Petunia, of course, not the queen of flowers, but the titleprincess she is definitely worthy. Bright beauty opens the buds, without ceasing, from spring to the very cold. The number of colors is amazing, and many flowers can envy life stability. How to grow strong seedlings and how to feed petunia to obtain abundant flowering bushes?
Petunia baby seeds begin sowing at the endwinters in February. Seedlings are very vulnerable: chlorosis and black leg can destroy them. Therefore, the substrate for sowing is used sterile, consisting of a mixture based on peat. Soil before sowing shed fungicide or dark pink solution of potassium permanganate. It is not necessary to fertilize the seedlings for the first two weeks - care is reduced to an accurate soil moistening as it dries. Here it is important to maintain a balance: do not overdry the earth bed, but also not over-wet.
First feeding
В фазе 3-4 настоящих листьев всходы reload in large containers, it is time to fertilize plants. How to feed petunia for the first time? To accelerate root formation and better engraftment of seedlings, it is necessary to pour petunias under the root of the means “Crystal” (yellow) or other universal fertilizer.
How to feed petunia again?It depends on its survival rate. If the sprouts are well taken, the next feeding is carried out in a week. The leaves of the plant should be processed using a fine sprayer complex fertilizer with a predominance of nitrogen. As petunia seedlings grow, nitrogen-containing fertilizers need to be replaced by potassium-dominated compounds.
Seedling care
Для того чтобы обеспечить цветы необходимой energy growth, seedlings need to be fed regularly: up to 3 times a week. What you can feed petunia with is organic fertilizer (mullein infusion, diluted in a ratio of 1:10) and a liquid complex flower fertilizer containing all of the trace elements.
Top-dressings always alternate with simple watering. It is advisable to use this scheme:
Water for irrigation must be clean and settled. In sunny weather, watering and fertilizing are carried out in the evening to avoid leaf burns.
How to achieve early flowering
If the bushes have already grown enough and formed, you can speed up flowering and make it lush and long with special fertilizers.
The better to feed petunia?Such drugs as “Scotts”, which has a prolonged effect, pink or brown “Crystal”, characterized by a well-verified formula and the absence of extraneous impurities, and iron-containing “Planton-S” have proved themselves to be excellent.
For the prevention of chlorosis (yellowing of leaves)You can feed ammonium nitrate or iron chelate. To keep bushes strong and compact, calcium fertilizers are used, such as Zircon and Appin.
Petunias planted in open ground needminimal care If the land is fertile and nutritious, the plant itself will produce all the necessary substances. Flowers planted in pots and ampel do not have this advantage. Even the most nutritious soil is depleted as the plants grow and develop, and the rains wash out trace elements from the soil. Therefore, petunia at home in need of feeding the whole season.
There are granulated fertilizers on saleprolonged action, which can provide a uniform supply of nutrients over time. They are very convenient for use in hanging pots when caring for plants is difficult.
