of March - April, this could be a well-lit window sill, a table on a warm loggia. At this time, it is very important not to overdo it with watering. At the first signs of disease, diseased plants should be immediately removed and the soil should be treated with a fungicide.
6. After 2-3 weeks, we plant the seedlings into pots with a diameter of 5 cm. Lobelia seedlings match the seeds - very small and tender. As a rule, a bunch of several seedlings is planted in one hole. This is done with a thin diving stick (you can use a thin felt-tip pen): first, with the stick, we make a shallow hole in the center of the pot, then we lower the roots of the plants there and carefully, with our fingers, press the soil around the roots.
7. After picking, we feed the seedlings once a week with complex water-soluble mineral fertilizers low concentration. Watering is moderate, but the soil should not be allowed to dry out to the entire depth of the pot. To prevent plant diseases from fungal and viral diseases, the surface of the soil in pots should be loose and not too damp. At first, you can use a syringe for watering. Seedlings need additional light in the evenings and on cloudy days to form good roots and develop strong seedlings.
Plants are planted in open ground in the second half of May at a distance of 10-15 cm from each other, or several plants in pots, containers, garden vases or hanging baskets - more densely, at a distance of 7-9 cm. Lobelia flowering begins in seedlings and continues until frost.
This flower is stunning, very attractive, and can be used to decorate and make any flower bed original. Growing lobelia is a fascinating activity, very popular in our country among many gardeners. Growing lobelia from seeds at home is quite a difficult job, requiring certain knowledge and skills. But if you follow the recommendations and rules for care and propagation, then there will be many flowers on the plant, and the lobelia will not get sick.
The main advantage of lobelia is its very long lasting and lush flowering. This plant also has very beautiful leaves, although they are quite small, but very dense. Thanks to the leaves, a lush crown is formed, with fresh look, against this green background many small, delicate and attractive flowers look very beautiful.
Nowadays there are more than 300 different types this flower. Growing lobelia from seeds is not possible for every species of this plant, most often in our country the hedgehog lobelia is grown. Although other varieties of this flower are not very difficult to propagate. Caring for lobelia and growing it from seeds at home is applicable for a beautiful, ampelous, strong and delicate variety of this flower. The seeds of this plant are not planted immediately in open ground; lobelia seedlings must be grown first.
Collection of seed material
Lobelia seeds ripen in almost any climate. Seed collection should be done only after the lobelia bushes wither, usually in the fall, when the boxes turn yellow. There is no need to shake out the seeds from these boxes; the fruits must be cut into a container and the seeds removed in the room, since the seeds are very light and the wind can very quickly spread them throughout the area. To prevent spontaneous spillage of seeds, some gardeners first tie the boxes with loose fabric.
It is quite difficult to plant the seeds because they are very small. In stores you can sometimes see granulated seeds for sale; they are much easier to plant; such granules make a nest of three or even five lobelias. When purchasing seeds in a store, you should definitely familiarize yourself with their growth form, because there are ampelous and bushy lobelia. If a gardener plans to plant lobelia in partial shade, then it is better to give preference to modern hybrids and varietal mixtures that do not need a lot of light to live. Many beginning flower growers are very concerned important issue: how to grow lobelia from seeds? To do this, you first need to select correct soil and a container for planting.
Substrate and container for flower propagation
Lobelia seedlings at home are best grown in not very deep and low containers, you can take wooden boxes or any containers whose height is a maximum of 6 centimeters. If you will be growing seeds in granules, you can use cassettes specifically designed for seedlings.
Some people ask why the seedlings are not growing? It is advisable to grow lobelia flowers in a nutritious, high-quality substrate that is loose and well-permeable to air and moisture. Many people prefer to purchase ready-made soil in the store for growing lobelia, and some gardeners mix garden soil, sand and vermiculite. If the soil is prepared independently, then humus cannot be added to it. It is advisable to disinfect the mixture; to do this, it can be treated with a store-bought solution, or you can pour boiling water or a weak manganese solution to kill bacteria and protect the lobelia from diseases.
When and how to sow seeds
Many people wonder when to plant lobelia? The best time The month for planting seeds is March or the first days of April. In order for lobelia to bloom earlier, some start sowing seeds at the end of February. Do not plant later than mid-April. This flower It will bloom within two to three months after planting the seeds.
Each lobelia seed is very small in size, so gardeners mix the seeds with sand before planting. Or you can use another method - plant several seeds at a time and attach them to the wet tip of a toothpick or match. This method will take much longer to plant lobelia. It is much more convenient to work with granulated seeds, which can be conveniently placed with your fingers in separate cups or cells.
How is sowing done?
- The box or cassette must be filled with soil, which does not need to be compacted.
- There is no need to water the substrate. Seeds mixed with sand are carefully distributed over the surface of the earth; seeds should not be allowed to accumulate in one place; they must be distributed evenly over the entire area.
- Spray the soil with a spray bottle. There is no need to cover the seeds with soil on top.
- After sowing, you need to cover the container with lobelia seeds with a piece of glass or film. Once or twice a day it is necessary to ventilate the seeds by opening the mini-greenhouse.
Favorable conditions for germination
In order for lobelia seedlings to sprout and stretch as quickly as possible, they need as much bright light as possible. Many people wonder why lobelia doesn’t grow? Because the temperature in the room should be in the range of 18-22 degrees Celsius. We must not forget about ventilating the seedlings. In addition, every day you need to monitor the soil moisture, which should only be moistened with a spray bottle.
With enough light and a suitable temperature, the first shoots usually appear after 10-20 days, but if the conditions for germinating seeds are unsatisfactory, then the shoots will appear later.
Growing flowers
Not experienced flower growers It is believed that lobelia should be grown under the same conditions as seeds are germinated. However, this is not at all true. As soon as the first shoots appear, you must remove the film or glass and place the container with the seeds in the room where the temperature is 10-15 degrees and no more. If it is not possible to reduce the temperature, then you need to moisten the substrate every day; sometimes you have to spray it several times a day, but you should not over-moisten the soil so that it is not too damp. Growing sprouts should be done without picking for about 30-40 days, you need to wait until the second pair of leaves appears.
Dive
The late process of picking lobelia should be done after good hydration soil. It is necessary to very carefully separate 5-6 young plants with a small spatula or spoon and place them in bunches in 1 container. Some gardeners prefer to transplant lobelias into peat tablets or into special cups. This method is also suitable. If plants are planted in peat tablets, then diving is eliminated and is not necessary.
Caring for plants after a dive
After young lobelias have been transplanted, they require constant care. Immature plants do not tolerate both waterlogging and drought. If you water too much or place the container with seedlings in warm room, then the plants will develop a black leg, due to which they may die. Watering should be done in small quantities when the top layer of soil dries out.
Young lobelia needs to be fed 15 days after diving. Many people wonder: is it necessary to pinch lobelia? Experienced gardeners pinch the tops so that the bushes become denser in the future. You can, and even need to, pinch. Pinching stimulates the growth of side branches, so the plants become lush and attractive.
How to harden young plants
After diving, the seedlings can be immediately hardened; for this, young lobelias are taken outside to fresh air. The longer lobelia stays outside, the more resilient it will become, and will be able to withstand even frosts down to 2 degrees below zero without any problems.
Transplantation into open soil
Lobelia is usually transplanted into open ground by the end of May, when the nights are already quite warm. Many people ask why this flower does not grow in open ground? If the transplant is performed in April, the plants will grow slowly in open ground, and may even die due to night frosts.
Young lobelias should be planted at a distance of approximately 15 centimeters from each other. Flowers can be planted closer together in containers or pots for aesthetic appeal and lushness. You should always remember that lobelia is a light-loving plant that feels great and blooms beautifully in the open sun. In addition, after transplantation, constant care is required - sufficient watering of the plant and fertilizing.
If the soil dries out, young lobelias will stop developing and blooming. It is necessary to feed flowers in small quantities; usually flower growers fertilize once every 7-10 days, in small portions. At the end of flowering, the lobelia must be pruned.
Propagation using cuttings
Growing a flower this way is quite simple and fast. To do this, you need to cut several cuttings from the old bush, maximum 7 centimeters long. They need to be kept in water with a root growth stimulator for several days, after which the cuttings should be planted in a moist substrate consisting of equal amounts of sand and vermiculite.
The pot or box with cuttings should be covered with a transparent jar or bottle with a bottom. This greenhouse needs to be ventilated a couple of times a day. After about 15-20 days, the first roots will appear. Cuttings with roots can be planted in the ground after 40-50 days.
Pests, flower diseases
In summer, plants are attacked by several pests, the most common of which is aphids. If a flower is attacked by any pests, but it is not possible to determine exactly who exactly, then it is advisable to treat all the plants with a store-bought preparation against various pests, for example, Fitoverm, which is very effective. Ampoules of the drug must be diluted in water and the plants must be treated with this solution.
In addition to pests, flowers can be spoiled by any diseases. To make plants less sick, young seedlings need to be treated with a special antifungal agent (fungicide), so that lobelia will be resistant to rot in the future.
When a mosaic of spots appears on the leaves, this indicates viral disease. In this case, it is necessary to completely remove the bush. If the leaves begin to turn yellow and fall off, they need to be removed and burned so that the disease does not spread to other bushes. When all the conditions for growing and caring for lobelia are met, the plants very rarely get sick, look attractive and bloom luxuriantly.
The amazingly beautiful lobelia flower does not require complicated planting or care.
Lobelia: plant description
is an annual, and with certain care, perennial shrub or herbaceous plant. It belongs to the lobeliaceae family, although some prefer to call it bellflower. The flower grows into a compact spherical bush 10–20 cm high. Some varieties of the plant can reach one and a half meters in length.
Bushiness is achieved due to the fact that thin stems begin to branch at the base. Thin, they are densely strewn with small leaves, while the flowers are held on short stalks. The inflorescences reach 2 cm in diameter and can be blue, violet, dark blue, purple or white.
Did you know? The plant was named in honor of the Dutch botanist and director of the Royal Botanical Garden under James I, Matthias de L'Obel. Although South Africa is considered their homeland, today it grows everywhere, and has even taken root in the regions middle zone. Today, more than 300 species of this plant are known, but we use about 20.
Diversity color range and flowering forms gives scope for shaping the design of the garden and landscape personal plot, where lobelia is sown.
How to grow lobelia from seeds
The question of how to plant lobelia can be solved in several ways, but the most convenient and common is sowing.
Important! When choosing a plant variety, focus on those species that have been growing in our latitudes for a long time. These include lobelia Inftala, Emperor Willy, Crystal Palace, Riviera, Ezhevidnaya, Cascade, Kustovaya, Cardinalis, Blue, Aquarium, Ampelnaya and others.
How to prepare the soil for planting
Planting lobelia seedlings begins with choosing a special soil mixture. You can buy a substrate for growing flowers in the store, or you can prepare it yourself in advance in the fall. To do this, you need to mix sand, peat, humus, and forest soil in equal proportions.
Whatever substrate you choose, it must be sifted through a mesh or large sieve, and also disinfected. To do this, it is watered with a fungicide solution or subjected to heat treatment. high temperatures, for example, in the microwave. Or, on the contrary, they are kept in the cold for a long time.
How to plant lobelia seeds
When choosing the time to plant lobelia in open ground, keep in mind that after sowing it blooms in 8-10 weeks. To do this, use a special seedling cassette, the cells of which are 5 cm deep.
Pieces of bark, expanded clay or other drainage are laid at the bottom of each, and well-kneaded soil is poured on top. It is watered well and the moisture is allowed to fall down. And only then they are covered with seeds mixed with sand.
Important! They begin to sow lobelia from mid-February to the end of March, although experienced gardeners It is recommended to do this in the first half of March. A plant sown at this time will bloom a little later than in February, but there will be much less difficulties with cultivation.
Sowing has its own characteristics. The seeds of the plant can be sold loose, or they can be in granules, each of which contains from 5 to 8 seeds. The granules are laid out at a distance of approximately 3–4 cm from each other.
If you find grains scattered, it is also advisable to sow them using the nesting method. To do this, pour the grains onto paper, take an ordinary pencil, moisten its tip with water and touch them.
Then the pencil is inserted into the ground and twisted slightly so that the grains remain in the soil. Plants planted in this way sprout as a bush, and then it is much more convenient to pick them.
Did you know? Those who want to grow flowers in hanging baskets do not have to worry about the seedlings, but immediately pour the seeds into the soil placed in a flowerpot, cover it with film and place it on the windowsill. It will bloom later than seedling method, but you can immediately take the flowering plant into the garden.
It is important not to cover the grains with soil, otherwise they may not germinate. They are lightly sprinkled with sand to retain moisture and lightly sprayed with water. The cassette is covered with film to create a microclimate and placed in a well-lit place, but with diffused light.
How to care for sprouts
When deciding how to grow lobelia seedlings at home, keep in mind that lobelia is afraid of the soil drying out. Therefore, if the room temperature is above 22°C, it is not recommended to remove the film for a long time. Strictly follow the watering schedule, not allowing the soil to dry out.
Lobelia seedlings are very tender. When watered from above, they can bend to the ground and die. Therefore, many people prefer to maintain the required level of humidity by adding moisture to the pan.
By the way, if you water the plants so that no water gets on them, this will protect them from blackleg disease. Since lobelia is planted in bushes, small depressions can be made between them, filling them with water from a syringe.
Using the same method, you can pour water onto the walls of the container. It is necessary to resort to it for two to three weeks, which are necessary for the plant to get stronger. Then you can abandon these precautions.
Regarding temperature regime, then, in principle, seedlings survive at low temperatures, but if you want the sprouts to appear faster, the air temperature should be 20-22ºC.
With the appearance of the first shoots, it can be reduced to 15ºC by simply moving the container to the windowsill. Remember that the sprouts under the film must be periodically ventilated and condensation removed from it.
Pay attention to the lighting. With short daylight hours in February, it is necessary to organize additional lighting so that the seedlings do not grow frail. In March, if the seedlings are placed on the south side, such measures will be unnecessary.
The first shoots appear quite quickly after 7–10 days. In the first month they grow very slowly, but then growth accelerates. When the sprouts reach 1 cm, the film is gradually removed.
Two months after sowing, when the sprouts are 3–4 cm high, they are pricked out in 3–4 pieces, and when the height of the sprout reaches 6–7 cm, it is pinched for greater bushiness.
Important! The biggest and most common mistake when growing seedlings of this plant is suddenly removing the film when the first sunrises appear. From such stress they can die within a day.
Diving is also carried out in groups, prying up the bush with a spatula and transplanting it into a cup. If lobelia is sown on a carpet, it is simply divided into parts, which are placed in a container of larger diameter.
After this, the seedlings need to be watered and kept in the shade for a couple of days. And only when it is accepted can it be pinched. To do this, just cut off the tops of the plant with scissors. Pinching can be done several times during growth.
Planting lobelia in open ground
Planting lobelia seedlings in open ground is carried out approximately in the second half of May, when there is confidence that there will be no more night frosts. A sunny site is selected for her, although she feels great in those places where the sun warms up with direct rays for no more than two hours a day.
What should the soil be like for planting?
If you want to achieve beautiful flowering lobelia, plant it on a not very fertile soils- loamy or sandy loam. In this case, the soil must be breathable and loose so that water does not stagnate in it. Avoid nitrogenous fertilizers. If you do not adhere to these rules, the lobelia will grow in the green part, producing scanty flowering.
How to plant a plant correctly
Before planting lobelia in open ground, the seedlings must be hardened off. To do this, on a warm, windless day, it is first taken outside, avoiding direct rays of the sun. It is advisable to place it in the shade, next time - in partial shade, then you can take it out into the sun for a couple of hours.
Depending on what aesthetics you want to achieve from lobelia, special planting and care is carried out in the open ground. So, to form a continuous carpet, seedlings are planted at a distance of 10–15 cm, and to form individual bushes - 25 cm from each other. The contents are moved into the pits by transshipment.
Caring for lobelia, studying the nuances
Lobelia, like any other plant, has its own character, taking into account the characteristics of which, you can achieve lush flowering.
In general, the main rules of care can be formulated into the following basic theses:
- Maximum bright light with a minimum of direct sunlight.
- Water abundantly, but make sure that water does not stagnate at the roots.
- Fertilizer feeding for flowering plants, avoiding nitrogenous mixtures.
- Prune closely in mid-summer to promote a second wave of flowering.
Watering and fertilizing
Watering is the most important point in plant care. Especially in hot weather, the soil should always be slightly moist. And ampelous lobelia requires watering twice a day.
If you allow a long drought, the leaves and stems of the plant begin to turn yellow and burn in the sun. After such stress, the plant may even die. At the same time, stagnation of moisture also has a detrimental effect on it.
The loss of a plant’s decorative appearance may also indicate that the soil is too saturated with nitrogen mineral fertilizers or organic matter. But during the summer the plant should be fertilized two or three times. To do this, use potassium sulfate, which provokes abundant flowering with a minimum of green parts of the plant.
Lobelia pruning
The plant is pruned several times during the growing season. One of the most important is pruning after the first flowering, which occurs around mid-summer.
Lobelia is trimmed, leaving only 5 cm of stems above the ground. This gives a second wave of flowering after two weeks, often more exuberant than the first.
In addition, pruning faded stems is a purely aesthetic issue.
How to prepare lobelia for winter
In principle, lobelia is considered annual plant, but some gardeners prefer to dig it up and place it in a house or greenhouse for the winter, turning it into perennial. It is important that it is stored in a cool but bright room.
On the eve of spring, they take it out, break it into cuttings, plant it and wait for rooting. When this happens, they are planted in open ground. This method is very useful in cases where sowing from seeds can lead to degeneration of the variety.
The laziest gardeners do not cover the plant for the winter, leaving it to overwinter in the ground and without removing the seeds. The plant easily propagates by self-sowing, but in this case, flowering should be expected much later than when planting seedlings.
Plant propagation
The easiest and most common way to propagate a plant is by seeds, which are stored in small boxes. The grains themselves are so small that they are difficult to grasp with your fingers. Therefore, they are usually collected by lining paper under the plant, onto which the seeds fall. This is easier to do when the lobelia grows in a flowerpot.
To collect seeds from a plant on the ground, cut off its shoots with not yet ripened bolls, knit bunches of them, and tie a paper bag to the side of the bolls. All this is tied up to dry in a dry place. When the seeds ripen, they are poured into the bag themselves.
This can also be done with already ripened stems, shaking them well over the bag. The contents are then sifted through a sieve, the seeds are collected in matchbox and sign up.
Their germination persists for three years. In spring, they can simply be sown on moist soil and covered with film. True, with such sowing the seedlings are unlikely to be dense.
There are also perennial varieties, which are propagated by cuttings. By the way, the plant itself requires periodic rejuvenation, replanting and renewal, which increases its vital indicators. On average, such manipulations are carried out once every two years.
Lobelia - small but amazing beautiful bush. Caring for it is simple, and the flowering and shape of the bush allows it to be used widely and successfully in landscape design. Moreover, it can be propagated independently either by sowing or by growing seedlings. The choice of method depends on when you want to see the plant bloom.
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You may have seen in some courtyards or on balconies spherical azure-colored bushes that bloom profusely from May to September. So, this is ampelous lobelia, one of the most beautiful annuals, ideal for growing in hanging pots and vertical flower beds. Lobelia flowers can be white, soft lilac, purple, pink, but varieties with bright blue flowers are most decorative. Growing it from seeds is not too difficult, although there are certain difficulties in this process.
Lobelia is a herbaceous shrub from the bellflower family. Its flowers are small, elongated, dissected. The leaves are also small, oblong, and during the flowering period of the bush they are almost invisible from under the numerous buds. The stems are thin, densely leafy, growing up to 50 cm long. The height of the bush varies between 10-25 cm. The abundance and duration of flowering strongly depend on the quality of pruning of the plant.
The most common varieties are blue, blue and lilac flowers. White and dark pink flowers are less common. Varieties with red or orange flowers no, although some manufacturers deliberately mislead inexperienced buyers by placing an image of bright red lobelia flowers on the seed packet. Most often, bushes with purple flowers grow from such seeds.
Lobelia tolerates perfectly joint landing with other species
Lobelia grows in many countries, but feels especially at ease in the subtropics. Its wild varieties are also observed in Russia. This culture has at least three hundred species, some of which belong to medicinal plants. Only about 20 are used for decorative purposes, including ampelous lobelia. Most of the representatives of lobelia are perennial plants, but in our latitudes they are cultivated as annuals.
Growing by seeds
Sowing seeds and caring for seedlings in the first weeks can be the most difficult stages in growing lobelia for beginning gardeners. The seeds of this plant are very small (1 gram contains 50,000 seeds), and in order to distribute them not too thickly, you need to try hard.
Very, very small lobelia seeds
Thickened seedlings quickly stretch out and weaken, and thinning often leads to damage and death of the sprouts. Seedlings during this period are extremely tender, any impact on them is detrimental, even watering must be done very carefully.
It is best to grow a flower through seedlings. Typically, 8-10 weeks pass from sowing to flowering, and if you sow the seeds in open ground when it gets warm, the plant will begin to bloom no earlier than August. And with the help of seedlings you can admire the flowers as early as June. Optimal time sowing - early February. If you do not plan to plant plants in open ground, you can immediately sow the seeds in a large flowerpot or container, and then simply remove the excess sprouts. If you intend to plant it in a flowerbed or you have not yet decided on the place to plant the lobelia, standard cassettes and small containers 3-4 cm high are suitable for seedlings.
Sowing lobelia
Step 1. Garden soil and fine sand are mixed in equal parts and disinfected by heating in the oven.
Step 2. A drainage layer (expanded clay, small pebbles, crushed bark) is poured into the container for seedlings, then filled with soil mixture and moistened.
Step 3. The seeds are scattered over the surface of the soil, sprayed with water from a spray bottle, and covered with glass or a transparent bag. After this, place it in a warm, well-lit place.
In order to disperse such small seeds evenly and sparsely, experienced gardeners recommend using the following methods:
Well, the easiest option is to purchase granulated lobelia seeds, which can be easily spread out on required distance without any tricks.
Seeds germinate in the light; there is no need to cover them with soil, the main thing is to place the container so that direct rays do not fall on it. Keep the temperature within 20 degrees. Shoots should appear approximately 10-15 days after sowing.
Seedling care
As soon as the first shoots appear, it is advisable to reduce the temperature to 16-18 degrees. The cover cannot be removed immediately, since the sprouts are very demanding of moisture. Ventilate the seedlings every day for half an hour, eliminating even the slightest drafts, and wipe off any condensation that has accumulated on the glass with a napkin. It’s best to pour water into a tray, so you don’t flood or wash away the tender seedlings.
Since lobelia develops very slowly at first, within a month it seems that the seedlings are not growing at all. By the second month, growth will accelerate slightly, and real leaves will begin to form. When the sprouts reach a height of 3-4 cm and become stronger, they can be cut into separate cups of 3 or 4 pieces. You need to make holes in the cups for drainage to prevent stagnation of water and rotting of the roots.
After picking, the seedlings look like this
A week after picking, the plants are fed with a half dose of complex fertilizers for indoor flowers.
After another week, you can pinch the growing point to stimulate branching of the bush. During this period, care consists of regular but moderate watering of the seedlings and maintaining a stable temperature. Seedlings need to be illuminated only if cloudy weather lasts more than 2 days.
Transplanting
As soon as the threat of frost has passed and warm weather has settled, they begin to plant seedlings in a permanent place. Ampel varieties lobelia can be planted in open ground, choosing a dry, sunny area, but it still looks best in hanging containers and flower pots. For normal development of the root system, the diameter of the container must be at least 20 cm.
The soil for the plant should be loamy or sandy loam with neutral acidity. Calcareous and acidic soils are not suitable for lobelia; it stops growing. You should not take too fertile soil, otherwise the bush will begin to actively grow green mass and will not bloom at all. For the same reason, you should not often feed the plant in the future, especially nitrogen fertilizers. So, having prepared the soil, you can begin the process of planting seedlings.
Step 1. Select a container for transplanting lobelia and make 2-3 small holes in the bottom for water drainage.
Step 2. Place drainage made of pebbles, pieces of bark or expanded clay on the bottom, in a layer of at least 5 cm.
Step 3. Fill the container with soil and make a hole in the center the size of the root ball.
Step 4. Using the transfer method, plants are planted from a glass into a pot. For maximum bush lushness, 3-4 seedlings must be planted in each container. Sprinkle the roots with soil, water, add more soil and tamp lightly with your palms.
To speed up the adaptation of lobelia to new conditions, place the pot with the plant in a place protected from the wind and bright sun for 2-3 days. The container must be hung so that the bush is illuminated by the sun most of the day and is not exposed to water jets when it rains. In addition, it should not be located too high so that you can easily water and trim.
In dry, hot weather, ampelous lobelia is watered twice a day - in the morning and at sunset. Chlorinated tap water negatively affects the development of the bush and its flowering, so if possible, use rain or at least settled water. Water moderately, making sure that the roots are not exposed when watering. Once a month, feed the bushes with complex fertilizers. Lobelia practically does not get sick and is not damaged by pests, which greatly simplifies caring for the plant.
When the first wave of flowering subsides, pruning is necessary. All shoots, even those still flowering, are cut off sharp knife, leaving stumps 5 cm high. Do not regret leaving longer stems - such strong pruning stimulates the formation of new lashes, enhances branching and promotes re-flowering, which is often more abundant and longer than the first. During the next pruning, only individual shoots that stand out from the general mass are shortened, and weak and damaged stems are removed.
To prolong flowering until frost, in early August, cut off all shoots again and feed the bush with potassium sulfate. Within three weeks, the regrown shoots will be densely covered with flowers, and the bush will look like a large flowering ball. If you want to collect seeds for subsequent propagation of lobelia, you should not do such pruning, otherwise the seeds will not have time to ripen. Allow the plants to bloom completely and monitor the ripening of the seed pods. Once they are dry, you need to carefully cut off the shoots and shake them vigorously over a sheet of paper. The spilled seeds are stored until spring in paper bags or in any suitable container.
Many gardeners successfully preserve the plant until spring and then propagate vegetative way. To do this, you need to bring the pot of lobelia into the house as soon as it gets cold outside. The bush is fed, trimmed a little, and continued to be watered regularly. With this care, lobelia can bloom almost until December. The spent stems are then removed and the pot is moved to a cooler place, where it remains until April. With the onset of warmth, the bush is divided into several parts, each of which is transplanted into a separate container.
Popular varieties
Ampelous lobelia cannot boast of a wide variety of varieties, but there is still a choice. The most popular varieties among domestic flower growers are “Sapphire”, “Blue Fountain”, “Red Cascade”, “Ricardi”, as well as new varieties of Dutch selection.
| Variety name | Description |
|---|---|
| Refers to annual varieties. The flowers are bright blue, with a white eye, corolla diameter 1.5 cm. The shoots are densely leafy, up to 35 cm long. Develops well and blooms in partial shade |
| Annual. Forms very lush bush with numerous miniature blue flowers. Thin shoots grow up to 50 cm in length |
| Can be cultivated as a perennial plant. The shoots are thin, densely leafy, up to 50 cm long. The flowers have a pink-purple hue, the corolla diameter is 2 cm. |
| Hybrid of Dutch selection. At home, it can only reproduce vegetatively. The flowers are small, blue in color, the stems are rougher than those of other varieties of ampelous lobelia, up to 70 cm long |
| An annual variety, very different early flowering. The length of the shoots is up to 30 cm, the corollas of the flowers are bright blue, the petals are white with a blue border along the edge |
| Early cold-resistant variety. Small flowers have a rich dark blue color, shoots are about 30 cm long |
| An early variety that can be cultivated as a perennial. The diameter of the flowers is 1.5 cm, the color is lilac with a white eye. Shoot length up to 25 cm |
Video - Ampelia lobelia: growing from seeds
Video - Picking lobelia seedlings
Video - Pruning lobelia