Calceolaria flower - home care

An unusually beautiful flower at first glance seems completely artificial. The bright colors, the unusual shape of its flowers automatically refer this beautiful plant to a number of exotic plants. The appearance of the flowering makes one think that the indoor calceolaria flower is very demanding and fastidious in care. In fact, the leaving process is fun and not complicated at all.

Lady's slipper

This is exactly what the calceolaria uniflora is called. An unusual mountain lover appeared in the eyes of botanists in South America, on Tierra del Fuego. It was brought from America to England, and then the exotic beauty spread to homes throughout Europe.

The bush is very small, the specificity of the mountainous area did not allow it to grow more than 10 cm in height. Leaves are oval, green, collected in a socket.

Bright and unusual calceolaria flowers

Flowers 2.5 cm long grow on long shoots. The inflorescence consists of two convex petals. The upper petal is very small and inconspicuous, while the lower one is elongated and rounded.

At the base of the petals, the core is decorated with 2-3 stamens. The color is yellow, with red spots and dots. Mountain exotic blooms in July, about five weeks.

Popular types of calceolaria for growing in the garden

Calceolaria is grown in the garden as an annual flower. After flowering, hot weather destroys the decorative effect of the bush, so every year gardeners renew their blooming flower bed from these unusual flowers.

Garden varieties are diverse, have a different color and shape of inflorescences. Unlike mountain one-flowered calceolaria, garden calceolaria can grow up to 50 cm in length, and bush 25-35 cm in breadth.

The most common varieties of calceolaria are:

• Calceolaria Mexicana (Calceolaria Mexicana). The bright inhabitant of the Mexican mountains is thermophilic, grows up to 25 cm in height. Oval leaves covered with pile are placed on branched shoots. Yellow flowers are double-lipped up to 5 cm in diameter, placed at the ends of the shoots. Loves shaded, wet places and protection from the wind. Abundant flowering occurs in May-June and lasts up to 3 weeks.
• Calceolaria Wrinkled, or Whole-leaved (Calceolaria Rugosa, Calceolaria Integrifolia). The Chilean beauty produces branchy shoots up to 25 cm. Leaves are oval, pointed, with clear veins. Flowers up to 2.5 cm in diameter, pure yellow, densely dotted at the tops of the stems. Flowering lasts all summer until the very cold.

Calceolaria one-flowered or lady's slipper

• Calceolaria Purpurea (Calceolaria Purpureа). The bush grows up to 50 cm in height and is distinguished by its beautiful color of petals and shoots - dark purple. The leaves also have a purple tint, dark, with jagged edges. The inflorescence is two-lipped - the lower petal is swollen and looks like a shell, and the upper purple ball lies on top of the second. The bright color does not allow you to pass by such a spectacular bush in the garden.
• Calceolaria Tenella. Bush no more than 8 cm high with small dark leaves collected in a socket. Flowers are painted in yellow-gold color with red dots or stripes.
• Calceolaria Crenatiflora. The miniature representative of Chile grows up to 10 cm in height. Leaves are ground cover, crenate along the edge. Flowers up to 2.5 cm in length, yellow with purple spots, two-lipped.Blooms in July, single flowers or collected in bunches of 2-5 pcs.

Hybrid varieties are distinguished by contrasting colors

Calceolaria: planting and care

A lover of moisture is demanding on the composition of the soil, since its roots can rot. The soil should be as light and loose as possible. A good composition would be a mixture of:

• peat;
• leafy land;
• deciduous humus;
• sand;
• fern roots;
• wood ash;
• crushed activated carbon.

A small bush is planted by transshipment with minimal damage to the roots in small pots (no more than 1.2 liters). The pot must have a good drainage layer. The root collar should not go deep into the ground.

After planting, you need to create comfortable conditions for abundant flowering. The foundation of calceolaria care is low temperature, high humidity and abundant watering.

The temperature is not higher than 23 ° C in summer and the obligatory daily temperature drop is 7 degrees. In the winter period of rest and during flowering, the optimum temperature is 14-17 ° C.

The humidity should be high. Moreover, the higher the temperature, the higher the humidity indicator should be. On hot summer days, a pot of calceolaria should be placed on a pallet with wet expanded clay and sprayed 2-3 times a day. Spraying should be from a fine spray bottle, as drops of water on the leaves lead to their deterioration.

Watering is needed frequent, but not plentiful. The soil in the pot should be moist, but not wet and free from stagnation in the root ball. Excess liquid residues must be removed from the sump.

The lighting is bright, but diffuse. West and east windows will provide optimal lighting. In winter, backlighting is needed so that the daylight hours are at least 8 hours.

Starting from waking up and throughout the entire flowering period, calceolaria needs constant bait. Mineral fertilizers are applied 2-3 times a month.

Forming a bush is part of the grooming. Lateral shoots are removed so that the flowering is stronger, and the bush does not waddle to one side.

Pruning lateral shoots makes it possible to obtain abundant flowering with larger flowers

Growing

Calceolaria from seeds at home propagates more easily than by cuttings. Before sowing, it must be borne in mind that the period from breeding to flowering is from 5 to 10 months.

You need to constantly monitor that the soil is moist. When a rosette of leaves appears, calceolaria is dived into 7 cm pots. After that, you will need another 2-4 transplants with pinching the rosette for the formation of side shoots and bushiness.

The last transplant is needed already in the nutrient soil. Seedlings are planted using the transshipment method. You need to take care of young growth as carefully as for an adult flower.

When and how to plant calceolaria outdoors

In spring, when the temperature at night is not lower than 13 and not higher than 18 degrees, calceolaria can be planted in open ground as a garden plant. It will take root well in soil that has been fertilized with compost in advance.

Garden cultivation of calceolaria is suitable for regions with mild climates

During the entire flowering period, the temperature conditions will contribute to the well-being of the flower. Watering should not be abundant.

Fertilizing with mineral fertilizers is needed throughout the flowering period twice a month. Planting and caring for calceolaria at home, grown from seeds immediately in the open field, does not differ from transplanting. The main thing is not to let the seeds rot in the soil and to provide sufficient lighting.

Calceolaria: care in winter

Calceolaria is a flower that is most often grown as an annual, as it dies with an increase in temperature after flowering. If there is a desire to leave this wonderful exotic for the next year, after flowering, you need to dig up the calceolaria and plant it in a pot.

A faded bush hibernates for several months, during this period, care for calceolaria is as follows:

• it is necessary to cut off all the shoots and leaves of the plant;
• put the pot in a cool and dark place (+ 5-7 ° C);
• watering should be reduced to a minimum, but without the risk of drying out the earth;

When the first shoots appear, full care is restored:

• the pot is placed in a sunny place;
• watering becomes regular;
• a high level of humidity is maintained.

Potential pests and diseases

The most common pests on calceolaria leaves are aphids and whiteflies. If the population of pests on leaf blades has just begun, it is better to remove them manually. If there is an extensive damage to the foliage, insecticide treatment is inevitable.

After processing, it is necessary to analyze the care of the flower and find the cause of the pests so that they do not appear on the delicate beauty again.

Improper care will contribute to the emergence of disease. Excessive moisture and watering will cause gray rot. An excess of nitrogen in groundbaits will cause gray mold to appear.

Delicate calceolaria is not suitable for all growers. She is not aggressive, but loves care and proper care. In exchange, he presents his boyfriend with abundant and passionate flowering. Unusual flowers look very attractive on flower beds in the garden or on the windowsills of apartments. Funny aliens - this is how experienced breeders called their favorites.