Lobelia Riviera: a description of propagation methods and plant varieties, such as Sky Blue and Midnight, as well as the features of flower care and cultivation

If you want to decorate your garden with plants, you can pay attention to the blooming Lobelia Riviera.

This flower belongs to perennial herbaceous plants of the bellflower family, the genus lobelia. The deduced Riviera series is distinguished by early development and flowering. The homeland of natural varieties is considered to be North America and South Africa. In our conditions, grown as an annual flower.

Lobelia Riviera will be an adornment of any garden plot. It is important to observe the nuances of caring for the plant, then a scattering of flowers of different shades will delight the eye throughout the entire flowering period.

Description of appearance and habitat

Lobelia Riviera refers to early flowering varieties of bush. Crohn is compact, develops into a dense flowering ball. The stems are erect, the height of the bush is small, reaches up to 15 - 20 cm. The stems are erect, well-branched, densely covered with flowers and leaves. The leaves are small, lanceolate, dense in structure, grow alternately. Some varieties have a bronze shade of foliage.

Flowers have predominantly cold shades of blue, pale blue, and purple. There are varieties of white colors. Early flowering, long. He loves warm and well-lit places without direct sun. Propagated by seeds, sowing begins in February.

Used for balcony design, can also be planted in flower beds and in the garden, like a groundcover flower. Even after flowering, due to the density of green leaves, the bush remains decorative.

Subspecies

Sky blue

An early variety of bush lobelia, blooms 2 weeks earlier than other varieties. The bush is compact and dense spherical crown. The stems are erect, the height of an adult bush reaches 15 cm.

The leaves are small, dense, dark green, shiny. The branches branch well and grow quickly, the bush is up to 20 cm wide. The inflorescences are dense, densely arranged to each other, densely strewn with numerous flowers. The flowers themselves are soft blue with a purple tint.

Long flowering, until September. Often used as a background or border for flower beds and alpine slides. It can grow in residential conditions on balconies and loggias of the open type. Propagated by seeds and cuttings in the spring. The seeds are small, for sowing using granular seeds for ease of distribution in planting containers.

Midnight blue

American hybrid early grade Riviera series. The bush is compact, the stems are strong, the crown is spherical. The bush is stunted, grows up to 20 cm in height. The leaves are small, dense, shiny, bronze. Early flowering, long. With the correct pruning, it is possible to re-bloom profusely until the frost. The flowers themselves are medium, some varieties grow up to 3-4 cm, two-lipped in shape, differ in rich blue color.

In the open ground can be planted in May - June. Propagated mainly by seeds. Sowing seeds is carried out in February. They are grown as an annual flower on flowerbeds and front gardens. Looks good in landscape floral arrangements. Can be grown in balcony drawers and baskets. The flower prefers partial shady places of planting.

Landing Features

What season is the best time to start?

Usually sowing seeds involved in late February. The Riviera variety is early, therefore the optimal time for sowing seeds is March - early April. In the open ground, planting usually begins in May, when there is no threat of night frost.

Important! For successful germination of seeds sown in February, gardeners recommend the use of additional lighting.

How to choose and prepare the soil?

Lobelia Riviera, like its natural "parents", is practically unpretentious to soils. The Riviera series grows in sandy and even loamy, stony soils. Feeding and fertilizing the soil is not excessively recommended - flowering will be pale and sparse.

The substrate must be loose, water drainage is mandatory - drainage holes in the landing boxes are required, drainage layer is desirable. It is better to buy a special soil mixture in the store, but you can prepare the substrate at home.

The composition of the substrate for lobelia Riviera:

Sand - 1 hour
Horse peat - 1 h.
Garden land - 1 hour
Mineral fertilizers - 0.5 hours
Expanded clay drainage layer.

Important! The substrate is harvested in the fall, left to freeze on the balcony.

Before sowing, it is recommended to steam or calcine the substrate in the oven for disinfection. Also, gardeners for disinfection recommend spilling the soil with boiling water, in which 1 - 2 manganese crystals are dissolved.

Some gardeners use peat tablets instead of soilin which seedlings retain nutrients, necessary moisture, the sprout itself develops faster.

Breeding

Seeds

Self-grown seedlings at home, take root better, tolerate temperature extremes, are more resistant to pathogenic infections, fungi and garden insects - this is a huge advantage of the method. But for a good result you need good, competent care of seedlings, timely picking, pinching the tops.

It is especially necessary to carefully monitor the substrate - it must always be moist, but not moist.

Seeds are sown in the winter, the process is long and painstaking, seedlings can be delayed in development, at the first stages they grow slowly. Also if irrigated incorrectly, the entire crop can hit the fungal Black Leg.

How to choose seeds?

The seeds of the Riviera lobelia for 3 to 4 years retain their qualities. Seeds are very small, like dust particles - in 1 g contains up to 25 - 30 thousand seeds, 1 g is enough to plant a whole flower bed. The peculiarity of planting seeds is that they should not be buried with a soil layer, the seeds are slightly pressed to the soil.

Reference! To sow uniformly, the seeds are mixed with sand or peat - 1: 5. You can sow on snow, spreading it in a thin layer on the surface of the substrate in the landing container.

In modern gardening, it is convenient to purchase special seed granules or dragees for the convenience of planting them in the ground.

Landing procedure

Sowing and growing seedlings is a painstaking and lengthy process that requires compliance with certain rules:

In the container for planting seeds, drainage holes are made.
Fill the landing tank with a pre-prepared substrate with a layer of 5 - 6 cm.
The substrate is tamped, moistened through irrigation with a spray gun.
A day maintains a compacted and processed substrate.
Evenly distribute the seeds over the entire surface of the planting container.
Moisturize the crop by spraying.
Planting containers are covered with a glass or polyethylene cover. The temperature for germination should be at least 22 - 24 ° C.
Daily seedlings are ventilated, removing condensate from the glass. Airing time - from 20 minutes, as the seedlings grow older, the time is increased.
After 7 to 10 days, the seedlings will sprout and grow.
Shelter is removed from the greenhouse for hardening seedlings after 4 weeks.
The air temperature is slightly reduced to 17 - 18 ° C.
4 weeks after sowing, picking seedlings into larger pots or peat cups is required. Transplanted immediately with a small bush of 6 sprouts in each.
For planting in the garden or flower beds on open ground, seedlings dive again, in May - early June. In open ground, the distance between the holes is at least 15 - 20 cm.
When the seedlings grow to 2.5 - 3 cm in height, pinching of the tops is necessary. Pinching is carried out 2 to 3 times every 3 weeks.

Important! A fungicide is added to water for primary wetting of the substrate to disinfect the substrate. Further, for irrigation it is necessary to use only well-maintained, warm, clean water.

Cuttings

Advantages and disadvantages

Propagation by cuttings does not take much time, rooting of cuttings is quick, on 20 - 25 days, the procedure itself is simple. The rules for caring for cuttings before rooting are simple:

fertilizers are applied once a week;
good abundant watering is required so that the earthen lump does not dry out.

But propagation by cuttings of the Riviera lobelia is rarely used, basically the method is suitable for hybrid terry varieties that do not bring seeds.

It is necessary to prepare the soil mixture for propagation in advance, select the desired capacity, follow all the rules of care and cultivation throughout the whole rooting.

Which cuttings are best to choose?

To use the method of grafting the Riviera hybrid variety, you need to dig a few adult healthy, strong bushes from the fall. By transshipment method, while maintaining an earthen lump, transplant them into pots or flowerpots. The procedure is usually carried out in March.

To cut the lobelia of the Riviera, it is advisable to use a sandy substrate:

Coarse sand - 1 hour.
Vermiculite - 1 hour

Reference! Vermiculite retains moisture in the soil well, protects the roots from unwanted temperature changes.

Landing procedure

Scheme of the cuttings procedure:

Cuttings are cut diagonally at 10 - 12 cm.
Saplings are lowered for 3-4 hours in a solution with a growth stimulant.
Cuttings are planted in a sand mixture.
Seedlings are covered with film or glass.
Cuttings take root in about a month.
Regular top dressing is carried out 3 - 4 r per month.
After 1 - 1, 5 months, rooted seedlings are transplanted into the open ground.

Is it possible to grow in open ground?

For hardening seedlings of the Riviera lobelia in fresh air, the temperature 15 ° C can be considered optimal. Before planting in open ground, seedlings are usually tempered for further painless rooting of it in the soil. In mid-May, the Riviera lobelia can be planted in balcony boxes and open glades. It is necessary to provide for the absence of night frosts, such a drop is fatal for seedlings.

The planting procedure itself is simple:

Digging a piece of land.
Granules of mineral fertilizer, peat, sand are introduced into the soil.
Shallow landing holes are dug at a distance of at least 20 cm.
The soil is well moistened.
Together with an earthen lump, a bush of 5-6 seedlings is placed in each hole.
The bush is moistened, the substrate around the base is compacted.

For each bush you need to use up to 1 kg of substrate.

Will winter survive and how to prepare the plant for frost?

Lobelia Riviera is not suitable for wintering in open space, this variety does not tolerate frosts at all. Usually, in order to preserve the required variety, shrubs are dug up in late October - November. Transplant bushes in spacious pots.

The rules of care are the same as for young seedlings. With proper care, the lobelia of the Riviera continues to bloom on the windows even in winter.

How to care?

Temperature. The temperature of seed germination is up to 24 ° C. The optimum temperature of the content of the Riviera lobelia at home is 18 - 20 ° C.
Watering. Watering is required moderate, but regular - you can not dry the substrate, but to fill in the roots is also dangerous for the Riviera lobelia. In summer, the flower is watered 2 r per week under the root, so that water does not fall on the flowers.
Shine. Lobelia Riviera loves good lighting, but in high heat shrubs should be shaded from the direct burning sun. It is advisable to select places in the garden and on the windowsills with diffused light - the western and eastern sides of the house.
Pruning. Pruning is carried out when the seedlings reach 3-4 cm in height - the tops are usually cut off for the development of a lush bush. After the first flowering, the stems become yellow, they should be shortened by half, which allows buds to develop, flowering is repeated after 2 to 3 weeks.
Pot. For sowing seedlings, take transparent shallow containers with a lid, special cassettes with pallets can be used, plastic containers made from sweets, egg trays, any wide plates, etc. are perfect from available tools.
Top dressing. Complex mineral fertilizers are used for adult seedlings.
Important! The feeding solution for young bushes should be weakly concentrated, not contain a large amount of nitrogen. Organic fertilizers are also contraindicated, this can affect the splendor of flowering.

Lobelia Riviera - looks picturesque in any flower arrangements in the garden, on alpine slides and multi-tiered flower beds, decorates garden paths and terraces.