Features of growing lupins from seeds

Lupine is a very beautiful flower and is well known among gardeners and landscape designers. The plant is interesting not only in terms of decorative properties. For example, it is known for certain that the ancient Romans and Greeks used it both as the main food for livestock, and as a medicine with which many diseases were cured.

Today, lupins can be seen in private plots, as well as in parks and gardens, where the flower stands out effectively against the background of other garden greenery and is often the centerpiece of flower arrangements. Due to the high popularity of the plant, the issue of its seed reproduction is quite relevant for both professional gardeners and amateur gardeners.

The time for planting lupins depends on how you plan to grow the plant. For example, for planting seeds for seedlings, the most favorable time is the first week of March. If sowing is planned to be carried out immediately in open ground, then there is no clear time frame for this. In such cases, you need to focus solely on the climatic conditions of the region, as well as on the likelihood of return frosts at night. So, in the southern regions of the country it may be the second decade of April, while in the northern latitudes it may be the middle or even the end of May.

In addition to spring sowing, there is also autumn sowing, when seeds are sown in open ground a month before the beginning of winter - in the last week of October. Sowing seeds "before winter" has some advantages over a spring event. Firstly, the seeds are laid in the soil warmed up over the summer, and secondly, in the winter period they undergo a process of natural stratification, which significantly increases their germination in spring. Seeds of autumn planting begin to bloom in the coming season, around mid-August, while seeds planted in spring will bloom only next year.

Lupine can be propagated in a personal plot in several ways, of which seed is the most affordable, although not the most effective. This is due to the fact that new specimens often do not inherit all the traits of the parent plant, and the classic purple or pink lupine grows from most seeds. This is especially true for those plants for the cultivation of which the seeds of our own collection were used.

In general, the seed method of breeding lupins is a very creative, interesting process and allows you to get the most unexpected colors. Besides, with the help of seeds, large areas can be sown in a short time, which cannot be done in other ways.

If you decide to collect lupine seeds yourself, then you need to prepare for this event in advance. For this closely monitor the onset of fruit ripening and cut the pods shortly before they begin to open. If there is no possibility of daily monitoring, then you can pre-tie a few of the strongest, well-dried pods with a soft light and breathable cloth, into which the beans will be poured when the doors are opened. The collected seeds are removed from cloth bags, scattered on a sheet of paper, dried well and poured into a glass jar or cloth or paper bag.

If it is decided to plant the seeds in spring, then to increase the percentage of germination, the upper shell of the seed is gently opened using scissors or sandpaper. If neither one nor the other was at hand, then the integrity of the shell can be broken in another way. To do this, the seeds are placed in a freezer, and then immediately dipped in boiling water for 1 minute.

Due to the sharp temperature drop, the hard shell cracks, and the seed gains access to water. Then the beans are laid out on one end of wet gauze, covered with the other end, placed on a saucer and placed in a warm place. From time to time, the fabric is sprayed from a spray bottle, making sure it is always wet.

Through the incisions, the seed gains access to water and swells quickly. Such seeds are distinguished by friendly and fast germination, while unprepared beans germinate for a long time and not at the same time.

After most of the seeds have germinated, they are mixed with a powder made from old lupine tubers and planted in a substrate. This procedure provides the seedlings with the necessary bacteria to promote better growth and development of the flower. No prior seed preparation is required before sowing in the fall.

Growing lupins is not difficult even for novice gardeners. The main thing is to plant the seeds correctly and provide the plant with proper care. Seed propagation involves two ways of planting beans - for seedlings in a special container and in open ground.

Planting lupine seeds for seedlings is carried out in a nutritious substrate, which you can buy in a store or prepare yourself. For this in a ratio of 2: 2: 1, mix the sod land, peat, sand and thoroughly ignite the resulting mixture in the oven. The calcination time is about 20 minutes at an air temperature of at least 200 degrees. If it is not possible to ignite the substrate, then you can spill it with boiling water or a solution of potassium permanganate.

Seedling boxes, planting cassettes or peat pots can be used as containers for seedlings. When using the latter, the proportion of peat in the homemade substrate is halved. The main condition should be the presence of a drainage hole through which excess water will leave. The soil is placed in the selected container, moistened and lightly tamped. Then the seeds are laid out on the surface of the substrate, pressed to a depth of no more than 2 cm and sprinkled.

If cups or pots are used, then one seed is placed in each of them. If planting is carried out in common boxes, then the distance between adjacent seeds should be at least 5-7 cm. Then the soil is irrigated from a spray bottle, covered with film or glass and removed to a warm place. Once a day, the man-made greenhouse is dismantled for 15-20 minutes and the planting is aired.

Lupins sprout quickly enough, and already 7-14 days after planting, almost all seeds germinate. As soon as this happens, the film is removed and the plants are rearranged on a sunny window. A couple of weeks before planting in the garden, the plants begin to harden. To do this, the seedlings are taken out into the street, each day increasing the duration of their stay in the open air.

After 2-3 leaves appear on each lupine, and the soil temperature exceeds 10 degrees, the seedlings are transplanted into open ground. To do this, dig deep holes at a distance of at least 30-50 cm from each other, drain the bottom with expanded clay, broken brick, sand and plant shoots. It is not worth delaying the transplanting of seedlings to a permanent place, since, due to the intensive growth of the root system, the risk of injuring it during transplantation increases every day. After planting, the plants are watered, and the trunk circle is mulched with needles, straw or peat.

When planting seeds in open ground in spring, the soil must be carefully prepared. Lupins prefer to grow on loamy and sandy loam soils with a slightly alkaline or slightly acidic reaction. If the soil in the country is too acidic, it must be lime. For this, dolomite flour is added to it in the autumn at the rate of 3 kg per 1 m2.

This procedure is performed no more than once every 4 years. Alkaline soils, on the other hand, slightly acidify by adding peat to them at the rate of 5 kg per 1 m2.

After adding additives, the soil is well dug up and left to winter. In the spring, they dig up the soil again well and begin to plant seedlings or seeds in it. Lupins prefer well-lit areas with little natural shading. Poor lighting causes the plant to gravitate towards light, which is to the detriment of its decorative properties.

The seeds are buried 2 cm and sprinkled with sifted earth. Moisten the planting as needed, being careful not to wash the seeds out of the ground. After 5-6 leaves appear on the shoots, the planting is thinned out, leaving the strongest and strongest shoots.

To do this, in the last days of October or at the beginning of November, depending on the climate of the region, the seed material is briefly soaked in a 50% solution of "Fundazol" and sown on a flowerbed with fertile soil, deepening no more than 2.5 cm. Then planting is mulched with peat and left to winter. In the spring, after the snow melts, lupins begin to actively germinate and develop rapidly, and in the second half of summer they already delight the owners with the first flowers.

In order to grow a beautiful and healthy lupine, you need to follow simple rules of care. For this you need to water, feed and weed the plant on time, as well as protect it from pests, prepare it for winter and treat it from diseases.

• Regular watering is required only for a young plant, which is in the rooting stage. Adult flowers are watered as needed during the very dry months and in preparation for flowering.
• During the budding period (in the first half of July) lupins need to be fed with potassium-phosphorus preparations. To do this, take 5 g of potassium chloride and 20 g of superphosphate per 1 m2 of land. Nitrogen-containing fertilizers are not used for lupins. Feeding flowers begin from the second year after planting.
• From time to time, the ground around the plants is gently loosened, while removing weeds, and in order to avoid exposing the root collar, they also spud.
• To increase the decorative effect and increase the duration of flowering faded shoots must be removed, thereby stimulating the emergence of new ones capable of re-flowering at the end of summer.
• Tall lupins are often used in landscape design and act as a backdrop for undersized species. In order to prevent the plants from breaking under the gusts of wind, it is recommended to build a support next to them.
• At the end of flowering in the first decade of October, the leaves and peduncles are cut off, collecting seeds... The ground around the flower is covered with dry sawdust, covered with spruce branches and left to winter. In the spring, with the onset of the first thaws, the shelter must be dismantled, otherwise the roots may begin to rot.

When growing lupins, some problems can be encountered, such as pest infestations and infectious diseases.

• Among the insects that most often annoy lupins are aphids. It is especially dangerous during the budding period, during which the aphid begins to drink the juice of the flower, which leads to drying out and premature withering of buds and leaves. To destroy aphids, lupine bushes are recommended to be sprayed with preparations such as "Fufanon" and "Bi-58 New".
• The plant often suffers from the larvae of the sprout fly and the nodule weevil. The latter eats with pleasure the foliage and growth points of lupins, and its larvae devour the root system of the flower. To destroy adult beetles, the bushes are treated with a solution of any insecticide, for example, "Kemifos", and "Pochin" helps to cope with the larvae.

As for infectious diseases, the most dangerous for lupins are rust, root and gray rot, spotting of various etiologies, fusarium wilting and phomopsis. In case of detection of such infections, the plants are immediately treated with fungicides and the method of growing flowers is revised. For example, most fungal and bacterial diseases occur as a result of excessive moisture in the soil or untimely removal of weeds. In this case, a drier place should be chosen for the plant, or watering should be excluded.

After them, lupins often fall ill with fusarium, ceratophorosis, phomopsis and all kinds of rot. The symptoms of all diseases are different and only an experienced gardener can determine what kind of ailment the flower has struck. But if the inflorescences began to fade, brown spots appeared on the leaves, or they began to curl, the ground parts of the plant began to dry out, and the fruits ceased to set - this should be a cause for concern and serve as a signal to start decisive measures to combat the disease. If all the growing rules are followed and the plants are well cared for, then most of them look great up to 5-6 years of age. Further, the lupins degenerate and require replacement.

The next video will tell you about the intricacies of sowing and growing lupins.