What flowers are like a rose?
Despite the fact that the beautiful rose has firmly taken the throne of the queen of flowers, she has many competitors. First of all, this concerns flowers that are so similar to a rose that they are rightfully considered its doubles. The list of such plants is rather big: these are ranunculus, Chinese rose (hibiscus), begonia, new varieties of geranium, terry balsam and primrose, gardenia, Asian buttercup... They fell in love with flower growers first of all because they do not have such sharp thorns as a rose.
Eustoma (Japanese rose) occupies an honorable place among the flowers similar to a rose. Outwardly, it very much resembles a rose, but differs from it in that it stands in a bouquet for a long time after cutting and does not have thorns.
Conditions for planting and caring for eustoma
It is better to grow this plant by sowing seeds. Choose a light and neutral acid soil. With increased acidity, seedlings will grow very slowly. Better to take peat soil with the addition of sand. A good alternative would be peat tablets.
In order for the seedlings to germinate together, cover the container with the seeds with a film, since they love heat (temperature at least 25 degrees) and moisture. As soon as the seeds germinate, remove the film and add backlighting, especially in winter, otherwise the sprouts will weaken and stretch out.
Water after the top layer has dried, avoiding moisture stagnation. To protect the grown seedlings from diseases, they are fed with fertilizers (zircon, foundationol).
After about a month and a half, the grown seedlings dive and again cover with foil for a couple of days. At the same time, it is not recommended to abruptly remove it - the plant must be gradually hardened, opening the container, and only then open it completely. Transplantation to a permanent place in a pot is carried out after the formation of at least 4 leaves in the sprouts.
Growing eustoma in the open field
Eustoma grows well both at home and in open ground in flower beds and flower beds. For transplanting a flower similar to rose, you need to choose a sunny place on the site, inaccessible to drafts. If necessary, fertilize the soil to make the soil light, and feed it with mineral fertilizers.
Since eustoma is a thermophilic plant, planting in the ground should be carried out after the frost stops, and at first it is recommended to cover the flower at night.
Eustoma grows well in both small and large pots. But you need to pay attention to which species it belongs to - short or tall, so that in the future there is no question of creating a support for a growing flower.