gardens and flower beds. The color of this popular plant can be very diverse - from white to exquisite purple, and all varieties of garden begonias can be seen in the photo in the catalogs of flower growers and nurseries. Garden begonia is distinguished by compactness of bushes whose height does not exceed 25 cm. If you like this plant, and you want to grow it yourself, you need to know how the garden begonia is planted and cared for. This plant is whimsical and does not tolerate errors.
Planting a garden begonia
Begonia of any kind is a light-loving plant, however, when planting a garden species, you need to choose shaded places. Direct sunlight affects the development of the plant, and it blooms worse.
Having decided on a place for a flowering plant, wait for June, since it is this month that the garden begonia is planted. The weather becomes warm and constant, and for a thermophilic plant this is extremely important, since even minor frosts or low temperatures can destroy garden begonia.
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You can plant begonia seedlings in the open ground, purchased in a specialty store, or independently grown from seeds at home.
Seedlings of seeds
We need:
- Soil;
- Seeds of garden begonias;
- Pot or box for seedlings.
Seeds of varietal garden begonias are sown in February in seedlings filled with soil. It is made independently, mixing peat, sand and leaf earth in the ratio 1: 1: 2.Begonia seeds are very small, so they are not sprinkled, but only slightly rolled in a moist soil.
Boxes with seeds covered with glass and put in a warm place. Watering is necessary as the soil dries, gently, otherwise small seeds can be washed off with water. In a week, begonia sprouts will appear, and at the age of 2-3 weeks they need to dive into a separate pot. Planting seedlings garden begonias held at a distance of 2 cm from each other. After a month, begonia seedlings are suitable for planting in separate slides for growing.
This begonia will bloom in the first year. However, to get early flowering, you need to use the seedlings purchased with buds appeared.
Taking care of garden begonia
When planting garden begonia in open ground, peat and compost are poured into the hole or replaced with any mineral fertilizer containing potassium and phosphorus. After planting, the soil must be shed water, which will accelerate the rooting of seedlings.
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The care of garden begonia includes regular loosening of the soil near plantings, which will provide the root system with oxygen. The plant grows well only in wet soil, so planting is watered every three days, depending on weather conditions. With the establishment of arid and hot weather, it is often necessary to water the begonia of the garden; it is necessary to loosen the soil after watering. Stagnant water should not be allowed as this will cause the roots of the plant to rot. For the purpose of prophylaxis, any drainage material such as expanded clay, coarse river sand, gravel, etc. is placed on the bottom of the well.
Begonia leaves do not need additional spraying; rather, on the contrary, water droplets cause irreparable harm to them, as they cause brown spots. In the autumn, on the eve of wintering, watering is stopped.
Winter care
In early October, the begonias of the garden need to dig for wintering. First, the plant is cut off the stalks, leaving a stump up to 3 cm high. The dug up tubers of the garden begonia are dried in a room for two weeks. Remove the remains of soil and stalks from the tubers, place them in a storage box and cover them with sand.
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You need to store a container of tubers in a cool place. For the storage of a small number of tubers suitable and a refrigerator.
Reproduction of the begonia of the garden
At the end of winter, you can begin to germinate the begonia tubers. This is a good way to increase the amount of planting material for the flower bed. Wet sand is poured into a small box and begonia tubers are planted. When the first shoots appear, the tuber is cut so that at least one bud remains on each part of it. The slices are powdered with crushed coal, dried for a couple of hours and then the begonia seedlings are planted in pots. Caring for such seedlings is similar to when growing begonias from seeds.
Every year, the begonia of the garden grows in size. Such a plant accumulates a lot of nutrients, so every year the flowers become larger.
Despite the fact that garden begonia is grown in open ground, it can be used for landscaping terraces, decorating window sills and balconies. Growing this plant as a pot culture does not affect the fluffiness of its flowering.
Video: how to grow and care for begonia