The brovallia plant (Browallia) belongs to the Solanaceae family and is a direct relative of potatoes and tomatoes. With its name the flower immortalized the memory of Bishop D. Broval (Sweden), friend of K. Linnaeus, world famous botanist, founder of the classification of plants. Places of growth - the central and southern parts of America. The flower was brought to Europe in 1846 from Colombia.
Description of brovallia
This herbaceous flowering plant in nature reaches a meter in height and is considered a shrub. Garden forms are half as low, indoor ones are bushes with soft drooping shoots.
The stems are densely "covered" with axillary single flowers, resembling asterisks. The corolla of the flower is formed by five half-fused petals of a funnel-shaped shape and is colored in various tones: from snow-white to blue and purple. The flowers are bisexual, odorless. Flowering lasts from spring to frost.
The fruit is a capsule with a lid and shutters. Small dark seeds ripen in it, pouring out through the valves. Seeds of the first year have a high germination capacity.
Tall species of brovallia are grown outdoors for decorative purposes and for cutting. Low-growing - for decorating loggias and balconies, like houseplants. To enhance the decorative effect, garden varieties of brovallia are placed in a group; when grown in pots, several bushes are planted together in one container.
Home care for brovallia
Brovallia is quite unpretentious in care, it only needs to remove faded buds, yellowed leaves and old shoots. It is also necessary to regularly pinch the shoots to enhance the decorative effect of the bush, spraying and feeding. However, all this must be done with caution. Like some other members of the Solanaceae, such as belladonna and mandrake, the flower is poisonous. Growing brovallia at home is not safe for children and pets. After caring for the plant, it is recommended to thoroughly wash your hands.
Lighting
Brovallia loves bright places, but does not tolerate the bright scorching sun. On a hot summer afternoon, it is better to shade it. Oriental windows are perfect for indoor placement.
Temperature
The plant does not tolerate heat and reacts to it with a decrease in the number of buds, yellowing and drying of the leaves. In spring and summer, the optimum temperature for brovallia growth will be 20 degrees. In autumn and winter, it is better to place the plant indoors, with an air temperature up to no higher than 15 degrees. In a cool place, the plant slows down its growth rate, which prolongs its life.
Watering
The soil in the pot should not dry out completely. But excessive waterlogging is also undesirable. If you water the brovallia too much, the stem can start to rot, which leads to the death of the entire plant.
Air humidity
Brovallia feels "uncomfortable" in rooms with dry air. Spraying the plant will never be superfluous, it is advisable to spray it once a day. When flowering, spraying should be carried out as carefully as possible - water should not get on the flowers, otherwise brown spots may appear on them.
The soil
Brovallia develops well in soil consisting of the same parts of humus, sand, turf and leaf. For planting, you can use ordinary commercial soil for flowering indoor plants.
Top dressing and fertilizers
Blooming indoor brovallia species are fed twice a month: from spring to late summer. As fertilizers, you can use any fertilizer for flowering indoor plants, reducing their concentration by half that recommended by the manufacturer.
Transfer
As an annual, brovallia does not require transplanting. She lives one season, dying after the fruit ripens. New plants are usually grown from seed.
Reproduction of brovallia
Brovallia propagates by ordinary sowing of seeds in the ground. The time of sowing seeds is determined by the beginning of flowering: the earlier it is carried out, the sooner the plant will bloom.
Sowing is carried out in boxes, placing seeds on the soil surface, not sprinkling, but spraying them from a spray bottle. The box is covered with foil or glass and placed in the light at room temperature. "Parnichok" is aired daily. Seedlings will appear in about two weeks.
Seeds sown directly into open ground will give later flowering. However, if sowing is carried out in a greenhouse, and then the matured plants are transferred to open areas, flowering will begin earlier, and its duration will also increase.
You can speed up the onset of flowering and its duration by pre-soaking the seeds for two days in warm water.
Diseases and pests
Brovallia is most commonly affected by powdery mildew and is attacked by whiteflies, scale insects, spider mites and mealybugs. The likelihood of disease and damage by pests increases significantly if the flower is kept indoors with low humidity.
Types and varieties of brovallia with photos and names
Brovallia beautiful or gorgeous (Browallia speciosa)
In the wild, it is found in the southern and central parts of America. It was brought to Europe from Colombia and is grown as a house plant. Outwardly, the plant looks like a petunia and is a low (up to half a meter) branched bush, strewn with small single axillary flowers, the shade of which varies from white to purple. Flowers are attached to the shoots with thin and long pedicels. Plants have large, up to 6 cm in length, whole leaves of dark shades of green.
Browallia viscosa
An annual that gets its name from the stickiness of the stems. Differs in low, up to 30 cm, branched stems. From November to February, it is covered with small single flowers. The flower petals are colored in shades of white or dark blue with a white spot. The Sapphir variety is especially impressive. Its miniature bush, up to 25 cm, is strewn with flowers of a beautiful sapphire shade.
Brovallia grandiflora (Browallia grandiflora)
For decorative purposes it has been cultivated since 1829. This annual is a branchy bush with a wide crown up to half a meter high. Its flowers are collected in loose inflorescences resembling a brush. The flower petals are white or blue. It blooms for three months: November, December and January.
Brovallia pubescent or American (Browallia demissa)
It blooms profusely and has a branched high (up to 60 cm) bush. Its blue or purple flowers are larger than other varieties.
I disagree about one year old. My brovallia has been growing for several years, without ceasing to bloom.
Propagated by cuttings.True, they are very difficult to root - they stand in the water for a long time and do not always take root (even being in the water, it continues to bloom!), Although it is written everywhere that brovallia does not propagate by cuttings. The flower itself is VERY sensitive to watering, it is worth skipping a little, immediately drops the leaves and does not always recover.
A friend gave me a brovallia. For a day it stood in my rhizome solution, then immediately into the ground and nothing: it blooms as if nothing had happened, just do not forget to water.
They always propagate by cuttings. The stalk is immediately planted in a pot (universal soil), it takes root very well, I do not cover it with anything, the main thing is that the soil is moist.