Hyacinth is a universal plant, it is grown in the garden and at home on window sills. Early in the spring, when the snow had not melted everywhere, it appeared on the flower bed among the first flowers. However, in the long cold winter, hyacinth can delight others with beautiful buds with a wonderful aroma, if grown at home. How to plant a plant and care for it, read the article.
Hyacinth Description
This flower is from the Asparagus family, experts say now. Previously, he was ranked among the Hyacinths or Liliaceae representatives of the flora. Hyacinths flowers are bulbous perennials. Their homeland is Asia and the Mediterranean. But breeders from Holland bred so many varieties of the flower that it can be safely called a native of this country. If you make a translation from the language of the ancient Greeks, the plant is called the "flower of the rains", as it blooms in the spring of the first rains.
Hyacinth flowers can be short and tall. The bulb is dense, oblong-shaped leaves form a rosette, from which comes a stem crowned with a juicy flower stalk. The buds are bells, the petals of which are twisted. They are collected in inflorescences similar to an ear of corn. They have a racemose shape and high density. Flowers have the appearance of simple and double shapes.
How to choose bulbs for planting?
Hyacinth flowers are planted with bulbs. For planting, they must be large enough, with a diameter of five centimeters, no less. Full-grown flowers grow from them. If you plant small bulbs, they will throw out leaves, but you can not wait for flowers. It is important that the planting material is free from damage and rot. Before planting in the substrate, it should be disinfected with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. The plant will grow without problems if the bulbs are healthy and their surface is smooth.
In order to know what color the plant will be, you need to pay attention to the scales. The color of the future inflorescence will be the same. If there are no bulbs at home, they are bought. Doing it better in late summer. When buying already adult plants, stems and leaves are inspected. The first should stand straight, and the second should look up.
What should be the pot?
When planting, everything is taken into account, since every detail is important for proper plant growth. The flower should not grow in cramped conditions, so you need to choose a wide, but shallow pot. In its bottom you need to make several holes, which are called drainage. When watering, excess water will flow out through them, which ensures root growth without decay.
The choice of location
We must not forget that the hyacinth flower (a photo is presented for consideration) is a garden plant, therefore, when growing a house, he needs to create conditions close to natural. And he loves a lot of sunlight. The best option for a houseplant are windows located in the south and south-east direction. The duration of daylight should be 15 hours per day. If you put hyacinths flowers on any of the other sides, you will have to install sources of additional lighting. Being a photophilous plant, hyacinth does not tolerate direct exposure to the sun's rays on leaves and buds. On such days, it is better to transfer the plant to another place where it will not get burns. So that the flower does not grow one-sided, it must be periodically turned.
Temperature mode
In order for the flower to feel comfortable, the temperature in the room where it grows should be + 20-22 Λ. Abrupt warming, cooling, drafts, close proximity of hot sources of heat in the room - not for a home hyacinth flower. Caring for a houseplant is to create conditions similar to natural ones. This also applies to temperature conditions. In the warm season, the plant needs to be taken out to the balcony, it will benefit him.
Soil preparation
You can buy a special substrate for flowering plants or prepare it yourself from turf, leafy soil, compost and humus. All ingredients are taken in equal proportions. A small amount of sand and peat should be added to this mixture. Even if everything is done correctly, the home hyacinth flower has not bloomed for several years in a row. Stimulation of this process is achieved by weakening the bulbs due to artificial distillation. For this year, two of them are planted in open ground for recovery.
Hyacinth flowers: planting and care
After all the materials have been prepared, begin to plant the bulbs. This procedure is best done in the morning or in cloudy weather. The landing stages are as follows:
- A layer of drainage is placed at the bottom of the prepared pot. It can be any natural material that absorbs moisture well, expanded clay, for example.
- The next layer will be the soil.
- Then fine sand is poured.
- Only now are bulbs evenly spread over its entire surface: one or more pieces for lush flowering. It is important that there is no contact between them. To do this, they are planted at a distance of two to three centimeters from one another.
- The next step is to push the bulbs into the ground. This must be done carefully so as not to damage them. After this, the plantings are covered with the remaining soil, on top with sand, so that the bulbs do not rot.
- It is very important not to miss such a moment: when planting a hyacinth flower, the bulb does not need to be completely immersed in the ground, the top should be above its level.
What to do after landing?
The main thing is that the bulbs take root and sprout. A plant needs to create conditions called a dormant period. A pot with plantings for a period of 45-75 days should be put in the basement, where it should be dark and cool. In this room, the air temperature is maintained at a level of + 5-10 Β° C, not higher. If there is no cellar, the flowers are placed in the refrigerator, where the temperature regime is necessarily maintained, otherwise the bulbs will freeze and will not rise. It is necessary to monitor the soil, if it dries up - to water.
This period must be sustained in time. If you take the plant out of the basement before it ends, it will be weak and unlikely to bloom. No need to overexpose him in the dark. In this case, all the power of the plant will go to throwing leaves, due to which the buds will be formed much later.
When the bulbs take root
When a sprout appears, the size of five centimeters, the plant needs to arrange an artificial spring, bring it into the house. The flower should be placed in a bright room with a temperature of + 10-15 Λ. Very soon he will grow up. The flower, finally, can be put in the room you want. But there are conditions the fulfillment of which is considered mandatory: the temperature should correspond to +20 Λ, the room should be well lit and there should be no drafts.
Hyacinth planting in water
Such a procedure is today considered fashionable. For its holding, the bulbs are prepared in the same way as for a conventional planting. Each hyacinth flower (see photo below) is placed in a separate glass bowl, into which distilled or spring water is poured. It is necessary to ensure that the bulb is not completely immersed in the liquid. Only its lower part should come into contact with water.
Plants should not be disturbed until germination. To do this, place in a cold and dark place a home hyacinth flower. How to care for him at this time? Nothing special needs to be done, the main thing is to add water to the tank in time. It should not completely evaporate, otherwise the bulbs will die. When green arrows appear, fertilizer with a mineral composition is added to the water. It is sold in any specialized store. After 75 days, the containers with sprouts are placed in a room with good lighting, where they continue to grow, as in ordinary pots.
Hyacinth flower: home care after a flowering period
Time will pass and the hyacinth will fade. What to do in order to save the plant life? Peduncles should be immediately cut off and watering and top dressing should not be stopped until all leaves are loose. This is necessary so that the bulb regains its strength and is capable of forming "children." Dig them out at the beginning of the first month of summer. After this, a thorough inspection is done, if necessary, disinfection. In the future, the bulbs are stored when the temperature changes from 30 to 17 Β° C until planting in the ground in the fall.
Then the hyacinth flower, care for which at this stage ends, is removed from the pot, wilted leaves are removed. Then the bulbs are put to dry: the first seven days at a temperature of 30 Β° C, for a period of twice as long - at 25 Β° C, until planting - at 17 Β° C with high humidity. If the formed "children" are well developed, they are separated. If it is impossible to disconnect - leave.
Bulbs of faded plants for distillation for the second time are not recommended for use. They need to be transplanted to the site selected in the garden. This must be done in the fall. Next year they will bloom. Forcing is called the preparatory stages for flowering plants in the winter. If something is done inappropriately due to inexperience, the plant will bloom anyway, but its flowers will be smaller and faster fall, and the leaves will stretch and begin to fall down. The main thing is that after planting the flower needs to withstand the period of cold, without it it will not release buds.
To hyacinth bloomed at a specific time
There are solemn occasions in the life of every family. To please family people, you can give them hyacinth blooming by this time. But how to do that? It is necessary to make calculations. They are, of course, approximate, but what if it works out. So, from the time of planting to the flowering period - 75 days. Depending on the variety, the plant blooms from 10 to 18 days. Everything is easy to count. In order for the plant to bloom for the New Year, it must be planted in the middle of the second month of autumn, on Valentine's Day - in late November, for the women's holiday on March 8 - in the second decade of December.
Breeding
Hyacinths are cultivated in several ways. The most relevant for home conditions is the reproduction by bulbs. Naturally, during the growing season, one bulb gives four to five "children", not more. In this regard, flower growers propagate hyacinths at home in an artificial way. To quickly get the "kids" in large numbers, use the use of special techniques. Before starting artificial reproduction, the bulbs should be treated with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, and then send them to dry for two to three days. The air temperature should be + 20-23 Λ.
The first way - cutting the bottom. The procedure is carried out after the rest period has ended. A small spoon in the bulbs should be cut out the bottom. For storage, put them in drawers so that the slices are at the top. The temperature in the room should be 21Λ. After 60-75 days, 20-40 small "children" will form on the slices. After their appearance, the bulbs need to be planted in a cool greenhouse. They will begin to grow rapidly and throw leaves. At the end of the growing season, the bulbs must be removed from the soil, disconnected and planted in other containers. In three or four years they will ripen and form their flower stalks.
The second way is notching the bottom. Hyacinth flower at home can be grown differently. This method is similar to the first, but there is a slight difference. Donets do not need to be cut out, it is enough to make cuts in the amount of two to four pieces in it. Their depth should be half a centimeter. Otherwise, everything is done in the same way as in the first case, however, there are fewer βchildrenβ, 8-15, but they are strong and large. Bulbs will have to be grown less in time - only two to three years.
How to water?
The flower needs moisture. But you need to water it very carefully and gently. When water gets on any part of the plant, it begins to rot, and the whole plant dies. The safest option is watering by immersing the flower pot in water, the level of which should not reach its top. Plants will absorb fluid through the drainage holes. Hyacinth does not need to be sprayed, especially during the flowering period.
Dressing home flowers
The soil in the pot is depleted quickly, as plants take nutrients from it. To grow hyacinths without problems, they need to be fed as soon as the first leaves appear. A good fertilizer is Fertimix. In its composition, the content of the essential trace elements and vitamins necessary for the growth and formation of the plant is balanced. In a liter jar of water, you need to stir two or three caps of this product and water the flowers every two weeks. So hyacinths will be provided with good nutrition, will begin to grow and bloom better.