Many flower growers are very fond of such a flower as chrysanthemum. It is popular and can grow both outdoors and at home. In the latter case, a pot is used to grow a flower. Caring for it both indoors and outdoors will be exactly the same, only unlike garden ones, indoor chrysanthemum is small in size. So how to care for a chrysanthemum in a pot? Let's try to figure this out.
Features of indoor chrysanthemums
This flower can be either annual or perennial. It has a branched root system, the development of which occurs parallel to the surface. The leaves of the plant are light green, are dissected, serrated or notched. Dense inflorescence form small flowers collected in a basket.
Indoor chrysanthemum has a large number of varieties that grow remarkably at home. Such species differ from garden ones in their miniature size. This is explained by the fact that for indoor growth, drugs are used that stop their growth for decorative purposes.
When purchasing a chrysanthemum for growing in pots, you should choose a strong and healthy specimen with a well-formed stem and dense foliage. After the purchase, the flower adapts to the new conditions for some time. To prevent the plant from contracting diseases from others indoor flowers He is being quarantined for a few days.
Temperature and lighting
In order for the chrysanthemum to grow well at home, it is necessary to provide it with optimal temperature regime. She can't stand heat and exposure to direct sun rays. Better conditions It is cool air and short daylight hours. To make the chrysanthemum bloom as long as possible, optimum temperature for this it should be +15 degrees, and the maximum temperature for its growth is within +18 degrees.
Asters are my favorite flowers. They literally energize me. Admiring them, my soul blossoms like their flowers. I'll tell you how to grow aster seedlings so that these beautiful flowers made you happy as much as they made me.
It has been five years since I stopped growing aster seedlings at home. Careful preparation of the soil, highlighting, picking, hardening and transporting plants to the garden plot require a lot of time and effort. All this can be done much easier.
In the fall, I choose a place for seedlings of asters. I remove plant residues, scatter Kemira with loose, well-ripened humus and dig up the soil. I make a bed at least 20 cm high so that in spring the earth warms up faster.
When and how to grow asters and seedlings, there are no special tricks. In early April, if the snow has not yet melted, I sprinkle the bed wood ash and in two weeks she is ready to sow aster seeds. I loosen the ground with a chopper, level it with a rake and make sides along the edges so that water does not drain.
I prepare seeds for growing aster seedlings in advance. In the winter, I store them on the refrigerator door. I take it out a week before planting to keep warm. Be sure to pickle the seeds in a strong solution of potassium permanganate and soak them in Epin's solution, after which I dry them on a newspaper. I sow aster seeds the next day, because after such preparation they are not recommended to be stored for a long time.
I make smooth grooves 1 cm deep at a distance of 10 cm from each other with a plank across the beds and spill them with boiling water from the kettle. I scatter the seeds thickly - so they germinate more amicably.
Then I fill the grooves with sand, install small arcs over the bed and cover with a film, leaving a small hole for ventilation at the end of the tunnel.
Short-term frosts down to minus 3 ° for growing seedlings of asters are not terrible, and if suddenly the temperature is promised lower, then at night I cover the bed with an old blanket.
When the first sprouts appear, I try to thin them out as early as possible - I remove the extra and weak ones. During the formation of the second pair of real leaves, I feed the seedlings with a solution of humate. And of course I water, loosen and field the plants regularly.
At the end of May, I begin to harden seedlings of asters. First, I completely open the end of the tunnel, then I lift the film from one side. I am waiting for a few more days when the aster seedlings will get stronger in the air. During this time, I prepare flower beds and places for planting flowers. Planting aster seedlings on permanent place usually done on cloudy days or in the evening. At first, it is desirable to shade the plants.
Over the past years has accumulated great experience who showed how to grow aster seedlings directly on garden plot and not on the city windowsill. Follow my example and these beautiful flowers will delight you until late autumn.
Galina Kotenkova
Good day everyone!
I want to talk today about how to grow asters from seeds. Annual asters familiar to us are a variety of the aster family. This flower is called Callistefus or Chinese Aster. Its stems are branched, green or red with a powerful fibrous root. Small alternate leaves, inflorescence - basket.
This flower in my front garden occupies special place. My grandmother loved him very much and her asters always bloomed by September. She sowed them simply in the ground, and then planted them in a flower bed. They bloomed late, but still pleased. The flowers were the simplest - pink and purple daisies. Now there are many varieties of this flower. They are diverse in the form of petals, color, height of plants. Correspond to the name, because Astra is a “star” in Latin. Now I no longer sow the aster directly into the ground, I want it to bloom early. To do this, you need to grow asters at home with seedlings. Or in greenhouses.
How to grow asters from seeds at home
When to sow asters - the timing of sowing seeds
Asters differ in terms of flowering:
- Early bloom 90 days after germination,
- Medium - after 110 days,
- Varieties late deadline flowering - after 130 days.
They usually bloom until frost. These beauties are not afraid of cold, so you can plant seedlings in the Urals in May. It is desirable that by the time of planting in open ground, the seedlings should be one month old, small, about 6 cm, with good roots.
Given all this knowledge, determine the timing of sowing. I always sow aster in early April at home. In the greenhouse, you can also sow seeds at this time.
If there is a place on the windows or a heated greenhouse, then you can sow an aster in March. But you don't need to do this before. Shoots will reach for the light, which is still small, become thinner, lay down and wither later. There was such an experience.
Sowing
Aster seeds are quite large, they can be spread out less often. I sow first in small containers, then I plant them in separate cups or small boxes. Astra is not afraid of transplantation, it grows in a spacious pot root system.
The soil can be purchased or prepared by yourself. I usually take garden soil, add humus, purchased soil, ash, you can sand. To get a light soil that passes air and water well.
Aster seeds quickly lose their germination capacity, it is better to take completely fresh ones. In the second year, half of the seeds may not sprout.
I sow the seeds to a depth of about 1 cm. I water and put the container in a bag, after a few days shoots appear. I put it immediately closer to the window so that it is light and cool.
As soon as a couple of true leaves appear, you can sit down. The seedlings of the aster are strong, but fragile at the point of transition of the stem into the root. Therefore, at first we wet the ground well, and after half an hour, you can carefully remove small asters with a match or a toothpick and plant them in large prepared cups.
Seedling care at home
Asters are watered infrequently, but plentifully. Seedling containers must have drainage so that excess water can drain. It is impossible to fill the aster with water, otherwise it may get sick with a black leg and die.
Seedlings usually grow well. If you have prepared good soil before sowing, then there is no point in fertilizing. But with poor land, you can water your seedlings with bio-fertilizer a week after transplanting. You can pour infusion of ash.
You don't need to use nitrogen fertilizers. Otherwise, there will be huge green bushes, and flowering will come later and will not please at all in terms of quality.
Planting seedlings and care
In a typical Ural spring, aster seedlings can be transplanted outside in mid-late May. But in order for young plants to tolerate the transplant well and possible cold snaps, it is necessary to harden them. In early April, start taking seedlings outside. If growing in a greenhouse, open the doors on warm days.
Usually in April, almost all of my seedlings move to the veranda. I bring it home only if frost is expected.
Such seedlings can be planted in a permanent place
She loves a sunny place, the land is not acidic, fertile. Under planting asters do not make fresh manure!
I plant high cut asters at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other. They branch well and form many shoots with flowers. I plant low, curb ones closer, about 15-20 cm from each other. Then growing, they bloom in a continuous carpet.
Groups of flowers of the same color look interesting. And low ones can be planted in different colors, there will be a colorful border or island. For the beautiful lush flowering remove old flowers in time.
A week after planting seedlings, I water with infusion of ash or biofertilizer. Spring and early summer are dry, the rains do not indulge us. In order not to constantly run with a watering can, immediately after watering the flowers, mulch with hay, grass, sawdust, wood chips. So the work of both weeding and loosening will decrease. And for good flowering asters need to be loosened frequently. Although in general it is a very unpretentious flower.
Possible difficulties with growing seedlings:
Beautiful, healthy flowers will decorate your garden until the frost.
Sowing asters in open ground
As already said, I try to grow aster seedlings. But if this is not possible, you can grow seedlings of asters by sowing in early spring seeds into the ground. They do it early, in April. small plot loosen with humus, after sowing the seeds, they are watered and covered with a film. When the asters rise, we replace the film with a covering material so that the earth does not dry out.
You can sow aster seeds before winter. So they themselves will determine in the spring when it is better for them to ascend. When the asters grow up, seat them in flower beds. By the way, such plants do not suffer from Fusarium.
Asters sprout well by self-sowing, with a friendly warm spring, they will bloom in August-September. They can be thinned or planted. But in order to get beautiful lush plants that bloom from July, you have to grow seedlings, especially in the Urals and to the north.
Video about winter sowing asters
Diseases of asters
Video about the disease of asters with fusarium.
How to collect aster seeds
I usually leave the seeds first, large flowers they mature well. When the flower fades, darkens, and a small fluff appears in the center, I cut it off and put it in a paper bag. This should be done in dry weather, during the day. If it is damp, you need to disassemble the inflorescence and dry it well so that the seeds do not rot. In a bag, the seeds usually ripen, then I store them at home until sowing. The bag needs to be signed so that you know which variety you are sowing.
Fresh seeds are good to sow before winter. In late autumn, in the frost-bitten ground, so that they no longer thaw, do not germinate in the cold. You can even sow directly on the snow in December and sprinkle with earth, and in the spring cover this place with a film for early shoots.
Asters are very good for cutting. And my schoolboy takes five or six bouquets by the first of September: both to school and to the music school. Often, on Teacher's Day, he brings his flowers to school (and this is already October). True, not every year is so successful. If a severe frost hits, then the asters turn yellow and wither.
May growing asters from seeds in your area bring you joy.
Read other interesting articles:
- Growing petunia seedlings from seeds is easy and simple!
- Pansies
- Ornamental cabbage: cultivation and care - an unusual flower!
Sincerely, Sofia Guseva.
Care for asters consists of regular watering, careful loosening of the soil and top dressing, providing flower crops the necessary nutrition.
Asters prefers a sunny, wind-sheltered location with well-drained and fertilized soil with acidity close to neutral. On soils with insufficient humus content, top dressing with organic fertilizers is necessary. On fertile soils - infusion of bird droppings.
It is impossible to plant asters after gladioli, tulips, carnations and return to their original site earlier than after 4-5 years. The best predecessors are calendula and tagetes. The introduction of manure under this crop leads to the defeat of plants by Fusarium. In autumn, for deep digging of the soil, it is recommended to add 2-4 kg of humus or compost per 1 m2, before spring digging 20-40 gr. superphosphate, 15 - 20 g of ammonium sulfate, 15-20 g of potassium salt. Doses of fertilizers are indicated approximately. Specific doses must be calculated on the basis of agrochemical analysis of soil samples.
Perennial aster reproduces by spring or autumn division of bushes, annual - only by seeds. Almost all varieties and varieties of asters are easily propagated using seeds. The shell of the seeds is dense, which allows you to transfer without any problems unfavourable conditions. Despite the density of the shell, aster seeds swell easily and germinate soon. Seeds remain viable for 2-3 years.
Growing conditions
annuals and perennial asters They prefer sunny areas, although they can tolerate light partial shade. They grow well on loamy and sandy, moderately moist soils with neutral acidity. The exception is alpine aster, which requires sandy loam alkaline soil. The area where asters grow should be well drained. Damp, flooded places in spring and autumn are unsuitable for asters.
Soil preparation for asters
Even in the fall, you should take care of the soil in which you plan to plant asters in the future. The earth must be dug to a depth of 22-30 cm and fertilized for digging: 2-4 kg of humus or compost (astra does not tolerate fresh manure, since it contributes to plant damage by Fusarium) and 6-9 g of superphosphate and potassium salt per 1 m2.
If the soil is acidic, liming should be done in late autumn, taking into account the fact that the addition of 350-400 g of carbonic lime per 1 m2 increases the pH by 1.
In early spring, the soil should be loosened to a depth of 15-18 cm in order to retain more moisture and allow the weeds that overwintered to germinate.
Before sowing seeds or planting seedlings, the site should be thoroughly weeded, leveled and loosened again to a depth of 4-6 cm.
Growing seedlings
Asters in the Non-Black Earth region are usually grown through seedlings. On the window, the seeds are sown in the second half of March, in the greenhouse - in April. mixed for sowing sod land with peat and sand in the ratio 2:2:1.
Preferably received soil mixture sift through a sieve with holes of 1-1.5 cm. Good garden soil is also suitable directly from the site. From above, the soil is sprinkled with a layer of clean sand 2-2.5 cm thick.
Seedling boxes or pots are thoroughly shed with a thick solution of potassium permanganate (2 g per 10 liters of water) and filled with soil. 1-2 days before sowing, it is shed with a thick solution of potassium permanganate, in extreme cases, just boiling water. During sowing, the soil should not be wet, but only moist.
Seeds are sown randomly, do not sprinkle with soil, but cover with paper. It is removed after 3-5 days, when shoots appear. Then the box is placed on a light windowsill and the seedlings are carefully watered with water at room temperature.
In the future, watering should be infrequent, but plentiful. The temperature during the cultivation of seedlings is maintained at 16-18°C during the day and 12-15°C at night. This temperature can be provided by airing the room or greenhouse.
The time from germination to picking (7-8 days after germination) is a very crucial moment, as a "black leg" may appear. During this period, it is necessary to carefully monitor both soil moisture and air temperature. Seedlings dive at the formation of the first true leaf.
Plants are planted in 5-7 cm in a checkerboard pattern and watered. If the hypocotyl knee of the seedlings is very extended, then when picking, they can be deepened almost to the cotyledon leaves.
7-10 days after picking, rooted seedlings are fed with any complex mineral fertilizer(30 g per 10 liters of water).
When the 4th leaf appears, the seedlings begin to harden off, lowering the temperature so that it is 10-12 ° C during the day and 8-10 ° C at night. The total duration of hardening should be 15-20 days.
Hardened seedlings take root better and grow faster after transplanting. It withstands temperatures down to minus 4°C.
Reduce watering during hardening. Plants are planted in the 2nd-3rd decade of May. By the time of landing in the ground, asters should have a strong stem 6-10 cm high and 5-7 large bright green leaves.
2-3 days before transplanting and before planting, seedlings are watered abundantly, especially if they were grown without pots. This will help to better preserve the roots and soil clod. It is preferable to plant in the evening.
For asters, the feeding area is very important - in no case should they be thickened. seedlings tall varieties placed at a distance of 20-25 cm between plants, undersized asters are planted after 10-15 cm.
With multi-row planting, 60-70 cm are left between rows. If planted on a raised flower garden (15-25 cm high), large asters are placed at a distance of 30-35 and 35-40 cm between rows, undersized, respectively, at 15-20 and 20-25 cm.
Landing is carried out with double watering: in the holes and from above. The soil around the planted seedlings is sprinkled (mulched) with dry earth. In hot weather, it is advisable to cover the plants with a light layer for several days. nonwoven fabric for better survival.
Important Tip: In order for the asters to form strong bushes with lush inflorescences, soak the seeds for 7 hours on the eve of sowing in a solution of zinc chloride or molybdenum (0.5-08 g per 1 liter of water).
Reproduction of asters by seeds
Usually, through seedlings, asters are grown for more early flowering(especially late varieties) or obtaining seeds. If all this is not so necessary, then asters can be grown by sowing in open ground. Such plants are less likely to suffer from Fusarium, bloom longer, however, they almost do not form seeds.
Asters can be sown in the spring, as soon as the soil warms up. Usually sowing is carried out in early May, shoots appear on May 19-24. Seeds are prepared in the same way as when sowing seedlings, and sown in grooves 0.5-0.8 cm deep.
They fall asleep with a layer of soil, water well, in dry weather lightly mulch or cover nonwoven fabric before emergence. When 2-3 true leaves appear, seedlings are thinned out at a distance of 10-15 cm (taking into account the fact that seedlings will still fall out in the future).
Excess plants can not be pulled out, but carefully dug up and transplanted to another place. The flowering of asters sown immediately into the ground will be 19-25 days later than home seedlings, but longer.
You can sow asters in late autumn. They are sown in pre-prepared soil, placed in grooves, and sprinkled with prepared dry soil. The land must be frozen when sown, otherwise the seeds may germinate and die. Possible for asters and winter sowing in December-January.
If not severe frosts, snow is raked from the plots prepared for asters, dry seeds are sown in grooves and sprinkled simply with dry earth or mixed with peat, and a snow layer is poured on top. When podzimnem or winter sowing seedlings appear in late April - early May.
Basic rules for caring for home asters
Caring for asters includes the obligatory loosening of the soil. It is advisable to do this after each watering or rain. Loosen the soil to a depth of 4-6 cm, given that the bulk of the roots are in surface layer(20 cm).
Before branching, plants can be lightly hilled to a height of 5-7 cm. This will enhance root growth. When watering, it must be remembered that both a lack and an excess of water are harmful for asters. AT hot weather it is better to water less often, but plentifully (up to 3 buckets per 1 m2) and be sure to loosen after that. If, in dry weather, you are late with watering or give it not enough, the inflorescences will be small and small.
Asters sown before winter not only bloom earlier, but also form more lush inflorescences. If possible, then after rooting the seedlings, it is better to feed the asters with a solution of mullein diluted 1:10.
In order for an aster to grow into a beauty, it needs to be fed. Usually give 3 top dressing.
The first time they are fed 10-15 days after planting in the ground or thinning, using 20-25 g ammonium nitrate, 50-60 g of superphosphate and 10-15 g of potassium sulfate per 1 m2.
When buds appear, a second top dressing is given, this time using 50-60 g / m2 of superphosphate and potassium sulfate. The same fertilizers are given at the third top dressing, which is carried out at the beginning of flowering asters.
It should be remembered that asters cannot stand dampness and excessive waterlogging and are considered drought-resistant flowers, but in dry weather they must be watered abundantly. Pay special attention to watering during the setting of buds, otherwise you can not expect lush flowering.
Landed on fertile soil asters at good watering and periodic top dressing will bloom wonderfully until the very cold. For the first time, flower beds with asters are enriched with complete mineral fertilizer two weeks after transplanting seedlings into a flower bed, and during the period of bud formation and flowering, top dressing is used without nitrogen fertilizers. organic fertilizers apply only on poor soils.
Insofar as main enemy asters - diseases, especially fusarium, it is recommended for prevention to spray plants with a solution that contains the following trace elements: potassium permanganate, salts of magnesium, zinc, cobalt, copper, ammonium molybdate and boric acid.
Also, make sure that when growing asters, they do not show signs of rust, late blight, sclerotinia, powdery mildew, rhizoctoniosis, jaundice, slugs, aphids, cutworms, spider mite, nematodes.
In caring for the garden, sometimes there is no time at all to provide proper care for the flowers, so for most gardeners, the most convenient option is to grow asters - one of the most unpretentious, but at the same time surprisingly beautiful flowers!
Choosing a place for landing asters
Astra is able to regenerate its damaged root system and even during flowering calmly endure transplantation.
Benefits of growing asters:
- flowers are not afraid of cold weather, and perennial asters are even able to bloom in frosts down to -7 degrees;
- seeds withstand adverse conditions well and sprout easily;
- it is convenient to propagate aster both by seeds and vegetatively;
- growing seedlings does not cause much trouble, but you can sow aster seeds directly in the beds;
- aster is able to regenerate its damaged root system and even during flowering calmly endure the transplant;
- a huge selection of varieties and varieties of asters with flowers of the most amazing shapes and colors allows you to create a real masterpiece from a flower garden!
Even a novice florist can easily figure out how to grow asters. The main thing is to plant flowers in the soil, previously fertilized with nutrients, and do not forget about weeding and timely watering. Well, if you manage to fertilize a couple of times during the summer, your flowers will grow especially beautiful and large, with powerful stems. However, some features of growing asters still need to be taken into account.
Video about sowing and growing asters
In order for multi-colored asters to hurt as little as possible and delight you with their bright beauty for a long time, you need to correctly determine the place on the site for their landing and prepare suitable soil. Like many other garden flowers, asters form large healthy buds only when there is enough moisture and nutrients in the soil. Therefore, a flower bed for them should be prepared in the fall, digging up the ground and adding to it river sand with humus or sand with peat, so that the soil is fertile, breathable and well-drained.
The acidity of the soil should be close to neutral. If you add humus just before planting asters, plants can be affected by fungal fusarium (growing asters on dense or acidic soils leads to the same result). In the spring, before digging, it is recommended to add ammonium sulphate, superphosphate and potassium salt to the soil.
To prevent the risk of Fusarium asters disease, they should not be planted after potatoes, tomatoes, carnations, gillyflowers, gladioli, tulips. Asters can be grown in the same flower bed for six years, and asters can be returned to their original place only after four years. The best results can be achieved when sowing asters after marigolds, marigolds, perennial grasses.
The best results can be achieved when sowing asters after marigolds, marigolds, perennial grasses
Asters feel good in partial shade, they love open sunny places, but in extreme heat and drought they lose their decorative effect. It is advisable to choose a place under the flower bed, protected from the wind and from constant dampness, so that ground water did not lie too close to the surface of the earth.
Planting asters in seedling and seedless way
You can harvest asters seeds yourself, collecting them from dried inflorescences at the end of summer, or purchase seeds in the store for each season, experimenting with various varieties aster. The main thing is that the seeds are of high quality, then the seedlings will sprout 100%.
Planting asters in seedlings
Seedling method:
- in the last days of March, fungicide-treated seeds are sown in boxes or in a greenhouse along previously prepared grooves;
- sprinkled on top with a thin layer of finely sifted humus;
- the earth is carefully watered weak solution potassium permanganate;
- crops are covered with paper or film;
- until the first sprouts appear, the seedlings should be at a temperature of +18 degrees;
- after five days, you can remove the film and bring the seedlings into the light;
- watering is done after the appearance of green sprouts;
- picking should be done when the first true leaves are formed;
- seven days after picking, you can start weekly feeding of asters seedlings with complex mineral fertilizers;
- plants can be planted in a flower bed already in early May.
seedless way
Seedless sowing of asters
Asters seeds are sown as soon as the earth warms up, directly on the flower beds, sprinkled a little on top of the earth and covered with a film until germination. With the advent of young seedlings, the film can be removed and the plants covered only in case of frost. It is not necessary to dive them, it is enough to sow at intervals of a couple of centimeters, and then thin out so that 12 cm are obtained between the plants, or leave the plantings thickened. Asters planted in a seedless way begin to bloom much earlier.
Basic rules for caring for asters
Asters cannot stand dampness and excessive waterlogging and are considered drought-resistant flowers, but in dry weather they must be watered abundantly. Pay special attention to watering during the setting of buds, otherwise you can not expect lush flowering.
Asters planted on fertile soil with good watering and periodic top dressing will bloom wonderfully until the very cold. For the first time, flower beds with asters are enriched with complete mineral fertilizer two weeks after transplanting seedlings into a flower bed, and during the period of bud formation and flowering, top dressing without nitrogen fertilizers is used. Organic fertilizers are applied only on poor soils.
Video about asters
Since the main enemy of asters is disease, especially fusarium, it is recommended to spray the plants with a solution containing the following trace elements for prevention: potassium permanganate, salts of magnesium, zinc, cobalt, copper, ammonium molybdate and boric acid.
Also, make sure that when growing asters, they do not show signs of rust, late blight, sclerotinia, powdery mildew, rhizoctoniosis, jaundice, damage by slugs, aphids, scoops, spider mites, nematodes.
