How to store gloxinia tuber in winter. How to prepare gloxinia for winter in order to get vigorous flowering in summer

In the first year of gloxinia’s life, rest is not needed: the young plant must develop and gain strength. If the lighting is sufficient, it can continue to grow. If it does not have enough light and it has stretched out, you should remove the leaves, leaving only the lower pair. After some time, strong shoots will begin to appear. Gloxinias that have bloomed and managed to grow tubers fall into a half-asleep state during the winter.

When preparing for dormancy, it is recommended to feed it with potassium fertilizer once. The part of the plant located above the ground should not be removed immediately: the nutrients should gradually pass into the tuber from the leaves and stem. This will allow you to safely overwinter and develop normally in the future.

When does he retire?

Gloxinias behave in a peculiar way: some tubers “go dormant” in September, while others actively grow even in December. In cases where gloxinia does not retire on time, it can remain dormant in spring and even summer. To prevent this from happening, Gloxinia needs to be prepared for winter:

• water, starting in September, with a small amount of water no more than once a week;
• reduce the temperature to 15 degrees, reduce the light;
• stop feeding.

Rest period

Gloxinia is ready for a period of rest, when the lower leaves, and then the upper ones, begin to dry out. After the leaves and stem dry, they need to be cut off, leaving a small stump.

How does one winter at home?

Several methods are used for this. At the first time, the tubers are left in the pot in which the plant was grown. It is recommended to cover the top of the pot with a tray, place the pot in plastic bag, wrapping the edges and storing in a cool place. The tuber can be sprinkled with a layer of river sand. The disadvantage of this method is the need to check the tubers and make sure that they do not dry out and sprout.

Using next method For storage, the tubers are dug up in the fall and placed in a plastic bag with a zipper. According to some flower growers, they should be pre-treated with Fitosporin or Fundazol. Vermiculite is poured in half with the substrate or sawdust inside the bag. It is recommended to put the closed bag in a box and place it in the refrigerator for the winter. It is advisable to put a thermometer there to monitor the temperature (it should not fall below 10 degrees).

To preserve, you can remove them from the pot and place them in peat, sand or sphagnum moss. The substrate should be lightly moistened monthly warm water and maintain the temperature up to 12 degrees.

Tubers purchased in the fall should be stored without soil, having previously been treated with a disinfectant.

How to save until spring?

Before sending gloxinia to rest, you can rinse the tuber in water and dry thoroughly. Storing a wet tuber is unacceptable - rotting processes will begin to develop.

To save until spring, you need to take river sand(gray), first rinse it thoroughly and bake it in the oven for preventive purposes. After this, the plant should be placed in a bag with damp sand or wet sawdust. It is recommended to store tubers in a cool place.

How to care in winter?

IN winter time Plants that have not gone to rest require care. They are watered and, if possible, the daylight hours are extended using fluorescent lamps.

You can learn more about the features of caring for gloxinia.

What can I do to make her wake up?

Tubers stored during the dormant period should be cleaned of soil residues, washed in warm water, check for integrity. Existing damaged areas need to be powdered charcoal. The tubers need to be dried. To restore overdried tubers:

• soak for a day in a solution of Epin or Zircon;
• It is recommended to leave soft tubers wrapped in a wet cloth for 3 days;
• Place the tubers in moistened vermiculite.

When examining the stored tubers, you will notice that some have sprouted. Then it must be removed from the bag and planted in fresh substrate.

What to do if you wake up early in November?

The pot with gloxinia that has woken up ahead of time can be moved to the window, watered and conditions for further growth can be created (it is advisable to organize additional lighting). You can make it simpler: remove the sprouts that appear.

Doesn't retire

In gloxinia that does not retire, the part located above the ground becomes elongated, and the plant loses its attractiveness. In the future it will not be possible to obtain good flowering, since for the tuber to develop properly it requires a rest period of 2 to 4 months.

It is recommended that such gloxinia be forcibly retired. To do this, in early October you should cut off the leaves and stem of the plant without waiting for them to dry out on their own. Pots should be placed in a cool, dark place.

Dutch gloxinias should not be forced to retire: grown from seeds, they have a tiny tuber (it has not had time to develop).

Having sent such a plant to rest, due to the death of the tuber, you may not wait for it to wake up. After that, How will the flowering of such gloxinia end?, it is necessary to trim the stem above the first pair of leaves. Shoots will appear from the axils and you can continue with the plant as usual.

Gloxinia is a perennial tuberous plant native to Brazil and South America.

Today it is known a large number of all kinds of gloxinia hybrids, which are widely used as ornamental plants.

However, the most popular in indoor floriculture is the Gloxinia hybrid, obtained by crossing the beautiful Gloxinia and the Royal Gloxinia.

Gloxinia - home care in winter

After flowering completes, in late autumn, a dormant period begins, which lasts until the end of winter. When the foliage begins to turn yellow, you need to reduce watering. After the ground part has completely dried, it is completely stopped. There are two ways to overwinter tubers - in a pot and by digging them up.

Wintering in a pot.

• remove plant remains, if they have not completely fallen off;
• fill the pot with sand to the very top;
• cover with a suitable object, maybe a pallet;
• put in a plastic bag, but do not tie it;
• put it in a cool room without access to light, optimal temperature- 10°C;
• periodically check that the tuber does not wake up, and also control the humidity;
• If the soil is completely dry, you need to slightly moisten it.

Wintering with digging

• at the end of the active period, remove the tubers from the ground;
• Lightly remove soil, spread out to dry;
• review for health;
• remove rotten and damaged ones;
• put in a plastic bag, add moistened sawdust or soil with vermiculite, perlite;
• tie the bags, store in the refrigerator in the warmest section (for vegetables);
• in January-February, remove the tubers from the refrigerator and place them in the light to awaken. If the tuber receives enough warmth and moisture during the winter, it may sprout. Here you need to evaluate how strong the root is. If it is powerful, the sprout must be carefully removed. If it is weak and small, removing the sprout can destroy the plant. Then it’s better to plant it in the ground and let it grow.

How to preserve gloxinia until spring

In November or December, when the plant stops blooming, you need to stop watering and move it to a dry and dark place.

In the place where the flower will be stored there should be good ventilation And temperature regime air temperature should be between 12 and 14 degrees.

After the aerial part dies, it must be removed, leaving a small trunk measuring one centimeter. The flower enters a period of rest.

Before sending a flower for a dormant period, its tubers must be cleared of soil, washed thoroughly in cold running water and dry. If it is not dried well, the process of rotting will be inevitable. The prepared composition must be placed in a regular plastic bag and the tuber placed in it. The container with the tuber must be stored in a cool and dark room.

Reproduction of gloxinia from seeds

At home, gloxinia seeds are best sown in wide and shallow containers. Boxes, bowls or containers are suitable for this. The soil for sowing should be sufficiently loose and nutritious, with a good content of humus and organic matter.

Therefore, to obtain soil that meets these requirements, sand, leaf soil and coniferous soil are mixed. To improve the hygroscopic properties and aeration of the soil, you can add perlite or vermiculite, as well as crushed moss. The soil mixture is first disinfected. This can be done by watering it with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, boiling water, or placing the soil in a hot oven for 15 minutes and calcining the soil in it.

Sowing Gloxinia seeds

To speed up the cultivation of gloxinia, some gardeners treat the seeds with various growth stimulants before sowing. They contribute to faster and more friendly emergence of seedlings. But such preparations must be used strictly according to the instructions, otherwise the seeds can be destroyed. Seeds need to be sown on the surface of the soil and do not need to be sprinkled. Since gloxinia seeds are very small, for convenience you can mix them with sand. When sowing, it is best to leave a small distance between the seeds, approximately 1-2 centimeters. After sowing, the soil in the bowls is sprayed with a sprayer, and then they need to be covered with sheets of glass to create greenhouse effect.
Boxes with seedlings should be placed in a well-lit place, but not directly exposed to the sun. Since sowing is carried out in winter, seedlings may suffer from lack of lighting. You can replenish it by placing it next to the boxes fluorescent lamp. Such lighting has a positive effect on the sprouts and at the same time produces little heat.

Temperature of keeping gloxinia crops

In order for the seeds to germinate well and amicably, they need warmth. Therefore, the temperature under the glass should be at least 22 degrees Celsius. It is necessary to carefully monitor the soil moisture in the boxes and spray it in a timely manner.

Reproduction of Gloxinia by leaf

Most hybrids are characterized by the presence of impressive succulent leaves, which are simply ideal for vegetative propagation. This is especially suitable for those who want to have several specimens of a certain species or when it is not possible to buy the gloxinia they like. Propagation by leaves is carried out in summer or early autumn. Its size doesn't matter. Large leaves can be divided into several parts, each of which will subsequently give rise to a new plant, and small ones can be rooted whole. In addition, individual sprouts from an awakened tuber are suitable for vegetative propagation. For abundant flowering And good growth it is recommended to leave it with mother plant only one shoot, remove the rest and use to obtain a new gloxinia bush.

Gloxinia diseases

Septoria

Fungal disease is caused by high humidity, insufficient lighting and long contacts with water. Spots similar to rust form on the sheets. The stem, buds and leaves quickly wither and dry out. Treatment is carried out with copper-based preparations or fungicides Maneb, Benomyl.

Late blight

The most dangerous disease, since no drugs give good results. Late blight develops due to high humidity and temperature changes - 9-20 degrees, stagnation of water and insufficient soil ventilation. When infected with late blight, a general wilting of the plant occurs; brown spots with a pale rim, white coating With inside leaf. Infection occurs everywhere and spreads very quickly.

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Powdery mildew

Appears when high humidity and temperature changes. It is characterized by the appearance of a white cobweb coating. Sometimes infection occurs with soil or through equipment. Any fungicide is suitable for treatment. Treatment should be carried out on all neighboring plants.

Most the best prevention The correct ratio of humidity and temperature prevents the appearance of fungal diseases.

Gloxinia - very beautiful and very common indoor flower. Throughout the summer it is in an active state, blooming with large velvety flowers, somewhat reminiscent of a bell in shape. But with the arrival of autumn they fall off and the plant enters a dormant phase. Not everyone knows that this plant is one of the few that requires special care during the cold period. Gloxinia seems to fall asleep for the winter, and it needs to be prepared for this.

In autumn, the flower slows down and its leaves begin to turn yellow. Buds are no longer formed. These are all signs that the plant is starting to go dormant. Gloxinia comes to this state gradually. As soon as these signs appear, you need to start “laying” the flower. Gloxinia is put away in a dark, damp place for the winter. But before that, its leaves are cut off at the root. The optimal time for this is mid-November.

Sometimes, under certain conditions, the plant finds it difficult to go into hibernation on its own. This happens if the flower tuber is older than three years. In such a situation, gloxinia is still removed for the winter, but before that it is necessary to take some actions. First it must be forced to enter the resting stage. To “deceive” the flower, watering is reduced and it is moved to a cooler place. Feeding is stopped completely. Only after this the plant will slow down and the leaves will turn yellow. Next, it is cut off at the root and removed.

For the winter, gloxinia can be moved, for example, to a closet on an insulated loggia; some people place it under the bathtub. It is very important that the plant tubers are stored in a humid place. It should not be exposed to sunlight, and the temperature should preferably not exceed 16 degrees. If the rhizome has been pulled out of the ground, then it can be kept in the lower section of the refrigerator. In principle, such conditions are suitable for the tubers, and they retain their viability until spring.

So, how to preserve gloxinia in the winter so that in the spring it again produces young leaves and produces more than one bud? Most often, the plant is not disturbed; it is left in the same pot where it grew. The soil should be slightly damp, but not wet. In this case, gloxinia will need watering. Once a month, moisten the soil by pouring no more than 100 g of water into the pot. If this is not enough, and the earthen ball begins to dry out, it will be necessary to increase the number of waterings to two or three. You can do it much simpler: just place the pot with the tuber in a plastic bag and tie it tightly. After this, there will be no need for watering, and the soil will remain moist.

There is another way to preserve tubers. After the preparation of the gloxinia has been completed and all its leaves have been cut off, it is necessary to carefully dig up the tuber. It is transferred to a pre-prepared plastic container. A layer of wet soil is poured onto its bottom. The tuber itself is laid out on top and sprinkled with earth. The container is tightly closed to avoid moisture loss. This method allows you to save space and avoid drying out the tuber.

Gloxinia dormant period.
In autumn, after flowering, gloxinia begins a period of rest. The plant slows down, does not produce buds, and the leaves begin to turn yellow and dry out. The leaves of such a plant are cut off and removed to winter storage. Optimal time trimming gloxinia and sending the tuber for winter storage is October-November.
Sometimes it happens that gloxinias do not want to go into hibernation themselves. If the tuber is more than a year old, then gloxinia still needs to be put to sleep.
Such gloxinia must first be prepared for the dormant period, i.e. reduce watering, move to a darker and cooler place, stop fertilizing. After the plant stops growing, the leaves begin to turn yellow, the stems and leaves are cut off.
Gloxinia tubers are stored in a dark, cool place at a temperature of 12-16 degrees Celsius. I keep gloxinia in closed closet on an insulated loggia. Some gardeners store tubers in the refrigerator, having previously measured the air temperature on the refrigerator shelf.

Methods for storing tubers:
1. The plant can be left in the same pot in which the gloxinia grew. The soil in which gloxinia is stored should be slightly moist, but not wet. With this method of storage, gloxinia must be watered, slightly moistening the soil, with about a spoonful of water. Watering is carried out 1-2 times a month, making sure that the soil does not dry out and the tuber does not dry out. You can make it simpler: place the pot with the tuber in a plastic bag and tie it tightly. With this method, there is no need to water the gloxinia and the possibility of the soil drying out is eliminated. Once a month it is necessary to check the soil moisture and the condition of the tuber.
2. In a plastic container.
Currently in pavilions with disposable tableware various are sold plastic containers with lid. It is convenient to store small gloxinia tubers in such containers. Pour a small amount of wet soil into the bottom of the container, place the tuber, and sprinkle it with soil. Close the container tightly with a lid to prevent the soil from drying out. Such containers save space during storage and eliminate the possibility of soil drying out.

Awakening of Gloxinia.
The resting period of gloxinia lasts from one to five months. After this, the tubers wake up and produce new shoots. The optimal time to wake up is February, March, April. If the gloxinia tuber has not woken up before May, it can be forcibly awakened. To do this, the gloxinia tuber needs to be placed in a transparent bag, add a little damp soil, and place it in a well-lit place, but not in direct sunlight. Usually after this the tuber produces sprouts within one to two weeks.

After waking up, you need to remove the tuber from the old soil, shake it off, rinse it in water or a weak solution of potassium permanganate, cut off the old thin roots, leaving thick roots.
The awakened gloxinia needs to be transplanted into fresh, nutritious, light soil and lightly watered. When planting, you should not bury the gloxinia tuber; you need to plant the tuber with the deepening upwards, sprinkling the tuber itself with soil no more than 1 cm. At the same time, you need to make sure that the young sprout is not covered.
The first time after awakening, the plant should be watered moderately, without over-moistening the soil, in order to avoid rotting of the tuber.

It often happens that gloxinia produces several shoots. I always leave one, the strongest one. The remaining sprouts can be carefully removed by cutting with a blade. Leaving one sprout on a tuber results in a neater bush and larger flowers.
If you want to get a more magnificent plant, you can leave two sprouts.
Cut “extra” sprouts can be easily rooted by placing them in water until 1-2 cm of roots appear, and then planting them in the soil. In this way, you can get another plant that will bloom in the same year. It should be taken into account that slightly grown sprouts with 4 leaves are suitable for rooting.

Pot size for gloxinia tuber.

The pot for gloxinia must be selected so that the diameter of the pot is 3-4 centimeters larger than the diameter of the tuber.
For example, I plant a very small tuber, about one or two centimeters in size, in a hundred gram a plastic cup, medium tuber - in a pot with a diameter of 7 cm, adult tubers feel good in 9 cm pots.
As the small nodules grow and the root system develops, the gloxinia will need to be transplanted into a larger pot.
If you plant a small tuber immediately in a large pot, there is a possibility that the soil will become sour and the tuber will rot.

Attention: Winter for adults indoor gloxinia– rest period. A plant that has bloomed at least once and managed to grow tubers enters a state of dormancy. The larger the tuber, the better it is stored. A young specimen of the first year of life may not fall asleep for the winter.

When to retire? This should not be done forcibly. This gloxinia has a small tuber less than two centimeters in diameter, which can dry out and die in winter conditions without watering. To a young plant During the winter season special care is needed:

• Ensures correct temperature conditions. Indicators should not rise above +20°C. If the room is too hot, the stem will stretch to the detriment of tuber growth.
• Water less often than in summer season (about how to properly water and feed gloxinia for long flowering, read). Otherwise, waterlogging will lead to rotting of the roots.
• Organize lighting. Daylight should last at least 12 hours a day. In the absence of additional lighting, the flower becomes very elongated. To prevent this, the room temperature is reduced to +18°C. Or, at the end of February, the long stem is cut off, leaving only the lower leaves.

Rest period

When should gloxinia be removed for the winter, for rest? Typically, the plant goes into a midnight state in September-October, which marks the start of the dry season in their homeland of South America.

In the case when the plant has faded and does not want to fall asleep, it needs help. If gloxinia does not go on vacation on time, the flowering dates will shift, which should fall in the spring and summer months.

To prevent this from happening, at the beginning of autumn, faded gloxinia begins to be prepared for wintering. If flowering is late, wait until it ends. After complete independent death of the above-ground part, the tuber is ready for storage. If everything is done correctly, gloxinia will begin to wake up no earlier than January - February.

Detailed description

1. In September-October, after flowering, place gloxinia in a less lit place, for example, on a northern windowsill. Provide temperature +15°C. Feed once with potassium fertilizer. Gradually reduce watering. Moisten the soil with small portions of water no more than once a week.
2. When the leaves begin to dry, stop moistening the substrate. You cannot immediately cut off the above-ground part of the plant. Must be allowed nutrients gradually develop into a tuber from the stem and leaves. If you cut off green foliage, vegetation processes may resume.
3. After the upper part has completely died off on its own, cut it off, leaving a small stump one to one and a half centimeters high.

Storage methods and conditions

When the preparation is completed, you need to send the tuber for the winter. Storage methods:

1. Leave the tuber in the pot. You can sprinkle it with river sand. Cover the flowerpot with a saucer, place in polyethylene and place in a cool place with a temperature of +10 to +15°C. Make sure that the tuber does not dry out completely. Lightly moisten the soil by spraying several times during the winter.
2. Two weeks after the aerial part has completely died off, dig up the tuber. Clear away any remaining roots. You can wash it in water, dry it and treat it with Fitosporin. Take a plastic bag with a zipper and pour slightly damp sawdust or river sand or crushed peat into it. Or take a mixture of substrate and vermiculite. Rinse the sand first and place it in a hot oven.
3. Place the tuber in a bag. Store in a box in a cool place at a temperature of +10 to +15°C. The middle or bottom shelf of the refrigerator door will do. Remove and inspect the tuber monthly. If the substrate is dry, spray it with warm water and return the tuber to its place. Avoid excess moisture.

If the grower has several gloxinias, make labels indicating the variety and the date of sending for wintering.

Important: If the tuber is purchased in the fall, it is disinfected special means and stored without substrate.

As a result of violation of storage conditions, tubers may wake up ahead of schedule without even resting for two months. In this scenario, it is recommended to choose one of the following options:

Useful video

Conclusion

For normal functioning of gloxinia, complete and timely rest is required. After preparatory activities the tuber is sent for the winter. By the beginning of spring, a rested gloxinia will again be full of strength to open its charming flowers.

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