Gerberas from seeds at home: how to grow, how to plant a room flower and take care of it?

Gerbera, like a houseplant, looks very festive and cozy at home. Few people may not like this flower.

Of course, it is interesting for every grower to grow a beautiful plant from scratch on their own.
Therefore, in this article we will talk about how to grow gerbera from seeds at home.

You can also see a photo of the gerbera itself, as well as its seeds. Learn how to choose a pot for this beauty.

Botanical certificate

Gerbera - a native of Africa, which belongs to the family of asters. The Dutch botanist Jan Gronovius discovered and described this plant in the 18th century, he gave it a name in honor of the German botanist Traugott Gerber.

It is found in nature in Asian countries, Australia and Japan. Many compare this flower with a camomile or a nyvyanik. In my opinion, it looks like a small sunflower. The dark core is framed by many elongated oval petals. Coloring of white, yellow, orange, pink, red and purple tones. Only the blue color variation is missing.

The flower is located on a long leafless stalk. The diameter of the flower basket is from 4 to 30 (!) Cm. The leaves grow from the ground. In shape, they resemble dandelion leaves - elongated with irregular shapes, as if torn, by the edges. The length of the leaves reaches 35 cm. The height of the bush is up to 60 cm.

The main use of this plant is cutting for sale., making bouquets and flower arrangements. Dwarf varieties are successfully used in indoor floriculture. Learn how to save cut gerberas in a vase for as long as possible here.

Breeding methods

New gerbera specimens can be obtained in 3 ways.:

Seeds. We will talk about this in more detail below. A flower grown in this way will bloom for the first time only after almost a year. For growing, you can use seeds collected with your own hands.
Cuttings. To preserve the characteristic features of hybrid varieties, when propagation by seeds is not suitable, cuttings are used. To do this, cut off part of the stem with a knot and a leaf, and then root it in the ground.
Rhizome division. To do this, take out an adult plant from the ground and divide the roots. This method, as well as cuttings, helps to obtain a varietal plant similar in characteristics.

Read more about all methods of propagation of gerbera in our material.

Seed

Gerbera seeds are elongated with a fluffy brush on the end. The size is small, in one gram contains from 300 to 500 pieces.

Pollination of a flower

Gerbera is not a self-pollinated plant, since its reproductive organs ripen at different times. Therefore, to obtain seeds, artificial cross-pollination is required during flowering.

Ripened pollen can be used for 100 days. It can be stored in clean, dry glassware with a lid. To preserve the variety, both plants must belong to the same species. If this is not possible, you can use what is available.

In this case, the result is unpredictable, the resulting seeds can give a completely different plant in terms of characteristics. For pollination at home, ripened pollen from one flower is transferred to another flower.

You can simply collect pollen with a brush and "spread" the middle of another flower. It is better to do this several times during flowering, for sure. Ripened pollen is visible by protrusion of the middle of the flower with yellowing.

When do they ripen?

Gerbera seed ripens in 3-4 weeks after successful pollination. Accordingly, this happens in the fall at the end of flowering (about when and how many gerberas bloom and why they do not, you can find out here).

How to collect?

As soon as the middle of the flower becomes fluffy like a dandelion, you can collect seeds by carefully disassembling the flower with your hands. Gerbera seeds quickly lose their germination, so they need to be planted within 6 months after harvest.

How much are?

After looking at a bunch of offers on the Internet for the sale of seeds, I can announce the approximate price range for gerbera seeds from 22 to 89 rubles per package, in which there are 10-25 seeds. Varieties: Germs, Jameson, Festival, Rays, California Giant. Seeds are mainly in the form of mixtures, that is, what color palette you get is unknown.

Attention! When buying seeds, be sure to pay attention to the date of packaging. Gerbera seeds significantly lose their germination after 7-8 months.

Photo

Below you can find photos of gerbera and its seeds.

How to grow?

Now let's take a closer look at the process of planting gerbera seeds:

Sowing dates. You can plant, starting in the fall, after receiving the seeds and until spring. For successful cultivation, spring planting is still more acceptable, it does not contradict the natural biorhythms of the plant.
The soil. The soil for growing gerbera should be light, porous. It can be prepared from humus, peat and sand in a ratio of 2: 2: 1. Soil with a slightly acidic or neutral reaction is best suited. A couple of hours before sowing, the soil should be shed with a hot solution of potassium permanganate - this procedure is the prevention of all kinds of infections in the soil.
Seed preparation. The seeds of this plant do not require soaking, or other special preparation for sowing.
Sowing. Seeds are laid out on the surface of moist soil and lightly sprinkled with a layer of the same soil, or peat. To accelerate germination, the container can be covered with glass until seedlings appear, which will come in a week. As soon as the majority of seedlings appeared, the shelter should be removed, otherwise there is a risk of loss of seedlings from the "black leg".
Temperature mode. For the appearance of sprouts, maintaining the temperature in the range from 18 to 20 degrees is required.
Capacity. To obtain gerbera seedlings, you can plant the seeds in a container, followed by transplanting into a separate pot. Since we will not keep them in the container for a long time, it should not be very deep.

Choose a pot

Your beauty has grown from a state of seedlings, there are already several real leaves on it. It's time to think about transplanting into a separate pot. It should not be too big, otherwise flowering can never wait. At the initial stage, a capacity of 700-800 ml is suitable.

The gerbera feels best in a clay pot. A layer of drainage material must be laid to the bottom.

However, the advantage of plastic utensils in the possibility of the most optimal method of watering is through the pallet.

Plant care

Consider the rules for the care and conditions of the gerbera from the first sprouts to an adult plant:

Seedlings, like an adult plant in the active phase, require maintenance at a temperature of 18 to 24 degrees. In the dormant period, which begins after flowering is completed and lasts about 3 months, the air temperature should be lower, 14-16 degrees, the limit - 12 degrees.
Seedlings, which grow in the winter-spring period, sometimes may need additional illumination. With a lack of lighting, it can stretch out and be frail.
An adult plant has an interesting feature during flowering; it needs lighting no more than 12 hours a day. That is why gerberas bloom from late summer, when daylight hours are declining. However, she loves sunlight, and the intensity of lighting is more important to her. You can even use additional lighting in the winter to prolong flowering.
However, do not overdo it, remembering the need for rest. Most often, gerberas themselves stop blooming when needed.
Watering seedlings should be moderate, but the soil should not dry out. Watering must be done carefully, without falling onto the seedlings themselves. To do this, you can use a syringe, or an old teapot.
An adult plant requires abundant watering, with the exception of the dormant period, when watering is significantly reduced. However, it is worth remembering that it is absolutely impossible to make a swamp in a pot. Do not pour water in the center of the bush and on the shoots. That is why watering through the pallet, as well as the correct moisture-permeable soil, is so good.
Important point - water must be watered at least room temperature. Cold water contributes to the development of fungal infections and root rot.
Gerbera needs high humidity, but direct spraying onto the leaves is not advisable. This can lead to fungal diseases. Therefore, you need to either spray water around the flower, or pour pebbles into the pallet, pour water and install a pot of gerbera there.
The bottom of the pot should not constantly touch the water. They held it in water for watering for about 10 minutes, and again set it on pebbles.
An adult plant requires an annual transplant with the replacement of soil in a more spacious container. You should not take a pot too large, you need a container 2-3 cm larger in diameter. From store gerberas, a soil mixture for roses is suitable.
10-14 days after planting seedlings at a permanent place, you can start feeding it with complex mineral fertilizers for flowering plants. Do this once every 2 weeks. Nitrogen dressing for gerbera is not needed.
If you have prepared the soil correctly, then it already has the necessary supply of nitrogen. Every year you change the ground for a new one. And make nitrogen fertilizers with it. Additional nitrogen fertilizing will lead to the growth of green mass to the detriment of flowering.
It is very important to provide the gerbera with a rest period after flowering. To do this, reduce the temperature, minimize watering, doing this when the topsoil dries. Feeding a flower at this time is also not worth it.

Conclusion

Gerbera is a very beautiful flower. No wonder, it takes 5th place in popularity among cut flowers. Bright and extraordinary, it is able to revive any interior, and its natural feature - to bloom in the autumn, will help get rid of seasonal spleen. Growing gerbera from seeds, you can get real pleasure, both from the process itself and from the result. Good shoots and lush flowering to you!