She has a beautiful name, and most importantly, rare - calceolaria. But seriously, the flower is really unusual. Everyone. Miniature in size, exotic, screamingly bright beauty, the shape of a flower, similar to either a slipper or a seashell. Due to the fact that it is so unlike anyone else, it is rarely grown in the garden, they prefer to admire it from a close distance, planting it in a room or on a balcony. But if you want to decorate flower beds with it, first of all, deal with agricultural technology, and we will tell you what to look for.
The first impression of a flower is a tropical butterfly among our whites and urticaria
Calceolaria in nature
Most of the plant species (and there are more than 200 of them) come from South America. When gardeners hear this, for some reason they immediately imagine a tropical climate, heat. And they are wrong. Our heroine lives on the mountain slopes of the Southern Andes (Chile, Argentina), where the average temperature of the summer months rarely exceeds 20⁰ C, but in winter it does not drop below 7–8⁰ C. Nothing in common with Russian climatic differences from heat in summer to bitter cold in winter. It is problematic for us even in a room to create such a microclimate.
In nature, the calceolaria flower is a herbaceous perennial or biennial plant with a long growing season. It germinates for a long time, slowly gaining vegetative mass - from sowing to budding, it usually takes 6-8 months. It blooms for about a month, sometimes a little more, after which the old outlet dies off. These are our primroses on the contrary - "late flowers".
What does it look like?
Most calceolaria, both species and hybrid, are miniature plants 20–30 cm high with a rosette of medium-sized, succulent, slightly corrugated leaves. In some varieties, they are velvety, somewhat reminiscent of a violet. There are generally crumbs, barely reaching 8-10 cm, but there are also larger specimens that grow up to half a meter.
From the center of the rosette, the plant expels thin flower stalks, ending in small drop flowers. With what they are just not compared - with a shoe, a purse, a bag, a shell. In modern hybrids, up to 50 such drops can bloom at the same time. That's very beautiful!
The "chip" of the flower is a spectacular color. It is always bright - yellow, orange, carmine, terracotta, lilac. Rarely - monophonic, more often - speckled, with brown dots, contrasting edging. Calceolaria, the photo of which we provide as confirmation of what has been said, is one of the most modest, but it also looks like splashes of the sun with perky freckles on the petals.
What does he love?
To learn how to grow a plant you like, you need to understand what it loves. Weaknesses of our beauty:
- bright but diffused light (no direct rays!);
- abundant watering;
- high humidity;
- cool room;
- light nutrient soil.
Under these conditions, the plant will feel great, and delight with longer flowering.
Indoor or garden - dot the "i"
Several types of exotic plants have been introduced into the culture.
- K. mexican at home is grown as a biennial. More often it has a yellow-variegated color, small flowers against a background of bright greenery look like lanterns.
- K. tripartite is a heat-loving perennial with pure yellow drops on long pedicels. It does not occur naturally north of Mexico.
- K. wrinkled - a perennial that is grown in Europe as an annual flower. With appropriate agricultural technology in urban landscaping, it is used as a border plant. If seedlings are grown by April, they will bloom in June.
- K. purple has a rich purple-red color, cultivated in room conditions.
But the most numerous group is hybrid calceolaria - a flower that we grow as an indoor flower. Breeders managed to bring out dozens of varieties with a wide variety of colors - plain, two-tone, speckled, brindle, shaded. Hybrid forms are characterized by delicate pubescent foliage, compact size. You can grow them yourself from seeds or purchase ready-made plants.
But calceolaria is not quite a houseplant, rather a closed ground or temporary maintenance in room conditions. Firstly, for the summer it can be used as a container plant to decorate a balcony, terrace, patio. Secondly, no matter how you cherish the flower, it will live with you for a year after flowering, and then it will grow and lose its appearance.
Conclusion - a beautiful plant, but short-lived, and there is a lot of trouble with it.
If you buy a plant in a store, choose specimens at the budding stage, healthy, strong, without yellowing leaves. So you get a flower with full flowering periods, especially since in many varieties they are not so long - 1-2 months.
The subtleties of growing indoor flower
If this is your first introduction to calceolaria, start by growing a room variety of the flower. You will see this beauty with your own eyes, fill your hand with transplanting, observe how the plant develops, how long it takes to bloom. Experience and observations will come in handy if you later decide to move the fragile beauty into the garden.
Let's return to the climatic preferences of the South American guest and try to adapt the conditions of an ordinary Russian apartment to these needs.
Creating the Right Conditions
Relations with the sun in calceolaria are approximately the same as in orchids - there is no way without it, and it is bad with it. The main thing is not to limit the solar flux, but to scatter it so that there is a lot of light, but direct rays do not fall on delicate flowers and leaves. How to do it?
- If the plant is on a windowsill, balcony facing southeast, close the windows with translucent curtains in the morning, southwest - after three in the afternoon.
- The second option is to place flower pots opposite a sunny window, including the south one, but at some distance from it. A light curtain is a must.
- Northern windows for a light-loving plant, like a strong shadow, are not suitable.
It is laid down by nature that calceolaria blooms at a temperature of 14–16⁰ C, does not like it when the thermometer rises above 20–25⁰ C. In our country, these are the autumn months, flowering just ripens for them if the plant is sown in early spring. At higher temperatures, the duration of flowering is noticeably reduced, aphids and whiteflies attack the bushes.
Therefore, you should experiment with different sowing dates carefully, focusing on the weather. And also on whether you can ensure that the temperature in the room drops to acceptable levels.
The plant is sensitive to air humidity, but does not tolerate spraying on leaves and flowers. His petals are delicate, easily damaged, lose their decorative effect. Humidifiers are used to create the right microclimate. You can put the pots on a pallet with expanded clay, which is regularly moistened.
Sowing seeds: timing, features
You can get a hybrid calceolaria yourself by growing from seeds. True, sowing them is akin to aerobatics, they are so small. It's not even a petunia. Dust. But you should not be afraid, it is better to stock up on sand. Seeds are mixed with it for a more even distribution over the soil surface.
For sowing, they acquire or mix their own light substrate, consisting of peat and sand. Instead of the latter, you can use vermiculite. Seeds with sand are sprayed with light shaking movements on the wet surface of the planting container, covered with glass (film) and sent to a bright, cool window sill. Do not try to sprinkle the seeds with sand or soil, they will not overcome this barrier.
When the hooks appear, and this will happen in about a month, do not immediately remove the film - let the greenhouse microclimate remain. Air the crops regularly. When removing the shelter, make sure that drops from the glass do not fall on the seedlings.
20-30 days after germination, the first pick of the plant is carried out. They are transplanted into small plastic cups (200 ml). You can add 1 part of sod land to the original substrate. A month later, a second pick is carried out in liter containers.
Note! To get a calceolaria that blooms in autumn, the seeds are sown in February-March. If you want flowers in May-June, you need to sow in the summer - in July-August.
Organization of care
By creating suitable conditions for calceolaria, caring for it at home is greatly simplified.
Watering
The plant is sensitive to the moisture of an earthen coma, does not tolerate drying out of the substrate, but it cannot be flooded either. Roots can rot. Abundant watering is needed at the stage of growth and during flowering. After flowering, the vegetative mass gradually dies off or is cut off for aesthetic reasons. Watering, respectively, is reduced to a minimum and resumed when young shoots begin to appear.
top dressing
Calceolaria loves to eat. While it is actively vegetating, every 10-12 days, feed the plant with a solution of complete mineral fertilizers enriched with microelements. It is best to purchase targeted fertilizer for indoor flowers and take half the rate indicated by the manufacturer in the instructions.
During the dormant period, feeding is stopped. But as soon as young shoots appear, and this is approximately February-March, the plant needs to be supported. The first top dressing is organic - with a weakly concentrated solution of mullein or bird droppings, the second - mineral (2 g / l of water).
plant formation
To get a lush bush with a lot of flowers, it is recommended to pinch the calceolaria when it has 6-8 leaves. This stimulates the growth of shoots from the axils of the leaves. If large flowers are needed, on the contrary, pinching is carried out - the removal of arbitrarily grown side shoots.
When the plant is in bloom, pick off wilted flowers regularly, unless you plan on collecting seeds. But even in this case, 1-2 seed pods are enough.
cuttings
Cut the faded bush over 3-4 pairs of leaves, transplant into fresh soil. After some time, you will see that it has taken root and gives side shoots from the sinuses. They are used for cuttings. For rooting, you need a light mixture of peat and sand and a mini-greenhouse - as the easiest option, a transparent cap from a plastic bottle or glass is suitable. The optimum temperature for rooting is 16–18⁰ C. After 20–25 days, the cutting forms its own root system.
Cutting a flower has its advantages. Firstly, this method of reproduction allows you to save varietal characteristics, which is not always possible with seeds. Secondly, calceolaria grown from cuttings bloom faster.
Calceolaria in the flowerbed
Hybrid forms of the plant are more suitable for growing indoors. But there are varieties of calceolaria that can be planted in open ground - planting and care in this case is somewhat different.
Better than others, wrinkled calceolaria and varieties derived from it are suitable for the garden.
- Gold Bouquet - a plant up to 30 cm high with large flowers.
- Sunset is a hardy dwarf hybrid in yellow, orange and red. Flowers resemble bells.
- The Triumph of Versailles is a small-flowered, fast-growing variety.
In February-March, seeds are sown for seedlings, so that in May they can be planted in a flower bed or in flowerpots. Garden forms tolerate bright light better, but it is better not to offer them the sun.
Due to their miniature size and bright color, calceolaria is classified as a foreground flower that needs an advantageous frame. Can you imagine orchids next to petunias and marigolds? So here. If we choose partners for her, then the appropriate ones are tuberous begonia, semperflorence begonia, ageratum, pansies.
The preferred way to grow garden varieties is in flowerpots or planters. Why?
- In containers, it is easier to maintain the optimal composition of the soil, to carry out top dressing.
- Flowerpots can be placed anywhere, removed from the bright sun, put on the lawn.
- In bad weather, the plants are removed under a canopy, on the veranda. If a flower is planted in a flower bed, a downpour with a hurricane for delicate petals can have not only deplorable, but even irreversible consequences.
Summarize. Calceolaria is a difficult plant, you will have to tinker with it. But having grown it once, you feel something akin to an itch - it seems to be troublesome, but it is impossible to resist such beauty.
Growing Calceolaria:
Plants with whimsical and luxurious flowers are always eye-catching. And many flower growers are trying to grow amazing pets on their own. And for this, often you don’t need so much - stock up on planting material and find out about the features of caring for a particular plant. An herbaceous culture with the bizarre name calceolaria, also known as “shoes” or “wallets”, is distinguished by its amazing flowering, let's clarify what kind of planting and care this flower needs, and also consider its cultivation from seeds at home.
Calceolaria is actually a perennial, but in indoor culture it is usually grown only as an annual plant. Such a pet usually grows up to twenty to thirty centimeters. It pleases the owners with flowers in the spring - around April-May, and flowering lasts from three to five weeks.
Growing calceolaria from seeds at home
Regardless of where you want to start growing flowers - at home or in your garden, you need to sow it at home to get seedlings. It is best to start this activity in March. For sowing flower seeds, it is worth using peat soil mixed with sand in a ratio of 7: 1. But at the same time, it must be taken into account that such a plant cannot grow on sour peat, so ground chalk must be mixed into the soil mixture. Usually, about twenty grams of chalk is used per kilogram of peat.
The resulting soil must be thoroughly calcined before use.
Calceolaria seeds are very small - they are simply scattered over the surface of the soil mixture and are not sprinkled with anything. It is worth placing a wet piece of paper on top and moistening it regularly with a spray bottle. Crops should be in a fairly warm room, where the thermometer does not fall below eighteen degrees.
The first seedlings appear after two weeks. They must be watered with care, pouring water in a thin stream. After the appearance of a pair of true leaves on the seedlings, it dives. At home, flowers, while they are young, can simply be transferred to a larger container, placing them at intervals of three to four centimeters. The optimum temperature for growing remains the same - about eighteen - twenty degrees. In order for the plants to take root normally in a new place, it will not be superfluous to cover them with polyethylene or glass. Every day, the seedlings need to be ventilated, and the condensate in the shelter must be systematically eliminated. The soil should remain moist at all times, but not excessively damp.
When growing seedlings, you need to provide her with sufficient lighting, it is best to keep her on a sunny windowsill, but shade from direct sunlight.
Planting calceolaria in open ground
Readers of "Popular about Health" need to find the right place to plant calceolaria flowers. Such a plant is not demanding on the soil and can grow on any garden soil. But at the same time, good drainage is extremely important for calceolaria, as stagnant water can destroy it. It is better that the earth is nutritious and breathable. It is advisable to plant such a crop in sunny places with slight shading.
It should be borne in mind that calceolaria does not like wind very much, so it is better to grow it in areas not subject to strong winds.
Landing in open ground is carried out after a stable warm temperature is established. But in general, calceolaria grown at home is able to tolerate short-term frosts.
Further care for calceolaria
Calceolaria is not very demanding. Young plants need systematic watering, and flowering crops may well grow with some moisture deficiency. In no case should the plant be flooded, as its root system can easily and quickly rot.
It will not be superfluous to periodically feed such a pet. To do this, you can use complex fertilizers, about twice a month. The additional intake of nutrients will make the flowering of the plant more magnificent.
Since calceolaria is inherently a perennial, you can try saving it for a second year. To do this, you need to dig up the plants and place them in fairly cool and dark rooms. Bushes of the second year of life begin to bloom a little earlier than those obtained from seeds. But at the same time, as many flower growers note, their decorative effect is somewhat reduced.
Flower care should take into account that calceolaria can suffer from pest attacks, for example, whiteflies, aphids, spider mites, etc. You can cope with this problem with the help of insecticides, taking into account the development cycle of pests.
Calceolaria is usually grown as a border plant, or decorate an alpine hill with it. You can also plant such a flower near a pond or in the foreground of a flower garden. Calceolaria also looks great in window boxes, they should be located in partial shade and be fairly well protected from the winds.
Additional Information
Calceolaria can be grown as a houseplant. It is also grown from seedlings and placed in separate pots on the northern, western or eastern windowsill. In order for the plant to bloom, it needs a certain temperature of maintenance - from fourteen to sixteen degrees. Sufficient air humidity also plays an important role, but spraying such a flower can only harm.
Calceolaria is a very beautiful flower that, if properly placed, can become a real highlight of the garden.
A herbaceous and profusely flowering plant like calceolaria at home is grown as an annual or biennial. Its popularity is associated with very spectacular flowers that have an unusual shape, reminiscent of a "purse" or "slipper". So, these bright flowers are two-lipped, the upper lip of which has an extremely small size, and the lower one is large, spherical, swollen.
The genus Calceolaria (Calceolaria) has approximately 400 species of the families of norichnikovyh. In English taxonomy, they are classified in the Calceolariaceae family. In the wild, such a flower can be found in Central and South America. "Calceolaria" is translated from Latin as "little shoe".
This genus includes shrubs, herbs, shrubs, in which the leaves are opposite or whorled. The flower calyx is four-membered, and the corolla is swollen, two-lipped (while the upper lip is usually smaller). Has 2-3 stamens. The fruit is presented in the form of a box.
In calceolaria, most species are very beautiful and are grown as ornamental plants. Hybrid garden varieties were created from species such as: C. arachnoidea, C. corymbosa, C. crenatiflora, as well as others. For growing in cool greenhouses, as a rule, hybrids are chosen, the flowers of which are colored purple, orange, yellow or red, and their corollas can also be shaded or spotted. They are propagated by cuttings or seeds.
This beautifully flowering plant will delight you with its flowers in spring, while you should know that it is problematic to grow it at home, as it prefers cool places. Its spherical, bright, bubbly flowers stand out in particular. Often there are many different dots and spots on the flowers. As a rule, calceolaria blooms from March to June. Flowering continues for 4 weeks. One plant can form 18–55 flowers.
Temperature regime
This flower needs coolness (12-16 degrees). If the air temperature is too high, then flowers or buds may fall off.
illumination
He likes well-lit places, but the light should be diffused. Requires shading from direct sunlight. It is best to put on the windowsill, located in the northern, eastern or northwestern part of the room.
How to water
Watering should be plentiful. Don't let the soil dry out.
Humidity
The flower needs very high humidity. It is recommended to pour small pebbles or expanded clay into a wide pan, pour water, and put a flower pot on top. When spraying, try not to get the liquid on the pubescent leaves. Only flowers are sprayed.
How to transplant
The soil mixture consists of leaf, peat, sod land, as well as sand, mixed in a ratio of 3:2:3:1. When the calceolaria finishes blooming, it can be thrown out.
How to propagate
This plant can be grown from seed. For this, sowing is carried out from May to July, while the seeds are not sprinkled with earth. A double pick is required. For germination, the seeds need to provide a temperature of about 18 degrees. But it is difficult to grow this flower in room conditions; it is better to purchase it ready-made in a special store.
How to care for calceolaria correctly
Such a plant simply needs diffused light, and it does not tolerate the direct rays of the sun, from which it must be shaded. It grows well on windowsills located on the western or eastern window. If the calceolaria is placed on the southern windowsill, then it needs good shading, which can be made of paper or a translucent material (for example, tulle, gauze, tracing paper, and so on). Also feels great on the northern windowsill. When the plant begins to bloom, it will need not very much shading. In the autumn-winter period, it is recommended to illuminate the flower with fluorescent lamps.
In order for calceolaria to grow and develop normally, it needs the air temperature in the room to be no higher than 12–16 degrees, and, importantly, at any time of the year.
During the flowering period, watering should be regular. To do this, you need to use soft and always settled water. It is necessary to moisten the soil immediately after drying the top layer. Some time after watering, be sure to pour out the liquid that has accumulated in the pan. When flowering is over, you need to water the calceolaria very rarely and little, but make sure that the earthen ball does not dry out. After fresh shoots appear, they gradually return to the previous irrigation regime.
This flower simply needs a very high humidity, but at the same time, experts do not advise moistening it from a spray bottle. In order to achieve the necessary humidity, the pot with the plant is placed on a pallet, into which water is poured and pebbles are placed, and moistened peat or expanded clay can also be used. It is also advised to place the flower pot in a flowerpot, and fill the remaining space between the 2 vessels with wet peat (it is moistened regularly).
The first time the plant is fed after 2 weeks have passed after transplanting the flower into a permanent pot. Mineral fertilizers are applied 2 times a month.
After this plant has faded, its aerial part can be completely removed. Then the pot needs to be rearranged for 6-8 weeks in a dark, cool place. Watering is rarely needed, but the soil should not dry out completely. After the young growth appears, the pot is placed in a well-lit place, and after a while the calceolaria blooms. As a rule, flowering in such flowers begins a couple of months earlier than those grown from seeds. However, they are characterized by a loss of decorativeness, due to the fact that they are strongly drawn out.
Over time, calceolaria will certainly lose its decorative effect and quickly enough. To always have beautiful plants, you need not to transplant them, but to replace them with new ones.
How to propagate calceolaria
Seeds are used to propagate these flowers. If you want flowering to come in the spring, then you need to sow them in June, and if in the fall, then in March.
The seeds of calceolaria are very small in size, for example, in 1 gram there are about 30 thousand of them. Sowing is carried out directly on the surface of the soil, additional powdering with earth is not required. Paper is placed on top of the soil, and it must be systematically moistened. Picking is done after the seedlings grow 2 true leaves. To create a suitable soil mixture, it is necessary to mix hardwood, humus and peat soil, as well as sand in a ratio of 2:2:2:1.
Also, the seeds germinate well on peat. If you want flowering to come in mid-March, then sowing should be done from July 5 to July 15. To do this, use bedding peat disinfected from rot by heating to 90-100 degrees. Chalk is used to reduce the acidity of peat. To do this, it is added to the substrate. 15-20 grams of ground chalk is taken per kilogram of peat. Peat is also mixed with sand in a ratio of 7:1. In the resulting mixture, seeds are sown. To do this, they are scattered over the surface and not sprinkled on top with a substrate. Next, the container is tightly covered with glass or film. When condensation collects on the inner surface of the covering material, it must be carefully turned over so that water does not get on the seedlings. Be sure to keep the substrate consistently moist.
The second pick in pots with a diameter of 7 centimeters is made after the appearance of the outlet. Then they are placed on light window sills. At the beginning of autumn, another transplant is carried out, and pots with a diameter of 9–11 centimeters are used for it. Do not forget to pinch the calceolaria before this transplant, only 2 or 3 pairs of leaves should remain, and side shoots will begin to grow from their sinuses.
You can also form a bush with the help of pinching. To do this, you need to carefully remove the side shoots that form from the axils of the leaves.
Another transplant is already in larger pots produced from January to February. For this, a nutritious and heavy earth mixture is used, consisting of humus, sod and peat soil, as well as sand, mixed in a ratio of 2: 2: 2: 1. Also, do not forget to add 2-3 grams of complex mineral fertilizer per kilogram of the mixture. This humus substrate must necessarily be slightly acidic (approximate pH 5.5).
Flowering occurs 8-10 months after sowing seeds.
Growing difficulties
Every year these flowers need to be replaced with new ones. It is not advisable to leave them for the next year.
The leaves wither and the calceolaria quickly ages if the air in the room is too hot and dry.
Main types
Mexican calceolaria (Calceolaria mexicana)
Such plants are difficult to combine with others. So, this type of calceolaria has very small flowers (diameter 5 millimeters) of a light yellow hue. They look most advantageous in a border along with flowers that have decorative leaves, as well as in a composition located on the bank of a stream. The corollas of calceolaria then look like small lanterns.
Under different conditions of detention, the height of the bush may vary (from 20 to 50 centimeters). Taller bushes will be in a moist shaded place with nutrient soil. In the wild, Mexican calceolaria can be found on the wooded slopes of the mountains of Mexico, because it is a heat-loving plant. But at the same time, the bright light of the sun does not tolerate well, only if it is provided with good watering. This flower bears fruit almost always abundantly and it produces a large number of seeds.
wrinkled calceolaria - Calceolaria rugosa
This calceolaria is distinguished by its elegance and originality. Her homeland is Chile.
Such a herbaceous perennial plant, which has a very branched erect stem (25–50 centimeters high), is most often grown as an annual. Small (diameter 1.5–2 centimeters) flowers have a bright yellow color. But there are forms that have brownish dots. Small leaves are collected in rosettes. If you sow this plant as usual, then it begins to bloom in June and continues - until the frost. If there is a desire for this flower to bloom in the month of April, then it must be grown in containers.
Main varieties:
- Goldbukett - the plant has large flowers, and the height of a fairly strong bush reaches 25–30 centimeters;
- Triomphe de Versailles - has small flowers, and the height of a fast-growing bush reaches 35–50 centimeters;
- Sunset (Calceolaria x hybridus) is a very showy plant that can be grown both at home and in the garden. On each rosette, consisting of dark green leathery leaves, about a dozen short peduncles appear. In this case, the flowers-bells can be painted in orange, yellow or red. The height of the bushes reach 15-20 centimeters. They do not die with a short-term decrease in temperature to minus 5 degrees.
Video review
Calceolaria is a real decoration for rooms and balconies. The name Calceolaria is translated from Latin as "a flower that looks like a slipper." In fact, calceolaria flowers resemble small shoes. Plants grow low - from 20 to 40 cm. Flowering usually occurs in the spring, lasts about 6-8 weeks, after which the plant dies. Flowers are found with:
- yellow;
- White;
- red;
- Orange coloration.
The decorativeness of the petals is given by various spots and dots. Very often there are specimens of plants with two-color flowers, but they are more demanding on conditions. If such plants are placed in a warm room, which is undesirable for calceolaria, then new flowers will bloom in one color.
Care
For calceolaria, a cool room is needed, the temperature in it should be about 15 ° C, not higher. Owners place plants on verandas or poorly heated rooms. Calceolaria does not tolerate direct sunlight and dry indoor air. To ensure its growth and flowering requires regular watering and spraying. To prevent the earthen coma from drying out, the plant can be planted in, filling the space between its walls and the walls of the pot with peat, which must be regularly moistened. In this case, the plant will bloom very magnificently.
During the period of budding, the plant is fed 2 times a month with fertilizers for flowering plants (Uniflor Buton), and fertilizers are taken 2 times less than indicated on the package. During the flowering period, calceolaria is fertilized once a month.
Planting and reproduction
Calceolaria does not need to be transplanted, since it is one that dies off after flowering. Hybrid calceolaria is propagated by cuttings, which are cut at the end of summer, or by seeds.
Cut cuttings are rooted in a light soil mixture consisting of soddy soil and compost (in equal parts), with the addition of sand and peat.
For sowing seeds, soil is needed, consisting of equal parts of peat and leafy soil. If the seeds are sown in early autumn, then in the spring the plant will bloom (about 6-10 months after sowing). Sowing is carried out in moistened soil, the seeds are not sprinkled on top, but covered with a film or glass. The containers are placed in a warm (18 ° C) and lit place, regularly sprayed instead of watering and ventilated. Shoots appear after 2 weeks, they need special care. Water the sprouts very carefully, in a thin stream between the rows, so that they do not wash out of the ground. Seedlings dive in a month, after 2 months they can be planted in separate pots. Young plants need to be watered twice a week. For the winter they are placed in a cool place with a temperature of 8-10 ° C, but there should be good lighting.
Diseases and pests
With insufficient moisture, the leaves of plants wither, if water gets on them during irrigation, spots can form.
From this herbaceous perennial native to the warm regions of Central and South America during its flowering, it is impossible to take your eyes off. Calceolaria flowers are unusual in shape, reminiscent of a purse or a miniature slipper, and infinitely varied in color. In translation, its name sounds like this - “little shoe”. Planting and caring for calceolaria has its own characteristics for home conditions and for open ground, but in general they are not burdensome and, with a certain diligence and knowledge, a novice amateur can do it.
General description with photo
The genus Calceolaria belongs to the family of the same name. Despite the fact that in nature this plant is a perennial, in our climatic conditions it does not live long. When grown outdoors, it is used as an annual or biennial. In nature, calceolaria, depending on the variety, can take the form of not only grass, but also a shrub and even a shrub, but in our country it always grows compactly and usually does not exceed 30 cm (in rare cases 50 cm) neither in width nor in height .
The arrangement of bright green corrugated leaves is opposite or whorled. The flowers are bright, two-lipped, while the upper lip is tiny, and the lower lip is large, spherical, like a swollen hollow ball. Inside are only 2-3 stamens. On one bush there can be up to fifty small buds. Flowering is medium long, from 3 to 5 weeks. After it, in the place of each bud, a seed pod with very small seeds ripens.
Varieties of calceolaria with a photo
In total, in this rich family, biologists have up to four hundred varieties, the choice of which for home breeding, however, is very limited. Let's consider them in more detail.
Calceolaria wrinkled
A variety originally from Chile, very elegant and original. It is she who is most often found in home breeding. The stem of the plant is strongly branched, erect. This original flower can often be found in garden plots, where it is planted as a blooming annual. The flowers are bright yellow, sometimes with dark brown spots. With normal planting in the ground, flowering occurs in early summer, with seedling cultivation it can bloom almost a month earlier.
The best varieties of wrinkled calceolaria: Goldbukett (large inflorescences), Triomphe de Versailles (higher shoots and small flowers) and Sunset with its orange or deep red flowers, dwarf growth. This is a cold-resistant variety that can survive short-term frosts down to -5C.
Calceolaria purpurea
A large variety that grows up to half a meter. The basal leaves are toothed, the flowers are flattened-oblong, with a dark purple color.
Calceolaria mexican
In shady moisture-intensive places, this species can also stretch up to half a meter in height. The flowers are yellow, with a well-defined "bag" of the lower petal.
Calceolaria hybrid
This variety includes flowers obtained by the selection method with a large palette of colors. In addition to the variety of the basic tone of the petals, they have spectacular strokes, stains, dots, blots and other contrasting inclusions. The Dundee hybrid, which blooms in bright red, is very popular.
The plant is susceptible to fungal diseases, for this reason it is recommended to treat the plot or land in a pot with fungicides as a preventive measure.
Landing and care
For planting in open ground, you should choose a place that is moist and relatively shaded; calceolaria does not like the bright sun. In the wild, it grows on wooded mountain slopes, but at the same time it loves warmth.
Humidity
The moisture requirements of this crop are increased, and at the moment it is a certain difficulty for home cultivation, since this flower cannot be sprayed, this adversely affects the appearance of the plant. High humidity will have to be provided by other methods, for example, by installing a tray with water or wet expanded clay next to it.
Temperature regime
Despite the fact that calceolaria is considered a heat-loving plant, it does not like heat in the apartment. Content within + 16 ... + 18C will be ideal for her. At elevated temperatures, the plant is easily susceptible to diseases and insect attacks, and can also turn yellow and lose foliage. In winter, it is advisable to lower the temperature by a few more degrees, for example, place a flower on a veranda or on a closed and relatively insulated loggia.
Lighting
The open sun for calceolaria is contraindicated. On the site, it is better for her to take a place with partial shading. And at home, place on the north, northwest or east window. She will feel good not on the windowsill, but not quite in the back of the room, because complete shading will lead to a lack of flowers. In winter, the plant should stand on the window or have artificial lighting.
A pot of calceolaria can be taken outdoors in summer, but drafts and wind should be carefully avoided.
soil mixture
As a houseplant, calceolaria can be planted in ready-made soil for flowering herbaceous crops. When preparing the soil mixture yourself, you need to take care of its moisture capacity and nutritional value. Good soil amendments are vermiculite, gutted moss, wood ash, or chopped pine needles.
Watering
Moisturizing should be moderate, but permanent. The maximum allowable drying of the soil during the budding period is 2 cm deep. At home, water should be warm and settled, especially with a sharp drop in its temperature from room temperature. During flowering, the bushes need to be watered once a week, but more frequent watering may be required in the heat. Water should not stagnate in the pan, this can lead to rotting or fungal infection of the roots. When flowering is over, watering becomes more moderate. If the flower is in the sun or grows in an open area, it should be watered frequently.
top dressing
An ideal fertilizer for calceolaria would be a liquid mineral complex. It should be applied no more than 2 times a month. After transplantation, the flower can be fertilized for the first time no earlier than 2 weeks later. In autumn and winter, top dressing is not required and can be harmful.
Reproduction of calceolaria
There are two simple ways to plant this flower - seeds and vegetative division.
seeds
You can plant calceolaria at home at any time, but this is usually done in March or late summer. The soil should not be acidic and peaty. Before planting seeds, it must be calcined or spilled with a manganese solution. The seed material is very small (several thousand pieces of just 1 gram), so you just need to scatter it over the surface and not cover it with earth. It is enough to put a sheet of paper on top, which is periodically moistened so that the seeds do not crowd, but lie evenly. At this stage, the plant needs heat of at least + 19C. Watering should be done from a spray gun, the soil should not dry out. You will have to wait up to 2 weeks for seedlings.
As soon as the first pair of true leaves blooms, it is necessary to make a pick. The time for the second picking will come in 2 months, this time it should take place with pinching, and the transplant should be carried out in a container with a diameter of about 10 cm (several pieces). No more than three pairs of leaves should be left on each seedling to stimulate the awakening of new shoots. The final transplant to a permanent place is made when the plants are finally strong. The first flowering can be expected after 8-10 months.
cuttings
Cuttings are cut immediately after flowering, but they are best taken in February-March or late summer, in August. Cutting and planting is carried out according to the traditional scheme. Using a root biostimulator powder will speed up the process. Rooting time - about 2 months.
To get lush flowering, calceolaria is planted with several seedlings in one pot.
molding
For the beauty and splendor of the flower, calceolaria is recommended to be molded. This is done before the buds begin to form, by pinching the tops of the shoots. The lateral branches growing from the deciduous sinuses are subject to removal. The second method of molding is pinching the lateral shoots not to the very sinus, but with the preservation of a pair of leaves. This method will produce more buds, but they will be smaller. It is recommended to mold the plant every year or at least once every 2 years, since buds do not form on old shoots and flowering can become extremely scarce.
