How to grow graceful salvia?
Erect shoots of salvia of different colors can often be seen in flower beds. It blooms very beautifully, and this can happen up to two times per season. The plant is by its nature a perennial, since it came to us from the warm tropics. In cold winters in northern regions, the flower is most often grown as an annual or biennial plant. In regions with warmer climates, certain varieties of Salvia can withstand winter outdoors and are used as perennial plantings.
Salvia cultivation methods
Depending on what kind of flower and in what region you plan to plant, grow salvia can:
- direct sowing directly into the ground;
- seedling method.
It is recommended to sow seeds in open ground in southern regions with warm winters. Both spring sowing and planting before winter are allowed.
Salvia seedlings
Most often, the plant is still planted through seedlings. At the end of February, the seeds should be sown shallowly into a nutritious and loose substrate and cover the container on top with a sheet of paper to retain moisture. Put the pot on a well-lit window in a room with a temperature of at least 25 degrees Celsius.
To maintain soil moisture, it must be regularly sprayed from a spray bottle or pour water into a sump. It is better not to water directly into the pot, otherwise the seeds may go deeper.
To get strong seedlings, the seedlings must be transplanted twice:
- when 3 true leaves appear;
- 20 days after the first transplant.
After the second dive, pinch the tops of the seedlings so that the seedlings begin to bush.
Transplanting seedlings into the ground
From April, salvia should be prepared for disembarkation. To do this, gradually reduce the temperature of the content, and when the plant acclimatizes at 10 degrees, you can take the pots outside.
It is not worth planting seedlings in a flower bed before the beginning of June, otherwise there is a risk of freezing of seedlings from night frosts.
It is better to allocate a plot for salvia in a sunny place, since only some of its varieties can grow in the shade. Prepare the holes in the flowerbed, leaving up to 30 cm between them.Pour a little humus into each and carefully roll over the young bushes along with the soil in which they grew.
Further planting care
Salvia is not a capricious character and is quite simple to care for. Watering, weeding, loosening - in general, nothing unusual needs to be done. The exception is perennial varieties. They are additionally needed:
- cut to form a beautiful bush;
- remove buds that have faded;
- cut off old shoots for the winter.
As for feeding, then for these purposes it is good to use complex mineral fertilizers... Two applications will be enough per season: two weeks after the dive of the seedlings and during the formation of buds.