Brovallia is beautiful (Browallia speciosa) refers to those charms of the plant world that you fall in love with at first sight. Its flowers on long pedicels are unusually graceful and are so identical in size and shape to each other, as if they were made according to a special template by a skilled craftsman. Various colors - blue, blue, lilac, violet, dark purple, even white, often with a white eye in the center or, conversely, a lighter tone on the outside than inside, they cover the bush so abundantly that under them, slightly pubescent juicy - green elegant leaves. Brovallia blooming throughout the year resembles a delightful perfectly rounded flower sphere with a diameter of up to 60 cm. True, this plant does not live long, only a year and a half, and then it grows old and needs to be replaced with a new one.
Another great quality of this plant is that the brovallia has very flexible branches, which allows its owner to easily shape it into the desired shape. If you define the brovallia in a hanging planter, then by slightly pinching the shoots, you can easily form a beautiful neat bush of the required shape.
Brovallia care
Brovallia is not too moody. The requirements for caring for it are quite traditional: the plant needs regular watering, loosening the top layer of the soil, periodic feeding and timely removal of dried inflorescences.
A loose soil mixture consisting of fertile soil and compost with a minor addition of vermiculite and charcoal is best suited for growing.
The compact size of this flower does not require a large pot, a volume of 1.5 liters will be enough. But the pot must be quite high so that a drainage layer of about 5 cm can be freely placed in it, because the plant does not like stagnant water.
It is better to place brovallia indoors on the north side. The plant easily tolerates some lack of lighting in the winter, but in the summer, the brovallia protected by the northern location of the window from the intense heat will be able to bloom much longer and more abundantly.
Watering must be done with warm, settled water as the top layer of soil in the pot dries up. In summer, watering is required more plentiful, in winter it is rare.
Feeding an adult plant should be done no more than once a month. Young plants need not be fed if their development is not a cause for concern.
Pinching of the shoots must be carried out 2-3 times, this will somewhat slow down the onset of flowering, but the plant will be much stronger.
Brovallia begins to bloom immediately after rooting. It is also better to pinch off the first buds.
A sign of a lack of moisture is the drooping of the plant. After watering, brovallia quickly revives. But the falling leaves and their yellow color signal waterlogging.
Since all parts of this plant are poisonous, all operations with it must be carried out with gloves, and after that, hands should be thoroughly washed.
Reproduction
Brovallia is propagated most often by cuttings. The day before, the plant must be watered abundantly. For cuttings, young apical shoots that have not yet flowered are selected, from which all the buds are removed. It is advisable to dip the cut of the cuttings into any rooting agent. Cut cuttings are planted in light soil, you can use the ready-made mixture for Saintpaulias by adding vermiculite to it. Planted cuttings are best placed in a small greenhouse in a warm place, but not in direct sunlight. The greenhouse must be regularly ventilated.
You can plant cuttings 3-4 pcs. in one pot for a safety net. After rooting, the 2 strongest plants are usually left behind. A transplant into a permanent pot is carried out when the roots of the young plant grow to the drainage hole. To make the brovallia look especially lush, they usually plant several bushes at once in one pot.
Reproduction of brovallia by seeds is carried out in peat tablets. Seed tablets require greenhouse conditions and good lighting. Greenhouses must be regularly ventilated and condensation must be removed from the walls.
