How to care for geraniums in autumn
About the content of geraniums, how to care for geraniums in autumn, some very good tips and knowledge, it is recommended to collect it!
After the hot summer, the geraniums, which are in a semi-dormant state, begin to gradually recover and grow leaves and flowers again, adding color to the golden autumn. However, geraniums that have just survived the hot summer may have weak growth due to old roots and declining leaves. The newly sprouted leaves are small and dark green, the petioles and inflorescence stalks are short, the flower balls are small, and the whole plant appears bushy, reducing its ornamental value. Treating geraniums with gibberellin can effectively promote lush leaves and abundant flowers, enhancing their ornamental value.
The method is to spray the whole plant with a 500ppm gibberellin solution when the first flower's inflorescence stalk changes from curved to erect, that is, when the newly sprouted branches have 3-4 leaves, after the geranium plant has recovered from the hot summer. This method is not only applicable to perennial old plants but also to the cuttings treated in the spring of the same year, which show even better results. The petioles of the treated plants are 10-12 cm long, compared to 5-7 cm for the control; the inflorescence stalks are 15-20 cm long, up to 24 cm, compared to 7-10 cm for the control; the single flower stalks are 3-5 cm long, compared to only 2 cm for the control. The length of the petals can increase by 0.5 cm, and the width also increases slightly, but their shape, number, and color remain unaffected. The leaves significantly turn into a light green color, with the size remaining basically unchanged.
Since geraniums belong to umbel or corymb inflorescences, the small flowers are numerous and overlap to form spherical inflorescences. The size of the flower balls is not determined by the number of flowers but mainly by the size of the individual flowers and the length of the flower stalks. The treated flower balls become significantly larger due to the increased length of the single flower stalks. Some varieties belonging to the corymb inflorescence, such as 'Zi Xiu Qiu' and 'Ocean Lily', can have flower balls with a diameter of up to 15 cm, and the largest can reach 20 cm. Some varieties belonging to the umbel inflorescence, such as 'Tao Hua Mian' and 'Dan Lu Fen He', due to the absence of secondary inflorescence stalks, have less growth in flower balls but can still reach 10 cm. Moreover, due to the significant increase in the length of the inflorescence stalks (usually 1-1.5 times the control), the flower balls stand tall above the leaves, looking graceful and very striking, making them more suitable for cut flowers.
The only drawback of treating geraniums with gibberellin is that the top of the branches becomes thin and weak, and the branches that extend further have sparse leaves and thin branches, making the plant tend to be loose. The adjustment method is to cut off the thin and weak tips above the inflorescence within a week after treatment, leaving one leaf, and a well-developed lateral bud in the first leaf axil below the inflorescence will sprout and grow. Since this lateral bud has sprouted a week after the gibberellin treatment, it has not been affected, so the branches are sturdy as before. When the treated inflorescence is in full bloom, this new branch has also formed buds and can be treated again with gibberellin. By doing this repeatedly, the geraniums will have abundant flowers and leaves, significantly increasing their ornamental value.
The above [] introduces specific details on how to care for geraniums in autumn, hoping everyone will like it!