Growing habits and cultivation methods of New Guinea impatiens
New Guinea impatiens belongs to the Balsaminaceae family and is also called colorful impatiens; the four-season impatiens is a perennial herbaceous ornamental flower of the genus Impatiens, a perennial evergreen herbaceous plant. It originates from the tropical mountains of Africa.
New Guinea impatiens blooms from June to August; when light is strong, the flowers open early and small. At this time, pinch back frequently to accumulate nutrients and promote side branches, making the plant shape fuller. It likes warmth and humidity, is not cold-tolerant, and fears frost; when frost occurs, the whole plant withers. In winter, the room temperature should not be lower than 12 degrees; in summer, it requires cool conditions, avoids scorching sun exposure, and needs a little shading. It is not drought-tolerant and fears waterlogging. In the rainy season, if drainage is poor and ventilation is bad, it is prone to powdery mildew or root and stem rot, even leaf drop. Pay attention to ventilation and lower the temperature.
New Guinea impatiens has low requirements for soil, but is sensitive to salt damage. It grows well in loose, fertile soil. The soil mix is preferably 3 parts peat, 1 part sand, and 1 part garden soil, with a pH value of 5.5-6.5.
Camellia impatiens: How to grow camellia impatiens
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?`?.??.?′′ˉ`?Decorate your small home and enjoy every minute of life! This article originates from soft decoration design!
Camellia impatiens is an ornamental flower native to China and India, belonging to the Balsaminaceae family. It is an annual or biennial herbaceous plant, about 25-50 cm tall, with large double flowers, brilliant flower colors, and terminal flower heads shaped like camellias. In ancient times, many ladies in their boudoirs liked to use it to dye their nails, so many people also called it premium henna. Let's take a look at its cultivation methods.
The best germination temperature for camellia impatiens is between 22° and 30°, and the suitable growing environment is 15° to 32°. Sowing in all four seasons and cuttings can both survive. At the suitable temperature, it can generally germinate in about a week. When it grows to 5CM or 12CM, it should be transplanted into an 8CM or 15CM flowerpot or flower bed. When cultivating, soil with good drainage is best, and reasonable nutrients should be added to the soil.
For individual species and varieties with poor branching, such as New Guinea impatiens, pinch the tips appropriately during the seedling stage. Camellia impatiens is not tolerant of high temperatures. In a hot, dry environment, the leaves become thicker and cannot spread out, and the internodes become shorter, affecting the plant shape; in severe cases, growth stops. Therefore, during summer, keep the environment cool and provide appropriate shade. Too strong sunlight will scorch the leaves, while too weak light will make the plant leggy, with thinner leaves and light green leaf color.
Water is the source of life. During the growth process, the water supply must be ensured. Friends with the means should choose a spray bottle as much as possible to keep the potting soil moist but not waterlogged, and also to maintain air humidity without causing root rot. In addition, in order for our beloved flowers to have a beautiful appearance, apply a thin fertilizer once every 10 days. Apart from applying more nitrogen fertilizer in the early stage, the application of nitrogen fertilizer should be controlled before and after flowering.
In addition, pests and diseases are also unfavorable factors affecting the growth of camellia impatiens. The main disease is damping-off. At first, water-soaked spots appear on the base of young stems, then the lesions become light brown to brown and sunken and constricted. After the disease occurs, use medication promptly. 75% chlorothalonil at 600 times, 50% carbendazim at 500 times, and 40% dimethomorph at 200-400 times all have good effects. Spray once a week; when spraying, besides the stems and leaves of the potted plants, also spray the surrounding ground.
Summary:As long as you understand the habits of the plant, you will certainly grow blooming flowers that make people envious. Today's introduction to the cultivation methods and precautions for camellia impatiens ends here. We hope it is helpful to everyone. If friends still want to read more, you can click the link below to read related information. Thank you all.
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A guide to growing balcony flowers in May
One,Potted plant types suitable for display on balconiesSpring is a season suitable for planting. For south-facing balconies, choose flowers that like light and tolerate high temperatures, for example: cactus, gem flower, nasturtium, Chinese rose, pomegranate, and scarlet sage. These flowers are suitable for planting on south-facing balconies.
For east-facing or west-facing balconies, choose vines and climbing flowers; for north-facing balconies, it is suitable to plant some flowers and trees that like semi-shade or tolerate shade. For example: four-season begonia, asparagus fern, spider plant, and English ivy.
In May, potted ornamental plant types suitable for balcony display that have entered the flowering period include: peony, iris, dwarf lily, amaryllis, jasmine, pomegranate, gloxinia, snapdragon, phlox, Dianthus species, New Guinea impatiens, serissa, begonia species, Weigela florida, etc. In addition, foliage plants that can be used to decorate indoor balconies include: nandina, spotted aucuba, Aspidistra, Norfolk Island pine, bamboo palm, areca palm, rubber tree, Philodendron 'Little Angel', golden-heart Brazilian iron tree, Buddhist pine, Schefflera octophylla, sago palm, South American cycad, etc.
A guide to growing balcony flowers in May
Two,Propagation of balcony flowers
1. Sowing
On balconies that are not too high, you can try sowing seeds of Fatsia japonica, areca palm, cycad, etc. in large flowerpots, but attention should be paid to moisture retention. You can also sow some herbaceous flowers in large flowerpots, such as four-season primrose and impatiens, as decorations for your own home. In addition, you can also pot the bulbs of tuberose and gladiolus.
2. Cuttings
On your own balcony, you can use large flowerpots filled with vermiculite and other cutting media, cover with plastic film to retain moisture, and propagate foliage plants such as Schefflera octophylla, Chinese hibiscus, Excoecaria cochinchinensis, spotted aucuba, rubber tree, and Cordyline fruticosa by cuttings. You can also use flowerpots filled with wet sand to take cuttings of some succulent plants, such as Echeveria, gem flower, jade plant, night-blooming cereus, and Epiphyllum, etc. You can also take cuttings of some herbaceous flowers such as scarlet sage and marigold for balcony decoration.
3. Grafting
In May, on the balcony, you can approach-graft woody flowers such as Michelia alba, wintersweet, and red maple. Bud grafting of Chinese rose can also be done on the balcony. In mid-May, you can also graft succulent plants such as Christmas cactus and Gymnocalycium mihanovichii on the balcony.
4. Division
In May, ornamental plant species that can be divided on the balcony include: Aspidistra, spider plant, Haworthia, bromeliads, sword fern, bird of paradise, silver-striped lilyturf, orchid, cycad, South American cycad, etc.
5. Layering
In May, on the balcony, you can propagate rubber tree, Aglaia odorata, croton, Chinese hibiscus, Belgian azalea, etc. by air layering.
A guide to growing balcony flowers in May
Three,Management of balcony flowers
When growing flowers and plants on the balcony, prune frequently and do not let the branches and leaves become too lush. Also, fertilizing is very important. It is best to change the fertile soil once a year, because the nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium in the soil have already been absorbed completely; by the second year, all the nutrients in that pot of soil have been absorbed, so of course the flowers cannot bloom in the second year.
1. Repotting
In early to mid-May, for potted flowers and trees just moved out from indoors in northern regions, if they have not yet sprouted new shoots, repotting can continue at this time. Types include: Aglaia odorata, azalea, rubber tree, Schefflera octophylla, camellia, golden-heart dragon tree, areca palm, money tree, etc.
In addition, for flower lovers living upstairs, if soil cultivation is inconvenient, they can also consider hydroponics to grow some ornamental plants, which is clean and hygienic, has fewer pests and diseases, and is convenient and feasible. Ornamental plant types suitable for hydroponics include: lucky bamboo, spider plant, Monstera deliciosa, Philodendron bipinnatifidum, Syngonium podophyllum, Pellionia pulchra, pothos, Chamaedorea elegans, Cordyline fruticosa, Rohdea japonica, aucuba, Commelina communis, coleus, Philodendron 'Little Angel', umbrella plant, Acorus gramineus, etc.
2. Shaping
The space range of a balcony is generally very limited. A small one can only hold a few pots of flowers, while a large one can hold a dozen or more. Even if it is expanded to three sides, apart from the necessary attention to safety factors, there are also many inconveniences when carrying out watering, fertilizing, and shading management. For this reason, it is necessary to choose ornamental plant types with a small individual size, or that can be renewed by suckering, or whose plant shape development can be controlled by pruning.
Those that can be renewed by suckering include wintersweet, red maple, Mahonia bealei, firethorn, begonia, nandina, four-season osmanthus, camellia, etc. These flowers and trees can be dwarfed and renewed by truncating the trunk. Those whose plant size can be controlled by pruning overly long branches include: Michelia alba, fingered citron, rubber tree, banana shrub, plum blossom, etc. There are also some types that, after each flowering, can be cut back once to promote reblooming, such as four-season pomegranate, Chinese rose, Chinese hibiscus, Aglaia odorata, etc.
A guide to growing balcony flowers in May
3. Watering
Balcony potted flowers, because of their high placement, strong wind, and intense sunlight, generally need more watering and spraying than potted flowers in courtyards, and special care should be taken not to let muddy water drip onto clothes or other items that downstairs neighbors dry on their balconies. It is best to first move the flowers to the floor to water them (or use a basin of water and the immersion method), while also spraying water on the leaves. A handheld sprayer can be used for spraying. After the potting soil has absorbed water thoroughly, place them back in their original position.
When watering balcony potted flowers in May, the appropriate amount of water should be determined according to factors such as the different types of flowers and trees, the size of the flowerpot, the temperature, and the intensity of sunlight, generally with the aim of keeping the potting soil moist. In addition, succulent plants can be watered a little less, while foliage plants with larger leaves should be watered a little more.
4. Fertilizing
Fertilizing balcony potted flowers is also different from fertilizing potted flowers on courtyard ground, and more attention should be paid not to let fertilizer droplets splash down. In addition, fertilizers with a foul odor or strange smell cannot be used, especially in late spring and early summer. Multi-element granular compound fertilizer can be buried in the flowerpot, or the flowerpot can be brought to the floor slab and the leaves sprayed with 0.3% urea solution or 0.2% monopotassium phosphate fertilizer solution.
If organic fertilizer is used, it is best to first compost cake fertilizer thoroughly elsewhere and dry it in the sun, put it in a bottle, and when using it, pour out some solid powder and sprinkle it on the potting soil. As watering seeps in, it is slowly absorbed by the plant. In May, for some plants that have finished flowering, apply liquid fertilizer mainly based on nitrogen fertilizer and supplemented by phosphorus fertilizer to promote vegetative growth. For ornamental plants that are about to bloom or are differentiating flower buds, apply fertilizer types mainly based on phosphorus fertilizer and supplemented by nitrogen fertilizer.
A guide to growing balcony flowers in May
5. Shading
After entering May, according to the sunlight exposure on the balcony, some necessary adjustments should be made to the placement of different potted flowers based on their ecological habits. Among them, those flowers and trees that like light and are relatively drought-tolerant can be moved to the very front of the balcony, such as black pine, Chinese elm, Sageretia thea, Pinus thunbergii 'Umbraculifera', cycad, pomegranate, Adina rubella, wintersweet, Chinese rose, dragon juniper, Chinese juniper, and trident maple.
For those types that relatively like light, they can be moved to a slightly rear position on the balcony, such as plum blossom, bitter orange, firethorn, five-needle pine, crabapple, croton, Michelia alba, Aglaia odorata, camellia, etc. For those shade-loving foliage plants, they can be moved to the innermost position, such as Monstera deliciosa, Philodendron bipinnatifidum, rubber tree, orchid, azalea, Philodendron 'Green Giant', Buddhist pine, Syzygium buxifolium, clivia, etc. By the end of May, when the sunlight is too intense, a shade net can be set up on the balcony to provide appropriate shading. Special attention should be paid to the fact that the scorching sun after a long period of rain and the first clearing is quite fierce and can easily cause leaf scorch on balcony flowers. Some foliage plants can first be moved indoors to avoid the midday sun.
6. Pest and disease prevention
For potted flowers grown on balconies, after entering May, red spider mites occur rather seriously. Timely spray 25% fenbutatin oxide (containing azocyclotin) wettable powder at 1000 to 2000 times solution, or 5% hexythiazox emulsifiable concentrate at 1000 times solution for control. For scale insects appearing on plants, 25% buprofezin (containing thiazinone) wettable powder at 1500 times solution can be used for control.