How to care for gardenia at home?

What care is needed for gardenia at home? This question excites many owners of this beautiful plant. After all, any flower, so that it grows healthy and beautiful, needs proper care.

Gardenia is a flowering plant that belongs to the Marenova family. In nature, there are almost 300 species of this flower, and they all love the warm and humid climate, growing in India, Japan. But only one species has adapted to home conditions - jasmine gardenia.

Plant features

Those species that are found in nature can reach 2 m in height. This is usually a bush with many beautiful buds. But at home, it can grow only up to 50 cm. In appearance, gardenia resembles a rose, they even are similar in smell. Flowers are single or collected in inflorescences, it depends on the variety. It is jasmine gardenia that retains its buds for a long period, from July to October, if proper care is performed.

Leaves that have a deep green color have a bright sheen. The flower is white, but it is also found with small yellowness. Cutting the bush, you can achieve a different shape. It can be a ball, a candle or a beautiful miniature indoor tree.

Gardenia is a characteristic plant. She reacts strongly to changes in temperature, a sharp drop in humidity, does not like direct sun. Also does not like to change their habitat. But it is not difficult to learn the secrets of care in order to please this beauty and admire her amazing colors.

How to water?

He likes uniform and high humidity. To do this, it is recommended to put a pan under the pot in which there is moist expanded clay. It is advisable to spray gardenia, make it a light warm shower, but at the same time cover the soil with oilcloth.

Tip

When caring for a plant and spraying it, you must avoid getting water on the buds. From this, ugly spots appear on them that spoil the appearance of the flower.

It is necessary to maintain soil moisture, but to avoid stagnation of water. In winter, watering is done a minimum number of times, only when the soil begins to dry. Water should be cold and settled. To do this, a few days before irrigation, you need to collect water and let it stand so that heavy metals, chlorine settle to the bottom. The ideal option is rain or melt water, but this applies to ecologically clean regions.

It is recommended that every fourth watering add lemon juice to the water. Proportions: a few drops per 1 liter of water. This helps the plant more easily absorb the nutrients that are in the soil.

Important!

If gardenia is watered excessively or too rarely, the root system will be damaged.

Temperature mode

This plant loves heat and does not tolerate sudden changes in temperature. In the warm season, the optimum temperature is from + 20 ° to + 25 °. In winter - not less than + 16 °, but best within + 18 °. It is important to prevent overcooling of the soil. If you need to ventilate the room, it is better to remove the plant from the window for the period of ventilation, in order to prevent hypothermia. Drafts in the summer also harm, they contribute to falling buds.

How to transplant?

For gardenia, acidic soil is best suited. From it she takes all the useful substances that I help to grow. Such soil is sold in any specialized store.

Having bought a flower, you can not immediately transplant it into another soil. You need to give him some time to get used to the new habitat.A transplant of adult plants at home is recommended to be done every 2 years. Young ones should be transplanted every year.

When a plant is pulled from an old pot, all roots are cleaned of old soil. But this is done carefully so as not to damage the root system. Expanded clay is poured at the bottom of a new planter, then sand, and at the end - purchased soil. But if you could not find a suitable soil, then you can prepare it yourself. To do this, you need to take in equal parts:

• sand;
• peat;
• turf;
• coniferous land.

If there is no sand, then perlite is taken instead. Its amount should be 3 times more than sand.

Fertilizers

The best time for fertilizer is spring and summer. If the plant is just bought, then it does not need to be fed. At home, fertilizer should be applied a month after the transplant.

For feeding, special substances are used that are used in the care of azalea. They are acidic and have a positive effect on gardenia growth and flowering. Fertilizers need to be applied once every 3 weeks, but the water concentration should be half less than what is written on the package (the manufacturer indicates the optimal proportion for azalea).

In the autumn-winter period, the plant does not need to be fed. But if gardenia decided to please its owners with a second flowering, then fertilizer can be applied, only very little.

Breeding

The main method of reproduction at home is cuttings. It is carried out in spring or summer. An escape is taken that is longer than 10 cm and is cut with scissors. After that, it is placed in previously prepared soil, which must be warm. For the soil you need to take sand and peat in equal shares.

Important!

Before planting in the soil, it is advisable to dip a cut of the cuttings in a light solution of potassium permanganate and soak for several minutes.

When the stalk is placed in the ground, it should be covered with a jar or bag. This is necessary in order to protect it from hypothermia and help to get comfortable in new soil. For rapid root formation, a growth stimulant is used. When the shoot is already rooted, it is transplanted into permanent soil.

At home, the seed method of gardenia propagation is also used. Only high-quality seeds are selected. The best time for sowing is spring. The seed is placed in the ground and sprinkled on top of the ground. Care consists in constant maintenance of humidity and heat. In such conditions, shoots will appear very quickly.

Possible problems

If home care is not done correctly, then gardenia begins to disappear.

We list the main problems and their causes.

1. Leaves became lethargic. The reason is a lack or excess of moisture.
2. Leaves begin to turn yellow. The reason is that the plant does not receive the required amount of nutrients.
3. Flowers wither and fall. The reason is that the plant does not receive enough moisture or is watered too often. Sometimes the cause is stress after transporting or moving the pot to another place.
4. Leaves begin to crumble. The reason is insufficient moisture in the air or infection with a spider mite.
5. Blackening of the leaves. The cause was damage to the root system.

Care for gardenia is not so simple. But you can learn this! If you follow the basic rules, then at home you can grow a beautiful decorative bush, which every year will delight with its buds and incredible aroma.

We advise you to read the article: automatic watering for flowers