The Forgotten and Unknown Nasturtium: Growing and Care

Nasturtium (Tropaeolum) is a genus of plants belonging to the Capuchin family. The origin is of Peruvian origin. There are about 80 species. Previously, it was popular, but recently it is not often found on flower beds and in balcony boxes. And in vain, it is not only highly decorative, but also very useful. It is used in cooking and decorating dishes, as well as in folk medicine.

Varieties of this plant are set. Among them there are compact shrub forms about 35 cm high and curly with shoots up to 3 m. The leaves also vary significantly: they are uniformly green, mottled, purple, with shading or stains. Flowers are simple or terry, different colors - dark red, scarlet, pink, orange, yellow, salmon, cream.

Beginners often ask themselves how to plant nasturtium. It can be planted on seedlings or immediately in open ground, but in May, when the soil warms up. Seeds are large, they should be soaked for a day in hot (55 ^° C) water. To sow it is necessary to a depth of 4 cm, it is desirable to place 2 seeds in each well. Seedlings appear, as a rule, within two weeks. In the case of recurrent frosts, they need to be covered by something, for example, agrospan.

When growing seedlings, it is desirable to sow seeds in separate containers, since the root system reacts painfully to trauma. Flowering of plants begins 45 days after emergence and can last up to freezing, if you remove the wilted flowers. If you want to collect the seeds, wait, it should pass about 50 days of discolouration.

Prefers moistened fertile soils and sunny places nasturtium. Growing and caring for an excess of nitrogen fertilizers will lead to the formation of a large green mass and a weak bloom. And phosphoric top dressing is necessary, especially during the formation and opening of buds. To form a large number of flowers, watering from the moment of flowering should be minimized.
Poorly tolerates the narrowness of the nasturtium, the cultivation and care of which should be carried out without thickening the plantations. Otherwise, its shoots are bared from below, and decorativeness drops sharply. The optimal distance between the plants is about 25 cm. Extra shoots with an earthen lump can be moved to another place.

Ampel nasturtium looks very impressive in hanging pots. And if you grow Tropaeolum peregrinum, called Canarian or foreign, then all the guests will be surprised at this miracle. Scourge its long, leaves small and dissected. Flowers are small, bright yellow with green spurts, and petals are corrugated. She does not look very much like her relatives.

Essentially, a perennial plant is nasturtium. Cultivation and care in our country in connection with cold winters is carried out as an airman. But if you want you can especially enjoy the copies you like until the next season. For this, before freezing, they must be digged with minimal root losses and planted in some kind of container. Place in a cool light place, watered rarely.

A good nurse is the nasturtium. Growing and caring for this plant helps in the fight against pests of vegetables. This wonderful flower, planted in a greenhouse between tomatoes, is able to scare away the whitefly. And for butterfly-whiting, nasturtium serves as an object on which they lay eggs without damaging cabbage. Earthy fleas also like its juicy leaves, it turns out that it "takes a blow at yourself," allowing vegetable crops to grow undamaged.

The nasturtium is very diverse. Growing and caring for different forms can be used for different purposes. Shrub forms are usually planted in the foreground of flower beds and mixborders. Curly varieties are covered with unsightly fences or withered trees, for which purpose only the trunk with a part of skeletal branches is left.

According to the old belief, nasturtium protects frustration in business and personal relationships. Growing and caring for it relieve stress and fatigue. Plant this wonderful plant, it will bring you not only beauty and good, but also peace of mind.