How to Plant Pansy Seeds? A Detailed Guide to the Latest Planting Methods
Pansy is a common wildflower in Europe, also known as cat's face, butterfly flower, face flower, etc. It is a biennial or perennial herbaceous plant of the genus Viola in the family Violaceae, often cultivated by people in parks, suitable for open-air planting, and can be grown in flower beds, courtyards, and pots. It blooms from winter to spring, has extremely high ornamental value, and can also be used medicinally. Now let's take a look at how to plant pansy seeds!
Growth Habits
Pansy is relatively cold-tolerant, prefers coolness, and likes sunlight. It develops well under conditions of a daytime temperature of 15-25°C and a nighttime temperature of 3-5°C. It dislikes high temperatures and waterlogging, is cold-tolerant and frost-resistant. If the daytime temperature stays above 30°C continuously, the flower buds disappear or petals do not form. When the daytime temperature stays at 25°C, it only blooms but does not set seed, and even if it sets seed, the seeds develop poorly. The root system can withstand low temperatures of -15°C, but below -5°C the leaves freeze and their edges turn yellow. Day length has a greater effect on flowering than light intensity; poor sunlight results in poor flowering. It prefers fertile, well-drained neutral loam or clay loam rich in organic matter, with a pH of 5.4-7.4.
Seed Collection
Pansy flowers droop when blooming, and when the fruit matures it lifts up. Harvest immediately when the fruit skin turns white; otherwise the capsule will dry and split in the sun, ejecting and scattering the seeds. Seeds that are collected must be dried and stored.
Sowing Methods
In the Yangtze River basin, sowing is generally done at the end of August or the beginning of September. Choose a plot with sufficient light and well-drained sandy soil as the seedling bed, prepare it into a seedbed, level it by pressing down, and then sow. Shallow clay pots can also be used for sowing. The covering soil thickness is 2-3 times the diameter of the seed. After sowing, water once thoroughly and immediately provide appropriate shading. When the seedlings emerge completely, remove the shading material.
Transplanting Techniques
When the seedlings grow 3 true leaves, they can be transplanted into small pots or a seedbed for cultivation. The plant and row spacing for seedbed cultivation is about 4 cm × 5 cm. When the seedlings grow 8 true leaves, a second transplanting can be carried out, planting them in flower beds, flower borders, or large clay pots with a diameter of 12-15 cm, with 3 plants per pot. The plant and row spacing in flower beds is 15 li × 20 cm.
Care and Management
1. Soil: Pansy is not strict about soil requirements and can tolerate poor soil. It is suitable for fertile, loose soil rich in organic matter, and is difficult to grow well in moist, poorly drained soil.
2. Watering: During growth, pansy prefers slightly dry conditions. If the pot soil or seedbed is too wet during the seedling stage, it is prone to disease. During the vigorous growth period of stems and leaves, the pot soil can be kept slightly moist, but it must not be too wet or waterlogged, otherwise it will affect the plant's normal growth and development, or even cause wilting and death. If it is rainy during the flowering period or hot and humid, the stems and leaves are prone to rot, the flowering period is shortened, and the seed-setting rate is low.
3. Sunlight: Pansy is relatively sensitive to light. If there is sufficient light and long sunshine hours, the stems and leaves of pansy grow vigorously and flowering is earlier. If there is insufficient light and short sunshine hours, pansy blooms poorly or flowering is delayed.
4. Temperature: The suitable growth temperature for pansy is 7-15°C. In spring, the best daytime temperature is 10°C, and 4-7°C at night is suitable. If high temperatures above 25°C continue, the flower buds disappear and petals cannot form. But when the temperature is below -5°C, the leaves freeze and the edges turn yellow.
5. Fertilizing: During the growth period, pansy should be fertilized once every 20-30 days. Various organic fertilizers or nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium are all suitable.
6. Pests and diseases: The main diseases harming the stems, leaves, flowers, and roots of pansy include anthracnose, rust, gray mold, and root rot. Once disease occurs, spray a 500-600 times dilution of 50% carbendazim or an 800 times dilution of 75% chlorothalonil.
7. Pruning: During the growth period, pansy should have residual branches and spent flowers removed in time. For leggy branches, pinch the growing tips to control growth and promote new branches, making the plant full and well-shaped, and also extending the flowering period.