How to feed cyclamen: general rules for the selection of fertilizer, as well as the procedure for actions at home, including during flowering

Many gardeners buy cyclamen because of the bright flowering. It blooms when other indoor plants are resting.

In winter, lush and beautiful buds bloom on it framed by lush foliage with delicate silver-green patterns.

For it to bloom, you do not have to create special conditions. The main thing is to feed him on time, but how to do it right?

In this article we will learn how and when to feed this beauty.

Briefly about the plant

Another name for the flower is alpine violet.. It blooms in winter. Winter flowering is its main feature, but in order to enjoy it, she must rest in the summer. Plant growers find attractive patterns on leaves with perfect proportions. When it blooms, stems with unusual shapes of white, purple, red, scarlet or raspberry flowers will rise above them. The number of peduncles is 10-15. The buds on them are small or large, depending on the type of cyclamen.

General watering rules

For cyclamen to bloom profusely and beautifully, it needs proper care and proper watering. The frequency of irrigation is influenced by the fact, whether the grower can create ideal conditions in the room so that the humidity is high. If it is high, watering is moderate. You also need to regularly feed him, using mineral fertilizers with superphosphate, potassium and ammonium nitrate.

When watering cyclamen, they remember that it is better not to top it up than to pour it. Frequent watering is useless, as the tuber will rot. Having allowed the soil to be waterlogged in a humid room, they are not surprised at the abundance of deformed flowers. During summer dormancy, cyclamen blooms in autumn and blooms in April-May (about when and how flowering occurs and what to do with cyclamen before and after it has blossomed, read here, and from this article you will learn how to care for this plant during dormancy). If yellowed leaves appear at this time, remove them.

Cyclamen watering should be balanced, i.e. it is better to wait until the topsoil dries, and only then water it. Water is poured from a watering can and only along the edge of the pot so as not to soak the tuber. After an hour, all excess water that fell into the pan is drained. There is another way to water. Some gardeners put a pot of plants on a flat tray with low sides. Wet moss, peat and pebbles are placed in it. Having chosen this method of moistening, stretch the thread from the bottom of the tank to the top.

The Importance of Proper Fertilizer

Experienced flower growers claim that cyclamen does not like dressing. They are partially correct. A perennial indoor plant develops better, which is fed during flowering.

Important! Many indoor plants need to be fed once every two weeks during the growing season. This rule does not apply when organizing cyclamen care.

The frequency of top dressing in his case is not more than once a month. It is better to buy specialized fertilizers for this beautiful perennial blooming in winter. Complete universal top dressing is also suitable.

When and in what cases is top dressing required?

Fertilizing is needed so that cyclamen develops correctly. To do this, use special or complex fertilizers. The main thing to remember is that in the summer, when he is resting, they are not needed. The optimal frequency of feeding a flowering plant is once a month. He is fed with Floretta's liquid preparation, diluting a half-cap in two liters of defended water.

Do not use chlorine formulations for top dressing. Since cyclamen does not like salt, top dressing with mineral preparations is done carefully and in small portions. If a plant is planted from seeds, with the appearance of the first sprouts, it is fed with growth activators. After 6 months, transplanted cyclamen is fertilized.

What and how to fertilize at home?

Consider how and in what sequence you need to feed cyclamen.

Seedlings. They are fertilized with a reduced dose of fertilizers from the calculation of the EU 0.7-1.0, and after a month they increase it to 1.5.
After rooting, top dressing with a high phosphorus content is applied. If at first their concentration is 0.2 g / l, then after 3-4 days it is already 0.5, and then 0.9 g / l at all. This is necessary in order for the plant to take root.
After a good formation, the plants refuse nitrogen fertilizers so that the roots do not rot and weaken.
After six weeks, two NPK 12:12:36 and NPK 15: 5: 30 fertilizers, 0.5 g each per liter of water, are already mixed. They are used only a week before increasing the concentration to 1.5 g per liter. Be sure not to miss this dressing, otherwise there will be problems with flowering. Trace elements are also added separately to the solutions.

Calcium Nitrate - Fertilizerapplied every ten days while cyclamen is growing. In this case, it is bred in one liter of water, taking a concentration of 1.3 grams. Sometimes flower growers do not work according to the feeding scheme described above. They try to establish a diet, starting from the season, type of soil and stage of development (about which soil is suitable for cyclamen and how to cook it yourself, read here). They are trying to protect cyclamen from stress.

In this case, some nuances are remembered:

With a lack of nitrogen, the leaves are small. With an excess of cyclamen increases the vegetative mass, and flower buds do not develop as they should.
With a lack of potassium, the leaves are colorless.
Due to the imbalance of nutrients, speckles appear on them.
Leaves grow unevenly if watering and top dressing are applied irregularly.
With a deficiency of boron, the leaf turns yellow.

About Floretta No. 1

In many flower shops sold fertilizer-rod with the same name. Its peculiarity lies in the fact that it helps not only to replenish the balance of macro- and microelements in the soil, but also to carry out prophylaxis against many diseases that affect flowering plants. The drug contains macronutrients, providing complete nutrition.

It contains nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, ammophos, potassium sulfate and magnesium, as well as double superphosphate. Having introduced it once, re-dressing is carried out only after three months, since it takes so much time for the complete breakdown of nutrients.

Advantages of the drug Floretta-1:

No harm to humans and animals.
Improving the physical condition of the soil and its fertile qualities.
Stimulation of the immune system to resist diseases and the effects of adverse factors from the outside.
Improving the decorative qualities of culture, i.e. a change for the better in the color of the leaves, the brightness of the buds and the density of the crown.

What to support during flowering?

Cyclamen must be fed during floweringso that more and more buds are revealed. To do this, use fertilizers with useful trace elements. With them, he receives the necessary supply of energy and thanks the grower with an abundance of flowers. In this case, flowering will stop in March.

Potassium. Granules with this substance are dissolved in the settled water and the flower is watered with the resulting solution 2 times a month.
Integrated. Their dosage is known from the instructions and never exceeds it.

reference. Nitrogen fertilizers are applied with great care.

Having gone too far with the dose, excessive growth of leaves will begin instead of the development of inflorescences. As soon as cyclamen fades, top dressing is not applied. In this case, he will perceive what is happening as a new stage in growth and will gain strength. In order not to provoke flowering, the stems are pruned. The bulb is removed in a dark place, leaving without watering.

It is important to note that sometimes flower growers unknowingly fertilize, greatly overestimating the dose. They do not even suspect what they will achieve. In the heat, this is fraught with a burn of the root system. Because of him, cyclamens die. It leads to the introduction of a liquid solution without first wetting the soil.

Conclusion

Cyclamen blooms profusely when fed correctly and in a timely manner. You can find out what fertilizers are needed by the condition and appearance of the flower.