Planting and caring for freesia: flower description + growing at home and outdoors, storing bulbs

Description of freesia

This is a perennial culture of the Iris family. Subject to the rules of agricultural technology, it normally takes root in an open-air flower bed or in a flowerpot on a loggia. Freesia, whose homeland is South Africa, is accustomed to a tropical climate, so the grower needs to try hard to create the necessary comfortable conditions for the flower.

Botanists classify the flower as a perennial herbaceous corm culture. Here is a brief description:

1. The leaves are thin and elongated.
2. The stems, along with the foliage, grow from a common base.
3. The petals are bell-shaped and look like porcelain. Some varieties have a solid color, while others are pink, purple, white, yellow, lilac, red or blue.
4. The flowers are small, formed in massive brushes of 5-10 pieces. They have a pleasant lily of the valley scent. There are terry and semi-double varieties.

In the century before last, the picturesque and delicate freesia was considered the flower of monarchs; it was bred in royal greenhouses for aristocrats. Nowadays, thanks to the efforts of breeders, culture has become a frequent guest of city flower beds and squares.

Interesting species and varieties with photos

In total, the International Flower Base lists 16 naturally occurring perennial species, uniting 200 varieties. Some of them are popular with us.

Freesia Armstrong (Freesia armstrongii)

A low variety, the stem grows up to 65 cm. The growing season falls on May-June. Forms strong branching stems. The buds are pink and red.

Freesia hybrid (Freesia hybrida)

The result of hybridization of varieties f. refrata and f. Armstrongii. Massive and richer in color than the parents. The variety has a strong branching. Tall, the stems are extended by 1 m. The inflorescences are large, of different shades. Often grown in a pot.

Representatives:

• Ballerina;
• Rose Marie;
• Pimperina.

Freesia white, or refracted (Freesia refracta)

One of the smallest varieties, the stem is thin, grows up to 40 cm. It blooms earlier than relatives. Inflorescences appear terry due to densely arranged white or golden buds.

Video “Growing freesia in the garden and at home”

After watching this video, you will know everything about growing a flower.

Growing freesia in open ground

Perennial grown at home, open field or greenhouse. The difficulties of growing are as follows:

• loves warmth, but not heat;
• needs long-term lighting, but is afraid of sunburn;
• thin flower stalks cannot withstand the weight of foliage and flowers, so reliable support is required;
• top dressing and moisturizing are important, but with an excess, the growth of green mass increases, while flowering is blocked;
• flowers can be grown in the temperate zone, but the bulbs will not survive the winter, so they are dug up in the fall and stored until the next season.

Site and soil preparation

When choosing a landing site, preference is given to sites:

• partly in the shade;
• protected from strong winds;
• with loose, fertile soil.

The soil must be drained so that the roots have enough air. At this stage, it is advisable to take care of the support pegs so that thin flower stalks do not break under the weight of large buds. In greenhouses, several grids are used for this:

• the first is pulled horizontally at a height of 20 cm from the surface;
• the second – 20 cm higher;
• the third may be needed for tall varieties.

The grid cells are selected wide so that the culture freely grows through the supports.

Given the tropical nature of the crop, planting in open ground is planned for the end of May, eliminating the risk of late frosts.

Planting Seeds

The technique is rarely used (only for growing some special varieties). Landing is carried out in a spacious container according to the scheme:

1. Seed material is scattered on the surface of moistened earth, covered with a thin (up to 2 cm) layer of soil, stretched over a film or put glass.
2. When the first sprouts hatch, the planting is thinned out, leaving only the strongest plants.
3. In the last days of spring they are planted in the ground.

Planting bulbs

Experts recommend that you first germinate the sowing bulbs a little. To do this, a couple of months before planting the seed:

• examine, getting rid of defective scales;
• disinfected in a solution of “Fundazol” against fungal diseases;
• planted in a small container with peat to a depth of 5 cm;
• keep in a warm bright place.

At the end of May, they start landing at the chosen place. Pits are prepared according to the rules:

• the width is 3 times the diameter of the bulb;
• depth about 5–10 cm (the heavier the earth, the less);
• a step of 3–5 cm (depending on the size of the bulbs);
• the spacing between rows is 15 cm.

A handful of sand is thrown into the hole, a layer of fine gravel is poured, 2 tablespoons of wood ash are added. They stick an onion, dig it in with soil, ram it with a palm. The place is moistened and mulched with peat or coniferous soil. If the earth is too acidic, add lime or dolomite flour, achieving a decrease in acidity to a neutral pH.

Care instructions

Usually freesia bushes grow up to 40 cm by July, then buds form. Flowering occurs in August, lasts until October.

Flowers are periodically fed, fertilizers are applied several times during the season:

1. With the advent of shoots. You will need a solution of ammonium nitrate at the rate of 20 g per bucket of water.
2. Twice a month they are fed with a potassium-phosphorus solution (20 g of potassium salt and 40 g of superphosphate per bucket of water).

The plant is sensitive to weeds – regular weeding is needed. After watering and rains, the soil is loosened, giving access to air.

The irrigation regime deserves a separate explanation. Freesia especially needs moisture during the growing and flowering season. During this period, plantings should be watered frequently and plentifully. After the growing season, the amount of watering is reduced, then stopped. From time to time it is enough to spray the leaves with water, increasing the humidity. Perform the procedure in the evening, otherwise the drops of water will work like lenses in the sun, leaving burns on the foliage.

Bulb cleaning and storage

For the winter, the culture is dug up. You can understand that the time has come by the yellowed foliage. Another criterion: the root becomes thinner, shrinking into a thread. For verification, a test excavation is carried out.

Cleaning is carried out according to the scheme:

• yellowed tops are removed;
• bulbs are dug up and carried to heat;
• spread on paper (away from the window), dry for about a week;
• cleaned of dried scales, collected in a cardboard box and hidden until next season.

Store warm (up to +30 ˚C), but at high humidity so that the material does not dry out (you can put a container with water nearby). A couple of weeks before a new planting, it is advisable to reduce the temperature to 12-13 ˚C, and a week before the material is allowed to harden in the refrigerator (at +5 ˚C).

Features of freesia agricultural technology at home

It is easier to take care of a heat-loving plant in a house or apartment. Undersized varieties are suitable for the window sill, such as Anyuta, Tenderness, Purple with a stem height of 20–25 cm. The material is prepared – disinfected, treated with biostimulants. Let’s figure out what needs to be done so that the culture rises in early spring.

Lighting and ground requirements

The prepared container is covered with a drainage layer (small pebbles), filled with a mixture of sand, peat and turf. The bulbs are deepened by 5 cm. Supports are installed – a wire frame or a lattice of slats. In autumn and winter, daylight hours are artificially increased to 12 hours.

Temperature and humidity

Since the house is heated in winter, the humidity is greatly reduced. The leaves of the plant need to be sprayed every day, increasing the humidity.

During winter distillation adhere to the temperature regime:

• during the appearance of sprouts – about + 10-12˚С, + 6-7 ˚С can be;
• during the flowering season – no higher than +20 ˚С.

To admire the first flowers in winter, the bulbs are planted no later than September.

General care rules

Until the emergence of seedlings, the containers are stored in a cool place, do not water. With the advent of sprouts, they are transferred to where it is warm and sunny, watered daily, preventing the topsoil from drying out. Top dressing is applied every two weeks. Fertilization is interrupted when the leaves turn yellow and dry.

After flowering, all leaves and flower stalks are cut off, leaving only the bulb in the ground. Watering is extended for a couple of months, allowing daughter bulbs to form on the mother root. After they are removed, treated with potassium permanganate and stored.

Let us explain the unpleasant situations faced by inexperienced flower growers:

1. The plant does not flower. Most likely, the room is too warm.
2. The culture has dry leaves. The reason is the lack of moisture in the soil and in the air.
3. Yellow and brown spots appear on the plant. The flower was either overfed with fertilizers, or these are sunburns.
4. There are no shoots. Most likely, the bulbs were not properly prepared – they were not disinfected, they were not impregnated with a biostimulant, they were stored in improper conditions.

Diseases and pests of freesia

The perennial suffers from the same ailments and pests as other bulbous crops. The threat is:

• thrips;
• aphid;
• spider mite.

For prevention and treatment, crops are sprayed with insecticides and acaricides.

Their infectious diseases of freesia are dangerous:

• scab;
• fusariosis;
• rot.

Alas, these diseases are not treatable. If symptoms are detected, until the disease is transmitted to neighboring bushes, the affected specimen must be dug up, capturing a clod of soil, and burned. In order to prevent ailments, it is recommended to disinfect bulbs before storage and planting in potassium permanganate or hold for an hour in a fungicide solution (for example, Photospirin). It is also important to follow the rules of agricultural technology – competent and timely care reduces the risk of disease to a minimum.

Growing freesias is a complicated process, but extremely exciting. But how much joy pleasantly smelling picturesque flowers will bring to the owners later.