Bright, tender, juicy - all these epithets are only able to describe the beautiful Gerbera to a small extent. And although garden gerberas prefer a hot climate, even in Russian gardens they can be grown, provided all the rules of planting and care.
Planting and caring for the garden gerbera
To gerbera normally felt and could open in all its glory, you can plant it only in brightly lit areas, well protected from the wind. Only in this case the flowering of gerbera will be as long as possible, and the flowers are large and bright. Watering this beauty is often necessary, without allowing the stagnation of water, because it can lead to rotting roots. During irrigation, you should be very careful and try not to get water on the leaves, as this can cause the death of the plant. Once every 10-14 days, gerberas need top dressing, best of all with complex mineral fertilizers. Wintering in the open ground garden gerbera can only in regions with a very mild climate. Otherwise, it is better to dig it out with a clod of earth for the winter and transplant it into an ordinary pot. Alternatively, you can leave the dug out gerbera for the winter in the basement or any other cool place.
Growing gerbera from seeds
Reproduction gerbera is traditionally produced in one of two ways: by seeds or by dividing a bush. Seeds of gerberas are sown only on seedlings, because when planted directly in the soil, it will not have time to grow and begin to bloom before the onset of cold weather. Sowing seeds for seedlings usually begin in late April - early March. For sowing, use special seedling boxes, sprinkling seeds on top with peat or substrate. Since gerberas are extremely prone to fungal diseases, the soil in the box is preliminarily spilled with a hot solution of potassium permanganate. The first time the seedlings are kept in a mini-greenhouse, which is removed after the appearance of the first real leaves. In the open ground seedlings gerberas are planted only after the warm weather is established.