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Pruning, Reproduction And Transplanting Fuchsia
Pruning, Reproduction And Transplanting Fuchsia

Video: Pruning, Reproduction And Transplanting Fuchsia

Video: Pruning, Reproduction And Transplanting Fuchsia
Video: Fuchsia Plant Pruning and Caring 2024, March
Anonim

Read the previous part. ← History of fuchsia, varieties and hybrids

Fuchsia biology requires:

Fuchsia
Fuchsia

- moderate temperature and high humidity;

- diffused lighting in spring and summer, shading on the south window, in winter - good lighting; partial shade in the garden and on the balcony; but there are already varieties, mostly red-flowered, capable of growing in the open sun and not suffering from burns (such plants can be seen in the park of Petrodvorets);

- protection from strong wind and rain in the air;

- soil light, neutral or slightly acidic, not too nutritious and sufficiently moist;

- strong spring pruning of the main branches, and weak - completely;

- Regular pinching of all shoots as they grow back in spring, to form a dense crown and abundant flowering;

- constant humidity of the earthen coma. It should not be allowed to dry out even in winter. Watering and spraying the crown is done with warm water settled during the day. The water from the pan is drained so that the roots do not rot and do not suffocate without oxygen. In the fall, as the air temperature decreases, they water less only when the earthen lump dries up;

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- regular loosening of the top layer of soil in pots so that air penetrates to the roots in sufficient quantity, maintaining optimal gas exchange, increasing the resistance of fuchsia to pests and diseases.

Fuchsia in the summer feels great in the partial shade of a balcony or garden. You can dig its pots into the boxes of the balcony or into the soil of the flower garden in the openwork shade of shrubs and trees. It is brought into the house in the fall, when the night temperatures drop to low positive ones (it does not tolerate frost). It is believed that in autumn the shoots of the plant should be shortened, but at this time, as a rule, they are covered with buds, which will open for a long time and delight you with bright flowers.

Fuchsia protection from diseases and pests

Autumn pruning is sometimes required to deal with the whitefly infesting the underside of the leaves. This is the most unpleasant pest, since fuchsia is the host plant for the whitefly.

And we bring the whitefly into the house ourselves, often with the ground or with plants from the garden. In addition to regular showers, rinsing the crown with lukewarm water (with a pot covered with a film) and washing away small white insects, a new drug "Aktara" is used. It is bred exactly as recommended on the leaflet, the crown is sprayed and the plants are watered at the root. The treatment is repeated several times after 7-10 days, and in the open air, not at home. Further, for prophylaxis, once a month the plants are watered with a solution of the drug "Aktara" under the root.

The appearance of a spider mite is noticeable by the yellowing and distorted shape of fuchsia leaves, the presence of barely noticeable thin cobwebs on the underside of the leaves. If the simplest measures do not help, they use any of the preparations for processing: Fitoverm, Actellik or Agrovertin according to the instructions, spraying in the air after 7-10 days. The tick loves dry hot air, therefore, it does not like moist and cool air.

It can be washed off with a stream of cold water from the inside of the leaves. You can do soap baths for 1–2 hours by dipping the fuchsia crown into a bucket of soapy water, after tightly tying the pot of earth into a plastic bag and placing it on two parallel sticks. After a soapy bath, the plant is allowed to dry, after which the crown is washed with clean water from the shower. When the leaves are dry again, you can put the flower in its permanent place.

Flowers, wet, in drops of water, are never exposed to the sun to avoid burns. All procedures with fuchsia must be carried out very carefully, since it has very fragile stems and leaf petioles. But the twigs, which still break off, are used for reproduction: they are almost 100% rooted in water even without the use of root formation stimulants.

Fuchsia wintering

Fuchsia
Fuchsia

In late autumn and winter, due to lack of light and high air temperature, moreover, dry, fuchsia often sheds some or even all of the leaves.

In this case, it should be placed in a brighter and cooler place (with a temperature not higher than 18 ° C, which is the key to its successful flowering next season), increase the humidity and, if possible, provide additional lighting. Another option for wintering fuchsias is also possible: in a cool, dark place (basement with a temperature of 5–7 ° C), with an almost dry soil content. But few of the townspeople have access to this.

Pruning and reproduction

Pruning is required for fuchsia after a dormant period, in February - March. All dry, weak, elongated shoots growing inside the crown are cut off from the plant. Strong branches are shortened by half the length and even more, if necessary, adjust the shape of the crown. The type and degree of pruning depends on the form in which the fuchsia is grown.

There are forms and varieties with erect stems, which form in the form of a bush or a standard tree (Checkerboard, Deutsche Perle, Mrs. Lovell Swisher, and others). There are also forms with soft, drooping stems that are commonly grown as ampelous plants (Swingtime, Dark Eyes, Lady Patricia Mountbatten, Granada, and others). But even erect bushes without special support quite easily turn into ampelous cascades of flowering branches, if they are not pinched and not often cut off.

The most spectacular fuchsia crown shape is probably the standard one. An unforgettable picture comes to life from distant childhood: on one of the balconies in Gatchina for several summer seasons there was a luxurious specimen of a fuchsia tree with a high stem and a lush spherical crown, densely covered with bright flowers. I never saw anything like this in real life, only in a photo in magazines of the last decade.

The formation of a standard form requires a certain amount of time and, of course, patience. But this is quite within the power of any florist who wants to get such a perfect creation as the fruit of his own labors, and not an expensive store copy.

Fuchsia is usually propagated by cuttings (rarely by seeds, mainly for breeding purposes). Cuttings are cut with a sharp clean knife, 8–10 cm long or more, with three knots. In time, this is done from early spring to late autumn. Ripe, but not yet completely lignified cuttings root best of all.

For disinfection, owners of large collections are strongly advised to dip them in actellik or phytoverm solution, or at least rinse them in soapy water. Large leaves, as usual, are cut in half to reduce moisture evaporation, and the lower ones are removed altogether. Slices can be dipped in activated charcoal or root stimulant powder.

However, fuchsia takes root perfectly in water without any additional manipulations, only the vessel should not be transparent in the root formation zone. Water can be boiled or just filtered, at room temperature. If the cuttings are planted, it is easy to bring them "to life" by immersing them in water entirely and covering them with a plastic bag. As soon as the turgor is restored, the cuttings are placed for rooting either in a vessel with water, or in a loose substrate of vermiculite, brown peat and sphagnum moss (3: 1: 2).

Fuchsia
Fuchsia

In such a substrate, even the green tops that remain after pinching are rooted. At the same time, holes are made with a peg in a wet substrate, short green cuttings are immersed in them, spreading the leaves over the surface of the substrate. Of course, you will need to frequently spray the cuttings and cover them with foil before rooting.

The container with the cuttings is placed in a transparent plastic bag, sprayed and the bag is closed, leaving a small hole for gas exchange. Perforated bags are often used. The place for grafting should be light and warm, but not in direct sunlight. After 7-10 days (in the substrate - after 10-20) roots appear. The cover with the film is often slightly opened, and then completely removed.

When the roots reach 2-3 cm in length and become branched, the cuttings can be planted one at a time in small pots (6-7 cm in diameter) with a light, breathable substrate (adding perlite, vermiculite, fibrous peat to the soil mixture, as well as a pinch of complex fertilizer granules long-acting AVA) and a drainage layer at the bottom. Instead of granules, it is convenient to use AVA-N capsules for potted plants with a full set of macro- and microelements that nourish the flower for 2-3 months, then the feeding is repeated.

Young roots are very fragile, so when planting, you should not strongly compact the substrate around them, after watering it will tightly bond with them. The substrate is kept moist, the plants are watered and sprayed with settled warm water. It is good if there is an opportunity for the first time to place young plants in a indoor greenhouse in a bright place. You need to air it several times a day. But you can also do with a pallet with wet expanded clay and a lutrasil or film cover in the first week after planting. Fuchsia varieties with erect stems, as well as to form a standard shape, are planted in a container one by one cuttings (and immediately pinch the top).

They begin to grow the standard tree in the same way, choosing a suitable variety. The growing rooted stalk is tied to a support. While it grows to the height you need, the side shoots from below are regularly removed. When the height is reached, the top of the plant is pinched twice in a short period. With the beginning of the growth of lateral shoots, they are pinched simultaneously according to the same principle: every 2-3 pairs of leaves. With shoots of the following orders, they do the same. Finally, the spherical (or oval, pyramidal) crown of a standard tree is formed in a few years.

Ampel varieties are planted in wide containers around their perimeter, several pieces in one vessel. The top of young plants is immediately pinched. When the lateral shoots grow into three pairs of leaves, the pinching is repeated on all shoots at the same time. This operation is repeated until the bush is in the shape that you intended. The buds appear at the ends of the shoots 2–2.5 months after the last pinching.

Fuchsia Magellan
Fuchsia Magellan

Transfer and transshipment

The difference in these techniques is that during transshipment they do not disturb the plant's lump, do not disturb its root system. In this case, it is possible to change the vessel to a larger one without complications, even in flowering plants. The transfer of fuchsias of any age is done when the roots are completely entwined with a ball and appear from the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot. It is better to do this in early spring, so as not to disturb the flowering later. The next dish is chosen 2-3 cm larger in diameter. Gradually, it comes to the tub culture. As with all potted plants, for fuchsia, a drainage layer of broken brick or expanded clay is required at the bottom of the pot with a layer of 3-5 cm.

For mature plants, the soil mixture can consist of turf, peat, humus and compost in a ratio of 2: 1: 1: 1; or otherwise - from leafy earth, peat and sand or perlite (3: 2: 1). You can do with any light garden soil with the addition of high peat, sand or perlite. A little clay is added to the sandy soil to create absorbent soil complexes that better retain nutrients.

Nutrition for the abundant flowering of fuchsia is provided with regular fertilizing: mineral - every week, organic - once a month. The choice of fertilizers, as always, is different for each specialist. It is known from the experience of many flower growers that fuchsias react very well to fertilizing with Pocon for geraniums, Effekton, Kemiru, Uniflor-bud and Unifor-growth, AVA fertilizers. Of the listed brands of fertilizers, only AVA has a long-lasting effect: granules work for 2-3 years, capsules for 2-3 months, powder - during the summer season, it is effective for seedlings, summer plants, vegetables. The use of AVA is effective for plants that receive everything they need from a scanty dose of fertilizers (0.5 tsp per container, 1-3 g of powder per 1 liter of soil mixture, 1-2 capsules per container up to 15 cm in diameter), and is pleasant for the gardener as this food option saves time,forces and means.

The first feeding of young plants with liquid complex fertilizer with an increased nitrogen content (for active growth of shoots) is given about a month after planting, when the first leaves appear.

Granules or capsules of complex nitrogen-free and chlorine-free long-acting fertilizer AVA are placed in a pot of soil once during planting or during the season, if necessary, at the rate of 1-3 g per 1 liter of soil. Granules work in the soil for 2-3 years. In this case, in the first half of summer, it is necessary to periodically give nitrogen fertilizing with irrigation water.

Usually, the plants begin to feed with the beginning of the growth of fuchsia after the spring pruning, and ends in August so that the plant tissues have time to mature enough by winter. At the same time, flowering continues until late autumn, especially if the plants are supplemented with a fluorescent lamp in the mornings and evenings.

Read the next part. Use of fuchsia for decorative purposes →

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