A few decades ago, geranium was extremely popular. Pelargonium, also called geranium, could be found both in the collections of aristocrats and on the windowsills of ordinary people. However, over time, humanity has lost interest in this wonderful plant.
Today we can safely say that geranium is again regaining its former success and is in demand. This is not surprising, because this flower can boast of a lot of advantages. Geranium can be considered in two variations: as a houseplant and as garden flower. A large number of varieties and varieties of plants can satisfy the needs of any experienced gardener. At any flower arrangement geranium successfully takes its rightful place.
Pelargonium has great potential in medicine and has healing properties. Note that this plant terrifies many indoor pests. If you place the flower on the windowsill with other flowers, you are guaranteed protection from aphids.
Geranium: plant care at home
Even an inexperienced and novice gardener can care for geraniums, since this flower is completely unpretentious and does not require special treatment. The likelihood that geranium will not take root at home is extremely low, almost zero.
Temperature
Ordinary room temperature considered optimal for the flower. In the cold season, the most acceptable temperature for a flower is from +10 to +15 degrees, so it is better to place the plant on a windowsill or in one of the coolest rooms.
As for lighting, the principle is this: the more light, the better. You can even allow some direct sunlight. As a result of the lack of light, the flower will have small leaves and will not please you with abundance of flowering.
Air humidity
Geranium absolutely does not need humid air. You should also not spray the flower - it will even harm the plant. If the geranium is standing, for example, on a windowsill, next to other flowers, try to avoid getting water on its leaves when spraying.
Watering
The flower must be watered regularly and abundantly. Remember: geranium does not tolerate water stagnating in a flowerpot or pot, so you just need to keep the soil moist and also provide good drainage.
Feeding and fertilizers
It is very important to know that geranium does not tolerate fresh organic fertilizers! In principle, a flower requires standard feeding during periods of flowering and growth. Fertilizers can be used for flowering plants about twice a month.
Transfer
At home, geranium practically does not need replanting. An exception may be some cases if, for example, the roots of the plant have grown, and there is not enough space in the pot, or the plant has been carelessly flooded with water.
Whether planting or replanting, remember that the flower does not accept spacious pots, but good drainage will be very helpful. The plant is quite suitable for replanting. garden soil or universal soil mixture. The following recipe is considered particularly comfortable conditions for the plant:
- 8 parts turf soil
- 2 parts humus
- 1 part sand
Geranium reproduces one of the most simple ways- cuttings. This method virtually eliminates failure. There is a second method of propagation - by seeds, which will give you a more compact plant with abundant flowering. However, propagation by seeds is a much more troublesome process.
Only experienced gardeners practice propagation of geraniums by seeds. When propagating by cuttings, usually in late summer or early autumn, cuttings are taken from the mother plant. The cutting should be taken from the top of the shoot and it should have about 4-5 leaves. After which it can be placed in any container with water and wait until the roots appear. Next, you can plant the cuttings in a pot of soil.
Problems and diseases
Quite often, geranium leaves turn yellow. Many novice gardeners confuse this with a disease, accepting this fact with horror. But there is no need to worry - this is a common occurrence for geraniums. Thus, the flower sheds unnecessary old leaves. Almost always, the leaves turn yellow and die if the hernai is moved from the street to the room. It’s another matter if the plant is affected by rust. This is where you should panic and immediately start treating the flower.
In general, if the plant is not over-watered, then there will be no problems with geranium, but in return it will delight you with its beautiful flowers for a long time.
How to grow indoor geranium (video)
Geranium is not very often used by gardeners as house plant, since not everyone likes its specific smell. For those who do not want to give it up, it will be useful to know what care for this plant is. So, let's discuss caring for geraniums at home in winter.
Features of the plant
The Geraniaceae family includes more than 4,000 species, most of which can grow beautifully at home. Its benefits for humans are undeniable. The leaves, stems and flowers of geranium secrete special substances that can have a detrimental effect on pathogenic bacteria and viruses.
In addition, the smell of geranium can soothe nervous system, improve mood, promotes relaxation after working day and so on. Some people attribute more sacred characteristics to this plant: the ability to eliminate conflicts in the family, increase a person’s creative abilities, rekindle the cooled feelings of spouses, and so on.
Of course, for geranium to heal and delight family members, the flower must be healthy and well-groomed. Strictly speaking, there is nothing particularly complicated about home care V winter period there is no behind the flower, but nevertheless there are certain subtleties.
Temperature and humidity
Geranium likes cooler temperatures in winter, about 15 degrees. As a rule, finding such a place in a quartet is not difficult. Usually on window sills, in close proximity to the window, temperature regime will be quite suitable.
During heating season the humidity in apartments decreases sharply, which negatively affects the condition of the flowers, leaves and stems of the plant. The above is also true for many other representatives of indoor plants whose stems and leaves are not too thick.
Do not forget that it is better to use either expensive devices with constantly changing, expensive filters, or any, but only with distilled water. The reason for this lies in the precipitation of calcium salts on all objects in the room.
Illumination
Geraniums generally tolerate shade well. However, in low light conditions it will not bloom, although it will not die. Its leaves will become small and thin. There will be no benefit from such a plant.
Extending the daylight hours is not difficult. Usually this will be enough table lamp with the most ordinary lamp. However, it is better to use special lamps, the light of which has a special wavelength and is more favorable for plants.
Its light is purple-pink and therefore quite unpleasant to the eye, of course, if your apartment does not host electronic music discos, the peak of popularity of which occurred in the 90s of the last century. However, if there is a room in which no one is in the evening hours, using such lamps would be more preferable.
Features of watering
The plant will have to be watered quite often. Geranium loves moist soils. However, you should choose pots with a drainage system and light soils, since waterlogging is no less destructive than drought. Typically, 1 watering per week at average air humidity will be sufficient.
Transfer
Determining the need for a transplant is very simple. All you need to do is look into the drainage holes of the pot. If the roots of the geranium protrude from them, then it is time to select a more voluminous shelter for the plant.
It is recommended to select a pot that is only one and a half or two centimeters larger than the previous one. The small volume of the pot stimulates the flowering of geraniums, and not the growth of stems and leaves. Best choice will clay pot, not plastic.
Periodic pruning
Geranium constantly needs decorative pruning. Without shortening the stems it is impossible to get a beautiful bush. Moreover, a free-growing bush blooms less often and is more susceptible to diseases.
However, it should be borne in mind that the formation of a flower bud occurs within 3 months and therefore the pruning procedure must be planned and carried out in a timely manner, using only sterile instruments.
Plant nutrition
All plants, geraniums are no exception, need to enrich the soil from time to time. Choose better mixture containing potassium and phosphorus, but it is better to limit nitrogenous fertilizers, since they are poorly tolerated by the plant.
The best choice would be to use specially developed mixtures for indoor plants, which are sold in any specialty store. It is better to apply fertilizers at the very end of autumn, and subsequently at the beginning of spring.
Conclusion
So, homemade geranium is a magnificent and incredibly useful indoor plant that should be in every apartment. Create good conditions Caring for a flower is not difficult. Caring for it is very easy and therefore even a polishing gardener can do it.
The only thing that can cause some difficulties is pruning, and even then, at first. Because of this, for the first time you can resort to the help of a more experienced grower.
With the onset of autumn cold, many plants are preparing for winter. Pelargonium (geranium) is removed from the flowerbed already in October, but not all flower growers know how to preserve geranium in the cellar in winter and what rules must be followed. The variety of plants and their age play a big role.
Gardeners prefer small ones ornamental shrubs dig out from open ground and replant in pots. This way they are stored all winter at home. This method is not suitable for large bushes. To store these plants, prepare a cool room and containers with substrate. Most often, a cellar or balcony is tidied up for this purpose. In these rooms you can safely preserve flowers during the winter.
Preparing the cellar
In order to send geraniums to the basement for the winter, it must be properly prepared:
- The basement is well ventilated and the area for storing containers with cuttings and pelargonium bushes is cleaned.
- Air humidity is measured. The temperature for storing plants plays an important role. For geranium the norm is within +7°C.
- The place to store flowers should not only be cool, but also dry. Excess moisture may cause damage to geraniums.
- If there is not enough light in the cellar, you need to worry about additional lighting. All perennial flowers are kept in a well-lit room during the wintering period. Daylight hours during this period for geraniums should be about 12 hours.
After the storage room has been prepared, you need to properly process the flowers themselves.
Preparation for storage
Before placing geraniums in the basement, you need to prune and remove all foliage and flowers. Woody trunks or cuttings that were prepared in advance are placed in containers. There are several ways to store flowers in the basement, so preparation for this process occurs in different ways.
Most often, geranium bushes that have been pruned and treated for pests are lowered into the basement. Green leaves are cut from each branch. What remains is a wooden trunk. The roots of geraniums are placed in water for several hours so that they are saturated with moisture. Then let it dry. All cuts on geranium bushes must be treated with a special antibacterial agent that will protect the plant from rotting. A cap is made of paper or newspaper, which is used to cover pelargonium driftwood.
Methods for storing geraniums
Among various methods storage of pelargonium is the most popular and effective, which is used by gardeners most often.
Storing geraniums in the basement can be done in three ways.
In the first case, if the bushes are small, after trimming all the leaves and shoots, the geranium is removed from the soil. They try not to clear the soil from the roots. The rhizomes are allowed to dry a little. Geranium bushes are wrapped in paper bags and hung so that the roots are at the top. The lump of soil is not separated from the roots to prevent drying out of the root system. Some gardeners store shrubs in a box. The material is placed there vertically and periodically opened for ventilation.
In the second case, the earthen ball is completely removed from the geranium root system and the roots are allowed to dry. After that, a cap is rolled out of newspapers, in which the woody stems are stored. All geranium bushes are pruned before storage. Good and strong cuttings, which can be used in the future for storage, are not thrown away, but used for planting.
It is important during the wintering period not to forget to carry out some kind of watering so that the roots do not dry out. To fill the plant with moisture, gardeners keep the geranium roots in water, and after soaking, be sure to let them dry. Use cool water for the procedure, but not ice water. The cold will not allow the flower to awaken and grow actively.
The third method is the simplest and most convenient. Geranium bushes are taken from open ground and transplanted into pots. Before transplanting, the plants are pruned and the cut areas are treated with a special antibacterial agent.
Store the pots indoors, where the necessary microclimate will be constantly maintained. Experienced gardeners It is recommended not to exceed the temperature of 15°C. If the geranium bushes are stored in the cellar, then it is necessary to ensure ventilation and sufficient lighting. During the wintering period, geraniums are watered several times. This should be done as needed, when upper layer the soil will dry out completely.
Often novice gardeners come up with the problem that I have a pressing question regarding how to choose the right way cleaning plants for the winter, if there are a lot of them, they different varieties and age.
For each type of geranium, you need to select your own storage method during the winter. Sometimes gardeners prefer to store young plants in pots over the winter for the first few years, and in the third or fourth year the bushes can be cut back to snags and kept in the basement. Pelargoniums planted in outdoor flowerpots are simply brought indoors with the onset of cold weather, where the temperature does not exceed 15°C and the humidity is low.
Preparing to plant geraniums in spring
After wintering, it's time to plant plants in open ground. Geraniums in pots are watered and fertilized. Flowers begin to emerge from the dormant phase and grow actively. In spring they need more light, so the plants are moved from the basement to the glassed-in veranda.
If material from geranium cuttings was stored in the cellar, then it is taken out in advance and planted in a container with a substrate. You can also sow seeds, but this is a labor-intensive, long process. Seedlings planted late autumn, takes root well and by the time it is planted in the ground it already has a root system.
Conclusion
Planting in open ground is carried out after warm weather sets in and the ground warms up. Pelargonium needs additional fertilizer during planting. Gardeners recommend using peat and leaf compost to enrich the soil. During planting, place the cuttings in the ground so that they do not interfere with each other in the future and are not constantly in the shade of other plants.
Pelargonium - unpretentious plant, flowers do not require special care. The main thing is to know the rules for growing shrubs. Store geraniums so that in the spring they actively begin to grow and produce abundant flowering. Of all the methods for preserving geraniums, it is necessary to choose the most suitable one for the plant in the available conditions.
If you properly care for pelargonium, it will be able to decorate your garden for many years. lush flowering and a riot of colors.
In the cold season, geranium begins a dormant period, when it takes a break from its abundant and almost year-round flowering, and all the necessary conditions for this must be provided.
During this period, the plant slows down its growth and stops blooming - it minimizes the expenditure of resources in order to gain strength for new flowering and the resumption of intensive development.
And the course of the entire growing season of the geranium will depend on whether the flower is placed in a cool place.
Preparing for winter: pruning
Preparation for the dormant period begins in the fall, and the most important thing to do is to prune the geranium. This will subsequently have great value for how it will bloom. No pruning, even if everything is followed necessary conditions described below, such lush and beautiful flowers will not appear on the plant.
Procedure for pruning geraniums:
- At the end of September, absolutely all flower stalks are cut off, regardless of whether they have faded or are still actively doing so. This is done to help geraniums preserve their reserves of resources for the winter.
- All leaves that have already turned yellow and withered or have just begun to do so are plucked off or cut off. Experienced flower growers It is recommended to pinch them off rather than trim them with scissors. In the second case, mere protruding roots remain.
- For dense flowering in September, geranium is pruned so that the beginning of the branches remains, or just above (3–5 cm) the node. The upper cut part can be rooted as a cutting.
You need to prune the plant until it loses its beautiful and lush appearance. appearance. If the plant is young, then it is only, and do this according to the following rules:
- Pinching of young plants begins when their height reaches 5–6 cm.
- After the geranium grows another 5 cm, pinching is done again.
- To achieve spherical different shapes You can do pinching 3 times using a similar pattern.
Knowing how to properly handle geraniums during their dormant period, you don’t have to worry about the fact that they won’t bloom in the summer. And absolutely everyone can provide these conditions for this, regardless of their floriculture skills.
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How to properly care for geraniums
An unpretentious culture requires minimal but proper care. If good conditions are created, then pelargonium will delight you with beautiful lush bouquets.
- Main condition - more sun. Geranium can even be placed under straight lines Sun rays. To avoid burning the leaves, cover it only on very hot days.
- Watering. Hard cold water is unacceptable. In winter, it is necessary to water 2 times a week, without getting on the leaves. In summer, daily watering is necessary, but without excessive moisture, so as not to lead to rotting of the roots.
- To prevent stagnation of water, it is necessary to make a good drainage. You need to choose a pot for geraniums small size so that it is completely filled with roots.
- Air humidity . The culture does not like spraying or washing the leaves. The wet state is very dangerous for her.
- Indoor geranium demanding of soil. It is necessary to prepare a mixture consisting of peat, garden soil and sand in equal proportions. Likes frequent loosening so that air can easily penetrate to the roots.
- Flowering geranium should receive such fertilizers, where there is a lot of phosphorus and potassium, but fresh organic fertilizers She doesn’t like it, she tolerates mineral ones better.
- After flowering it requires nitrogen feeding. Fertilizers should be applied once a week from April to early autumn. After transplantation, no feeding is required for 2 or 3 months.
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Causes of yellowing foliage
Beginner flower growers ask most often: why do the leaves turn yellow?
Can be called following reasons:
- A cramped pot in which it is difficult for the roots to obtain nutrients.
- Lack of drainage.
- Waterlogging of the soil.
- Lack of moisture.
- Wrong place for the flower (shade, draft, not far from the radiator).
- Improperly used fertilizer.
What to do if pelargonium turns yellow in summer. The first reason is improper watering. It is necessary to water so that water appears in the pan, which must be poured out immediately. If you do overwater, then do not water the flower for days 2 or 3. And pay attention to drainage, this is important for geraniums.
The cause of yellowing may be a large temperature difference or a change in location. To relieve pelargonium from stress, treat it with the sadaptogen Epin.
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What to do if yellowing occurs in winter
In the cold season, the cause may be shortened daylight hours, dry air, or improper watering. Sometimes it is enough to move the flower to a bright place away from the heating radiator.
Why does the foliage dry out? Dry indoor air is one of the common reasons drying of leaves. I already wrote that you need to place water containers on the batteries, for example, turned upside down plastic bottles, with holes cut out at the bottom. Or ventilate and spray the room with a spray bottle more often.
If the leaves turn yellow after transplantation, it means that the root system. Treat geranium with Kornevin. An overdose of fertilizers can also cause yellowing of the leaves.
The plant may be affected by thrips. How to detect? WITH inside Small pimples are visible on the leaves. Treat the plant with Fitoverma and remove the affected areas.
If dark brown spots or fluffy formations appear on the stem, then this is a dangerous fungus. What to do? The affected parts should be cut off, treated with a fungicide, and watering should be reduced to a minimum for at least 7 days.
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Favorite plants among gardeners
What types of geraniums are most often grown by gardeners? Royal pelargonium is considered the most beloved. She flaunts large bouquets of a wide variety of palettes: from pink to burgundy and purple. The diameter of the inflorescence can reach 16 centimeters.
Characteristic feature The royal flower has grooved or wavy petals, on which stripes or a dark spot are visible.
Fragrant geranium has a very pleasant smell, which is why it got its name. If you touch the leaves of fragrant pelargonium, you will feel a rather strong mixture of aromas of rose, lemon, strawberry, ginger, and mint.
Today, hybrids have been bred that have an apple scent, as well as nutmeg, almond, lilac, even kiwi and pineapple. Flowers of different shapes are pink and beautiful purple. It is from this variety that unique geranium oil is obtained.
Every gardener simply dreams of planting a geranium called tulip-shaped geranium at home. The flower of extraordinary beauty amazes with its sophistication and tenderness.
The inflorescences look like unopened tulips. They form pretty little bouquets, which is what attracts flower growers.
Breeders have bred 14 varieties that have colors: from soft pink to a breathtaking shade of raspberry!
If you want to add a sophisticated touch to your interior, plant hanging geraniums in a flowerpot. Pink, snow-white, red, purple, lilac, lavender inflorescences will complement the interior of any room.
Ampelous pelargonium is a rather capricious plant, but with proper care it will delight you with lush flowering.
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I want to admire the flowers, but they don’t bloom
For your indoor pelargoniums to bloom, you need not only proper care, but also secret watering with iodine water:
- Iodine - 1 drop.
- Dissolve in 1 liter of water.
- Take 50 ml of this water, then slowly pour this composition along the walls of the pot.
- After such watering, the plant begins to bloom wildly!
How to make pelargonium bloom? Are there other ways? Yes, but it's hard to believe. If your favorite flower doesn't bloom, try using castor oil. According to scientists, this product is a powerful stimulator of growth and flowering of green spaces.
What to do with castor oil? To feed geraniums during the period of bud formation, dilute 1 teaspoon of castor oil in 1 liter of water. Sprinkle the leaves of the flower, or better yet, pour it under the root of this crop.
After watering with castor oil, you will see how the plant grows, begins to bloom beautifully, and stops getting sick. When the plant is in the dormant stage, such feeding is contraindicated.
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When to water geraniums
Experienced flower growers advise checking the condition of the leaves about excess and lack of watering:
- if only the edges of the leaves dry out, it means the plant is experiencing a moisture deficiency;
- the greens are limp or begin to rot, then the reason is excess moisture;
- if the lower leaves fall off and the stem is bare, there is a lack of light.
How to pinch? To get an even, lush bush, the top should be pinched at the 8-10th leaf, the side shoots at the 6-8th. Do not forget to turn the pot towards the light in different directions.