Begonia is a wonderful plant belonging to the begonia species. Includes many species. The three main ones are bush, leaf and tuber. Tuberous begonias are often grown outdoors in the ground. And the rest are often seen as indoor plants.
Begonias can bloom for quite some time, which makes them a wonderful decoration of the landscape and interior. Usually the whole summer period blooms on the street, and flowering in an apartment can last up to six months with proper care.
Begonia Care
Lighting
Begonias do not like the sun so much. They prefer to grow in dark places. Blooming begonias prefer brighter east and west sides.
Completely exclude direct sunlight, as they cause burns of leaves and burnout of flowers.
Permanently rearranging begonia is also not worth it, it fades from this.
Temperature
The optimal temperature regime for the life of begonia will be from 18 to 22 degrees.In the summer months, the temperature should not exceed 25 degrees.
Watering
Although the begonia grows in humid places, it is not worth pouring it. Watering depends on the location and temperature.
Under normal temperature conditions, begonia is worth water 2-3 times a week. In the summer, do not let the soil dry out. The soil should be well moistened, but without constant presence of water. Therefore, it is better to use the drainage in the pot.
Top dressing
For plentiful and long flowering, begonias are recommended to use top dressing. Better it will be specialized fertilizers for begonias. During the flowering period, such fertilizers must be used once every 14 days. It is worth starting at the time of the appearance of the buds.
Begonia pruning
To create a lush begonia bush, it is necessary to trim the excess stems in a timely manner. Notches are made at a height of about 5 cm from the edge of the vase. Due to this, the side kidneys come to life and begin to actively develop.
Breeding
There are 3 types of reproduction: seeds, tubers and cuttings.
Seed propagation
When propagating by seeds, a large amount of time and effort is necessary. The seeds are sprinkled on the surface of the soil without crushing them with soil, cover it with glass and put in a warm (about 25 degrees Celsius) room in a well-lit place. Frequent watering is carried out using a spray gun.
Propagation by cuttings
For this purpose, cuttings are prepared from stems or leaves. Cut off cuttings are set in a substrate from a peat-sand mixture. Also, before being placed in the substrate, the cuttings are germinated in water.
Tuber propagation
When propagating by tubers, only young ones are used, which should be germinated before separation for no more than 1 week (before the first shoots appear). Separation is carried out by cutting the tuber into parts with a knife, with a sprout and root on each part of the tuber. The cut site is treated with charcoal or sulfur. After this, the tubers are placed in a substrate (best of all, purely peaty), but they are buried at about half the depth.
