How should flower cultivation cope with hot weather? Keep these four key words in mind

Temperature is a very important environmental condition for flower cultivation; it directly governs the growth and development, flowering and fruiting of flowers.

Every kind of flower has a maximum survival temperature, and above that temperature the flowers may suffer scorching or death. Right now we are in

the hot midsummer season, so the harm high temperatures do to flowers and the "four-character formula" for preventing such harm are introduced below:

1. The harm of high temperatures. Too high a temperature is very unfavorable to flower growth. When the outside air temperature approaches the upper limit of a flower's survival, it will cause poor plant growth and stunted development, and may even kill the plant within a short time. Generally, ultra-high temperatures above 45°C can cause the proteins inside flower cells to coagulate from the heat, leading to plant death. High temperatures make the leaves of foliage plants lose their green color and shorten the flowering period of flowering plants or scorch their petals. Under high temperatures, pests and diseases are active frequently, and the harm they do to flowers is also worsened.

2. Prevention of high temperatures. Based on many years of practice, the "four-character formula" for preventing high temperatures in flowers and trees is briefly described below:

The first is "shade", that is, shading to guard against strong light. High temperatures and strong light almost always appear at the same time, so blocking strong light can effectively lower the temperature. For flowers that fear both high temperatures and strong light, such as fuchsia, cyclamen and orchids, during the hot summer season, shading them appropriately or keeping them under a shade shed can provide the necessary cool environment. If there is no condition to build a shade shed or there is no shade shed, you can also use the method of moving them indoors during the day to shade and cool them, and moving them outdoors at night for ventilation.

The second is "sprinkle", that is, sprinkling water to increase humidity and lower the temperature. In the hot midsummer season, sprinkling water around the area where the potted flowers are placed and spraying water on the leaves can both increase humidity and play a role in lowering the temperature, while also reducing leaf evaporation, enhancing the flowers' drought resistance, and creating a cool and moist excellent micro-environment for the flowers.

The third is "avoid", that is, avoiding rain to prevent root rot. Summer rain is frequent, heavy and long-lasting, and the sudden temperature drop caused by rainfall easily damages root hairs. After rain, water accumulating in the pot obstructs the respiration of the roots and easily causes root rot, and root rot is even more serious in fleshy-rooted flowers. Therefore, all flowers that are weak or semi-dormant in midsummer should be placed in a rain-sheltered spot to prevent root rot.

The fourth is "ventilate", that is, ventilating and exchanging air to lower the temperature. Both the respiration and photosynthesis of flowers must have sufficient fresh air present; poor ventilation will obstruct respiration, affect the normal growth of the flowers, and even lead to the death of the flowers. The planting density of flowers and trees in open fields or nursery plots should be appropriately reduced, reasonable shaping and pruning should be carried out, and excessive vegetative growth of certain flowers and trees should be controlled.