Exotic African chamomile - osteospermum - conquers flower growers with brightly colored petals and ease of cultivation. This plant tolerates summer heat and drought, pleasing continuous flowering / But refuses to put up with cold winters. Read about the features of care and propagation of the flower in the article.

Characteristics and description of osteosperm

Osteospermum is not like other members of the family Asteraceae to which it belongs.

Its chamomile flowers bloom in early June and bloom until October, nature painted them in the most incredible shades.

Seeds are tied from long reed flowers collected in inflorescences-baskets, and not from median tubular ones, like daisies and asters.

The height of natural species reaches 1 meter. Many hybrid forms have been bred in culture that do not exceed 20–50 cm. Osteospermum is a perennial flower, but does not tolerate the cold winters of the temperate zone. Therefore, it is often grown in open ground as an annual.

The main types, varieties of flower

In nature, there are more than 40 types of osteosperm.

Description of some:

  1. Osteospermum noticeable with pink inflorescences of a darker shade in the middle. In warm regions it blooms profusely almost all year round.
  2. Shrub osteospermum has creeping shoots and purple flowers, and there are forms with red and white inflorescences.
  3. The Eklon osteospermum is remarkable for large corollas, up to 8 cm in diameter. Reed corollas white with a dark center made of tubular flowers. There are forms of various heights - undersized, sprawling and one and a half meters.

Among the varietal variety of osteospermums, there are unusual specimens that change the color of flowers during flowering. Most plants with straight stems are 40 to 60 cm tall, but ground cover varieties have also been bred, for example, the Keninglon Roy variety. This is a creeping shrub with inflorescences up to 8 cm in diameter. The marginal petals are initially white with red tips, eventually becoming lilac-pink.

Popular hybrid varieties:

  • “Butermilk” - inflorescences with a dark center and light yellow marginal petals;
  • "Congo" - small inflorescences with pink-purple tongues;
  • “Pink Wheels” - pink flowers with petals compressed in the middle;
  • Silver Speckler - variegated leaves with white dots and white flowers;
  • “Volta” - violet-pink tongues brighten, with time acquiring a white color;
  • "Zulu" - with yellow reed flowers;
  • “Bemba” - white flowers at the beginning of flowering then acquire a purple color;
  • "Pemba" - has reed flowers to half fused into the tube;
  • Sendai Pink - pink edge tongues look like a spoon.

Some early-flowering, compact hybrids with flowers of various colors are registered under common names known in the European market as “Cap Daisy”, “Springstar”, “Sunny”. Osteospermum "Pech" - a dwarf variety with a height of 15 to 20 cm with white or purple flowers - is planted as a houseplant.

Growing plants from seeds

In the store you can choose a suitable grade of osteosperm and sow it with seeds for seedlings. The most suitable time for this is the end of March. The seeds are quite large and at first glance it will be easy to grow an African daisy from them. However, this process has its own characteristics.

A mistake that cannot be made is soaking before sowing. Osteosperm seeds do not like excess moisture. They can not be kept in water for a long time. For better germination, a few hours before planting, you can wrap in a damp cloth moistened with a growth stimulator.

Osteosperm seedling cultivation:

  1. For sowing prepare containers filled with a mixture of peat and sand. Peat tablets and planting cassettes can be used so that each seedling has an individual space for development.
  2. Seeds are buried in the substrate a few millimeters. To prevent fungal infections, you can moisten the soil with a solution of phytosporin.
  3. Cover the container with seeds with glass or film until seedlings appear. The optimum temperature for germination is above 22 ° C.
  4. When sprouts from the soil appear, the shelter from the container is removed, the seedlings are placed in a well-lit, warm place.
  5. If the seeds are sown in a common container, they are dived in a separate seedling cup after growing 2-3 true leaves.
  6. 2 weeks after the pick, pinch the tops to stimulate the growth of lateral shoots.

In early May, seedlings are taken to fresh air for hardening. The duration of the procedure is increased gradually, starting from 10-15 minutes. They begin landing in the open ground at the end of May, choosing a site well-lit by the sun. The distance between the holes in the flower bed is about 20 cm. Transplanted seedlings by transshipment, then watered abundantly.

Further care of the seedlings consists in loosening the soil, removing weeds, and fertilizing. The soil in the flowerbed can be mulched with sawdust, bark or grass to reduce the evaporation of moisture on hot days.

Basic rules for outdoor care

Osteospermum, the landing of which is done correctly, in a well-lit place, requires minimal care. The great advantage of this beautiful flower is that it grows beautifully without watering with sufficient rainfall. In dry weather, it is enough to water the flower bed once a week.

Fertilizers will help flowering to be plentiful and long lasting.

For top dressing, complex mineral preparations for flowering plants are used in half the dose recommended by the manufacturer.They are applied to wet soil twice a month from May to October.

If after planting osteosperm seedlings in the open ground, frost returns, the flowerbed is covered with a spanbond stretched over arcs. During flowering, wilted inflorescences are cut. And with the onset of autumn cold, they dig up valuable specimens and transfer them to the house.

If there is a spacious room or a greenhouse for a comfortable wintering of plants, gardeners practice container growing of osteosperm. Seedlings obtained from seeds or cuttings are not planted on a flower bed, but in volumetric flower pots. In May, the bushes are taken out to the garden, watered and fed more often than those that grow in the open ground.

Flower propagation methods

Propagate by seeds can only natural forms of plants. Hybrid varieties do not transmit hereditary traits in the seed way, and anything can grow. It can be interesting only to gardeners keen on selection.

Osteospermum flower willingly propagated by cuttings.

Process description:

  1. In February, cuttings are harvested from a wintering bush in the house. Well developed apical shoots without buds 7-10 cm long are cut.
  2. The lower leaves are removed, leaving 2 pieces on top.
  3. Lower sections are dipped in Kornevin powder or simply sprinkled with crushed activated carbon.
  4. Planted cuttings in a moistened mixture of peat and sand.
  5. Create increased humidity by covering the seedlings with clear glass or a bag.
  6. For successful rooting, the lighting must be diffused and the air temperature must be between 22 and 25 ° C.
  7. Daily seedlings are ventilated, moisten the soil as it dries.
  8. The roots should appear after 2-3 weeks, after which the shelter is removed.
  9. Pinch the tops of the seedlings and move to a bright, but cooler place with an air temperature not lower than +18 ° C.

Seedlings are planted in open ground in May, when the threat of freezing frost passes.

Wintering organization

The plant does not tolerate frost. To preserve osteospermum in winter, you can dig a bush from a flower bed and plant it together with an earthen lump in a flower pot. It is advisable to place a flower in the apartment on a bright, cool window.

Osteospermums wintering in the house are used to obtain cuttings for seedlings. Strong shoots are cut at the end of February and rooted in a mixture of peat and sand at elevated humidity and temperature.

Osteosperm after flowering

In warm climates, these plants can bloom almost all year round, decorating the landscape design even in winter. In a temperate climate, osteosperms bloom from the beginning of summer until the frosts, then die if you do not move the bushes from the flower bed to a warm room.

In this case, it is desirable to cut off all the flowers so that the plant transfers the transplant easier.

The life span of one inflorescence does not exceed a week, then it begins to fade. It is advisable to cut dried baskets throughout the summer if there is no problem in collecting seeds.

Pests and diseases

African chamomile has good immunity: it is resistant to diseases, and pests bypass it. Excessive watering and strong shading can weaken the plant.

High humidity is favorable for the development of fungal diseases of the root system and the aerial part.

Having noticed that the bushes have a sluggish, drooping appearance at a time when the soil under them is moist, it is necessary to change the regime of care and treat the flowerbed with fungicides.

Aphids sometimes settle on weakened plants, feeding on plant sap. Insecticides will help to destroy the insect: Karbofos, Aktellik, Aktara. With timely processing, yellowing and wilting of leaves can be avoided.

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