How to grow ampelous lobelia from seeds at home

Lobelia ampelnaya is an amazing plant, it can be used to decorate a garden or a summer cottage. The bush fits very well into the design of the garden and easily gets along with various flowers, does not need special care, except for watering. But just like all plants, he needs at least minimal care. This article describes what ampelous lobelia is and how to grow it at home, as well as the basic rules for caring for a plant.

Lobelia ampelnaya: growing from seeds

Florists grow a wide variety of plants. Lobelia ampelous attracts with its beautiful flowers of all kinds of shades, pleasing to the eye until deep frosts. Plants with small inflorescences are planted in boxes or hanging flowerpots. The flower goes well with other representatives of the flora. How to grow this beauty and take care of it is of interest not only to novice flower growers, but also to those who have extensive experience.

What does a flower look like

The most popular variety of lobelia, which is grown by gardeners in different climatic territories of Russia as an annual, is "Erius". The flower is presented in various forms. The plant can be with drooping shoots, spreading, spreading. These types are often used to decorate borders and create flower waterfalls. Compact types of ampelous lobelia are often grown as indoor perennials.

The most popular varieties are listed below:

• "Regatta Serpentine" - ampelous lobelia with amazing fan-like flowers of light pink shades;
• Blue Regatta - flowers of dark blue or sky-blue color;
• "Regatta Special" - one-year-old lilac-light bud;
• Reggata Mix has a wide variety of bud colors;
• "Anabel" (Anabel Violet Whiskers) - has a light purple and blue bloom;
• "Sapphire" - lobelia blooms with purple buds.
• Red Cascade - buds are dark pink or light crimson;
• Dortman - this species is listed in the Red Book, there are very few such plants left, withstands frosts down to -35 degrees.

Correct sowing of seeds

The sowing stage is the most difficult when growing lobelia. This is due to the fact that the seeds are very small, like sand. Therefore, it will be difficult for novice growers, but below you will get help. For beginners, it is advisable to use seeds in granules. In this case, sowing becomes much more pleasant. Caring for lobelia is not very time consuming. The best option would be to prepare the seedlings in advance instead of sowing the seeds directly into the soil.

Lobelia seeds

Growing seedlings

Growing lobelia in the form of seedlings will allow gardeners to admire the buds from the first months of summer, if everything is done correctly and carefully. In order to start planting seedlings, you need to prepare in advance the container necessary for planting it. And you need to start the sowing stage from the first days of February. First of all, you need to prepare the soil for this amazing flower. You will need garden soil, which must be mixed with ordinary river sand.

In the container where the seedlings will be sown, you need to make a small hole. It is necessary for the outflow of fluid. Next, you need to pour a rather thick layer of expanded clay or broken brick. Pre-fried earth is poured into the container and pressed a little, leveling it in advance. When soil is poured into the container, it must be rinsed. After moistening the soil, seeds are placed in it, only they need to be distributed at large intervals from each other. It will be more convenient to do this with seeds that are in granules. All containers must be closed with glass or a bag. Then containers with future seedlings are placed in a place where it is warm and there is enough light.

Sowing seeds in pots

First, you need to understand that the soil for lobelia needs airy, light, moist and loose. The soil should be well saturated with air for the plant to be comfortable. Seedlings should be planted in open ground, which contains sand and humus. The plant successfully takes root in slightly acidic or neutral soil. To sow seeds, a small planter or any similar container will do. Sometimes the seeds are placed directly in open ground.

Flower in a hanging planter

Lobelia: when to plant in open ground?

The planting period for lobelia is from mid-winter to mid-spring. In April-May, flowers are transplanted into a flower bed or pots. Lobelia seeds are very small and cannot be spread evenly over the soil. But you can apply some tips for equal positioning. They must be mixed with a small amount of earth using a stick, then the resulting composition must be evenly scattered over the soil surface.

You can simply pour the whole packet of seeds directly into the ground, but through a small hole so as not to spill them. It is practical to wield a wet match or toothpick, first by dipping it into a bag of seeds and then into the ground. Some people use snow - spread it on the ground in a thin layer, and sprinkle lobelia seeds on top.

The easiest option is to buy lobelia seeds in granules, because it is more convenient to spread them evenly on the soil surface. The seeds do not need to be sprinkled with an additional layer of soil. In order not to thin out the rows, you do not need to sow them next to each other. After disembarkation, you need to cover the container with foil or glass. Every day, you need to wipe off condensation from the inner surface of the glass and ventilate the pot with the planted plant. Thus, the normal temperature for the flower is kept. With early seedlings, you need to provide the flower with plenty of sunlight. Water it every day for two weeks using a spray bottle.

Soil preparation

Lobelia ampelous takes root well in soil with a different composition. But the main condition is the choice of a light soil with good looseness, so that oxygen is well supplied to the root system. Heavy clay soil will not work, the plant may begin to rot and die. For planting seedlings, ordinary peat tablets or peat are suitable. You can buy ready-made mixture in the store.

For planting in open ground, you should mix the garden soil with humus, peat, river sand. The acidity of the soil should be neutral or very weak.

Planting seedlings in open ground or pots

When severe frosts have passed on the street, and the sun has already warmed the soil, it means it's time to transplant lobelia seedlings into open ground.

Landing in the ground

The plant is very fond of light, but also tolerates shade easily. This means it can be planted anywhere in the garden. The main requirement is that the soil is not oversaturated with humus, otherwise the plant will bloom weakly, but there will only be a lot of green foliage.Landing takes place in several steps.

First, you need to make holes about 25 cm deep and at a distance of 20 cm from each other. Put a teaspoon of vermicompost and half a glass of ash in each hole. Add some soil, mix and cover with water. Place lobelia or a group of plants from a glass with seedlings on the resulting mixture and cover with earth. Planting a plant in a pots is not very difficult, as many think. The flower is planted in a couple of bushes, while the main thing is not to damage the root system of each plant.

Step-by-step steps of the planting process:

• the flower is watered;
• extract in a group of a pair of seedlings;
• placed in a pots for planting;
• flowers with straight stems should be planted closer to the center;
• fill the remaining space with soil.

How many pieces to sow in pots

How many seeds to sow in a pots depends on its diameter. You can plant about 15 pieces in a pot with a diameter of 30 cm. Some gardeners like to plant more: up to 25 seeds in one pot. If the seedlings were not enough, then you can plant five pieces, press the stems to the soil, after a month and a half the bushes form a lush cap. Seedlings of lobelia flowers require less space than petunias.

Do I need to pinch ampelous lobelia

Pinching the flower is not necessary. But thanks to this, lobelia bushes can be more fluffy and bushy. This is especially recommended if there is still enough time left before planting in a permanent place and the seedlings outgrow. Pinching is done when the flower sprouts reach five centimeters.

Pinching process

In conclusion, it should be noted that ampelous lobelia is quite easy to care for, the main difficulties can be experienced only during sowing. Experienced gardeners also recommend choosing seeds in granules for more convenient sowing. If the plant is planted correctly and given proper care, then you will get a lush flowering throughout the summer, up to severe frosts.

Lobelia in a flowerbed goes well with other plants and feels great in boxes or pots. Previously, lobelia was used in medicine - the "Lobelia syphilitic" variety was used to treat the disease of syphilis, now it is used as a decorative decoration of a flower bed. So the functions of this plant are quite varied.