Gerberas and their vibrant colors -

Gerberas are beautiful, showy flowers that we often see in ornamental bouquets. In fact, we can grow them in our own apartment, as a potted plant or even in the garden.

About gerberas

According to one of the accounts, the gerbera was first noticed by a Scottish botanist, Robert Jameson, in South Africa.

Gerberas are perennial plants that belong to the family Asteraceae. It's hard not to recognize them: they are characterized by having unique stems of considerable thickness and large, colorful flowers similar to daisies. The wide leaves are found in the lower part of the stem. The flowers can be of different colors: orange, white, pale pink, intense yellow or red.

Garden gerberas and flowerpot

Gerberas are flowers that like a warm tropical climate. For this reason, they are rather unable to survive winter. Consequently, they are grown as garden plants or as annual or perennial potted plants. You can find more than 50 varieties of these flowers in Europe today, including some designed for garden cultivation.

The garden gerbera should be more resistant to unfavorable weather conditions than its smaller version grown in a pot.

Thus, the gerbera in a pot is a flower that looks perfectly at home. Although the coldest months should be spent in the apartment, in summer and late spring there are no obstacles to expose it to the balcony or terrace. It can also occupy a place on a table or shelf, although in this case it must have constant access to light.

Gerbera cultivation

Gerbera in pot culture should have a bright position, but at the same time it should not be directly exposed to the scorching sun. Unfortunately, it is very easy to get burned and it is difficult to fight its effects. The room in which it will be located must also be regularly ventilated, because the gerbera hates hot and heavy air. If we want to put this flower outside, we must make sure that the temperature does not drop below 15 degrees Celsius at night.

While in the case of a gerbera grown in a pot, universal flower soil is sufficient, for a garden gerbera an optimal position must be specially prepared for it to develop properly. The substrate must be constantly moist, but not wet, fertile and slightly acidic. The plant will grow best in a sunlit location until noon and in partial shade in the afternoon.

Gerbera care

Gerbera in a pot need regular watering. It is worth watering every day or every other day; in this way, the substrate will remain constantly moist. However, don't use too much water for this. This flower tolerates stagnation very poorly. Therefore, it is worth placing the pot on an inverted saucer or a stand, and using the decorative casing as a container to collect excess water. At the same time, it should be checked every day that the soil remains adequately moist.

In summer, liquid fertilizer should be used and applied a week apart. Thanks to this treatment, the gerbera will bloom better. The plant will also appreciate spraying with soft, stagnant water. This will keep it moist, especially when it's really hot outside.

Proper wintering conditions for gerberas in pots must also be taken care of. In autumn it should be taken to a room where the air temperature fluctuates around 10 degrees Celsius. It can be a bright basement or a pantry. Also, the gerbera should have constant access to sunlight, but the room temperature should not exceed 15 degrees.

In the garden, the gerbera can also be sprayed abundantly, but it is worth deciding on this treatment early in the morning. In this way, the water in the leaves and petals will have time to evaporate before night, when the temperature drops slightly.

Of course, attention should also be paid to the prevailing weather conditions. If it rains a lot, it's a good idea to water regularly to avoid the effect of standing water. Gerberas are prone to fungal diseases that affect their root ball. To avoid their appearance in garden varieties, they must be planted at a suitable height.

When to plant gerberas

Gerberas don't like being transplanted very much. For this reason, potted varieties should only be transplanted when the roots of the plant clearly do not fit the current pot. Each time at the bottom of the container, where a drainage layer should be created, for example, made of expanded clay.

The garden gerbera, of course, must be planted in the ground. However, it is not worth rushing with this procedure, because the temperature of the air, and therefore also the temperature of the ground, which falls below 5 degrees Celsius, can be very harmful.

For this reason, it may be necessary to dig the soil to a depth of about 30 centimeters and add organic compost or liquid compost.

The planting process must be done very carefully, as it is easy to strangle the root ball of a young seedling. Gerberas that grow in the garden do not like crowds, so it is worth keeping a distance of about 50 centimeters between individual specimens. It would also be a good idea to spread a layer of mulch around the roots. Thanks to this, we will provide the plant with adequate humidity and, at the same time, we will reduce the risk of weeds.