How to ensure abundant and lush flowering of the garden. How to speed up the flowering of chrysanthemums

You can often notice that in adjacent areas where there are flower beds, they look different. Some plants delight with their bright, lush inflorescences and abundance of colors, while in other beds the flowers look dull, they are lost among the weeds and dried leaves. This difference is explained different approach owners of plots to care for plants. What should you do to ensure that your flower garden always pleases you?

Regular feeding

In addition to the usual work of weeding plants, clearing them of weeds and faded buds, and creating compost, regular feeding of plants is very important. Well-rotted compost of perennial weeds and other garden waste will provide nutrition to your garden and improve soil quality. Add compost to your plantings and cover with fresh mulch, and you won't need to use chemical fertilizers. If you don’t have compost, feed the flowers with a special floral chemical fertilizer. It is important that it contains nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and trace elements. The ratio of the main elements - nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus should be equal to 5:5:5 or 10:10:10. Flowering plants react actively to the application of fertilizers with a high phosphorus content. Here the ratio of the main elements is 5:10:5. Regularly alternate organic and chemical fertilizers. Use chemicals strictly according to the instructions on the package. Otherwise, you may do more harm to the flowers than good. Start fertilizing perennials in early spring immediately, as soon as the first shoots hatch. Annual plants and bulbous crops need light feeding in mid-summer. Never feed perennials and ornamental grasses in the fall, as such feeding stimulates plant growth, and they should already be preparing for winter to go dormant.

Good watering

Good soil preparation and mulching of the flower garden require regular, frequent watering. If the soil is bare and dry, water little and often. The roots of the flowers grow deep and the soil remains moist even in the heat. Mulching the surface around plants helps retain moisture. If you can't water everything at once, water individual plants to keep your perennials looking vibrant. They require mandatory watering once a week during the growing season. Good watering should be careful and careful during long period so that the water seeps down at least 40-50 cm. Provide the plants with continuous water absorption once a week. After water dries on the surface of the earth in dry weather, the roots growing downwards seek deep water. With shallow watering, plants with deep roots survive drought better than plants with roots close to the surface. Water not only by sprinkling, use other methods as well. For example, you can use a hose and place it under a layer of mulch in your garden beds. Protect plants from excessive wetting of leaves, this will prevent the development of fungal diseases on them. Do not use cold water from the water supply. The best water for irrigation is warm water from a pond or container, warmed up in the sun during the day.

Be gone, garden pests!

Well-growing strong flowers are less sensitive to pests and diseases than those growing in bad conditions. Although sometimes, even regardless of good garden maintenance, some plants are affected by insects or fungal diseases. In industrial nurseries, pesticides are usually immediately used to combat them. But your planting volumes are not comparable to industrial ones. Therefore, before declaring war on pests and diseases, try doing a few chemical-free activities first. For example, spray your plants with water daily with a hose, trying to wash away pests. Soap spraying of plants destroys some soft-bodied pests upon contact with them. Such spraying covers the eggs of pests and destroys them. Spraying also fights powdery mildew, a mold that covers the leaves of many plants with white fluff in summer and autumn. If you still have to resort to chemical method struggle, then strictly follow the directions and instructions on the label. If they are not suitable for your application, you may harm yourself or your plants.

Remove trash

To strengthen your plants for the next growing season, collect any debris in the fall and get rid of spores and pest eggs on hanging, wilted flower heads. Start cleaning and clearing your garden in the fall after cold weather sets in, when annuals wilt and perennials and early flowering plants begin to wilt. Remove annuals from the soil, shake off as much soil as possible from their roots. Remove spent flower heads as they may cause self-seeding. After the seed heads ripen, cut them off along with the stems. Shake out the seeds to prevent them from ending up in the compost or mulch where they might germinate. Trim the tops of perennials. At this time they usually Brown. Although you can leave the tender shoots that arise as a result of self-sowing before winter. Most ornamental grasses look stunning in the fall and good in the winter, turning white and drying into a floral bouquet. The dead branches, leaves and seed heads of many perennials and ornamental grasses provide decorative display throughout the winter. They also provide food and shelter for birds. Wait to prune plants until very early spring. Enjoy natural appearance garden Place all trash in compost heap, large - cut into pieces or pick to help the hard parts rot. In winter, plant branches help retain snow. Garden flowers are preserved better under a blanket of snow. This is another reason not to rush into pruning old branches until early spring. In the fall, you can partially cut off the branches, leaving a couple of dry stems that will hold back the snow and create comfort for the plant.

Winter protection

In areas where frosts often give way to thaws, perennials can wake up and begin to grow. This is dangerous for plants, as they risk dying during the next cold snap. Maintaining snow cover during the winter months can save them. Help perennials stay warm. Cover them in the fall with pruned branches, spruce branches, oak leaves, shredded bark, as well as shavings or a thick layer of mulch in early winter after the soil freezes. Protective covering inhibits deep freezing of the soil, strengthens the plant in the ground and keeps the soil from compacting. The cover will need to be removed at the end of winter.

Tamara Barkhatova

Whatever I came up with modern science. Flower growers can make their pets grow faster, get large quantity flowers or fruits. Biostimulants help root cuttings. These drugs can be purchased. It is easy to make plant growth stimulants at home.

Phytohormones and their role in plant life

Phytohormones are substances produced by plants. Various groups are responsible for various processes in their body. Thus, auxins control the formation of the root system and distribute nutrients. Gibberellins are responsible for flowering and fruit formation. Cytokinins regulate shoot growth.

People have long been willing to lead these processes, but they just didn’t know how. With the discovery of phytohormones, they had such an opportunity. Having studied their structure and mechanism of influence, scientists were able to create synthetic hormone substitutes. They, like natural ones, are divided into groups according to the principle of their effect on the plant organism. These are plant root growth stimulants and drugs that accelerate flowering and fruit production.

Synthetic growth stimulants

The most famous among them is heteroauxin, a phytohormone. It was developed first among other stimulants. By sowing seeds treated with this drug, you can get vigorous shoots faster. Seedlings tolerate transplantation into open ground better. Heteroauxin helps in rooting cuttings.

Plant root growth stimulants “Kornevin” and “Etamon” have approximately the same spectrum of action. But the first of them is applied at the root, and the second by spraying the leaves and stems.

“Zircon”, in addition to the formation of roots, also increases the resistance of plants against fungal plant diseases.

The Epin stimulator helps plants take root faster after transplantation.

You can speed up both the flowering process and the process of fruit formation. For these purposes, “Ovary” and “Bud” are used, respectively. The first is treated before the process of bud formation begins, the second - after flowering and the formation of the ovary.

"Athlete" - plant growth regulator

In addition to growth stimulants, growth regulators are used. They enable some parts of the plant to develop faster at the expense of others.

A representative of this group of drugs is Atlet. It does not accelerate the growth of the plant, but on the contrary, it inhibits the increase in the visible part. At the same time, the stem becomes thicker and the leaves become wider. The drug redirects the bulk of nutrients from the above-ground part to the roots. And they, in turn, make the plant stronger. It begins to bloom earlier and increases the number of buds. If the drug is used in gardening, the yield increases by a third.

Athlete is often used to treat seedlings. Plant growth regulator (one and a half milliliters) is diluted in 1 liter of water and watered the plants when they have 3 or 4 leaves.

When treating indoor plants with the drug, you can either apply the solution at the root or spray it. The concentration is the same as when processing seedlings. But the procedure must be repeated as many times as indicated in the instructions. If you reduce the number of treatments, the plant will begin to develop quickly. That is, the drug will work as a growth stimulant.

It is necessary to dose the regulators according to the instructions. If you take less of the drug, you will not get a positive effect.

Exceeding the dose will lead to the opposite result. The plant will weaken or disappear altogether.

Scheme for using stimulants

Plant growth biostimulants can be used when growing seedlings according to the following scheme:

• Soak the seeds before sowing with a solution of heteroauxin to obtain fast and friendly shoots.
• Spray the seedlings with Epin.
• When planting in the ground, sprinkle with a solution of heteroauxin for quick rooting.
• Spray the seedlings with Etamon solution for faster and more abundant flowering.
• Treat plants with “Bud” before flowering.

Quickly growing indoor flower seedlings

Plant growth biostimulants will help you quickly obtain seedlings of indoor plants:

• Cut the required number of cuttings.
• Treat them with a heteroauxin solution for 10 hours.
• Plant it in a greenhouse.
• Spray with Zircon or Etamon solution once every two weeks.

These drugs accelerate the process of formation of formed plants by almost two times.

Preparing growth stimulants at home

Plant growth stimulants are easy to prepare at home. For this you can use bee honey or aloe juice.

It is much faster to prepare a growth stimulator from honey. You need to stir half a teaspoon of honey in a half-liter jar slightly warm water. The solution is ready for use. If you want to process the cuttings, they need to be soaked for 4-6 hours. Plant bulbs are kept in the stimulant solution longer - from 10 to 12 hours. Don't forget to rinse them with water before planting.

To prepare preparations for plants from aloe, first squeeze the juice from its leaves. A tablespoon of juice is mixed with a glass of water, as in the previous case. But the solution is not ready yet. It is put away in a cool, dark place, first covered with a lid. After a week they get divorced boiled water so that the solution becomes 5 liters. Only now can the plants be processed. The soaking time for bulbs and cuttings is the same as when using a honey solution. Only in this case there is no need to rinse.

Another way to use aloe juice: pour five drops of juice into a glass with a stem. The juice improves the protective functions of the cutting and promotes faster root emergence.

Plant growth stimulants can be prepared at home using water in which willow or willow has previously sprouted. There is no need to change the water.

You can root cuttings using potatoes. To do this, cut out eyes from it so that it does not germinate, insert a cutting into the cut and water it every day. The cutting feeds on starch and vitamins and takes root faster.

Baker's yeast is an excellent biostimulant and fertilizer

Plant growth stimulants at home can be prepared from yeast: dilute 100 grams of this product in a liter of water and place the cuttings there for a day. Then they are spilled with water to wash away the remaining yeast, and they are left to germinate in clean water. The remaining yeast solution can be used as fertilizer for the garden bed.

Fertilizer for plants at home

Fertilizers for plant growth can be made at home. Nettle fertilizer is easy to obtain in spring and summer. Collect stems before seeds appear. Grind, pour into a non-metallic container, fill with water and leave to ferment. After two weeks, the process is completed and the resulting liquid can be used to fertilize plants. Before watering, dilute with water in a ratio of 1:9. Disadvantage - you cannot cook in the apartment due to the strong smell. Beans should not be watered.

An infusion of onion peels contains many microelements needed by any plant. Moreover, it will destroy bacteria harmful to them. Boil a handful of husks for two minutes in a liter of water, let it brew for two hours and spray the plants.

Usually, after eating a banana, the skin is thrown away. It turns out that in order to grow, the plant needs the elements contained in it, in particular potassium. It is crushed and added to the ground when replanting the plant. The peel rots under the influence of moisture, giving its microelements to the flower. If you are not going to replant soon, dry and grind it with a coffee grinder. Dilute the resulting powder with water and water the plants.

(no sugar!) - good nutrition for flowers that need nitrogen. It not only fertilizes, but also improves the quality of the soil.

Roses need iron for normal development. A rusty nail carefully tucked under the root will help saturate them with this element. You can use other metal objects (but not stainless steel). Roses will thank you with bright flowers.

Fertilizers for plants from the store

There are a large number of them on sale. For example, dry is preserved for a long time due to the release form. Before use, dissolve with water.

When using such tools, you need to remember a few rules:

• Before use, the soil under the flower must be watered.
• Do not feed recently transplanted plants.
• Do not fertilize dormant flowers.
• The stronger the flower grows, the more feeding it needs, and vice versa.
• It is better to apply less fertilizer than to overdose.
• You should not change the type of fertilizer frequently.

If you have any left in the bottle mineral water, you can water it houseplants, especially tropical ones. It contains a lot of biologically active substances. If you water frequently, the pot will not become covered with limescale.

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It turns out that the flowering of these plants can be accelerated not only by grafting the “savage” with a cutting of a cultivated variety, but also in other fairly simple ways.

Seedlings of citrus crops bloom in the 10-15th year of life. However, this process can be accelerated. Most reliable method, as is known, is the grafting of a cutting (bud) from a fruit-bearing plant into the crown of a “savage”. If the operation is successful, flowering can be expected in the 2nd year. But there are other methods to speed up the flowering of citrus fruits.

For example, tree crown formation. That is, the creation of branches of the fourth and fifth order, on which flowers appear and then fruits.

To do this, pinch each branch after the 3rd or 4th leaf and break out all the shoots that subsequently try to sprout from the last buds on this branch. Then new branches are also pinched after the 3-4th leaf. And so on. In addition, you need to break out branches growing inside the crown (thickening it too much), as well as “wen” - powerful vertical shoots. As a result, we get a beautiful and dense spherical crown. Forming it is useful not only for seedlings, but also for cultivated plants (see picture).

The initial formation of the crown usually takes 3-4 years, so this period can be considered as the time before flowering.

Can give the branches of the plant a horizontal position and even bend them to the ground(improvising with rope or weights). This also leads to faster fruiting. Like constriction of skeletal branches(0-2 orders) soft wire. Or - slice of bark ring. On a branch, for example, of the 2nd order, you need to cut the bark into a ring approximately 10 mm wide and install it in place, but turning it over. Tie the top with insulating tape. It is removed a few months after fusion. In this case, you can already next year expect flowering on this branch.

Another method for accelerating the flowering of citrus fruits is keeping them in winter time at a temperature of 4-6ºС; Moreover, with the onset of spring, with the activation of growth processes, the reproduction process often starts. The same effect can be obtained by keeping the plant in extreme conditions (infrequent watering, hot conditions, lack of replanting or transshipment for a long time, etc.). Under such conditions, the plant’s self-preservation mechanism is activated, i.e. it urgently tries to produce offspring to preserve the species, and it blooms. In my practice, a one-year-old grapefruit seedling bloomed (see photo).

I cut the plant “to a stump” in order to graft a cultivated cutting onto its roots. But later I decided to root the cut top part of the grapefruit. This technique also achieves the effect of reducing the flow of nutrients, as when constricting skeletal branches and cutting the bark into a ring. Six months after rooting, it began to bloom. The flower successfully formed an ovary, which initial stage development darkened and had to be removed. This is not surprising, because the plant was very small and it could not grow fruit.

In all cases, fertilizing with phosphorus-containing fertilizers (preferably complex, with a predominance of phosphorus) has a beneficial effect. Or feeding with superphosphate (5 g per 1 liter of water) against the background of regular complex feeding. It is best to fertilize (once every 7-10 days) in spring and late summer; it is during these periods that citrus fruits are most likely to bloom. If you want to put these methods into practice, do not forget that if there is a lack of leaves (less than 20 per fruit), the plant may become depleted and even die.

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Many gardeners complain that large-flowered chrysanthemums, especially Indian ones, do not have time to bloom before frost. How to speed up this process?
Average and early varieties chrysanthemums are grown in open ground, since the early ones bloom in August, and the middle ones in October and even in November. It is advisable to dig up annual plants for the winter, but you can dig them in and cover them like roses. Plant in open ground in early May.

It is preferable to plant chrysanthemums in non-shaded areas, protected from the sun. These plants love loose soil, which contains substances of organic origin and has good moisture and air permeability.

40g nitrogen fertilizer and 150g potassium magnesium. Chrysanthemums are fed once a week mineral fertilizers at the rate of 5-9 liters per 1 sq. m.
To avoid fungal diseases, it is necessary to treat flowers 2-3 times during the summer with copper chloride. With the onset of September, treatment stops, as white spots may appear on the leaves.
When the apical bud appears, it is advisable to feed the flowers with a superphosphate solution at the rate of 100 g per 1 liter of water. The solution is infused for 3-5 days with periodic stirring. Chrysanthemums respond well to feeding with mullein diluted in water. Watering is done at the root.
When the buds increase in size, but have not yet opened, they must be treated several times with any
a drug against aphids. This is done several times every 7-9 days. Otherwise, in the blossoming inflorescence, the tips of the petals may turn black and be eaten by aphids.

When dividing, the bush is cut into pieces with 1-3 shoots. For better lighting It is recommended to plant plants in a checkerboard pattern or in parallel rows. Typically, single-stemmed plants are planted at a distance of 25 cm, and multi-stemmed plants - 30-40 cm from each other.
It is important to know how to store chrysanthemums in winter so that next year they can please you with their lush color.
If in summer chrysanthemum requires a lot of moisture, then in autumn and winter it does not tolerate it at all. To prevent chrysanthemum roots from dying in winter, they must be stored as follows. Before storing, chrysanthemum mother plants planted in pots are watered generously with water.
Then they are kept warm for 10 days at a temperature of 15-20 degrees. At this time, the root system is growing.
In winter, it is advisable to store pots with chrysanthemum roots in a cellar (if you have one) at a temperature of 0 to 4 degrees Celsius. If there is no cellar, you can create another storage method at the above temperature.
If the shoots begin to wither, snow is poured in a layer of 5-7 cm. Snow retains oxygen, is slowly absorbed by the soil and maintains its porosity. It is recommended to spray the roots with water and a fungicide once in the winter.
Advice from amateur gardeners - How to speed up the flowering of chrysanthemums

1. Treat with Zircon 1 ml per 10 liters of water, even indoor violets after a month
bloom.
2. Use preparations based on gibberellin, a hormone produced by the plant during flowering. The most common is the Ovary.
Spray once a week for months - this raises the hormonal status to the desired level and the plant begins to bloom - including chrysanthemum.
3. Shade chrysanthemums after 7 pm.
4. Abundant phosphorus feeding once a week - potassium monophosphate - 1 hour. l per 10 liters for 2 chrysanthemum bushes.
5. To speed up the flowering of chrysanthemums, you need to remove some of the flower ovaries and fertilize with phosphorus-potassium fertilizers!
6. Do not water the chrysanthemum in the second half of summer, or rather, water it less often.
7. At the beginning of the season, shorten the daylight hours for her. How? In greenhouses, I don’t know, but on the ground: make cone-shaped caps from cardboard and other materials, put them on at 6-7 pm, and take them off in the morning after the sun rises high enough above the horizon. The homeland of chrysanthemums is the south, where the sun rises and sets quickly, i.e. no twilight. This way you can speed up flowering by 1-2 weeks.

When we bring home new plants, we rarely think seriously about how much we can provide them with favorable conditions characteristic of this species. And only after some time have passed do we begin to scratch our heads in puzzlement, trying to figure out the question: “Why doesn’t my plant bloom”?

Influence of various factors

Every living creature on Earth, including plants, depends on a complex of factors - individual and external. External factors - these are those that affect absolutely all plants. They include:

• homeland of growth;
• type (woody, shrubby, herbaceous, bulbous);
• maintenance conditions (lighting, temperature, watering, humidity, soil composition);
• damage by certain diseases and pests, etc.

​ON THE PICTURE:Watering and lighting are related to external factors affecting all plants

Individual factors are unique to this plant. For example, the characteristics of flowering: its frequency, time, abundance.

Despite all the diversity of the plant world, the general and main condition for comfortable growth and, including flowering, of all its representatives will be a harmonious combination of individual and external factors.

Let's look at the example of the main groups of plants, what are the main reasons for their refusal to flower and how to eliminate them.

Why don't Saintpaulias bloom?

Just like different kinds Lianas (and a great many other plants) are of the herbaceous type. The ancestors of modern herbaceous perennials are annual plants, in the nature of which it is inherent in a short growing season to have time to sprout from a seed, grow, bloom, give birth and die. Specimens that were in better conditions compared to their “brothers” - those who received more light, heat, moisture and nutrition.
ON THE PICTURE:Natural view of the Uzambara violet in the natural conditions of its homeland

But their current descendants, who are growing up at home, no longer have to fight for a “place in the sun” - this is entirely our task.

Lighting, daylight hours, air humidity, soil composition, water availability are the main factors that you should pay attention to!

An idea of ​​the homeland of origin of the plants living in your home will allow, even with minimal knowledge of geography, to understand what conditions a given plant needs and whether they can be created in an apartment.

In the case of Saintpaulia, these are the Uzambara Mountains in East Africa. Natural views, the descendants of which we now have the honor of admiring, still grow in the mountainous regions of Kenya.

Of course, in our apartment, even with a great desire, we will not be able to recreate the climate of the Uzambara Mountains, but we are quite capable of making the Saintpaulias feel great and bloom profusely and for a long time.

Lighting

The main attention should be paid to properly organized lighting, because this is one of the most important external factors.

Uzambara violets need good bright lighting; when kept on shelves, it is provided with artificial lighting. If the plants are located on window sills, then you need to take into account that they grow and bloom best on eastern and western windows, only in winter they need to be moved to southern windows. On northern windows, plants will need additional lighting.
ON THE PICTURE:With sufficient natural light, Saintpaulias bloom actively and profusely

Daylight hours

Saintpaulias are plants whose flowering does not depend on the length of daylight hours. There is debate on this matter, but it has been noticed that many varieties bloom beautifully from 8 hours of continuous illumination . With the onset of autumn, the days become shorter and shorter, the plants no longer receive the amount of light needed to set buds and enter a phase of natural dormancy. If you want your violets to continue to bloom in the autumn-winter period, then organize them artificial lighting. If the storage is kept on racks away from windows, such a measure will generally be the only way out.

It is worth remembering that any plants are, after all, living organisms, and they also need rest. Abundant flowering for a long time will very soon exhaust them and most likely lead to death.

To stimulate flowering in Saintpaulia, a technique such as gradually increasing the duration of lighting to 14 hours a day helps. And don’t forget about fertilizing and regular watering!
ON THE PICTURE:If there is insufficient lighting, Saintpaulias need additional lighting

Also mentioned complex cases, when Saintpaulia stubbornly refuses to bloom even with intense high-quality additional lighting for up to 14 hours! Mini-varieties of Saintpaulia are especially susceptible to this “disease” - failure of flowering. Often only phytohormones, in particular cytokinin paste, can help them.

The reasons why indoor plants do not bloom are overwhelmingly similar for all types of herbaceous plants - it’s just a matter of some nuances. Take, for example, a representative of beautifully flowering vines - (Passionflower), most of whose species come from the American tropics. For its flowering, it requires more than just additional lighting during the short daylight hours associated with the change of season. The quality of light, its intensity and power are important. Therefore, the most the best option will place Passionflower on the very sunny place, ideally on a balcony or loggia, especially since this is one of the few plants that are not afraid of direct sunlight.
ON THE PICTURE:Passiflora needs bright colors for normal growth and flowering. sunlight

The same can be applied to such a popular Lately plant like (Mandevilla). She is a “countrywoman” of Passiflora, so the lighting requirements for this representative of the flora are almost the same: with a lack of light, Mandevilla’s internodes begin to lengthen, and it will not bloom in such conditions.

Why don't indoor roses bloom?

Trees and shrubs of temperate latitudes

As a rule, with herbaceous plants in room conditions no problems arise. Good watering, moderate feeding, sufficient light and humidity, and they will thank you abundant flowering up to 12 months! Difficulties arise with shrubby and tree-type plants.

Take, for example, indoor Roses - bright representative temperate latitudes, which blooms beautifully all summer until late autumn outdoors.
ON THE PICTURE:On a bright windowsill, Rose feels good and pleases with gorgeous flowers

With the onset of autumn, daylight hours begin to sharply decrease. In outdoor conditions, this corresponds to a decrease in the average daily temperature, while in apartments the heating is turned on at this time. And the period of rest, which the shrub so needs, does not occur. The rose is trying to continue to grow, but its new shoots are elongated and weakened. Even if buds form on them, there will still be no characteristic flowering, and the plant will simply waste its energy on this process, weaken and may even die (in particular, from diseases to which this shrub is so susceptible).

The reason why Roses do not bloom often lies precisely in the absence of a clearly defined dormant period. ​Before you send your roses to winter rest, at the end of summer they need to be replanted, and with the onset of spring, before growth begins, they must be pruned, completely removing weak and small shoots. After pruning, the Rose needs to be moved to a place where it will be provided with about 16–18 hours of daylight.
ON THE PICTURE:Planned transplant indoor rose at the end of summer

Woody plants used in bonsai culture experience similar difficulties. However, they are even more demanding regarding the rest period. They need not only to slightly lower the temperature, but many deciduous plants (apple, plum, quince, etc.), as well as conifers, will require a temperature of +2–5°C for rest and a significant reduction in daylight hours while maintaining deep darkness at night days.

It is necessary to say a few words about the maintenance of beautifully flowering woody plants grown using technology"bonsai". The most popular species that are used for growing “trees in a pot” (this is how “bonsai” is translated) are Acacia, Magnolia, Pomegranate,Apple tree, Plum tree, as well as citrus and coniferous fruits.

With the "southerners" special problems usually does not occur, but representatives of temperate latitudes, which include fruit trees temperate latitudes and conifers, spring flowering and active growth will require a cold winter. You can organize it by placing plants on a cold loggia and balcony. Just remember: these are still not full-fledged trees that grow in a dacha garden, the roots of which are reliably covered with a snow coat and thereby protected from freezing.

For kids - “bonsai” temperature environment should not fall below -1–2°C, and it would be a good idea to cover the container in which the bonsai is growing well with something warm. After all, even with small negative temperatures the soil in a small pot will freeze very quickly, and the roots of the plant, accordingly, too, which will lead to its death. Many bonsai lovers place deciduous trees in a refrigerator or dark cabinet with an internal temperature of +2–5°C . This good decision for the winter!

Plants of the subtropics and tropics

How do subtropical and tropical trees and shrubs behave? In general, their “biorhythms” do not differ from plants of temperate latitudes, with the only difference being that the dormant period occurs in autumn and the first half of our calendar winter. At this time in the subtropics the sun shines for about 8–10 hours, the weather is most often cloudless and warm. The nights are dark, cool and long. It is in such conditions that flower buds develop, which open amazingly before winter. beautiful flowers. This is how they develop, (“Christmas star”), (“Orchid tree”).
ON THE PICTURE:Azalea flowering after a dormant period

Some subtropical plants, for example, many types of palm trees, a huge number of cacti and succulents, rest in the fall and winter and bloom in the spring. However, they all need a temperature drop down to +5–8 °C in the dark. In this case, the night should be long (from 14 hours), really dark (lighting in the room at night will only harm your rest).

Some vines, for example (Mandevilla), as well as forest cacti (and orchids, but more about them below) are native to the tropics and the equator. They may bloom all year round with proper care (the most difficult point of which is bright, intense lighting). However, they also have a rest period, which occurs during the dry part of the year. At this time, the temperature during the day is quite high, but at night it drops lower than during the rainy season. The beginning of this period is a tropical spring, which, however, is short-lived and quickly gives way to dormancy (fewer leaves and cessation of growth). Therefore, flowering can be stimulated, for example, in Gardenia by a slight decrease in temperature in the fall (not lower than +15 degrees) and bright diffused light.
ON THE PICTURE:Abutilon will bloom almost all year round if provided with bright lighting.

A few words about humidity

Among the plants of the shrub and tree type, originating from the tropical and equatorial zones, there are quite a few beautifully flowering plants - mainly decorative foliage plants belong to this group. They can be rarely found in apartments, since these plants are particularly demanding in terms of living conditions. For example, for Gardenia, in addition to a well-lit place, it is extremely important air humidity.
ON THE PICTURE:Plumeria needs not only bright light, but also moist air, which is why it is so rarely found in our homes.

Why don't bulbous plants bloom?

Bulbous plants are very popular for their beautiful flowers, many of which even have a pleasant aroma. This is both well-known to everyone, and so similar to it, (“upstart”), (“Amazonian lily”). Less known, but just as decorative, ("deer tongue"), Sprekelia, (Scylla), whose flowers are accompanied by attractive spotted foliage as a pleasant bonus; unusual, whose flowers open at the same time of day to the minute.
ON THE PICTURE:Collection of blooming Hippeastrums on the window

Bulbous plants, for all their similarities, can differ from each other. And, above all, the behavior of foliage during the dormant period. Some species are completely freed from it at this time, while others retain it. But all bulbous plants have in common a structure that is distinctive from other plants: the presence of a modified shoot - bulbs. It stores a supply of water and nutrients, thanks to which, after the end of the dormant period, flower bud and the embryos of the leaves wake up, begin to grow and develop into a flowering plant.

And the extent to which the bulb was able to accumulate these nutrients in itself in the current season and whether it was properly provided with rest depends on whether we will see our plant blooming in the next season.

To different bulbous plants - a unified approach

Both “evergreen” and “deciduous” bulbs require a period of rest. Both of them need to gradually reduce watering after flowering, moving them to a cooler place.
ON THE PICTURE:The rest of the Hippeastrum bulb was organized correctly, and it is ready to bloom

It happens that some “deciduous” specimens stubbornly do not want to “hibernate.” And here, inexperienced gardeners often make the mistake of cutting off all the foliage. Under no circumstances should this be done! After flowering ends, the leaves still continue to live, gradually moving the accumulated nutrients into the onion. When this process is completed, the foliage will dry out on its own. And, if you forcibly interfere with this natural process with your actions, you thereby deprive the plant of the opportunity to fully stock up on food for future flowering. Such a depleted bulb may simply die.
ON THE PICTURE:These leaves should be allowed to dry on their own; under no circumstances should they be cut off!

But even if you follow these simple rules, you may encounter a stubborn reluctance of one or another plant to bloom. Why is this happening? And here again we need to remember the notorious individual factors.

It should be remembered that flowering in almost all bulbs occurs when the bulb has become sufficiently “adult”: very young “babies” in the first year of life are unlikely to please you with flowers.

For example, ("Amazon lily"). This beautiful fragrant flower has not one, but two dormant periods - at the end of winter (beginning of spring) and at the end of summer (August). Eucharis is an “evergreen” bulbous plant, so you should not expect “leaf fall” from it: simply replant the plant in fresh soil and place it in a cool room with a temperature of +15 to +18°C for two months, reducing watering. And one more thing: “Amazon lily” loves cramped containers and “nepotism”: several bulbs need to be planted in one pot at once.
ON THE PICTURE:Eucharis blooms only in “an environment of close friendship”

Why don't cacti and succulents bloom?

Different types of cacti are very different from each other in their appearance and look very attractive in collections even without flowers. Among people far from the world of “cactus growers,” there is an opinion that these “spines” cannot bloom at home. But this is not true at all! The main thing is to know what species your cactus is: South American or African.
ON THE PICTURE:A cactus flower is not a myth at all if wintered correctly

The fact is that these species have different periods of rest: the first have winter, the second, on the contrary, summer. In their homeland "bedroom“The 1st season” for cacti coincides with the dry season and ends with the first rains. But in our temperate latitudes everything is different. Here, the entry into the dormant period depends not on the temperature swing “hot-cold”, but on the sun. Bright sunlight, which is so necessary for cacti and succulents for normal existence, is in great short supply in our area in winter, so it is most logical to arrange a dormant period for them at this time.

Desert cacti

Coolness (+8–10°C) and absolute dryness throughout the entire period of “rest” of cacti are prerequisites for their future flowering. Majority desert species of cacti, such as, etc. will tolerate such a winter well, and in the summer they will delight you with beautiful flowers. During the period of active growth, they, like other plants, need watering and fertilizing with fertilizers.

Exactly the opposite, everything happens for (Zygocactus, “Decembrist”, “Christmas cactus”). The growing season and flowering period of this cactus occur in the winter months, for which it received its popular name. The birthplace of the “Decembrist” is the tropical forests of Brazil and South America, so he loves diffused light and high humidity, for which it should be sprayed regularly. For active winter flowering, the plant needs to create a dormant period for a couple of months, placing it in cooler conditions at the beginning of October, but not lower than +15°C.
ON THE PICTURE: "Decembrist" blooms as it should - in December

Desert succulents

U desert succulents , grown at home - such as various Crassulaceae (,), as well as (“living stones”), flowering occurs at the same time as desert cacti - in the spring-summer period. And they need to be kept in similar conditions, that is, with in winter rest, lower temperatures and limited watering.

Speaking about problems with flowering succulents, it is necessary to mention such a plant as (“ desert rose"). Of all the succulents, this is perhaps the most beautifully flowering plant - but also the most whimsical and demanding!

First of all, home adeniums need “living” sunlight. IN summer time A balcony or loggia is ideal for them. These plants are not only not afraid of direct sun rays, but also welcome them, as well as elevated temperatures of the order of +25–30°C. It is in such conditions that Adeniums bloom.
ON THE PICTURE: IN warm time It is better to move Adenium to a balcony or loggia for natural light

It is important not to forget to feed the plants with a balanced mineral fertilizer.

Like cacti, Adenium, even if all necessary conditions, enters the flowering period at a certain age.

In autumn, with decreasing daylight hours, the growth of Adenium begins to slow down, almost all of its foliage turns yellow and falls off - a dormant period begins for the plant. And here we need to create for him comfortable conditions for “wintering”: the temperature should not exceed +15°C and fall below +10°C.
ON THE PICTURE:It is best to replenish the collection of Adeniums when they enter a period of rest - at this time they best tolerate long-term transportation

Why don't orchids bloom?

Orchids belong to one of the largest families in the plant world. Over 600 genera, which include more than 30 thousand species (and this is not counting hybrid forms and “cultivated” varieties)! In nature, orchids are distributed almost everywhere - the only exceptions are deserts and polar regions.
ON THE PICTURE:Orchis is able to grow even in Arctic conditions

If you are wondering why your orchid is not blooming, start with the characteristics of its habitat in nature. Based on their habitat, they are divided into the following types:

• Orchids of warm content (homeland - tropical rainforests);
• Orchids of moderately warm content (homeland - middle mountain zone in tropical areas);
• Orchids of moderately cold and cold content (homeland - lowland areas of the subtropics or highlands in tropical, equatorial regions).

Due to such a wide range, the conditions for keeping orchids grown at home vary. Sometimes, due to the lack of information about whether a flower belongs to one type or another, various kinds Problems. As a result, the plant not only does not want to bloom, but often simply tries to survive in conditions that are unsuitable for it.

The most unpretentious (and most common) orchid that can be purchased in a retail chain is. This is a typical representative of moderate-warm content, which does not tolerate extremes in everything. If there is light, then moderate but constant: 10–12 hours. Humidity is high, but not 100%. Watering is abundant, but with the obligatory drying of the substrate between waterings. These factors together provide almost year-round flowering Phalaenopsis, which in nature does not have a rest period.
IN THE PHOTO: They are practically the same for all types and species of plants. ​This is:

• Lack of lighting;
• Incorrectly selected soil;
• Incorrect transplantation;
• Improperly organized nutrition;
• Violation or absence of a rest period;
• Dry air;
• Pest infestation.

You can read more about this in the article.
ON THE PICTURE:When debriefing, it is necessary to take into account all factors, one of which may be pest damage. For example, spider mite like this Rose

1. Solving the problem of lack of flowering must begin with determining the type of plant. Take an interest in its homeland of origin and growing conditions in nature: climate zone, daylight hours, sunlight intensity, humidity. Knowing these features is half the success on the path to flowering. In our "Encyclopedia" each plant has illustrated characteristics of care and maintenance. Start your search for information here!
2. Think and evaluate your capabilities sensibly: can you provide your plants with such comfortable conditions for them so that your own comfort does not suffer. If “no,” then it’s better not to start such a plant.
3. Many plants begin to bloom only after reaching a certain age. Don't demand the impossible from them.