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Not only tall flowers with large inflorescences look elegant and worthy of becoming a flower bed decoration. Small, but plentiful and bright flowering looks no less presentable – a kind of weightless cloud of delicate flowers. Lobelia, which is increasingly appearing on balconies and flower beds in all corners of the country, belongs to such flowers. Ampelous lobelia deserves special attention, which is a universal “tool” for designers: it is beautiful in hanging planters and balcony boxes, suitable for decorating flowerpots, pots and landscape compositions. Everything is fine in lobelia, but the difficulty lies in growing this flower.
About planting and caring for ampelous lobelia, with photo and video instructions, will be described in this article. All stages of growing flowers will be described in detail here: from seeds and seedlings to planting in a permanent place and care rules.
How to choose a variety
Lobelia came to Europe from North America and southern Africa. Today, this flower is ubiquitous, it grows on almost all continents of the earth. Botanists attribute lobelia to the Bellflower family, distinguishing more than three hundred species of this plant.
There are several varieties of this plant, differing primarily in the height of the shoots and the shade of the inflorescences. Most often, domestic flower growers grow:
- bush lobelia (or Erinus), which grows in low balls covered with many small flowers;
- ampelous variety, the bushes of which are more loose and climbing, there are not so many inflorescences on them as on Erinus.
Bush lobelia is suitable for planting in flower beds and in various landscape compositions (on an alpine hill, for example). But ampelous varieties will decorate hanging planters, balcony boxes, window sills, suitable for growing in flowerpots and pots.
Growing an ampel variety is somewhat more difficult than growing a bush variety. She is more whimsical and often dies due to improper care. Practice shows that the most persistent are those types of ampelous lobelia, the inflorescences of which have a blue-blue color. The white variety sprouts more slowly and develops worse, but is also quite suitable for beginner gardeners. But it is better to refuse the purple or lilac variety – they are very capricious and rarely give abundant flowering.
The appearance of ampelous flowers is very characteristic:
- stems branched, angular;
- shoots have a reddish tint;
- stems hanging down, reach a length of 50-60 cm;
- leaves are shiny, dark green, small, lanceolate;
- inflorescences are two-lipped, small in size.
Cultivation from seeds
The development of lobelia seedlings is a long process, taking from 2,5 to 3 months. Therefore, it is necessary to sow flower seeds in advance – starting from the middle of winter. To determine a more accurate planting time, you need to decide whether there will be artificial lighting for seedlings.
The fact is that with a lack of light, the lobelia sprouts become thinner, the seedlings “sit in place”, slow down in development, and may get sick with a “black leg”. Lobelia, sown in February, will have to be illuminated with fluorescent lamps. The seeds sown in March or even in April will quickly sprout, and the seedlings will catch up with the February one, and maybe even outstrip it in development.
flower seedling
The first thing the grower should consider is the size of the seeds. Lobelia seeds are very small, so it will not work to separate them – plantings will be group.
Now you need to choose a container for seedlings of flowers. Shallow plastic containers, wide bowls or plates, seedling cassettes with pallets, peat tablets or cups, candy or egg containers are suitable.
The soil for seedlings of these flowers needs peat, not too nutritious. Suitable as a purchased soil, and prepared independently. A homemade substrate must be disinfected by pouring boiling water with several crystals of manganese.
When the soil cools down, you can start sowing ampelous lobelia seeds. You can do this in several ways:
- Mix powdered flower seeds with sand and evenly distribute them over the entire area of the container, as if “adding salt” to the ground.
- Take a toothpick, moisten it in water and, dipping into the seeds, grab 5-10 grains at a time.
- Buy lobelia seeds in a multidrag – a shell containing 5-10 flower seeds at once. Distribute large dragees over the surface of the soil or put a couple of “seeds” in an individual cup (tablet).
The flower grower must understand that lobelia is planted in the ground or in a flower pot only in groups. Therefore, this flower dives in small bunches of 5-10 seedlings, or they try to immediately plant seedlings in groups.
It remains to cover the container with flower seeds with a transparent lid: plastic, film, glass or polycarbonate. Lobelia is removed in a warm place until shoots appear.
flower seedling care
Growing from seeds is a laborious and lengthy process. Only after a couple of weeks, lobelia will sprout. In the meantime, this does not happen, you need to remove the lid from the container twice a day and wipe it from condensate. Let the seedlings ventilate for 10-20 minutes, and after that the cover is returned to its place.
When all the sprouts sprout, you can completely remove the shelter. But it is better to do this gradually, gradually increasing the airing time – so the seedlings of lobelia will harden and get stronger.
The root system of lobelia is small and superficial, while in young seedlings the roots are completely microscopic. That is why watering is so important for seedlings of these flowers. As soon as the soil seems dry, you should immediately water the seedlings with warm water. It is possible to carry out watering both from above, and through the pallet.
Ampelous lobelia does not like abundant nutrition, so it is enough to feed the seedlings once at the age of one month. You can use the mineral complex for flowers, after dissolving the fertilizer in water (the proportion should be two to three times less than indicated on the package).
When the temperature is set at 10-15 degrees Celsius on the balcony or on the street, you can take the seedlings of flowers “for walks”. The time spent outdoors is gradually increased, and as a result, boxes with lobelia are left for the whole day, and then for the night.
Dive seedlings
Ampelous lobelia can be grown both with and without a dive. It is not necessary to plant flowers grown in tablets, cassettes or small cups. But when sowing seeds in a common capacity, picking cannot be avoided.
Neighboring sprouts of flowers are intertwined not only with roots, but also with stems and leaves, so you need to swoop down lobelia early – at the stage of two or three true leaves. Flowers dive in bunches, each of which has 5-10 plants.
The root system of lobelia is tenacious, not afraid of mechanical damage, so the soil in a common container with flowers can simply be cut with a sharp knife into identical pieces. You can also separate groups of flowers with a teaspoon or the back of a fork, a wooden spatula and other improvised means.
After being transferred to an individual container, the lobelia sprouts are sprinkled with soil and slightly compacted, now you can water the flowers with warm water.
Planting flowers in the ground and caring for them
Planting and caring for lobelia in the open field or in a flower pot is no less laborious than growing seedlings. Flowers are planted in bunches, leaving about 15-25 cm between groups. In a month, the bushes will grow so much that the balls of neighboring flowers will merge into a solid carpet.
A place for ampelous lobelia is chosen in partial shade or on the north side of the house. The scorching sun can instantly kill these delicate flowers, so it is recommended to shade them.
Lobelia care is as follows:
- Frequent and plentiful watering, not allowing the soil to dry out.
- Soil drainage, which will not allow moisture to stagnate at the roots of flowers.
- Top dressing with mineral fertilizers without nitrogen content. For abundant flowering, it is recommended to use potassium sulfate.
- In the middle of summer, when the lobelia fades, its stems are cut, leaving only 5-10 cm. After a couple of weeks, the bush will grow and begin to bloom again.
- Due to the heat, the plant may begin to dry, then you will have to cut off the yellowed leaves and inflorescences.
There is nothing complicated in leaving, just lobelia cannot be left unattended for a long time – every day she needs the participation of a grower.
Conclusion
Ampel lobelia is very spectacular: delicate clouds of tiny flowers, painted in pastel shades.
This is not to say that this flower is very capricious or too whimsical, just lobelia needs constant attention from the grower, regular watering. The biggest difficulty is growing seedlings of flowers from seeds, but this task can be mastered with a little patience and time.
