We plant asters for seedlings: when can you start sowing
Such simple-looking, but full of charm, the multi-colored heads of asters are the most frequent inhabitant of country flower beds. Not capricious, easy to care for, abundantly blooming, large-flowered annuals and cute small perennials ... What more could a florist want? However, not everyone and not everywhere can admire their flowering, but all because aster has a very long growing season. Even the earliest variety takes at least 3 months for a lush bush to grow from the seed crumbs and tie the buds. In the northern regions, asters simply do not have enough summer and warmth for flowering, so the culture is grown there. seedling method.
Even in the warm south, the flower is grown through seedlings, which makes it possible to bring the time of its flowering closer and even time it to a certain date.
When can you plant asters for seedlings? Before you start sowing seeds, you need to take into account the following nuances:
- regional climate;
- varietal affiliation.
Features of sowing dates in certain regions
Aster seedlings are kept indoors for about 2 months on average. This is how long it takes for the seeds to sprout and the seedlings to grow well. Then, in late spring, when the weather is warm and the soil warms up, the bushes are moved to a flower bed. In principle, these flowers are quite cold-resistant and capable of growing in any climate, but the main purpose of the seedling method is slightly different - to bring flowering closer.
Depending on where the flowers will be grown, the planting time is slightly pushed back or closer:
- in the central regions, seeds can be sown already at the beginning of March;
- in the Urals, it is better to postpone sowing until the end of the month;
- in the Siberian expanses, and completely postpone the landing to April.
As for the warm southern regions with a long summer, then plant there aster for seedlings you can both at the beginning and at the end of spring, in May, just in the latter case it will bloom in the fall.
Sowing varietal differences
Each variety has its own growing season. Early types of asters need up to 3 months to form buds, therefore, to get early (summer) flowering, it is more advisable to sow them for seedlings in March. But seedlings of late varieties of plants that bloom in mid-autumn can be safely planted in May.
In other words, the earlier the aster should bloom, the earlier it can be sown, and vice versa.