Growing Saintpaulias, Watering, Temperature, Pests - 2

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

Treasure of the Uzambara mountains - saintpaulia

By the appearance of Saintpaulias, you can determine whether they have enough lighting. If the leaves are lifted up ("handles" are raised up) - there is not enough light. If the leaves are down, there is too much light. If the leaves are parallel to the shelves, there is enough light. Direct sunlight is contraindicated for Saintpaulias! From this, brown spots of varying intensity appear on the leaves - the plant received a leaf burn.

I don't grow Saintpaulias on windowsills. Wooden-framed windows let in cold air in winter, and in the morning hours from spring to autumn the bright sun shines. The arrangement of shelving is so convenient that it is not necessary to shade the saintpaulias on the windowsills, to protect them from cold air in winter. And if in the spring on the windows you grow seedlings for summer cottages, then the racks will also become a refuge for your collection of your favorite flowers. By the way, the soil for seedlings will have to be disinfected from pests so as not to transfer them to Saintpaulia.

Another important condition: when growing saintpaulias, you need to forget about the presented bouquets of fresh flowers! On such flowers, pests, often invisible to the naked eye, can be brought into the house.

Watering

Watering Saintpaulias should be done very carefully. Here the rule applies: it is better to underfill than overflow! But it is also impossible to allow the leaves to wither in plants. In the winter season, I water the plants every other day due to the fact that the apartment is very hot. But some adult specimens that love moisture have to be watered every day. From spring to autumn, when the steam heating is turned off, I water the saintpaulias once every three days, trying not to overflow them. But it all depends on the room temperature. If it is very hot outside, and even the fluorescent lamps are on for 14 hours a day, then, of course, you have to water more often. And if it's cold outside and not hot at home, then I water it once every two or three days. I am guided by the moisture content of the soil in the pot, not by the schedule.

When watering, water should only fall on the soil mixture and in no case on the leaves! Therefore, a conventional long-tipped syringe is best suited for this process.

Very often, flower growers make a mistake: pouring Saintpaulia so that the leaves of the plant have withered, they think that they have watered badly, and water it again, and abundantly, thereby harming it. Before watering such a plant, you need to feel the soil in the pot. And if it is dry, water it, and if the soil is wet, then you urgently need to remove excess moisture from the soil. To do this, I fold the toilet paper in several layers and put a pot with a flower on it. It will absorb excess moisture. I rearrange the pot on dry paper until the moisture release stops. The next time I water this plant only when the soil in this pot dries up and the leaves restore turgor. If they still remain wilted, the plant has died.

Temperature regime

Many books recommend keeping Saintpaulias at temperatures between + 20 ° C and + 25 ° C. But I do not agree with this opinion of experts. My Saintpaulias thrive and grow better at temperatures and above these limits - from +27? C to +29? C. For example, in the hot summers of 2010 and 2011, when the outside temperature was above +30? C, and fluorescent lamps were burning over the Saintpaulias, my violets did not suffer from such high temperatures and bloomed beautifully. Only flowering was shorter in time, but after the end of flowering, flower stalks reappeared on the violets. Of course, in such heat it was necessary to water the flowers more often with growth stimulants, just in case. When I turn on the steam heating, my Saintpaulias feel more comfortable than in spring and autumn, when the apartment is cold.

There is a danger that in the cool, unheated season of the year, the leaves of Saintpaulia will be affected by powdery mildew. This happens due to low temperatures and high humidity in the apartment, and this often happens in the fall. At the initial stage of the disease, white spots appear on the leaves of Saintpaulias, as if flour were spilled on them. The last stage of the disease - all leaves are covered with a white bloom. If only single spots of powdery mildew appeared on them, then I burn them with a foam of laundry soap. To do this, I lather the sponge with laundry soap (72%, brown with an unpleasant odor) until a thick foam forms and apply it to the powdery mildew spots. I don't wash off the foam from the leaves of the plant.

If the powdery mildew does not disappear, then I treat the plants with Topaz solution (according to the instructions). I close the soil in the pot with a plastic bag so that it does not spill out, and I dip the plant in a bucket with Topaz solution, after removing the flowers. So I process all the Saintpaulias at once, even if they do not have this disease. After that I water the soil in each pot with Topaz solution. I wipe the shelves on the shelves with a rag dipped in a fresh solution of the same Topaz preparation. As a rule, one such treatment is enough to rid the plants of powdery mildew.

Another attack I faced were thrips … The presence of its larvae on Saintpaulia was detected by the spilled pollen on the flower. In a healthy plant, pollen never spills out (with the exception of some varieties and elevated indoor temperatures). Opening the plant's anther with a needle, I discovered a very small larva of thrips. I had to treat Saintpaulia from this pest. To do this, I removed flowers and peduncles on all plants (this must be done!). Then I rinsed each Saintpaulia in Aktara solution (according to the instructions). I also poured the soil in the pots with Aktara's solution (1 ml per 10 liters of water). After 5-6 days, this procedure was repeated using another drug - Golden spark (according to the instructions). 21 days after the treatment with the Golden Spark, I rinsed the saintpaulias in a solution of the Bison preparation (according to the instructions), and, after another 5 days, the last treatment of the plants (rinsing) in the Aktara preparation. Watering the soil with the same preparation (only not in the one in which the Saintpaulias were rinsed) after this procedure is required! 40 days after treatment with Aktara, she poured the soil with Komandor. It is no longer necessary to rinse the plants. This treatment scheme was strictly observed due to the different lifetimes of thrips and its larvae. The emerging flower stalks during the treatment period must also be removed, preventing the flowering of plants. During the processing period, Saintpaulias from thrips did not see flowering for about four months. But this processing measure is required!The emerging flower stalks during the treatment period must also be removed, preventing the flowering of plants. During the processing period, Saintpaulias from thrips did not see flowering for about four months. But this processing measure is required!The emerging flower stalks during the processing period must also be removed, preventing the flowering of plants. During the processing period, Saintpaulias from thrips did not see flowering for about four months. But this processing measure is required!

After such a laborious and lengthy treatment of my Saintpaulias for thrips, I decided that prevention is better than treatment. Therefore, every year, from spring (when the temperature on the street is above +5? C) and until late autumn (until freezing temperatures are established), I water the Saintpaulias once a month with solutions of Golden Spark, Bison, Aktar, alternating them. I start the prophylactic treatment with Aktar solution and complete the treatment with the same preparation. Aktara acts for 40 days, protecting plants from pests.

The key to lush flowering is weekly feeding. I feed Saintpaulias once a week. I use fertilizers: for orchids, Etisso (alternating fertilizer with a red cap - for flowering, with a green cap - for leaf growth), Ideal (be sure to add Baikal EM-1 or Extrasol to it). Top dressing with fertilizers alternate with top dressing HB-101, Ribav-Extra, Energen. For example, the 1st week of the month - feeding with Etisso fertilizer with a red cap (1 dispenser per 1 liter of water); 2nd week - HB-101 (2 drops per 1 liter of water); 3rd week - Etisso with green cap (1 dispenser for 1 liter of water); 4th week - Ribav-Extra (3 drops per 1 liter of water). Next month: 1st week - Ideal (one cap per 1 liter of water) together with Baikal EM-1 (1 ml per 1 liter of water); 2nd week - Energen (30-40 drops per 1 liter of water); 3rd week - fertilizer for orchids (according to the instructions);4th week - HB-101. I water the plants only with warm, settled water at any time of the year. With this nourishment, my Saintpaulias bloom magnificently all year round. Before the plants have time to bloom, many new buds appear again.