Nettle With Gorgeous Leaves. Reproduction

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

The chic varieties of modern Coleus boggle the imagination. There is a desire to purchase the copy you like. How to get a sufficient amount of planting material in a short time?

Varieties

The variety of varieties has exceeded several dozen. In this direction, foreign breeders have worked fruitfully in recent years. Typically, the following mixtures go on sale:

• Rainbow;

• Giant Leaf;

• Visart;

• Dragon Sunset and Vulcano;

• Somon Lace;

• Red Velvet;

• Nozen Lights;

• Rosewood;

• Fairway.

The list is endless. Each has its own merits.

Mixtures are heterogeneous. Not known color, number of copies of the same type. To compose a composition on flower beds, at least 5-6 identical bushes are required to create a color spot. How to get enough planting material? Several breeding methods are used.

Reproduction methods

Coleus are bred in two ways:

• seed;

• vegetative (cuttings).

Initially buy a bag of the seeds you like from the store. Sowing begins at the end of January. A mixture of peat, turf, leaf humus, sand is poured into a box 8-10 cm high in equal proportions.

They compact the soil. Pour with potassium permanganate solution. Seeds are spread over the surface, lightly sprinkled with sand. Cover with foil, put in a warm place.

Seedlings appear in 2-3 weeks. Put the box on a light windowsill with diffused lighting. Gradually, the young are accustomed to the humidity of the room, removing the shelter for several hours. They monitor the soil moisture. The slightest overdrying of the upper layer leads to the death of the entire plant or shedding of foliage in older specimens.

At a height of more than 10 cm, the crown is pinched, stimulating the formation of lush bushes with a large number of shoots. After 1, 5-2 months, they are seated in separate pots.

Cuttings

Coleus is developing very quickly. Before planting in open ground, it manages to form a tall bush. Transferring plants to the shade with insufficient light provokes the elongation of the shoots. Cuttings are cut from them. Rooted in two ways: in water or directly in the ground.

Liquid is poured into a glass. The lower leaves are cut off. When exposed to water, they give rot that spreads to the entire cutting. After 2-3 weeks, roots appear.

Plants are transplanted into separate cups with drainage holes, a fertile, loose substrate. After 2 weeks, pinch the crown.

Rooting directly in the ground increases the time for root formation. Shelter with a plastic bag or jar creates a favorable, humid microclimate. After a month, the top of the head starts to grow - this is a sign of a positive result.

Requirements

Coleus are used as annuals in street beds in summer. In sunny places, the color of the leaves becomes brighter. In the shade, it turns pale or turns into a pure green color.

Loves loose, fertile soil with good moisture capacity. Poorly tolerates the proximity of groundwater, flooding of the site during heavy rains. Responds well to regular watering during dry periods.

Care

A rapidly growing body requires good nutrition. Once every 1-2 weeks, Coleus are fed with a complex fertilizer "Zdraven" a tablespoon without a slide on a full bucket of water. You can alternate between different types: mineral and plant solutions. The aerial part of the nettle is insisted in a barrel for a week. Dilute with water 1:10. Watered at the root.

Mulching bedding creates a favorable microclimate in the root zone. Hardwood sawdust, straw cutting will do. Weeding will get rid of unwanted competitors.

Bushes respond well to a haircut, forming a compact, lush crown. Part of the material is used for further rooting. Transplanted into boxes, pots for decorating indoor spaces in the cold season.

We will consider the preservation of planting material, placement in a flower bed in the next article.