Silver cineraria flowers planting and care. Silver cineraria - secrets of independent cultivation and care in the open ground. Vegetative propagation of cineraria

Cineraria flowers are a genus of flowering plants in the Asteraceae family. Their homeland is, first of all, South America, and there are several varieties in the north. Genus includes herbaceous plants and small shrubs. In the past, this genus was considered in a broader sense and included subspecies from the Canary Islands and Madeira, which are now transferred to the genus Pericallis, including Florist's Cineraria. The article presents the most colorful colors of culture. Planting and caring for plants in room conditions and on the plot. With proper cultivation of cineraria from seeds in the garden, you can get gorgeous flowering islands that attract with their unusualness and duration of flowering. Look at the photo of cineraria flowers in a variety of shades:

The plant often has problems with aphids, thrips, spider mites and whiteflies. These insects kill the energy of the plant and cover it with their waste or unsightly webbing. It is recommended to spray the leaves and bushes with a non-toxic, ready-to-use insecticidal soap until the solution begins to drip from the leaves. Repeat the procedure once a week or as often as recommended by the manufacturers. Also remember to follow safety precautions, especially regarding protective clothing.

A densely populated area of soil, excessively wet nights and wet leaves can lead to fungal diseases, leaf spots, gray mold and powdery mildew. To prevent disease, provide good air and water circulation early in the day, as it will have time to dry out by early night.
In some areas, cineraria is used to treat cataracts.

Growing cineraria at home from seeds (with photo)

Cineraria can be propagated from stem cuttings taken at any time during the summer. Growing cineraria at home from seeds is carried out using the seedling method and allows you to preserve everything decorative features si varietal characteristics of the parent plants. Look at the photo the results of the gardener’s hard work and daily proper care:

For plant seeds to germinate, they need sunlight. There is no need to close them. Seeds are sown indoors in a room in early September, February and October. Maintain a temperature of 20-25 degrees Celsius until germination, which takes 10-15 days. Be careful not to let water get into the seedlings to avoid fungus. After a month, transplant the seedlings into pots. When the roots just start to grow and they feel cramped in the old pot, transplant them into a larger container. Two weeks after planting, the bush is moved to a bright place. As soon as the buds begin to appear, you should start feeding with fertilizers: 1/2 of the fertilizer solution and increase the temperature by 10 degrees.

Planting cineraria and subsequent care in open ground

The Cineraria flower is a compact plant with exploding flowers in shades of white, pink, red, purple and blue. As perennials, they grow only in coastal America. Elsewhere they are short-lived but effective as houseplants. If you plan to grow it indoors or in the garden, you need to provide them with proper care. Planting cineraria in open ground possible only by seedlings, this ensures early and long flowering. Subsequent care consists of maintaining loose soil, timely watering and applying mineral fertilizers.

Even when grown in acidic, moist and organically rich soil, they require fertilizing with fertilizers. It is better to determine the volume of fertilizing based on the instructions on the fertilizer package; the frequency of application is at least 3-4 times a month or at the frequency recommended by the manufacturer. It is important that they provide sufficient nitrogen for leaves, phosphorus for flowers and potassium for strong roots. Distribute the fertilizer evenly around the plant at the rate of 1/4 cup per 10 square meters of soil, loosen it a little and add water. You should not feed cineraria if you keep it indoors. In such conditions, on fertilizer they will bloom for 1-1.5 months, and will not bloom again.

It is better to keep the plant at a temperature of 12-18 degrees Celsius during the day, releasing it to 7-12 degrees at night. At higher temperatures and brighter light, leaves wilt and flowers fade faster. For best performance, place houseplants in north-facing windows, providing them with filtered light for several hours a day. Garden cineraria, growing on the north side, is best kept under a canopy or under an open canopy under a tree.

If cold weather is expected, it is better to cover them, and then open them again at the first rays of sun.

Plucking cineraria during flowering increases the number of flowers and the duration of their bloom. Garden plants are pruned to the ground after germination and the end of the flowering period, and then bloom again in spring or early summer. Remember to sterilize scraps and other cutting tools by wiping them with a cloth soaked in rubbing alcohol.

Now let’s look at the most interesting varieties of cineraria, suitable for growing in the garden and indoors. They all have their own advantages, and in combination they can form bright borders and borders. Look at the photo of the cineraria variety and read their descriptions.

Cineraria silver

Caring for silver cineraria does not require any special skills. It blooms for a very long time, but its flowers are completely inconspicuous. This variety is very popular among gardeners due to its unusual silvery-ashy leaves. This is one of the reasons why it is so often used in landscape design for composing all kinds of compositions. Some gardeners grow cineraria to shade other, brighter flowers - cannas or silver sage, for example.

Cineraria hybrid

Cineraria hybrid belongs to the Astrov family, and is found naturally in the Canary Islands. This is one single species that reproduces exactly how indoor plant, the rest are classified as horticultural crops. This annual plant has beautiful heart-shaped leaves and beautiful inflorescences collected in the shape of a basket. Absolutely any color and degree of terry can be used. Its main feature in care is that the plant does not tolerate heat; the temperature acceptable for it ranges from 15 to 20 degrees.

When it comes to chamomile, everyone most often imagines a yellow center and white petals; when mentioning poppy, they imagine bright red petals. When cineraria is mentioned, it is not immediately possible to understand what cineraria looks like, about which we're talking about. Under this name there are at least three most common, very different plants. Among them there are both flowering and decorative deciduous ones, growing only at home and outdoors. They are connected only by belonging to the Asteraceae family.

The most famous:

hybrid cineraria, also known as bloody cineraria;
coastal cineraria, also known as seaside ragwort or silver cineraria;
cineraria graceful.

Hybrid cineraria is most suitable for growing indoors; maritime cineraria is grown outdoors as an annual and decorative foliage plant. Cineraria graceful blooms in flower beds until frost.

What unites such dissimilar plants is their height from 30 to 90 cm, a highly branched stem, large petiolate leaves, corymbose inflorescences of simple or double corollas, colored red, white, yellow or purple. Very often the petals are painted in two colors.

At home, in warm countries, cineraria are perennials that grow from 15 to 60 cm. With a long frost-free period, these plants manage to bloom and produce seeds in the first year of life. In our climate, silver or graceful cineraria growing outdoors do not have time to leave seeds - early frosts destroy the bushes.

Cineraria grown through seedlings have time to bloom and decorate flower beds with their flowers. IN southern regions You can preserve decorative deciduous bushes if you trim them immediately after frost and cover them with dry leaves for the winter.

Types and varieties of cineraria with photos

All cineraria are divided into decorative deciduous for open ground, flowering in a flower bed and for indoor cultivation.

Cineraria maritima or silvery

Cineraria maritima is a typical representative of the Asteraceae family. Among landscape designers and flower growers it is known under the names ragwort, sea cineraria, and silver dust. The unusual shape and color of the leaves makes the plant popular in creating flower beds, flower beds, alpine slides, rocky gardens and screes. If you put cut branches in a vase before frost, you will get interesting dried flowers.

Raspberry is a plant with carved leaves covered with a silvery coating, which is where one of the names comes from. Most often, the plant does not grow higher than 30cm.

A little-known fact - cineraria has medicinal properties. Traditional medicine uses this plant in the treatment of intestinal diseases and bronchial asthma.

Used as an ornamental plant with beautiful leaves, an annual, less often a biennial. When creating garden compositions, it is used as a background for greenery or bright flowers.

Common varieties:

Growing

In general, the godson is enough unpretentious plant. It is cold-resistant, tolerates lack of moisture, tolerates any soil, and can grow in partial shade. a lack of sunlight makes the leaves of the plant appear inexpressively gray.

In a sunny place, with sufficient watering and fertilizing - diluted organic fertilizers, silver cineraria remains attractive until frost. The plant is responsive to shallow loosening of loamy soil. Watering the plant is necessary after emergence and immediately after picking; grown plants and rooted seedlings require a minimum amount of moisture.

In the southern regions of Russia, where the warm period is long and winter temperatures are not so low, cineraria littoria is grown as a biennial that can overwinter without shelter. In this case, its propagation is possible by cuttings from shoots.

In more northern areas, wintering is possible under certain conditions. In the fall, before frost sets in, the bushes are lightly trimmed, covered with dry leaves, and covered with spruce branches or branches on top, securing the leaves. Under such shelter, plantings can be preserved until it warms up.

In the spring, after removing the insulation, the plants are pruned again, removing frozen parts. Another way to preserve cineraria until spring is to keep the plants in boxes and pots in a cool, well-lit room during cold weather. In spring, these plants are returned to the flower garden.

In the second year of development, the godson will have to pay more attention. In the second year of life, inflorescences are formed on the plant, which have no decorative value. To maintain an attractive appearance buds must be removed.

Usage. Planted in flower beds and flower beds, ragwort or cineraria maritima is most often used as a border plant. It is suitable for growing in tubs and balcony boxes. Seaside cineraria looks especially expressive in autumn compositions.

Partners. The silver-gray coloring of the ragwort makes this plant stand out throughout the season. This coloring smoothes out the contrasts between ornamental plants.

Blue and white colors. Silver cineraria combines especially harmoniously with blue, red, soft pink, cream and white plants.

Pure white combinations. Ragwort is combined with Waller's balsam, fragrant tobacco, and prickly cleome.

Of the red flowers, the red ever-blooming begonia looks unforgettable next to the cineraria.

Yellow and orange marigolds and silvery godson leaves are another successful combination. In autumn compositions with silver-gray leaves of cineraria, heather, hebe and creeping wintergreen will look harmonious.

Another use for silver dust is planting them in outdoor vases and containers to soften the bright colors.

Combinations of cineraria with cannas, sage, pelargoniums, salvia and zinnias are interesting.

When dried, they look good in winter bouquets.

Hybrid cineraria (Cineraria hybrid), also known as red or bloody cineraria, is an ornamental, flowering plant. The bushes grow above 30 cm. Leaves larger than 20 cm emphasize the brightness of the daisy-like flowers.

Grandiflora – grows up to 70 cm, flowers up to 8 cm in diameter;
Double – up to 70 cm, flowers no larger than 5 cm;
Stellata - the plant can grow to almost a meter in height with medium-sized flowers up to 4 cm;
Sympathy - flowers containing two shades.

The only type of cineraria grown indoors. It is a low herbaceous shrub with large, heart-shaped, long-petioled leaves. The flowers are collected in baskets and painted in various colors. There are simple or terry varieties.

Flowering begins in winter and lasts up to a month. Then the plant is replaced with a young one grown from seeds. Cineraria hybrida is easily propagated by sowing seeds.

You can increase the flowering time of hybrid cineraria by placing it in the right place. There should be good lighting, but no direct sun. The plant blooms most brightly on eastern and western windows.

For plants located on northern windows, there will not be enough light - the plant will turn pale, stretch out and bloom weakly. On southern windows, indoor cineraria is shaded from too bright sun, which can leave burns on the leaves. Cineraria on a window of any orientation, it must be protected from drafts.

Any season optimal temperature for the growth and flowering of cineraria there will be a temperature range from 15 to 20 degrees Celsius.

The plant is not particularly picky about soil - soil for indoor flowers sold in stores is loosened with a small amount of sand.

Watering and air humidity require special attention. It is necessary to water with soft, settled water, room temperature. When watering the plant daily, you need to try not to overwater the plant, but also not to let it dry out. Both extremes are detrimental to the plant. It is necessary to maintain high soil moisture only during seed germination.

Another requirement of the plant is high air humidity, but without spraying. You can achieve the required moisture content in the air by using a household humidifier, or by placing the pot in a container with damp moss or expanded clay.

Before flowering, indoor cineraria are fed with fertilizer for flowering plants weekly. When flowering begins, fertilization is stopped. After flowering the plant dies.

The most common pest on indoor cineraria plants is aphids. A small number of insects are washed off with soapy water. A large number of pests are fought with insecticides approved for use in residential premises.

If the leaves not only curl, but also fall off, then most likely the location of the plant is to blame - the sun is too bright. Before it’s too late, the cineraria needs to be either shaded or moved to a less lit window.

The absence of flowers or the appearance of yellow leaves on the plant indicates a lack of sun, elevated temperatures, or insufficient watering.

Hybrid cineraria lives and blooms for a short time, but flowering occurs in winter, when fresh greenery and bright colors of flowers are especially necessary.

Cineraria graceful

Elegant cineraria (Senecio elegans). This plant is characterized by a highly branched stem, growing up to 90 cm. The branches and leaves have pubescence - sticky hairs. Flowers are found simple, or can be double, collected in an inflorescence - a corymb. Flowering outdoors continues until frost. The color is dominated by natural shades - red, pink, white, burgundy, yellow or orange. Varieties with more exotic colors appeared - turquoise, azure, purple or blue. Before frost begins, buds on plants form continuously.

The most famous and common varieties:

Ligulosus - a plant with double flowers of various colors
Nanus are miniature, up to 25 cm tall plants.

In conditions of free growth, shoots can grow to almost a meter in height. But the plant acquires a more decorative appearance with regular formative pruning up to 0.5 m. In this case, a huge number of flowers appear on each graceful cineraria.

These caps of flowers are framed by laurel-shaped leaves on pronounced stalks of pinnate, oval or carved shape.

For the full growth of cineraria graceful, you need a sunny place with loose soil containing organic matter. Soil acidity is optimally neutral or slightly alkaline. Only this variety of cineraria can grow outdoors without seedlings.

As soon as the soil is ready for sowing - it dries out and warms up slightly, the seeds can be sown immediately in open ground. You can increase germination by covering the crops with film. The distance between seedlings is left 15-20 cm.

They extend the flowering time of plants by promptly removing wilted inflorescences.

Young shoots of cineraria

Cineraria for open ground and home use is best grown as seedlings. Cineraria primortica is sometimes grown from cuttings.

Sowing dates

Flowering cineraria form buds two to two and a half months after emergence. Seedlings should be planted in a permanent location at the age of 50-60 days. During this time, it is recommended to transplant each sprout into larger pots.

They begin to grow seedlings for open ground in late February - early March.

In the southern regions, where the warm period lasts longer, cineraria seeds can be sown immediately in open ground, but under a film cover, and then the resulting seedlings can be planted around the site.

When seedlings are needed for growing indoors and producing flowers in winter, seeds begin to be sown in mid-summer. After two months, pretty bushes grow from the seeds, prepared for long flowering. It is possible to obtain numerous flower stalks in winter in a residential area only with additional lighting. Each day of daylight will need to be extended by 3-4 hours in the evening.

Sowing cineraria seeds

No special seed treatment is required. Before sowing, seeds can be treated with agents that stimulate seed germination, such as Epin, Energen or NV.

They begin to sow them for seedlings in April. You can sow in seedling boxes, or directly into a greenhouse. For sowing, leaf soil, humus and sand mixed in equal quantities and sifted are suitable. Polyethylene or glass, which creates a greenhouse effect, will speed up seed germination.

Seeds germinate exclusively in the light.
The seedlings are watered using a spray bottle or drip method.
With the end of frost, the seedlings are planted in a permanent place.

The real leaf is already visible

When a pair of true leaves appear, the seedlings are planted in separate pots and kept at a low positive temperature for several days. A decrease in temperature promotes the formation of buds. When performing a transplant, they try to preserve the root system of the seedling as much as possible, digging it up with a clod of earth. This will allow it to quickly take root in a new place.

For the first time, seedlings are transplanted into small containers, about 100g. This volume will allow the root system to develop evenly, optimizing the growth of the seedling. After twenty days, the seedlings are transplanted again. This time you will need a 250ml container for planting.

The next transplant is already in open ground.

During the growing of seedlings, they are fed 4 times. The best results are obtained by alternating mineral and organic fertilizers.

The transplanted seedlings are fertilized for the first time after 10 days.
Next one in a week.
Then the transplant is done and again we wait 10 days before applying fertilizer, and then another week.
Two weeks after the last feeding, the seedlings can be planted in open ground.

Cineraria "Silverado"

Cineraria are planted in a permanent place in open ground when the frosts are over. For short-term temperature drops to +5 degrees, temporary covering with non-woven material is required.

A depression of about 20 cm is prepared at the planned planting site. The distance between the holes is left about 25 cm. Organic or complex mineral fertilizer is placed in the hole, mixed with soil, and seedlings from a cup are planted in this mixture. If possible, the plantings are covered with non-woven covering material, creating a greenhouse.

The place for planting cineraria on the site is chosen to be sunny, with neutral or slightly acidic soil, loose in structure.

Cineraria maritima

In open ground, cineraria is grown as an annual, less often as a biennial. In order for the plant to survive next year, it is necessary to insulate the plantings in the flower garden.

First, shoots are cut 15 cm from the ground, and then covered with dry leaves, straw or covering material. It is better to create a shelter two weeks before permanent snow cover is established. In the spring, after the snow melts, the cover is removed, fertilizer is applied and the soil is loosened.

A very important element of care is watering. You need to find the right dose. If there is excessive watering, the plantings may rot; if there is a lack of moisture, the plants will dry out. It is necessary to water at the root, excluding drops of water from falling on the leaves.

In indoor conditions, plants need:

quality soil;
constant temperature, about 20 degrees;
warm, settled water used for irrigation, watering at the root or through a tray;
sufficient light, without direct sunlight;
applying fertilizers during active plant growth;
timely removal of excess or wilted flowers and leaves;
preventive measures against pests and diseases.

Healthy cineraria bushes

Cineraria plants, both in open ground and indoors, are most often affected by aphids or spider mites. In some cases, such infection can lead to the death of the seedling.

Having discovered the pest in a timely manner, when their colony is insignificant, you can destroy them using home remedies - manually collecting the pest, treating the plant with a soap solution, infusion of garlic or onion. If there are a large number of pests, it is better to fight them with specialized preparations containing short term expectations.

The cause of most diseases occurring on the plant is improper watering, namely, excess moisture and its contact with the leaves. In this case, mold or rot appears. Less common are diseases such as rust and podium. The focus of these diseases can be suppressed only with specialized drugs.

Cineraria: cultivation and care

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Tatyana Nikorovich 06.16.2015 | 4820

Cineraria is one of the few plants that decorate our home in the winter-spring period. How to properly care for a plant so that it blooms?

Many people consider the flower to be an annual plant, although in reality it is a biennial plant. And if the plant is provided with optimal conditions, then the flowering can be admired for six months.

Appearance of cineraria

Cineraria is a beautifully flowering potted plant with many daisy-like inflorescences. The leaves of the plant are large and soft, jagged along the edges, and heart-shaped. WITH reverse side the leaf is usually purple in color and is associated with a red heart, hence the plant's second name - bloody. The flowers of the plant can be of different colors.

There are several groups of cineraria with flowers of different shapes and colors and different stem heights. Grandiflora Group(Grandiflora) is famous for its large flowers with a diameter of 5 to 8 cm and inflorescences 50 cm high. Representatives of Stellata group(Stellata), the inflorescences of which reach 70-90 cm, and they bloom with small (2.5 to 4 cm) star-shaped flowers.

Reproduction of cineraria

Cineraria bloody breeds seeds, and the sowing time depends on the flowering time. 8 months are counted from the sowing date - this is the date of the beginning of violent flowering. For example: if you sow the seeds at the end of February, the cineraria will bloom in October.

Plant seeds are sown in trays with a soil mixture consisting of leaf and turf soil, sand and humus in a ratio of 4:4:1:2. Evenly distributed seeds are sprinkled in a thin layer river sand, water and cover the tray with film or glass. To prevent the soil from drying out, it is watered daily.

After 2-3 weeks, the seeds germinate and no longer need shelter. As the seedlings grow, they are thinned out so that there is at least 3 cm between the sprouts. As soon as the first pairs of leaves appear, the cineraria is planted in pots.

Caring for bloody cineraria

Very often, cineraria dies a few weeks after purchase, and the cause is improper care. The secret to success in growing a plant is simple rules, which are not so difficult to adhere to.

Lighting. The flower needs bright lighting, but it must be shaded from direct sunlight. The best place for placement are a south-east or south-west window.

Temperature and watering. These are perhaps the two most important parameters for cineraria. When at rest, the plant is kept in a cool room (for example, on a closed balcony or loggia), where the temperature can be maintained at no more than 7°C. At this time, watering is reduced to a minimum, the main thing is to prevent the soil from drying out. As soon as growth begins, watering is increased and the temperature is raised to 12°C.

Air humidity. With the appearance of the first buds, the cineraria can be moved to a warmer room, but it is necessary to provide it with sufficient air humidity. For this purpose, the pot is placed on a tray with pebbles or wet peat and the air around the plant is sprayed daily.

Feeding. If you provide the cineraria with nutritious soil, then fertilizing can be done once a month in the spring-summer period with liquid fertilizer specially designed for decorative flowering indoor plants.

Transfer. In order for the cineraria to bloom next year, it must be replanted. This is done in spring or summer, for which they use nutritious soil with the addition of mineral fertilizer, and also feed the plant weekly with universal flower fertilizer.

Possible problems with the plant

If the cineraria is bloody The leaves began to wither and turn yellow, then there may be two reasons: insufficient watering or cold drafts. The measures taken make it possible to preserve the cineraria, but the flowering period in this case will be shortened.