Many indoor plant lovers prefer to acquire exactly flowering species, without even thinking about how long the plant will bloom and what needs to be done to extend this period. Some people think that watering or spraying regularly is enough for a flowering plant to produce the expected results. In practice, it is not so easy at all. All indoor plants, including flowering plants, need to pay a lot of attention and follow individual care rules.
Features of flowering plants
Indoor flowers most often bloom once a year at about the same time. Sometimes young plants may not please with their flowering in the first year or two of their life. Such plants need to reach a certain maturity, and only then they will bloom regularly. Some specimens of indoor flora bloom only in the spring and summer, when the most favorable climatic conditions are created. In autumn and winter, due to a lack of heat and sunlight, plants go through a dormant period.
When purchasing a flowering houseplant, you need to find out where it comes from, in what climate it prefers to grow, and what conditions it needs. After all, many plants are not suitable for home conditions and therefore they stop blooming. They are accustomed to being in the wild, where there are fluctuations in night and day temperatures, rains and droughts, coolness and heat. They need to create the same conditions at home, then they will bloom magnificently and for a long time.
Blooming at home can be achieved by gradually decreasing watering and lowering the indoor temperature. The plant will leave for a while during the dormant period, and after it flowering will begin again. Great and important value for flowering plants (pelargonium, gloxinia, stephanotis, violet) has lighting, namely a long daylight hours. By means of additional lighting (for example, fluorescent lamps or phytolamps) this problem can be easily resolved.
For some species and varieties of indoor flowering plants (cyclamen, poinsettia, kalanchoe, schlumberger, primrose) daylight hours, on the contrary, must be reduced. This can be done by using a special cover in the form of a cap (from about 5 pm to 8 am) or by rearranging the plant in a dimly lit place. In the dark, these plants form buds much more actively.
There are also such specimens in nature that bloom only once in a lifetime and die off after the first fruiting. Such plants include all bromelets, bananas, agaves, and some palms.
How and what to stimulate the flowering of plants
The timely intake of plant nutrients is comparable to the intake of food in humans. Water alone is not able to provide sufficient nourishment for indoor flowers. The soil from which they draw the necessary elements begins to deplete over time. Without the supply of new substances necessary for life, the bushes will begin to heal and lose their decorative appearance.This condition often leads to the development of diseases, not to mention the fact that the "starving" bush will not bloom. To strengthen the immunity of home flowers and make their bud formation more active, it is necessary to use additional methods and stimulants. They contribute to the formation of buds, the improvement of their size and number, as well as the overall duration and abundance of flowering.
In natural conditions, flowering of many species is accompanied by a period of unfavorable conditions. Once in an uncomfortable environment, the bush receives a signal to multiply and begins to form buds. Most often, such discomfort is provided by a temperature difference. A decrease in temperature by about 5-8 degrees, along with an increase in daylight hours, will contribute to the onset of bud formation.
If such measures do not work, and the plants refuse to bloom, you can stimulate flowering by introducing certain additives into the soil. Some of these drugs are considered organic, and some are synthetic. In this case, the principle of their operation can differ significantly.
Ready-made preparations
If an adult plant that is receiving enough light does not flower, insufficient nutrition may be the culprit. Thanks to the introduction of special agents into the soil containing phytohormones necessary for flowering, it is possible to compensate for the lack of key elements. If nitrogen supplements stimulate foliage growth and negatively affect the abundance of flowering, potash and phosphorus fertilizers are responsible for the formation of buds. Without potassium, the flowering process will be impossible.
In addition to potassium and phosphorus, biostimulants usually contain sugar: glucose also plays an important role in bud formation. Thanks to such additives, the plant becomes stronger and better resists possible diseases. Biostimulants include drugs such as:
- Alg-A-Mic - stimulates the immunity of the bush;
- Bio bloom - includes polygosaccharins and amino acids;
- Fish-Mix - contains organic oils that promote the development of bioflora;
- Ripen - a multifunctional drug that allows you to activate the genetic forces of planting;
- Thor Mach - an organic product containing humic acids.
Chemical stimulants include such agents as Baikal EM-1, Bud, Domotsvet, Ovary, Pollen, etc. Thanks to their use, buds appear faster, and their number increases. The use of such products also has a positive effect on the size of the flowers and even on their color. But they should be used exclusively according to the instructions. From an overabundance of such stimulants, bushes can get sick. Usually, stimulants, like any other fertilizer, are applied to wet soil after watering.
For example, hormonal drugs - Vernalin and Florigen can be useful for the formation of an ovary. During preparation for the flowering period, they will be able to make up for the lack of phytohormones.
Folk remedies
Many growers do not want to resort to purchased preparations and try to make up for the lack of these elements with improvised means. So bananas are considered an excellent source of potassium, sugar will help get glucose, nettle is considered a good nitrogen fertilizer. Thanks to ash, you can simultaneously fertilize plantings, improve their immunity and reduce unwanted soil acidity.
Sugar
Sugar is a natural source of energy. Thanks to glucose, flowers receive enough strength for development, it contributes to the creation of organic compounds. But plants can assimilate sugar only with the help of carbon dioxide. If there is too little of it, fungi begin to absorb the glucose, and root rot may develop.
It is recommended to use the Baikal Em-1 stimulator together with sugar. To prepare a sugar solution, 1 tbsp. the spoon is dissolved in half a liter of water. Each pot should have approximately 0.2 liters of solution. Top dressing is carried out monthly.Instead of sugar, you can use pharmacy glucose, this method of introduction will be even more effective. For 1 liter of water, 1 tablet is required.
Citruses and banana peels
Homemade dressings are often made with oranges and bananas. They contain potassium, and citrus contains many vitamins and folic acid.
Banana peels or peels are buried in the ground in a carefully dried and crushed form, or nutrient solutions are prepared from them. The banana peel is placed in a one-liter jar, filling it up to half, and then filling the jar with water to the top. A day later, the peel is pulled out and discarded, and the solution is filtered. To prepare the infusion, the resulting mixture is poured with another liter of water and watered with flowers about twice a month.
For citrus infusion, the peel must be crushed and poured with boiling water (a 3-liter jar is filled with crusts by a third and poured to the top with water). A day later, the crusts are removed, a liter of clean water is added and used for irrigation according to the same scheme. The proportions of the original infusion may vary depending on the recipe.
Castor oil, ash and aloe juice
Castor oil is considered to be an effective bloom stimulant. Add a teaspoon of oil to 1 liter of water, mix them without waiting for the oil to float, and then use it for watering. If the flowering of this type of plant occurs only once a year, one such feeding will be enough. If the bush blooms several times, the procedure is repeated once a month. It is important to proceed with caution: castor oil can cause burns on the roots.
Ordinary wood ash is considered to be a storehouse of microelements. It is sprinkled on the soil or slightly dug into the soil. You can also use an ash solution - 1 tbsp. spoon for 1 liter of water.
Aloe juice is also considered a good flowering stimulant. For 1.5 liters of water, you will need to take a teaspoon of juice. The solution is mixed and used for watering 1-2 times a month.
Some growers recommend adding coffee infusions to the ground, but they contribute to the acidification of the soil in the pot and can negatively affect the health of the bushes.
Top dressing time
For top dressing to have the desired effect, it is important to choose the right time for them. Most often, decorative flowering species form flowers in the same season once a year. In some plants, flowering can take place in 2-3 waves per year, and some indoor flowers (for example, cactus) bloom only once every few years. The more exotic the plant is, the longer the period of its adaptation to new conditions may be.
Actively developing indoor flowers growing in small containers significantly deplete the soil in a few months. In order for such bushes to bloom after feeding, they must be old enough and have a developed root system. She usually has time to fill the pot.
During the dormant period, feeding should not be carried out - you can bring down the internal mode of development of the bush. Usually, the resting time ends by mid-spring - during this period, the foliage begins to resume growth. Then you can carry out top dressing. It can already contain potassium and phosphorus. After 3 weeks, the bushes are fed a second time. If, after that, buds have already appeared on the plants, then fertilization should be suspended.
Before tackling flowering stimulants, it is important to assess the general conditions in which the flower is contained. The buds may not appear in a very cold, dry or dark room. The correct irrigation regime also plays an important role. For each plant, the set of conditions can be individual, but most plants grow best on the well-lit southern or eastern side of the house. If you create all the necessary conditions for the bush and follow the schedule for introducing nutrients, it will certainly delight you with good health and lush flowering.
