When is the best month to sow gerbera daisy seeds
You may not know the best month to sow gerbera daisy seeds and the knowledge of growing flowers, which describes the planting steps of gerbera daisies, as follows:
The main propagation methods of gerbera daisies are sowing and cutting, with sowing as the main method and cutting as the auxiliary. Next, let's talk about the detailed operation steps of the two propagation methods:
One, Sowing Propagation
Gerbera daisies will produce seeds after the flowering period ends, and the seed germination rate is very high. Generally, if grown in the ground, the seeds will naturally fall off and germinate after maturing. For our home potted plants, we need to harvest before the seeds fully mature to prevent them from falling and being difficult to collect. Flower enthusiasts can also directly purchase flower seeds for sowing, and the price is quite cheap.
【Sowing Time】
The sowing of gerbera daisies is usually at the end of summer and the beginning of autumn, that is, in late August and September. Sowing too early will result in high temperatures, making it difficult for seeds to germinate and prone to mold during operations. Sowing too late will result in low temperatures, which is not conducive for seedlings to survive the cold winter.
【Sowing Substrate】
I often use seedling trays for sowing because they are convenient to operate and easy for later seedling transplantation. For the sowing substrate, I suggest using materials that are loose and water-retaining. You can use the same mixture as I do, 3:1 peat + perlite, or 3:1:1 decomposed leaf soil + garden soil + perlite. If you don't have perlite, you can use coarse river sand instead.
【Sowing Method】
After preparing the substrate, carefully fill it into the seedling tray until about 80% full, then spray the播种 matrix thoroughly with a diluted 800-fold solution of carbendazim to sterilize and disinfect the soil. After everything is done, place the gerbera daisy seeds carefully into the seedling tray, one seed per hole, because the seeds are very small. You can use an earpick, which is the most convenient tool I have used for sowing.
After placing the seeds, evenly sprinkle a layer of fine sand or vermiculite on top of the seeds. Do not make it too thick, otherwise, it is not conducive to seed germination. After this step, spray it wet again, remember to adjust the spray bottle to mist mode, and do not use a direct stream of water, or else the seeds will be washed away. After sowing, cover the seedling tray and place it in a shady and well-ventilated area to wait for germination.
【Post-Sowing Management】
After sowing, you can keep the cover on during the day and uncover it at night, or you can leave it slightly open with something supporting it to prevent excessive humidity and mold growth. As long as the sowing matrix remains moist and the temperature is stable at about 22 degrees, the seeds will germinate in about 15 days. After germination, remove the cover and place it in a well-ventilated area with diffused light. During this period, do not let the matrix dry out to prevent seedlings from drying.
【Transplanting】
It takes about 20 days from germination to growing a pair of leaves, at which point the height is about 5 centimeters. You can then proceed with the transplanting. Before transplanting, prepare several pots with a diameter of about 7-10 centimeters. Then, place a piece of gauze at the bottom of the pots to prevent soil loss and fill the pots with a mixture of 3:2:1 decomposed leaf soil + garden soil + perlite.
After firming the mixture, dig a small hole in the center and use a seedling lifter to dig out the seedlings with the matrix and plant them in the hole. Fill the surrounding area with some matrix and it's done. Finally, water thoroughly to settle the seedlings for 3 days and then move them to a well-lit area for care.
When is the best month to sow gerbera daisy seeds
【Potting】
After transplanting, move the gerbera daisies to a sunny location to let them get more sunlight. Keep the environment well-ventilated and avoid getting wet from rain. In just one month, they can grow to 3 pairs of leaves, at which point you can proceed with potting. Choose pots ranging from 0.5 to 1 gallon, and use the same soil mixture as for transplanting, with the addition of a granular slow-release fertilizer mixed into the matrix as a base fertilizer.
When potting, first place drainage material at the bottom of the pot, usually hard particles. I often use ceramsite as the drainage layer, then fill in the soil matrix, about 70% full, and after a few shakes, the soil will settle slightly. Turn the transplant pot upside down, place the original soil with the plant into the pot, and fill the surroundings with soil, leaving about 1 centimeter from the pot opening without filling. Then, water with a carbendazim solution as the root-watering, place it in a shaded and well-ventilated area for a few days to settle, and then move it to a well-lit area for management.
【Post-Potting Management】
About a week after being placed in a well-lit area, you can fertilize the plants for the first time, preferably with a balanced three-element organic liquid fertilizer, diluted to a concentration of 1200 times. At this time, with clear skies and cool temperatures, it is the most suitable for gerbera daisy growth, so they will grow rapidly. Move them to a location with direct sunlight for at least 4 hours of light per day.
After potting, you should also pinch the top buds of the seedlings, leaving only the axillary buds near the top and removing all the lower axillary buds to reduce nutrient diversion and allow the nutrients to focus on promoting the growth of strong lateral branches. When the lateral branches grow to about 10 centimeters, you can pinch them again, using the same method for 2-3 times. If you encounter a few flower buds, don't be sorry, pinch them off as well. After several such operations, you can wait for the flowers to bloom.
Here, I also want to add that after each topping, you should fertilize the plants to accelerate the growth of lateral branches. The concentration of the fertilizer can be changed from 1200 times to 1000 times. Do not use cake fertilizer or nitrogen fertilizer alone; you must use an organic liquid fertilizer containing nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. As the budding period approaches, gradually switch to phosphorus-potassium fertilizer and control watering to make the flowers bloom more profusely. Fertilize every 10 days.