Gardenia: caring for a whimsical beauty

White delicate flower, which many consider to be the most beautiful indoor plant, is gardenia. Care for her is not very simple. It's not for nothing that she was nicknamed a capricious beauty. However, many dream to have this eye-pleasing plant, which, moreover, has a pleasant sweet aroma. Gardenberry blossoms almost all summer long!

Care, which does not take into account the characteristics of the flower, can lead to rapid death of the plant. All who take up his cultivation, should know how to properly care for exotic gardenia, so she did not die.

Flower - gardenia

Care of this plant in the home began relatively recently. Of all the existing species, which are more than two hundred, in the room conditions, only the gardenia jasmine has taken root.

Gardenia (the Latin name Gardenia) refers to the family of the madden. Her homeland is Japan and China, she also meets in South Africa and India. In the natural environment of growth - it is a shrub about 1.5 meters high.

The leaves are dense, bright green, pointed at the ends. Flowers are large, white or cream colored, with a diameter of up to ten centimeters. They are single or collected in inflorescences of four to five pieces.

Gardenia: care

This exotic flower requires constant attention. Light-loving and heat-loving gardenia, care for which should ensure a stable temperature without fluctuations, in the summer requires warmth at least eighteen, and in winter - sixteen degrees. In winter, care should be taken not to overcool the roots.

The flower is permanent and does not like to travel from place to place. Therefore, in summer it can not be carried to the air. However, to ventilate the room where the plant is located, it is necessary to regularly, while avoiding drafts. After any transportation (including after purchase), it adapts for about three weeks. Only after that the purchased plant is transplanted.

It is suitable for light nutritious soils with good drainage. The plant can be transplanted only after it has blossomed. It is desirable to transplant an adult plant only occasionally. You can do this in the beginning of spring or after gardenia blossoms.

The flower that forms the buds can not be turned.

Care for gardenia also consists of regular moderate watering. It is advisable to use stagnant soft water. Excessive dryness and excessive humidity are detrimental to the plant.

In summer, it is necessary to spray the leaves to ensure high humidity. In this case, after the buds are dissolved, it is necessary to spray only the surrounding air. Otherwise, drops of water, falling on the flowers, can lead to the appearance of brown spots.

It is also desirable for the summer to put a pot of flower in a tray with pebbles and water, without lowering the bottom into the water. You can use for this purpose and moistened peat.

Feeding gardenia is held once every two weeks, alternating mineral and organic fertilizers. An adult flower is fed every week. Fertilizers for it should not contain lime.

At the slightest inattention, gardenia can discard the flower spike, and then the leaves. Signs of problems are yellow leaves, lack of growth and flowering, shedding of buds.

Propagation of the plant cuttings. They are cut in February-March. You can also use shoots that are cut after flowering, choosing thickening and weak stems. They cut off about half.

Cuttings are kept in a manganese solution and inserted into a substrate. After that, they should be covered with a can, periodically ventilated and sprayed. Rooting is long and difficult. To root the cuttings in water, they must be placed in a weak solution containing stimulants for the formation of roots: rootstocks, epine, and heteroauxin.