There are hundreds of flowers in the world, each of which is beautiful in its own way. Many owners of the sites prefer a sweet heart to the gentle shy petunia hybrid. She does not seek to compete with roses or lush dahlias, but her bright flowers, exuding a pleasant aroma, always cheer up. They are decorated with flower beds all summer until the frosts. Petunia is one of the few plants that can be grown on a personal plot, on the balcony, and in a potted house. This flower requires a minimum of attention, for which he generously gives his owners a fireworks display of all kinds of colors and shades.
General information
Petunias used to grow only in South America. They can still be found in the tropical forests of Uruguay, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil. In the Land of Carnivals, their name means "tobacco." These plants are relatives, both belong to the nightshade family. Petunias came to Europe in the 18th century. Many people immediately fell in love with them and soon became quite popular. Of course, then these charming foreign women did not yet have such a great variety of shapes and colors. Petunias delighted the eye mainly with pink-lilac and white colors, and their flowers were no more than 3 cm in diameter.
Thanks to the painstaking work of the selectors, we now have hybrid petunias. Work on the cultivation of new varieties is aimed not only at obtaining flowers of different colors, but also at changing the shape of the petals, the timing of flowering, and resistance to adverse conditions.
Now you can buy hybrid ampelous and bush petunias, with small, medium or large flowers, simple or double. These beauties can be of all colors and their most bizarre combinations. Very popular are petunias hybrid yellow, dark purple, violet, salmon, and also two-tone.
Botanical Description
In the homeland of petunias, many people believe that they are planted by forest elves. Little men use flowers as hats, and turn them into musical instruments for a holiday. They say that at midnight you can hear their subtle melodic chime. Indeed, funnel-shaped flowers of petunias are similar to the formerly fashionable gramophones, only very small.
In simple forms of petunias, corollas are formed by five fused very tender petals. The tube of such "gramophone" can be long or short, narrow or wide. In the middle, you can easily see 4-5 fused stamens and twin anthers. "Sit" flowers on short pedicels. Each has a cup with narrow and relatively long sepals.
If you make a description of hybrid petunia, then it should be noted that it is impossible to give a general description of the flowers of all varieties, as they differ from each other. We only note the fact that the diameter of the corollas of breeding petunias can reach 30 cm, and the height of their thin stems ranges from 40 cm in bush to 1.2 meters in ampelous. In all varieties, the stem is densely covered with small-sized, whole-extreme sessile leaves. If you look closely, you will notice that they are pubescent with very thin short hairs.
To the touch, the leaves of the petunias are somewhat peculiar, different from other plants. When you touch them, it seems that they are smeared with something. The reason for such tactile sensations is that among the hairs there are not only simple, but also glandular forms. They secrete a specific secret that protects petunias from adverse environmental conditions.
These flowers have another interesting feature - insects pollinate them day and night. In sunlight, petunias attract bugs and bees with bright petals, and at night with an aroma that intensifies many times in the evening.
Classification
There are many varieties of hybrid petunia. It is impossible to choose any one, focusing only on the color of the petals. All petunias are divided into species that differ in some characteristic features that may become priority for flower growers.
According to the shape of a bush, petunias are:
According to the shape of the flower, there are:
By the nature of the flowering, there are petunias:
- Small flowered.
- Large-flowered.
- Multi-flowered.
- Floribunda.
In one form, several characteristic features can be present at once, for example, ampelous petunias, small-flowered simple or bushy large-flowered terry. Many owners of plots and balconies choose a variety of petunias hybrid "fidelity." It impresses with unusually plentiful flowering. On its lush, densely leafy stems, growing in length up to 50 cm, at the same time more than a dozen salmon flowers with a diameter of 70 mm can bloom. Flowering continues until autumn frosts.
To make the classification more convenient for practical use, petunias are grouped.
Ampelic
Plants of this group, like climbing species, have thin and flexible stems up to 2 meters long. It is these varieties that are grown in hanging pots or in tall park pots. Ampelic petunias, as a rule, tolerate precipitation and temperature extremes well. Only a strong wind does not suit them, since it damages thin stems. Therefore, it is desirable to place these varieties on the leeward side.
The variety of petunia hybrid ampelous "lel" is especially popular. It impresses with its large (up to 90 mm in diameter) yellow flowers densely located on the falling stems. Blossom “lel” blooms from late May to frost, decorating flowerpots and balconies with eye-catching yellow “foam”.
Ampoule petunias include:
- Minotunias. The group is united by the fact that the flowers of its representatives are small (diameter 30-40 mm), but they have a very high resistance against adverse environmental conditions.
- Surfinia. These are spectacular ampelous petunias, the stems of which can reach 2 meters in length, and flowering can be very plentiful. The flowers of the representatives of the group are medium in size, from 60 to 90 mm in diameter. An important feature of these petunias is that they reproduce only by cuttings.
- Supertunias. These petunias are very similar to surfinia. Professional florists allocated them to a separate group, as Japanese breeders developed these varieties.
- Calibrachoa. Some flower sellers present this plant as a type of ampelous petunia, although this is not entirely true. The differences are that the caliber stems are longer, lignified at the base, and the flowers are smaller (the maximum diameter of the corolla is 30 mm).
Cascading petunias are positioned as a variety of ampelous. However, these are different groups. Cascading petunias grow upward, and only as the stem lengthens do they become flowering. A subgroup of cascading petunias is called partunia. They are distinguished by unusually magnificent bloom and a dense arrangement of flowers. Partitunia in hanging flower pots look unusually impressive.
Bush
These plants are suitable for growing on a flower bed, for creating a fence, bordering flower beds and paths, for maintaining a house on a windowsill. Depending on the variety, they can be from 30 to 70 cm high. It is among the bush petunias that there are beauties with the largest flowers:
- Grandiflora. In the Russian version, it sounds like a petunia is a large-flowered hybrid. All her representatives are charming. Their corollas can reach a diameter of 300 mm! The edges of the petals are smooth, corrugated, wavy, and their colors are very different. Since the flowers of these petunias are unusually large, there are few of them on the bush. Another minus of grandiflor is that they are big sissies, easily damaged by rain, wind, and other unfavorable “gifts” of the weather. In this group, I would like to single out a series of petunia hybrid “Sophistry”. A mixture of all kinds of shades of large flowers will delight you all summer if you choose this series for your site, as it includes many varieties. All these plants form lush bushes up to 40 cm high. The flowers are located on them very densely. The color of the petals is striking in unpredictability. So, “sophistry of blackberry” - dark purple, “sophistry of blue morne” - sky blue, “sophistry of blackberry and lime” is different in that dark and light flowers bloom on the bush at the same time.
- Fringed. Perhaps these petunias are the most beautiful. Basically they have very large flowers with a diameter of more than 100 mm. The edges of the petals can be corrugated, wavy or with a rugged edge. They look somewhat “disheveled”, which attracts admiring glances to themselves. Hybrid fringed large-flowered petunias are especially good.
- Super Brissima. They differ in a very wide pharynx with large corollas. Their diameter can be 160 mm, and contrasting streaks are often present in the colors of the petals.
- Flilitunia. These petunias are very similar to fringed, have large corollas (diameter up to 100 mm), highly corrugated or
- the petals. They need to be grown only in places protected from the vagaries of the weather, plus, provide caring care.
- Terry. These beauties do not have five petals, but much more, which makes them remotely similar to roses. Terry petunias are unusually elegant, suitable for growing in a house in a pot. On the street you need to land them so that they do not suffer from adverse weather, because their resistance to various kinds of climatic surprises is extremely low.
- Floribunda. Many group this group with multiflora due to the fact that its representatives also delight the eye with a very magnificent flowering. But in floribunda, unlike multiflora, flowers are much larger, in diameter can be up to 150 mm. They are planted, as a rule, in spacious areas where they look great. An example is the variety of petunias hybrid “lagoon”. It has a very lush bush and large (up to 150 mm in diameter) flowers of various colors.
For hanging planters and flower beds
Many bush petunias, whose stems reach a height of 50-70 cm, are also planted in hanging pots. One of the petunia varieties of hybrid ampelic “enchanting waterfall” that is very popular among gardeners. A mixture of the most different shades of colors she will present to her owners. This petunia can be planted in flower pots and flower beds. Its stems grow up to 70 cm. A lot of flowers with a diameter of up to 60 mm are formed on them. This variety tolerates rain, drought, wind, blooms from May to frost.
Groups of universal petunias:
- Milliflora. In Russian, they are small-flowered petunias. Their advantage is a very plentiful flowering and high resistance to weather conditions.
- Multiflora. In our opinion, these are multi-flowered hybrid petunias. The mixture of colors of its flowers is infinitely diverse. In addition, justifying their name, the representatives of the group have unusually lush flowering. They are not capricious, well tolerate all weather conditions, bloom early.
- Picoti. These beauties stand out among others with a white border along the edge of the petals.
Propagation Features
Having decided on the type of flower that you want to have in your garden, you can buy seeds and start sowing them. Note that some petunias propagate by cuttings. Such plants (if they will be planted on the site for the first time) must be purchased in specialized stores in the form of seedlings. The bulk of petunias is propagated by seeds. We will talk about this method.
Hybrid petunias, unlike simple ones, are best grown with seedlings. They are practically not sown in open ground, although some species can self-sow in the fall or during the summer, as the fruits ripen. As a result, in the spring, plants can bloom on the plot, the flowering of which will be much poorer than that of the original specimens.
Petunia seeds are very small. To make it more convenient to work with them, when sowing, they are mixed with sand or earth. Now many manufacturers enclose plant seeds in a kind of shell of nutrients. This option is optimal. Soaking petunia seeds before sowing is not necessary.
It is important to provide suitable seedlings for future shoots. This is especially true for capricious frillunds, grandiflor, floribundas, fringed and large-flowered species. In the "wrong" soil, they will develop poorly, they will not give the expected flowering.
For all hybrid petunias, the mixture of components that make up the soil should be as follows: humus, sand, sod land, peat in a ratio of 2: 1: 2: 2. Some add vermiculite or perlite.
The process of growing seedlings
Determine the timing of sowing. For each region, they are different and depend only on climatic conditions. Petunias can be transplanted into the open ground when there are already definitely no freezing frosts.
The seeds of these flowers germinate quickly (within a week), the sprouts develop actively, especially their root system. Therefore, in those cases when it is not planned to keep petunias in pots at home, you need to sow seeds no earlier than 60-65 days before planting on the flower bed.
If the plants in the containers have time to bloom by then, it’s okay, the main thing is that their roots should have enough soil in a temporary container. If the petunia seedling has time to become a fully formed plant with powerful long stems and numerous buds, it will be difficult to transplant. Therefore, it is not worth rushing with sowing. Another drawback in the early start of work is that young plants need a lot of light. When germinating seedlings in January - early February, they will need additional lighting.
Hybrid petunia seeds can be planted quickly and without the hassle. To do this, you need to take a spacious container with drainage holes, fill it with prepared soil, moisten it, pour seeds on top and lightly press them with your fingers to the ground. With this method, after about three weeks, you will have to pick the grown seedlings, replanting them in separate containers. Since petunia is a flower that does not tolerate root damage, the method described above is not particularly good. When diving, some of the seedlings will inevitably die.
It is more correct to spend more time when sowing, immediately placing 1-2 seeds in separate containers. This is conveniently carried out with a toothpick, the tip of which is dipped in water. With this method of planting, a spike of seedlings is not needed.
In both cases, the container with the seeds sown must be covered with glass or polyethylene and placed on a bright, warm window sill in a room where the air temperature is kept at +20 to +23 degrees. After the emergence of seedlings, it is desirable to reduce the temperature to +18 degrees.
The glass and film must be lifted daily to give fresh air access. Otherwise, mold may appear on the ground. If this happens, you need to carefully carry out the irrigation with a solution of potassium permanganate.
The seedling care is classic. They need sunlight, moderate heat and water. Watering is carried out as the soil dries in containers. For the best development of seedlings, it can be regularly fed with one of the liquid mineral fertilizers for flowers, breeding it, according to the attached instructions. Feed seedlings begin at the age of 3-4 weeks. If the sprouts begin to stretch very much, and this is not a feature of the variety, you can pin their tops.
Outdoor Petunia Care
The place in the garden for these plants should be sunny. Light penumbra is also suitable, but at least several hours a day, sunlight should fall on the plants. The soil for hybrid petunias should be loamy, breathable. It is advisable to add compost or humus to it in advance.
Seedlings before planting on a flower bed need a week, and preferably two, to temper. To this end, containers with sprouts are taken out every day to fresh air. The hardening process begins from one hour, gradually increasing the time. Landing in open ground is preferably carried out in the late afternoon.
Petunias should be watered moderately. They do not like either stagnation of moisture or drying out of the soil. After heavy rain and watering, the ground between the bushes must be carefully loosened. For more magnificent flowering in the open ground, petunias continue to be fed. Do this no more than 2-3 times a month. Nitrofoska, "Solution", humic fertilizers are usually used.
Diseases and Pests
Hybrid petunia, like simple, is sick only if the rules of care are violated. Planting in heavy soils, in wetlands, in dense shade, as well as unnecessarily plentiful watering contribute to rotting of the roots and the development of various fungal diseases. The main ones are the black leg, late blight, gray rot, brown spotting, powdery mildew.
Preparations for the fight against fungal diseases: Skor, Topaz, Maxim, Ordan, but practice shows that most fungal diseases are not treated. Petunias, on which gray rot, a black leg, late blight, are noticed, must be removed in order to avoid infection of the remaining specimens. The place where they grew should be treated with a preparation containing copper.
Among the pests of petunias, slugs, thrips, spider mites, aphids and whiteflies need to be distinguished (lays eggs on leaf plates). Especially annoying petunias of aphids. You can fight it with alternative methods (spraying with a soap solution, acidic liquids), but experience shows that the best result is observed when treating plants with Aktara, Decis, Confidor and their analogues.