How to correctly pick a petunia

Petunia is one of the most common garden flowers, despite the fact that this plant is a perennial, in our latitudes, due to the short spring-summer period, it is grown as an annual.

This flower is convenient for its versatility. You can always choose a variety or hybrid that will be appropriate in a mixed flower bed, and on an alpine slide, and in a rabatka, and in hanging baskets, and on loggias, verandas and balconies.

Unpretentious care, attractiveness and long flowering period determine the widespread prevalence of this plant. The only difficult moment in growing is the initial period, from sowing to picking petunias.

Picking petunia from peat tablets

Now quite popular material for sowing flower seedlings are peat tablets

, which are densely compressed peat that increases in volume when it enters a humid environment.

It is most convenient to sow pelleted or granular seeds into such a substrate, which are more suitable for spot sowing, as for the size of a peat tablet, 40 mm in diameter is quite enough for such a flower.

In fact, with this method of sowing, picking petunias from peat tablets, in the classical sense of this process, is not needed, but it should be noted that in the phase of two true pairs of leaves (this is approximately 3 to 4 weeks after sowing) the plants need transplanting ...

To do this, it is necessary to prepare disposable cups or seedling pots of small diameter, filling them with nutrient soil with good physical and mechanical properties (loose, light, with sufficient carrying capacity), which will allow the root system to actively develop, and, accordingly, the aerial part of the petunia, then make a small depression in the center of the soil that has filled the pot.

Next, you should well moisten the seedling tablet, place it in the recess and sprinkle it with soil so that it is completely hidden, spill thoroughly with water and put the container with seedlings in a place with good lighting.

Petunia picking for seedlings

When sowing seeds in seedling boxes, petunias should be dived onto seedlings in the phase of appearance of the second pair of true leaves. To do this, it is necessary to prepare separate planting cups for each plant, fill them with a ready-made loose light nutrient mixture, then make a small depression in the middle of the top layer of soil in pots.

Having thoroughly moistened the soil in the seedling box, you can start picking. To reduce the trauma of the process for delicate and fragile petunia seedlings, not to damage the still weak root system, it is best to use tweezers, especially if ordinary seeds were used during sowing and the seedlings are very thickened.

Wet soil should be slightly "raised" with a spatula (for this it is very convenient to use the tools from the kit for home floriculture - they are small and light), stepping back a centimeter from the start of shoots, then pick up one plant with tweezers and carefully transfer it to the previously prepared pot, place it in depression, cover with soil and spill.

Such manipulations should be repeated with each plant. Diving a petunia is not difficult, although, of course, this process requires painstaking, special accuracy, patience and does not accept haste.Next, the pots are placed on the windowsills or backlit shelving, the soil in them is moistened as it dries, the feeding mode is selected and the lighting is adjusted (if we are talking about greenhouse growing of seedlings).

No need to dive petunia

Many experienced growers with extensive experience in growing petunia seedlings have come to the conclusion that the easiest way to get healthy seedlings is bypassing the picking process.

This can be done using spot seeding, immediately setting the desired seeding step (distance between plants). This is most conveniently done by using pelleted or granulated seeds, which are much larger than natural petunia seeds.

Each gardener and florist, who has gained his personal experience in growing flower seedlings, chooses the most convenient sowing method for him, decides for himself how to dive petunias.

Beginning flower growers would like to wish patience and attentiveness in this painstaking business.

The main thing is to love flowers with all your soul, to spare no effort, time or care for them, and then your garden will turn into a beautiful paradise motley corner.

Read also: when is it better to plant petunias for seedlings!

Video: how to dive a petunia correctly