Gloxinia is a beautiful indoor plants that can please any lover of green crops. A bright delicate flower will certainly attract the attention of not only the owner, but also the guests of the house. There are a large number of ways to propagate gloxinia, and it will be discussed below.
Comparison of ways to propagate gloxinia
Before growing a crop, it is worth getting acquainted with the various options for the breeding process and choosing the most suitable path. There are several options suitable for breeding gloxinia:
- leaf fragments;
- seeds;
- peduncles;
- leaf cuttings;
- tuber division.
Gloxinia, appearance
The use of leaf fragments to obtain a new plant has its pros and cons. More powerful tubers are obtained from a single leaf in a short time, but much depends on whether the leaf takes root or not. A fragmented version involves obtaining a larger number of growing plants, if one does not take root, then the second or third will certainly survive. This technique is longer, but allows you to get more plants at the exit. If we compare the method with obtaining gloxinia from seeds, the first option allows you to save all varietal characters.
The seed method is not the easiest for breeding a green crop. The point here is not only in the small size of the seed and the difficulties of its germination, but also in the fact that the sprouts that have appeared need careful care.
An important point. The use of seeds for propagation is most often used by specialists to obtain new varieties of gloxinia.
A significant drawback of breeding a plant through peduncles is the fact that some of the varieties take root very well, while the other does not take root at all. Before using this option, you need to carefully choose a variety.
Peduncle gloxinia
The most common and easy way is to propagate gloxinia with leafy cuttings. Better rooting and more vitality in plants that appeared in spring or early summer, therefore, to get a new culture, it is better to choose these flowers.
Tuberous technique refers to complex and risky breeding options. If the material begins to rot or dry out, then the plants will not take root. In addition, cut tubers have a long recovery and acclimatization period.
Choosing a Pot for Growing
For planting, choose large apical cuttings, which means that the containers for planting must be taken in a suitable size. The ideal option is a pot with a diameter of 9 cm. It is imperative to make a good drainage system 2 cm thick, fill in light loose earth on top, which will allow water and oxygen to pass through well.
Those who prefer the use of leaves for propagation, it is recommended to put the cuttings in water until the formation of the root system. Then the process is transplanted into a peat tablet or pot with a diameter of 10 cm. The soil mixture should be light.
Tubers are advised to plant initially in transparent plastic containers. Such material allows you to observe the growth of the root system. If the plant develops well, then after a while it is transplanted already into a pot with a diameter of 10 to 15 cm.
Propagation of gloxinia with leaves and leafy cuttings
How to propagate gloxinia leaf at home? This technology is worth talking in more detail. There are two options: in land and water.
Rooting leaflets in the ground
To obtain a new plant, it is enough to cut one leaf and plant it directly in fertile soil. The leaf plates do not need to be deeply deepened, the main thing is that the end of the cuttings should be sprinkled with soil to a depth of about 1 cm. It is important to remember that the soil is moistened after planting.
The soil is watered, then the container is covered with a plastic film or glass container of a suitable size to create greenhouse conditions. Protection is removed after the first sprouts appear.
On a note. The best soil for planting is a peat-sand mixture. The coarse-grained sand is selected; in addition, mineral fertilizers are added to the ground.
This is one of the options for planting gloxinia leaf.
Rooting leaflets in water
Such a technology involves a series of sequential actions:
- Inspection of the mother flower in order to select powerful, large, healthy leaves.
- Water should be filtered, settled and room temperature.
- Using a sharp knife, they cut selected leaves so that small cuttings - legs remain.
- The sheet plate is placed in a container of water. The liquid should not reach the sheet itself, otherwise the process of decay will begin.
- It remains to wait until the roots or tubers appear, after which they plant in the ground.
While the plant is in the water, make sure that the liquid in the bottom does not dry out.
Rooting in water
Tip. To speed up the process of rooting and to obtain a new tuber, it is recommended to use clay containers. In transparent and ceramic circles, the root system is formed much later than if a darkened version is used.
In this way, those people who want to know how gloxinia propagates can take advantage.
How to care for leaves during rooting
There are no particular difficulties when caring for new leaves and shoots. If you forget to follow simple rules, it is very easy to ruin a new plant. It is necessary to provide the flower with regular watering, but the amount of moisture should not be excessive so that the soil is constantly wet.
The drainage system serves to drain excess water, so do not forget about it before planting the plants. Due to the difference in temperature and humidity, it is very difficult to establish any strict watering rules.
Worth to know. Gloxinia leaf propagation does not imply top dressing in the first 1.5 months from the date of planting. After this period, take a fertilizer of low concentration (it can be diluted in water) and feed the plant either in the evening, or on a cloudy day.
Leaf propagation
Familiarity with some of the nuances will help to avoid problems with gloxinia when applying top dressing:
- thanks to nitrogenous substances, the flower will have good vegetative growth, but with excessive fertilizer root rot may begin;
- phosphorus top dressing can prolong the flowering period, but excess provokes chlorosis.
All these nuances are recommended for plant lovers who want to know how to propagate gloxinia.
Why rooted leaves wilt
Sometimes you may encounter the problem of wilting of a planted sheet plate, it does not matter where it was planted: in the ground or water. The reasons are as follows:
- The rooting part of the process is in direct sunlight. Plants need natural light, but not so aggressive;
- Lack of covering material. The future flower needs a suitable temperature, which can only be achieved in greenhouse conditions;
- Excessive waterlogging. When using land for rooting, irrigation is carried out so that water does not stagnate;
- If the landing in the ground was not carried out carefully, this could lead to damage to the root system;
- Too large sheet sizes also cause lethargy; cutting the top of the sheet can help here.
If the rooting leaf begins to rot
Those who want to know how to root gloxinia from the leaflet need to familiarize themselves with the causes that lead to decay of the future plant:
- a strong pressing on the petiole of the leaf leads to rotting of the planting material, therefore it is not worth making great efforts when planting;
- direct sunlight is another reason for the poor health of the plant;
- a poorly lit place does not fit future gloxinia;
- the use of dirty devices when cutting leaves is the cause of decay;
- too much heat or excess heat;
- rotting is also characteristic of old leaves, therefore gloxinia is best planted from young leaves.
How to propagate gloxinia by tuber division
Only large tubers with sprouts and shoot height of at least 2 cm are suitable for this technique. A tuber is cut with a sharp knife or scalpel (previously sanitized) so that each divided part has one sprout or kidney. The processing of sections is carried out with charcoal, previously crushed, and given some time to dry. Now you can plant tubers in a container with soil.
Gloxinia tubers
Good to know. Watering such plants is carried out only in pallets.
Seed cultivation
Another option how to grow gloxinia is to use seed material, you should start with some nuances.
How to get your seeds
Of great difficulty is the manual pollination of gloxinia flowers, of course, it must bloom first. The operation is carried out at the time of flowering, using pollen from one flower, it is transferred to the pestle of another. It is recommended to take flowers with different colors. After a few days, the whisk should dry, in its place a seed box will form. The process of formation and maturation often takes up to 56 days.
At the first sign of opening the box, it must be carefully cut, put in a dry container and sprinkled with seeds after full opening in a suitable container.
How to prepare seeds for growing
Gloxinia seeds are very small, so no additional treatments are carried out for them, they can simply be sown.
Seed material
Suitable soil, humidity, temperature
You can use a ready-made earthen mixture for planting or prepare it yourself. It is recommended to take soil collected under coniferous or birch trees, away from highways.
Important! If the collected land is taken, then it is disinfected in the oven at a temperature of +150 degrees 60 minutes. Once it has completely cooled, it can be used to sow seeds.
Gloxinia from seeds requires a film shelter that provides plants with the desired moisture content. Periodically, it is necessary to spray the soil, to reduce the amount of condensate, aeration of the crops is carried out 2 times a day for 10 minutes.
As for the temperature regime, gloxinia from seeds at home needs an indicator of + 25 ° C. After sprouts appear, it is gradually reduced to + 22 ° C.
How to care for sprouts
Care includes simple procedures:
- airing according to the above scheme;
- decrease in temperature;
- watering as the soil dries;
- removal of shelter after emergence of shoots;
- picking after mass germination of seeds, sprouts need to be planted in separate containers.
Gloxinia Sprouts
Peduncle propagation
Gloxinia reproduction includes another method - the use of peduncles. The advantages and disadvantages of this option were written at the very beginning of the article, so it’s worth moving on to the description of the technique.
For planting, flowers that have passed the flowering phase are used, the method itself is similar to how a new plant is obtained from leafy cuttings.
For your information. A number of varieties are rooted quite well, the other part is not. The first include bell-shaped varieties, the second - terry.
Peduncle propagation
A step-by-step instruction is as follows:
- A container of a suitable size is prepared.
- Settled cold water is poured into the bottom to a height of 1 cm.
- Trimming of the peduncle is carried out together with the cuttings.
- Put in a container.
- If pollination of a flower has occurred, then soon sprouts will appear. In the absence of this process, you will have to wait.
- After the appearance of the root system, a transplant into the ground is carried out.
The article allows you to get acquainted with various options for how to propagate a beautiful home plant. Choosing the option you like, every lover of flowers can get, subject to the right recommendations, gloxinia.