Autumn is a pity to part with your favorite petunias, blooming garden all summer. Especially sad to send to the compost heap favorite varieties and hybrids, not hoping to find the spring on sale of their seeds. However, there are ways to keep dear to the heart of the plant.
Preparing for winter
If Petunia was growing in the open ground, need in the fall until frost to cut the Bush all the whip, leaving 10-15 cm and Then dig and plant with a small lump of earth transplanted into a pot with a volume of 2.5-3 l On the bottom be sure to pour drainage. For planting, use a loose and nutritious soil mixture, it can be garden land mixed with purchased flower soil in a ratio of 1:1.
If your pet spent all summer in a container, it is enough just to cut her shoots and take to the winter in the room. In 2-3 months it will be good to replace top soil on more fertile. To do this, part of the soil (no more than 2 cm deep) carefully remove and sprinkle in its place a fresh nutrient substrate.
You can also save the plant by cutting and rooting the cuttings. To do this, prepare a small container with a lid, pour the loose substrate, moisten it. Cut the cuttings 10-12 cm long and remove the lower leaves.
Plant the resulting cuttings in the prepared container, burying them in the soil for 1.5-2 cm. Cover the top with a lid or a jar to maintain high humidity. After a while, you will notice the regrowth of new leaves-this means that the cuttings have taken root. You can seat them in separate pots.
Wintering conditions
As you have noticed, it is easy to prepare plants for wintering indoors. It is more difficult to ensure optimal conditions for their detention. Petunia will feel comfortable at a temperature of +13…+15°C and good light, that is, it is necessary to organize supplementary lighting. In a warmer room and with a lack of light growing shoots will be weak and begin to stretch.
Watering should be moderate, allow waterlogged soil can not. In February-March, your overwintered plants will get new shoots and you can begin to propagate Petunia cuttings.