GLOXINIA KAISER WILHELM AND FRIEDRICH: FEATURES OF VARIETIES, THEIR DESCRIPTION WITH PHOTOS, RULES OF CARE AND REPRODUCTION

Gloxinia Kaiser - is a tuberous plant that belongs to the geranium family and is considered to be perennial.

This plant was discovered at the end of the 18th century by amateur botanist Benjamin Gloxin. In this article we will look at a flower with an interesting name - Gloxinia Kaiser.

The article will also describe its varieties, history, appearance, and how to properly care for this plant. Enjoy reading!

Botanical description and history

Gloxinia Kaiser bush reaches a height of 25 cm, therefore, will not occupy much space. It also has repeated flowering, in which new ones appear instead of old buds. This cycle continues from spring to autumn. An open flower reaches from 7 to 8 cm in diameter, with up to 20 buds simultaneously blooming on one plant, and the inflorescence itself consists of five petals.

On small cuttings are attached leaf plates that have a slightly pripushennuyu surface, as well as wavy edges. Each of the sheets is large enough and reaches up to 20 cm in length. The leaves themselves are surrounded by large and beautiful flowers that are on relatively small peduncles. In general, the flower creates an excellent decorative composition.

This plant has been discovered and described in contrasting Latin America.when a young amateur botanist, Benjamin Gloxin, participated in a naval expedition at the end of the 18th century. After that, the reproduction of this flower took place in greenhouses.

Varieties

Gloxinia Kaiser exists in two forms - Wilhelm and Friedrich.

Gloxinia Kaiser Wilhelm and Kaiser Friedrich - a very compact indoor culture, with beautiful, rich, deep shades of colors. The first has a dark purple color, or as it is also called "night" color, the second is painted in a delicate - crimson color. Feathery and second plant have a white border around the edges of the flowers, and leaf plates are painted in dark green with an emerald overflow.

Important! The flower of these species has one peculiarity - they can hibernate, that is, be at rest for a certain time!

If you are interested in varieties and types of gloxinia, then it will be useful to read the following articles about their diversity:

Decorative Gloxinia Sonata.
The finest gloxinia Shagane.
Hybrid gloxinia.
Description varieties Krasnoyarsk and Red Riding Hood.
Climbing gloxinia creepers.
Charming Gloxinia Brokada.
Gloxinia Rosalind.
White terry gloxinia.
Gloxinia Pink.

A photo

This is what Kaiser Friedrich looks like in the photo:

This photo is Kaiser Wilhelm:

Soil requirement

Let's start with the choice of soil: for gloxinia the same soil is perfect as for violethowever, it is also possible to independently make a substrate, mixing for this purpose leaf ground (1 part), turf ground (1 part), and also peat (half part).

At the same time, the soil should be loose and well pass air, since its presence is necessary constantly. Give preference to wide containers and small ones, which can be either clay or plastic. The flowerpot with a diameter of 7 to 8 cm. Perfect for a small flower, and for a large one you need to take almost 2 times more - from 10 to 15 cm in diameter.

Lighting

Although this plant loves light very much, it is impossible to put it in a place where direct sunlight will fall on it. This is especially true during the flowering period. The flower can be easily placed on the southern windowsill during the winter and spring. With the arrival of summer, the plant is better to hide in shady areas, but you can still put it on the eastern windowsill, in rare cases on the western. During the growth of the green part of the flower and increase the buds it must be placed on a well-lit place. When the inflorescences begin to bloom, the flower is removed from the “sunny place”.

This culture loves a big sunny day, lasting from 12 to 14 hours. To provide such a long-term coverage, you need to use large and powerful lamps. Otherwise, the stem will grow to the top, and flowering will be very rare, or it may not come at all.
The amount of light greatly affects the saturation of the petals - the more light, the brighter the bud and vice versa.

Care

Temperature

For cultivation, the optimum temperature is 24 - 25 degrees. The current situation needs to be maintained until the growth of the green parts.
After the start of growth of the green parts, the temperature must be reduced to 22 degrees. If this cannot be ensured, then the amount of light should be increased. Otherwise, the plant will begin to stretch and lose its decorative effect.
When the buds begin to bloom, you need to raise the temperature again to 25 degrees.
Make sure that the temperature does not fall below 18 degrees.
You can temporarily increase the temperature to 28 degrees. If such conditions will last a little more, then the flowers will disappear in three days.

Air

It should be medium and well moistened (for continuous maintenance, use a pallet with wet expanded clay).
Spraying is allowed, but do it better in the bathroom, as you can wipe it well, turn on the lamp, close the door and wait until all the drops are dry.
Spraying on the snow will only harm, since after that there will be brown spots on the leaves, changing the shape and curling the edges of the leaves.

Watering

Water must be purified, filtered and settled for 24 hours.
The temperature of the water should not exceed or be lower than the environment (if the room temperature is 20 degrees, then the same temperature should be water).
In cloudy weather, the frequency of watering should be reduced, since at this time the soil does not dry out well.

Top dressing

The first couple of months after planting the fertilizer is not necessary.
Fertilize should be every two weeks.
Top dressing needs to be poured along the edges and evening or cloudy weather is best for this.
The first fertilizer should be mineral, and then boldly go to organic.

Flowering time

If you follow all the rules of the content of Gloxinia, then immediately after 3 or 4 leaves, flowers begin to form.

After the complete formation of buds, the ground part of the plant is cut off, leaving a couple of centimeters of shoot. Often this leads to re-flowering, but with the Kaiser this does not happen as often. The maximum that can reach, so it is to the growth of leaves.

Stage of rest

With the beginning of autumn, gloxinia leaves begin to dry and fall off. Thus, it reports the start of wintering, which will last about one quarter of the year.
When the ground part dies off, it is completely removed, and the pot with the tuber is transferred to a place with a low temperature, approximately from 5 to 8 degrees.
You can also transfer the tuber to wet sand.
Soil should be moistened just a couple of times for the entire period of "rest."
With dry air, watering increases to several times.

Common diseases and pests

One of the common diseases of this flower are late blight and Fusarium:

The first is almost incurable. Manifested in the beginning as a slight wilting of the leaves, stunted growth of the shoot, and also blanching. Watering is prohibited, as this will only worsen the situation. Infection gradually passes to all parts of the plant. Need to get rid of both the plant and the soil.
The second disease arises from the constant watering and constantly wet land and manifests itself as the deformation of the leaves with a change in their color.

Pests such as thrips and spider mites also carry danger to this plant. To protect the plant, it is enough to treat it with an insecticidal preparation and put the pot in a dark place.where there are no drafts.

Breeding features

Gloxinia vegetative reproduction is suitable, among other things, it is the simplest.

With the help of a leaf cutting (in two ways):

Place the stalk in the water and leave it there until the first roots appear. After that, put in the ground for 5-7 days and cover with a can.
The shoot can be immediately placed in moist soil. After that, cover it with a can or film for 2-3 weeks, keeping the temperature at 23 degrees.

Using a foliage plate:

Take a healthy leaf.
After that, make cuts on convex veins into 2 or 3 parts and place it on the ground, pressing it slightly.
Expect the appearance of small shoots.

Similar flowers

Violet - The plant belongs to the violet family. Grows mainly in regions with a temperate climate.
Terry gloxinia is a beautiful indoor plant that attracts with large flowers. There are about 70 species of this plant.
Gloxinia Avante white - belongs to the terry section. The shape resembles camellia or garden rose.
Gloxinia Esenia - terry Dutch hybrid. It reaches 30 cm in height and is the cultivated plant in the world.
Gloxinia Prince Albert - simple gloxinia variety with effective flowers. It has an additional elegance in the form of wavy edges.

Gloxinia is undeniably a beautiful flower. Growing it is not so easy as we would like, but it's worth it. Not a single guest will pass by without making a single compliment to such beauty!