Lobelia is a decorative one-year plant, so loved not only by experienced gardeners and gardeners, but also by urban residents who decorate their balcony with flowers in the summer. With proper care, lobelia is able to reward you with a fluffy flower cap, acting as a ground cover plant, and decorating the garden or balcony with rich armpits hanging from pots and flowerpots. Let's find out how to grow lobey.
Sowing and planting seedlings
Growing lobelia, especially at the initial stage - quite a painstaking business, and growing lobelia from seeds - is a piece of jewelry that requires a certain skill. The fact is that the seeds of this ornamental plant are very small, they rather resemble dust. They are sold in different packages. The most convenient for sowing, especially for beginners, will be the seeds that are formed into granules. One pellet contains several pieces of seeds. From it grows a whole group of gentle sprouts. Seeds that are sold in a paper bag, for convenience and uniformity of planting, it is better to first gently mix with sand, and then sow in prepared soil.
The seeds of lobelia for seedling are beginning to be sown from the end of January. If you plant the seeds in March-April, the blossom begins to bloom much later. Sowing is carried out in a special primer for flowers. The soil must be loose and light. Before placing the seeds, it should be well moistened with warm water. For these purposes, it is best to use shallow containers. Transfer of very small seeds to the ground for planting can be done with a moistened toothpick. Such planting also gives group shoots.
Planted seeds are not sprinkled with soil. To prevent the earthen coma from drying out, and also to maintain a constant temperature, the containers with lobels are covered with a film or glass. To prevent the formation of mold, it is necessary to ventilate once or twice a day the pallets. It is also necessary to monitor the formation of condensate. Large drops can cover the tender seeds in the soil, which greatly complicates their germination.
Seedlings appear on the third - sixth day. Watering the shoots should be very careful, since microscopic plants are very tender and fragile. Use for this purpose, either a small coffee spoon, or a syringe with a needle.
Transplantation and care of adult plants
When the first real leaflets appear, they must be dived. Transplant tender shoots also in groups into plastic seed containers or other suitable containers.
The conditions for growing lobelia are not so severe. It does not tolerate the drying out of the earth coma, the plants quickly die of this, the leaves turn off with insufficient watering. Therefore, water it twice a day in the morning and evening, especially in the dry and hot summer. The inadequate watering of the plant ceases to bloom. To diseases, lobelia is also stable. Only the wrong watering can ruin it. In the seedling stage, excessive moistening can lead to the formation of mold.
In the ground, lobelia is planted after the end of all frosts. Plant it in groups, as well as dive. Flowering lobelia lasts until the middle of autumn. Blooming lobelia in the garden and on the balcony is a real decoration. And, the earlier you sow seedlings, the longer it will please the eye. Lobelia needs fertilizing no more than 2 to 3 times during the summer. To form a dense cap of flowers, the plant is pricked. How to prischipyvat lobel, knows any even a beginner gardener. At shoots that have reached the required length,
Reproduction
The easiest way to reproduce lobelia is planting from seeds. But if you want, you can choose the most beautiful and strong plant and transplant for the winter into a pot, taking it to the house. In the spring it is necessary to cut the right amount of cuttings and root them in the soil. These simple conditions are not difficult to observe at all, but all summer your eyes will delight continuous bright flowering.