The favorite of gardeners is ampelous petunia, which is not accidental. This plant becomes the most striking and picturesque decoration of houses, gardens. Petunia is planted in hanging or tall flowerpots, wide containers, balcony boxes. During proliferation, ampelous varieties form many drooping lashes, creating a waterfall of flowers that cause widespread admiration.
Often these plants are used in landscape design: they successfully fill voids, decorate alpine hills, terraces, platforms near pools, small ponds.
How to choose a grade
There are many varieties of ampelous petunia. It is often difficult to choose one thing - you will definitely want to buy several varieties at once. But to begin with, it is worth learning about each of them, since when growing you can encounter some difficulties.
For convenience, all varieties of ampelous petunia are conventionally divided into two types: real ampelous and cascading. They differ in the following:
- Ampelic drooping beautiful lashes. With a large number of petunias, you can create a real flower curtain.
- The stalks of varieties of ampel type, while still seedling, develop horizontally.
- Cascading initially grows up, but, as it grows, the shoots lean down under their own weight.
The main difference between cascade and ampelous petunias is the length of the shoots. In the former, they are short, while in the latter they can reach a meter or more. This should be taken into account when using flowers as a decor.
The most famous varieties
There are a huge number of ampelous types of flowers. They differ in lash length, flower size, color, flowering time, etc. Among the variety of these amazing plants, the following varieties of ampelous petunia are distinguished:
- Avalanche. The variety is often used in the decoration of loggias and garden arbors. In this variety, the petals are painted in saturated colors: red, blue, orange, pink. Often, avalanche petunias from Avalanche create mixes of shades that look original in hanging planters.
- Shock Wave is a hybrid form. Many gardeners liked the variety because of simple and double flowers. It looks very beautiful in white: sparkling inflorescences contrast excellently with emerald foliage.
- Velveteen. It is characterized by velvet leaves and flower petals. Most often, this variety is planted in gardens where there is a lack of pollination of crops. This is due to the fact that the variety is an excellent honey plant, it attracts a large number of bees. Velveteen is characterized by long inflorescences and late flowering.
- Opera Suprim - a hybrid of F1. The variety is quite unpretentious, it feels great in low light, which is an undeniable advantage. It can be grown even in an apartment at any time of the year. Opera Suprim grows well and blooms even with insufficient care. To form a beautiful bush, you need to trim and water the plant in a timely manner. According to reviews, the ampelous petunia of this variety looks perfect on the loggia, balcony. It hangs with luxurious lashes more than a meter long. Compared to others, Opera Suprim flowers are small, simple, but it blooms profusely.
- The Snow Queen. The lashes of the plant reach eighty centimeters in length. It blooms in beautiful snow-white color with a light aroma.
- Explorer This variety is considered one of the most popular. It is grown by many gardeners and appreciated for its many colors. The length of the lashes is about half a meter: strong shoots that can withstand strong winds. The flowers are large, with a waxy structure.
- Easy Wave Red. The length of the branches of this variety ranges from eighty centimeters to a meter. The color of the flowers blends perfectly with the green foliage.
- Katerina. The variety captivates with its unusual salmon color. The diameter of the flower is small, about six centimeters. Streaks on the petals give originality.
- Svetlana. It is famous for its elegance, lush lashes, grows up to a meter in length. Emerald leaflets are arranged alternately, flowers with a diameter of five centimeters in the shape of a funnel.
- Black velvet has very large inflorescences. Petals in buds with a velvety surface are painted in deep black. The diameter of the flower can reach nine centimeters.
In addition to these varieties, such as surfinia, supertunia, fortunia, and tumblers are also appreciated. The main advantage of which is abundant continuous flowering and resistance to weather changes.
Surfinia
The cultivation of ampelous petunia has its own peculiarities: such a plant can be obtained only with the propagation of cuttings.
Surfinia is a whole group of hybrids with long stems. The species is characterized by rapid growth, resistance to precipitation, prolonged flowering. Flowers can be of various colors: with streaks, multi-color, plain, with a red, black center. They all differ in diameter - from five to ten centimeters.
Among the shortcomings, it can be distinguished that reproduction is possible only by cuttings taken from a uterine plant. Propagate petunia of this species cannot be propagated by seeds.
Fortunia
It is characterized by a large number of buds, as if the bush is strewn with flowers. Spreading bushes look perfect in flowerpots on a leg, in hanging flowerpots. It can be grown as a groundcover.
Fortune flowers are small, about six centimeters. To the plant bloomed well, it is placed in a well-lit place.
Fortunias are first-generation hybrids that are perfectly propagated by seeds. The seed is very small, so it is sown according to a special technology.
Supertunia
Some varieties of plants are easily confused with surfinia. This is mainly due to long shoots, good weather tolerance. However, in this group, the flowers are larger, they distract ten centimeters in diameter.
Supertunia does not have a powerful root system like Fortunia. That is why it is most often used for vertical gardening. On a flower bed, the flower does not grow as actively as in a hanging planter.
Tumbelin
The peculiarity of this subspecies of petunia is in its terryness. Such varieties are characterized by a cascading type of growth and excellent branching of the bush. Typically, tumbler flowers have dark streaks. Plants tolerate adverse weather conditions.
Tumblerins are resistant to disease, however, almost all varieties are demanding on the conditions of detention. They need to be planted in fertile soil and make sure that it does not dry out. This subspecies loves regular feeding and good lighting.
To some, they may seem troublesome to care for, but their beauty smooths out this flaw.
Growing ampel varieties
Having chosen your favorite varieties of ampelous and cascading petunias, you can proceed to sowing. Almost all varieties are dependent on daylight hours, which is why plants are grown on the lightest window sills. Plants sown in February will please with abundant flowering in the summer. For seedlings choose nutrient soil. Do not forget about watering and top dressing. This will help grow bushes with numerous flowers.
Sowing seeds
The best time for sowing is the end of January and the beginning of February. In this case, by the end of May, you can form beautiful and strong bushes with chic buds.
For sowing, it is necessary to prepare nutritious soil or peat tablets. The use of the latter is advisable only if the seeds are in granules. You can sow the seeds in a common container, from where later the seedlings will dive piece by piece into separate containers.
Sowing in a container
Planting ampelous petunia is no different from sowing other species. For growing in a container, you need to prepare the soil. It is steamed in advance. Then they fill the tank, slightly compacted. From above, snow is laid in a thin layer on the ground, leaving about a centimeter to the side. Snow is being compacted. Seeds are laid out on it. It is not necessary to sprinkle with soil on top, since germination requires sunlight to seeds.
On top of the sowing container is covered with glass. The container is placed in a bright, warm place. Before seedlings appear, crops can not be opened, but if there is excess moisture inside, ventilation is necessary. To do this, open the container for fifteen minutes, removing all drops of water from the glass.
Sowing in peat tablets
Before sowing, peat tablets need to be prepared, pour them with water. After complete swelling, they are placed in a mini greenhouse. A seed is placed in the center of each. Crops cover and wait for seedlings. During seed germination, it is important to ensure that peat does not dry out.
Emergence of seedlings
After the second pair of true leaflets appears on the seedlings, you can carry out the first pick. Plants from containers are planted one at a time in a container. Those that were grown in peat tablets usually do not dive, but only sprinkle with soil along with the tablet so that the cotyledon leaves are underground.
In order to get a strong and healthy seedling of ampelous petunia, top dressing must be done in a timely manner. During the period of active growth, nitrogen fertilizers are used. They help build green mass, stimulate branching. From the moment the first bud appears, the dosage of nitrogenous fertilizers is reduced, and the phosphorus-potash fertilizers are increased. Be sure to make complex mineral fertilizers once a week.
The second transplant is carried out at a permanent place when the plant releases a bud or blossoms its first flower.
Growing Features
When growing plants in pots, each watering involves the addition of fertilizing. So you can get a beautiful ampelous and cascading petunia with a plentiful fluffy hat and many flowers.
Most ampel varieties love light. Such plants are best placed under the open sun to appreciate their true beauty. With a lack of light, a small number of buds form on the bush, petunia blooms sparsely, and the lashes begin to stretch. This leads to a loss of decorativeness. To avoid this, you should choose the right place where the plant will be placed.
Do not plant more than two plants in a container of twenty liters. The bulk of ampel varieties has a powerful root system, and just a few will simply not be able to get along in such a small cache-pot: they will be small, unsightly. The volume of the ball or cascade will directly depend on the volume of soil mix allocated to one plant.
As a result of the work done, the resulting petunia bushes will delight their beauty all summer, and some subspecies and varieties will continue to bloom until the frosts.