Culture methods and matters needing attention of Lantern Flowers

Lantern flowers are also known as bell flowers, inverted golden bells, hanging bell begonias, etc., which belong to perennial herbaceous flowers of Saliuriaceae. There are many kinds of flowers and colors, including red, purple and white. Although they are delicate and beautiful, they cannot withstand the scorching of the summer sun, so we need to pay attention to maintenance in the process of breeding. Let's take a look at the breeding methods and matters needing attention of lantern flowers.

Growth habits of Lantern Flowers

Lantern flower is a horticultural hybrid cultivated according to the materials of Central America. It likes cool and humid climate. The suitable temperature for growth is 10-25 ℃. It requires plenty of sunshine in winter and semi-overcast environment in summer. When the summer temperature exceeds 38 ℃, the metabolism is slow and the growth is stagnant. The phenomenon of fallen leaves and rotten roots often occurs at this time. If no effective measures are taken, the whole plant will die.

Propagation methods of Lantern Flower

1. Cuttage propagation: the branches of the same year are often used for tender wood cutting in late spring and early autumn, or the old branches are cut with the branches of last year in early spring. Is used for cutting nutrition soil or river sand, peat soil and other materials, use medium and coarse river sand, but before use to rinse with water several times, sea sand and saline-alkali areas of river sand should not be used, because it is not suitable for the growth of flowers and plants.

2. Striping propagation: select strong branches and peel off the bark from about 15cm to 30cm below the top. The width of the peeled wound is about one centimeter, and the depth is limited to just peeling off the skin. Cut a piece of film 10 cm 20 cm long and 5 cm 8 cm wide, put some wet garden soil on it, and wrap it around like a wound. The upper and lower ends of the film are tightly tied and bulged in the middle. Take root in about four to six weeks. After taking root, cut off the root system along the edge of the branch to form a new plant.

Transplanting methods of Lantern Flowers

1. When small seedlings are installed in a pot or large plants that have been raised for several years are transferred to the basin, a coarse-grained matrix 2cm thick is first placed at the bottom of the basin as a filter layer, which is sprinkled with a fully mature organic fertilizer as a base fertilizer, with a thickness of about 1cm and 2cm, and then covered with a thin layer of matrix, which is about 1cm thick, and then put into the plant to separate the fertilizer from the root system and avoid root burning.

2. The substrate for potting can be one of the following, vegetable garden soil: slag = 3:1 or garden soil: medium coarse river sand: sawdust (slag) = 4:1:2 or one of paddy soil, pond mud, rotten leaf soil. Pour water once after putting on the basin and keep it in a shaded environment for a week. When transplanting the seedlings, first dig the planting hole, sprinkle a layer of organic fertilizer at the bottom of the planting hole as the base fertilizer (base fertilizer), the thickness is about 46.6 cm, and then cover a layer of soil and put it into the seedlings to separate the fertilizer from the roots and avoid burning roots.

Culture methods of Lantern Flowers

1. Soil: Lantern flowers like loose sandy loam with good drainage.

2. Moisture: Lantern flowers are watered once in 2-3 days in winter and rainy season, once a day in autumn and sunny days, and in semi-dormant summer to prevent defoliation and rotting roots.

3, sunshine: Lantern flowers like the sunny environment, the lack of sunshine is easy to grow, resulting in a reduction in flowering.

4. Fertilizer: sufficient organic fertilizer was applied before lantern flower planting, nitrogen fertilizer was controlled in the early growth stage, overgrowth was prevented, and phosphorus and potassium fertilizer was applied at flowering stage.

5. Temperature: the suitable temperature for the growth of lantern flowers is 15-25 degrees. If the temperature exceeds 30 degrees in summer, it will enter a semi-dormant state, and not less than 5 degrees in winter.

Points for attention of Lantern Flowers

1. Fertilizer application: sufficient organic fertilizer was applied before lantern flower planting, nitrogen fertilizer was controlled in the early growth stage, overgrowth was prevented, and phosphorus and potassium fertilizer was applied at flowering stage.

2. Rational watering: Lantern flowers are watered once every 2-3 days in winter and rainy season, once every day in autumn and sunny days, and moisture should be controlled when they are semi-dormant in summer to prevent the occurrence of defoliation and rotting roots.

3. Reasonable pruning: Lantern flowers will prune all the weak branches, withered and yellow branches, and all the remaining branches will be cut short, and the length left will be determined by ornamental quality, requiring coordination of the whole plant.

4. Pot soil replacement: Lantern flowers grow fast and require sufficient nutrients, so the basin soil should be rich in humic sandy loam. It is also necessary to add 20% of fully rotten animal manure. To enter the peak growing season, we should also apply liquid fertilizer, turning over the basin and changing the soil in spring in each of the first three years to replenish nutrients.

Summer Management of Lantern Flowers

1, summer shade: enter the summer, if the temperature exceeds 30 ℃, to avoid the strong sun exposure, during the day can be moved to the balcony below the balcony in a cool and ventilated place, and then moved to the balcony after sunset (preferably placed in the shade shed or tree shade). Move the plant from the south balcony to the north balcony in advance to avoid the sun. Put the pot plant in a larger bamboo basket or cardboard box, surrounded by soft pot soil to prevent the flowerpot from being directly baked by the sun.

2. heating and cooling: put half or the whole brick into the container, inject clear water into the container (the water is higher than the brick surface), and then put the pot plant on the brick to cool down for a long time. Place the pot plant downstairs in a place of ventilation and shelter, dig a small pit in the ground, bury the plant in the soil, and wait until autumn to put the plant indoors. Once the pot plant is heated by the hot sun, it must not be watered on the leaves and in the flowerpot before the heat is dissipated, so as to prevent uneven heat and cold, resulting in accidental damage. During the period of heat prevention and cooling, due to the reduction of light, watering should be controlled, do not be too frequent, and always keep the basin soil moist.

3. Prevent rain: summer is a rainy season. Before it rains, put the potted plants in a place of shelter. If it is too late to move the flowerpot in case of thunderstorm, the stagnant water in the pot should be poured out in time. If the basin is still too wet at this time, you can use burnt charcoal to sprinkle on the surface of the basin soil to evaporate part of the excess water. If the water in the basin soil does not evaporate for a long time, and the basin soil is too wet, it is also easy to lead to fallen leaves and rotten roots, resulting in the death of the whole plant.

The pruning method of Lantern Flower

1. Flowering pruning: hanging the golden bell upside down in the northern natural environment, the full flowering period is from April to July. The last pick of the heart should be stopped in late March in spring. It blossoms in the middle and late April. Because the top of the branch continues to bloom and elongate, when the flower branch grows to a certain length, it should hit the top, and the new branch can continue to blossom. The branchlets and leaves from the center of the plant can be knocked off at any time during flowering to avoid nutrient consumption and facilitate ventilation and light transmission.

2. Pruning after anthesis: in July, when the temperature reached more than 30 ℃, the plant entered a semi-dormant state. When the leaves are weak, heavy pruning should be carried out to reduce nutrient consumption, which is conducive to safe summer. All the long branches are short, leaving only the backbone branches, and pick some of the old leaves and place them in a cool place for the summer. Pick the buds if they are born during the summer. New branches will be issued in September in autumn, and the plant shape will be more compact and beautiful.

Disease Control of Lantern Flower

1. Grey mold

[symptoms] Botrytis cinerea occurs in rainy weather or excessive application of nitrogen fertilizer or lack of light. It mainly harms stems, leaves and flowers, resulting in water-like spots on the affected parts. If it is not prevented in time, the hyphae will gradually expand and be covered with gray hairs, and in serious cases, the plants will die.

[methods] at the initial stage of the disease, 65% zinc or 50% carbendazim and other new agents with 500 times solution were sprayed every 7 to 10 days for 3 times in a row. Pay attention to ventilation and light to make the plant grow well and improve the disease resistance of the plant. After the disease, the diseased branches and leaves should be cut off and treated in time to reduce the source of the disease.

2. Powdery mildew

[symptoms] powdery mildew mainly harms stems, leaves and buds. After being infected, there is a layer of white powder on the surface, which shrinks the leaves and makes the flowers smaller.

[methods] pay attention to ventilation and light, increase the application of phosphorus and potassium fertilizer to improve plant disease resistance. After the onset of the disease, spray 70% Tuobu body liquid or 2500 times liquid strychnine or other appropriate agents in time, spray every 10 days, spray 2 times 3 times continuously.