Shabo carnations are planted in ridges and mixborders. The plant is also used for container planting, decorating balconies and terraces. The culture is considered quite finicky. Mistakes made during planting and care can deprive the Shabot carnation of its attractiveness. To get a lush and bright bush, the plant must be properly cared for, starting from the early stages of its cultivation.
Timely sowing
Shabot carnation seedlings develop slowly, so sowing seeds is carried out in winter at home. With the onset of warm days, the seedlings are moved to open ground. The most favorable period for sowing is at the end of January - beginning of February. In this case, the bushes will have enough time to grow and get stronger.
Planting of new varieties can be postponed until March, but special care must be taken in caring for them. For accelerated growth, these plants require a lot of light and the right temperature. Timely sowing is a prerequisite for obtaining flowering this season. The bushes will be able to bloom in early summer.
Suitable soil for seedlings
Clove seeds are sown in soil with a neutral or slightly acidic reaction and a loose structure. You can purchase a special soil mixture for flower seedlings in the store or prepare the substrate yourself. To do this, mix:
- 2 hours of garden soil;
- 2 tsp lowland peat;
- 2 hours humus;
- 1 tsp sand.
Since the seedlings will be grown for a long time, fertilizers are added to the soil. Add half a liter jar of wood ash and 1 tbsp to a bucket of soil. l. complex mineral fertilizer for flowers. Purchased land does not need to be fertilized; it is enriched with all the necessary elements.
To disinfect a self-prepared soil mixture, it is calcined in the oven for half an hour at 70 °C or kept for the same amount of time in a water bath, stirring occasionally. Disinfection must be carried out 10–15 days before sowing, so that later the soil can restore its microflora.
Choosing the right container
Carnation seeds are usually sown in a common box, and later planted in separate cups or cassettes. You should not choose containers with a height of more than 5 cm for sowing. In squat containers it is easier to avoid waterlogging of the soil.
Excess water will immediately flow out of the drainage holes and simultaneously evaporate from the surface. This will protect the seedlings from being damaged by the “black leg”. This disease is a real scourge of seedlings; its appearance is often provoked by excess moisture. Sowing is carried out traditionally - in furrows, deepening the seeds by 0.5 cm.
Features of care
For full development, seedlings must be provided with 14 hours of daylight. In winter, this can only be achieved by using additional lighting. An LED strip, a fluorescent lamp or a phytolamp are installed above the plants. All of these types of lighting are economical and provide plants with the right spectrum of light.
When watering, adhere to the rule of the golden mean.The soil should not dry out, but excess moisture should not be allowed. Before watering, let the water sit for at least a day. During the day, seedlings will be comfortable at +20 °C; at night, it is advisable to reduce the temperature to +15–16 °C.
A prerequisite for obtaining a lush bush is tweezing (pinching) the crown. It is done after 5–6 true leaves appear on the bushes. The procedure is carried out by pinching off the shoot with fingernails or using small scissors. Immediately after pinching, side shoots will begin to grow.
Double pick
Usually seedlings are picked once, but in the case of Shabot cloves, the procedure must be carried out 2 times. This is necessary due to the long stay of seedlings at home. The roots quickly master the volume of soil in the cup after the first picking, and the plants begin to lack nutrients.
First, the seedlings are planted in 200 ml cups or cassettes after they have 2 true leaves. The soil should be the same as that used for sowing. At the end of March, the carnation is picked a second time. New containers should have a diameter of 10–12 cm.
If the seedlings have become very elongated by this point, they are planted 2 cm below the edge of the pot and the remaining space is covered with earth. Before planting seedlings in a permanent place in May, they are hardened off for 2 weeks, gradually accustoming them to open air and lower temperatures.
Carnations should not be left without attention even after planting in the flowerbed. Until the beginning of June, the plants are covered with lutrasil. Watering is carried out directly through the covering material. In such conditions, the plants will be protected from the scorching sun during the day and cold at night.To create a blooming carpet of Shabot carnations, 1 sq. 15–16 plants are planted per meter. The bushes are regularly watered and fertilized, and faded buds are removed.
