Garden primrose refers to spring primroses, which are not so easy to grow. Often failure is experienced even by experienced gardeners.
But the loss of part of the seedlings does not mean that it is impossible to plant and grow primrose. The process requires endurance, knowledge and patience.
How to choose primrose seeds for planting
For sowing, it is better to use fresh, just collected seeds. Even with proper storage by the spring, germination will fall by 40%. What to say about store seeds whose storage conditions are unknown.
Important! The older the seeds of primrose, the longer it will take them to germinate. Often the seeds simply do not emerge at all.
Collect seeds with boxes to prevent self-dispersal. Further, the seeds ripen in a cool place. A temperature of about 20 ° C is already detrimental to planting material.
If you can’t collect your own seeds, then before buying, pay attention to the expiration dates that are indicated on the package.
Rules for germination of primrose seeds
Do not despair if there are no seeds. 90% success of cultivation depends not only on seeds, but also on cultivation agrotechnics. Therefore, get seeds shortly before planting primroses, best in late autumn or early spring.
Start landing right away. During the summer planting, you will have to tinker a bit, regularly water the garden bed and mulch it with humus. Sowing is carried out directly into the soil, superficially. As soon as the seedlings appear, and a second pair of leaves is formed, primrose should be peeled. Plants grown in this way for the winter are sure to cover with a thick layer of mulch from dry leaves.
It is better to conduct primrose winter sowing in boxes, but not earlier than a stable frosty temperature is established, and the soil will freeze sufficiently. In this case, the seeds are also placed superficially, but covered with dry leaves, and then covered with a film. In this state, they are left in partial shade until spring. Shelter is removed as soon as the snow melts.
Advice! Carry out winter sowing densely, part of the seeds may freeze or get wet.
As soon as the shoots appear, primrose is regularly watered. Even short-term drought is detrimental to plants.
In the spring, primrose is planted on seedlings in late February or early March. Seeds are not buried in the soil, the container is covered with a film and cleaned in a cold place where the temperature does not drop below -10 C. Stratification is carried out for a month. After that, the containers are transferred to a warm room with a temperature of +16 C and good illumination. After a while, the first shoots should appear. Seedlings are carefully watered, a greenhouse is aired.
How to grow high-quality seedling of primrose from seeds
Primrose grows and develops rather slowly, so be patient. Seedlings dive as soon as a second or third pair of leaves appears on them. At the same time, a tiny plant is poked with tweezers and transferred to a pot. Transplant primrose need several times as it grows. It takes two years to grow plants before planting in the garden.
Containers for growing seedlings are suitable for any, the main thing is that they have enough drainage holes and a good drainage layer. The soil for planting primrose from seeds is chosen fertile, loose, but rough in structure. Suitable seedlings or self-prepared soil from the following components:
• turf soil - 1 part;
• sand - 1 part;
• leaf humus - 2 parts.
Before planting, the soil is not sieved, it is well watered in the container so that it is compacted, there are no grooves and pits.
The quality of seedlings is affected by preplant seed treatment. If the seeds were bought in a store, then there is no need to carry out such processing. Manufacturers pre-pickle them before packing.
Self-collected seeds from the dacha must be disinfected to avoid the appearance of fungal diseases that will destroy the planting of primrose. To do this, the seeds are soaked in a solution of potassium permanganate or a suitable fungicide for 20 minutes, after which they are washed in clean water and dried.
Primrose seedling care
The main task of the gardener is careful watering. Overmoistening of the soil and its dryness must not be allowed. The soil should always be in a moderately moist state.
Do not rush to open the greenhouse with shoots early, they develop so slowly that it is not soon to bury themselves in shelter. But the increased humidity of the seedlings is necessary.
During irrigation, water should not fall on delicate sprouts, carefully water the soil from a syringe, syringe or other improvised materials.
Before planting primrose in the garden, it does not need to be additionally hardened. Only the largest bushes in a week are taken out onto the street.
How to plant a primrose in the garden (photo)
Primrose is transplanted to a permanent place in spring, when the threat of frost or early autumn passes. In summer, plants can be grown in containers.
Primrose is planted in an open area with moderate lighting, under trees or shrubs. Direct sunlight is unacceptable. The soil on the site should be loose and nutritious. But it depends more on the variety of primrose. Be sure to pay attention to this.
During the transplant, try not to injure the roots, transfer the seedlings to the holes together with an earthen lump, by the method of transhipment. Equally important is the distance between plants. For the development of primrose, enough space is needed, therefore, between large bushes leave up to 30 cm, and small ones are planted at a distance of 15 cm.
After transplanting, the primrose is mulched and watered well. They are gradually transferred to the normal mode of cultivation. As a rule, adult plants are watered only during a drought.
Planted from the seeds of primrose bloom only after 1.5 years, some varieties will start blooming only in the third year of cultivation. This is worth considering.
How to propagate primrose
Garden primrose can be propagated in several ways:
• dividing the bush;
• leafy cuttings.
By dividing the bush, adult primrose bushes propagate well. For 4-5 years they are dug up, the roots are washed under water and separated with a sharp knife into the plots. Primroses are planted in a new place in mid-August or early September. Once planting primrose, they are easy to propagate and at the same time receive a lot of planting material.
Weak plants can be saved by propagating them with leafy cuttings. A sheet with a heel is cut from the bush and rooted in a moist substrate at a temperature of 16-18 C far from sunlight. When young shoots appear, the plants are dug up and placed in a container where they hibernate. In spring, plants are transferred to the garden.
What to do with primrose after flowering
When the plant stops blooming, the soil around it is gently loosened, weeds are removed and left until autumn. At this time, primrose leaves grow, which must be preserved until winter. They will serve as a natural shelter.
In autumn, leaves cannot be trimmed, as the flowers will be smaller, the plant will be reborn. Old overwintered leaves are removed only in the spring.
Young primroses in regions with severe winters are additionally covered with dry foliage, a layer of which is not less than 10 cm. Where the climate allows, there is enough snow cover, but with the advent of spring the ice crust is removed from the plant.
As you can see, growing primroses is not easy, but even if at least a few plants survive, this is a reward for the work done.
