2024 Author: Beatrice Philips | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-09 13:15
All summer and early autumn, petunias delight the eye with a variety of colors and shapes of the bush. In the fall, they remain a bright spot in flower beds, despite the cold. And one more obvious plus of these flowers: they go well with others and look organically in compositions with both annuals and perennials. However, the watering schedule for the plants may differ.
Water requirements
Watering petunias varies depending on soil, weather, location, plant age, and a few other factors. Requirements for water quality also vary. Fragile and tender seedlings are one thing, and flowering bushes in August is quite another.
Usually petunias are planted for seedlings very early: in February, so that they can bloom in late spring. The seeds of petunia are very small, sow them superficially, and initially the seedlings resemble thin threads that improper watering can destroy … During this period, to preserve moisture, it is recommended to temporarily cover the seedlings with a film, opening it only for ventilation.
Seedlings are watered carefully using room temperature water … Cold is contraindicated for them because of the danger of a black leg disease. Cold temperatures during this period greatly reduce immunity ., the seedlings may even die. Therefore, the water is heated in the room, and at the same time it is defended during the day. Besides the fact that it gets rid of chlorine, the enemy of plants, its temperature becomes the most comfortable for petunia seedlings. Watering crops must be careful at first .using, for example, a pipette, a medical syringe without a needle, or a spray bottle to spray home flowers.
As you grow up, the water temperature can be lowered slightly, but not more than 1 degree per day .… Unhardened seedlings, while growing at home, need more comfortable conditions than those planted in open ground.
After the appearance of 2 true leaves, you need to start adding instant fertilizers to the water. It is best to use complex foods, but you can feed them in turn with nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium. First, you need to increase the nitrogen content, since the plant actively stretches up and builds up the green mass. And before planting seedlings in the ground, you should pay attention to the fact that petunias receive enough phosphorus, which affects the development of the root system.
At the time of hardening the seedlings, the irrigation temperature should also be changed. Water should be taken cooler … For example, you can place a container of water for irrigation on a balcony or near an open window.
By the time of planting in open ground, the plants should be completely ready for watering with cold water.
Having transplanted petunias, they can be watered with plain water. If watering is carried out from a barrel, then at first you can heat the water in the sun. But usually, after some time, petunias respond remarkably to watering with cold water from a hose. However, there are some subtleties depending on where the flowers grow: in hanging pots or in a flower bed.
Is it better to water in the morning or evening?
This procedure is best done at the same time. There are pros and cons to evening and morning watering. During the day, you do not need to water not only petunias, but also other crops. Especially watering at noon should be avoided … Water evaporates intensively during the hottest part of the day, and therefore does not have time to seep to the roots and does not bring any significant benefit to petunias.
In addition, small drops of water falling on the stem and leaves act as mini-lenses through which the flowers can get burned. After all, the sun, being at its zenith in summer, is very dangerous. Therefore, watering during the day is organized only as a last resort.
It is very convenient to water flower beds in the evening .… Water-soaked soil stays moist throughout the night. This means that the plant feels comfortable for at least half of the day (that is, evening, night and part of the morning), receiving nutrients from the soil, dissolved in water. In the early morning, the effect can be enhanced by loosening the soil around the bushes. No wonder this method is called dry irrigation.
Fertilizers are best given also in the evening, after dissolving them in a suitable container .… There is one more plus of evening watering. If you water from a barrel, the water has time to heat up in a day, and the flowers are not stressed by the temperature difference.
You can also water in the morning, early if possible .… Of course, some of the water will evaporate during the day, so you need to use a little more water than usual. BUT in the very heat, it is best to organize watering at least 2 times a day … Drip irrigation will also be appropriate at this time.
Watering frequency and rates outdoors
Petunia easily tolerates a short-term drought, but you need to carefully monitor the condition of the bushes: shorten the shoots, remove dry leaves and flowers. But during a drought, it is necessary to often water everything, especially flowering plants, and make sure that the earth dries up by no more than 10 cm.
How best to calculate the rates depending on the planting conditions can be found below.
In pots
Hanging pots are most often planted with ampelous petunias. It looks beautiful only if it is much higher than ground level. In order for the waterfall of greenery and flowers to please the hostess for a long time, the care of the culture should be properly organized.
Watering flowers in pots is not necessary on a schedule, but as the soil dries out … The fact is that the small roots that penetrate the entire earthen lump in the pot, in the absence of moisture, gradually atrophy.
Therefore, it is necessary to water at least 2 times a day in the summer, especially if the pots are located in the sun.
To prevent drying out, the potting mix should be loose enough. It is very good to add a little river sand and crushed sphagnum when planting seedlings in a container … The moss absorbs excess liquid and then gradually releases it to the plant.
At the bottom of the pot, drainage should be made from small broken bricks or gravel of different sizes. BUT any mulch mixture should be placed on the soil surface … It can be humus, moss and other plant components.
In the open field
After planting petunia seedlings in the open field, you should shelter it from the sun, since the root system is not yet adapted to the additional load. The plant is thoroughly shed until the "swamp" effect appears and left so for a week without watering … This is necessary so that the root system develops intensively, and new roots form in search of moisture. If you water it regularly immediately after transplanting, then without stimulation, the root system will not grow so quickly.
For open field, as well as for growing in pots, it is best to use mulch.
Both organic materials (sawdust and shavings, moss, husks, bark of non-coniferous trees, leaves) and inorganic materials (film, black agrofibre, expanded clay and fine gravel, burlap) can act as mulch. Mulching materials significantly reduce water consumption during irrigation, as the soil remains moist for a long time. With proper distribution of petunia mulch, you can not water for several days … This is especially true if the owners do not appear on the site for a long time.
How to properly water flowers at home?
Petunia is one of the most common flowers for decorating a home, veranda, gazebo. Many people grow petunias on the balcony. In this case, the ampelous form looks especially impressive. Cascading long shoots, abundantly decorated with flowers, especially need proper care.
First of all, for watering to be effective, the earthen lump for each plant should have a volume of 1.5–3 liters, depending on the size of the bush .… After all, the plant will develop its root system from early spring to late autumn. Therefore, small containers are unacceptable in this case. The pot should have drainage and drainage holes. It is impossible to retain moisture without a drain for water.
In this case, air exchange is reduced, the soil can become moldy, and the root system can die.
Water the flowers in pots as the soil dries … This process takes place individually in each container. Some pots are located in the sun, others in the shade. For a more accurate determination of the state of the soil, you need to lower your finger 3-4 cm into the loose soil. If moisture is felt inside, then watering should be skipped, they do not like overflowing petunias.
Useful Tips
There are conditions under which your flowers will feel comfortable both on the balcony and in the country.
In order for petunias to bloom profusely throughout the summer, you need to follow the rules and know some of the intricacies of watering
- Petunia likes abundant watering.
- Mature plants (not seedlings) are fairly drought tolerant and can survive for a while without water. But this should not be overused.
- If watering interruptions are too frequent, flowering will not be constant, and the resulting buds will fall off. To prevent this from happening, you need to put a thick layer of mulching material on the ground around the bush. It should be noted that the mulch needs to be updated or added about once a month.
- Watering petunia seedlings, which lives from 3 to 5 months in an ordinary city apartment, differs from watering plants transplanted into open ground. The first need water only at room temperature, the second is also suitable cold. It is imperative to ensure that the temperature of the water for irrigation decreases gradually.
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