How to grow Freesia

Freesias have lengthy been a mainstay in florist stores due to the fact of their intoxicating scent, lengthy vase life, an engaging array of jewel-toned colors. But why no longer develop them in your very own domestic and revel in their candy fragrance and subtle floral splendor for months on end? These welcome wintry weather bloomers are effortless to pressure indoors as inexpensive, longer-lasting preferences to reduce flowers. In addition to being excellent houseplants, freesias will additionally thrive outside in backyard beds or containers with excellent timed planting.

Basics about Freesias

Botanical name:

Freesia spp.

Freesias kind & origin:

Frost-tender perennial that grows from corms. Native to South Africa.

When to grow Freesias:

For developing indoors, grow Freesias  any time from mid-August to late October for flora from January thru April. In the garden, grow Freesias outside in spring for summer time flora or in fall (in frost-free climates only) for spring blooms. In chillier developing zones, begin indoors in late wintry weather and then go them outdoor in spring, exhibiting them proper alongside your hyacinths, tulips, and daffodils.

Freesias flowering period:

Freesias usually produce flora 10 to 12 weeks after planting. Once they start to bloom, they may continue to be in flower for six weeks or longer. As with orchids, the blooms open sequentially alongside the stem, beneficial you with new plant life even as older flora fade.

Height of Freesias:

12 to 24 inches.

Freesias flower shades & characteristics:

Freesias’ trumpet-shaped plants open on simply one facet of their slender, arching stems, with the blooms usually going through upward for higher viewing. Each stem may additionally endure as many as 12 flowers. Numerous hybrids are on hand in a rainbow of colorations inclusive of white, yellow, orange, scarlet, pink, royal blue, lavender, and a number of bicolors. You can additionally pick from single or fuller, double-petaled blooms.

How to grow Freesias indoors

Planting:

Fill a tall pot (one with sufficient drainage holes) half-full with a well-draining potting mix. Plant the corms 1 to two inches deep with their sprouting hints pointing upward. You can commonly shape six to eight corms in a 6-inch pot. Add extra soil to barely cowl the corms, and gently faucet it down. Learn greater about forcing bulbs indoors.

Soil for growing Freesias:

Average potting soil works fine, however the addition of vermiculite or sand will assist to enhance drainage and stop soggy soil.

Lighting/temperature for growing Freesias:

When the top boom is 1 to two inches high, go your pot to a sunny region with cool temperatures (below 70° F). Freesias develop excellent in a chilly atmosphere. Conditions that are too hot can inhibit blooming.

Watering for growing Freesias:

Water properly after planting, and then furnish simply adequate water to keep even moisture.

Fertilizer for growing Freesias:

When the first buds commence to appear, begin fertilizing each and every two weeks with a water-soluble plant food.

Staking for growing Freesias:

One of the drawbacks is the long, slim foliage, which tends to flop over until supported. To hold it upright, insert a tall bamboo stick or wire ring aid subsequent to every corm when you plant it. When the foliage will become untidy, loosely tie it to the help with string or floral wire. You can tie the flowering stems, too, or let them dangle gracefully.

Aftercare of growing Freesias:

Most freesia vegetation are discarded after flowering due to the fact the corms are so inexpensive, frequently costing much less than 50 cents each. But if you prefer to shop the corms and inspire them to rebloom, let the foliage die lower back after the plant life have dwindled and limit watering. After about six to eight weeks, put off the corms from their pot, enable them to dry thoroughly, and then keep them in a paper bag in a cool place (around 40° to 50° F) till you’re prepared to replant them in late summer season or fall.

Growing  Freesias in the garden

Exposure:

Full sun

Soil for growing Freesias:

Well-drained, fertile soil enriched with lots of natural matter.

Planting depth and spacing:

Plant about 1 to two inches deep with the pointed stop going through up. For an attractive floral display, plant in companies of at least six corms and house them two to three inches apart. As when planting corms in pots, add stakes to help the flower-laden stems.

Watering for growing Freesias:

Keep the soil evenly moist at some point of the developing season, in particular throughout dry spells. Freesia corms can rot in wet, saturated soil so permit the soil to dry a bit between watering.

Winter care for growing Freesias:

In chillier climates, dig up the corms from backyard beds in the fall, earlier than the first frost, and save them in a cool, dry area the place they can stay dormant for a minimal of 4 months earlier than being replanted once more in spring; or think about planting your freesias in containers that you can convey indoors for iciness storage. Although you can shop corms in their pots, they should be repotted earlier than they are introduced into bloom again.

Freesias using as cut flowers

Freesias are a need to for the slicing backyard so you can experience their heady heady scent in spring and summer season bouquets. They can ultimately be as lengthy as three weeks in a vase if reduced in the closed-bud stage when the first vegetation is simply starting to exhibit color. Cutting the vegetation will now not harm your plants, however if you choose the corms to fill up their power for the subsequent developing season, be positive to go away the foliage intact.

To prolong the lifestyles of your reduce freesias, trim the stems at a 45-degree attitude so they don’t take a seat flat in the vase and can take in extra water. Also, hold the vase in a cool region away from direct sunlight. Every few days, recut the stems and alternate the water. Adding packets of reduced flower meals will additionally preserve your blooms clean longer.