Geraniums are easy to care for perennials and can adapt to your garden or be grown indoors. Do you love geraniums and want them to bloom all season? You are in the right place! In this article we reveal the secret to enhancing the flowering of this flowering plant and obtaining lush geraniums.
Geraniums are popular flowers for their beauty and colorful blooms. Easy to grow, they are ideal for decorating the balcony and terrace. If the idea of growing geraniums appeals to you, here is an easy and practical trick to make them flower. Notice to all budding gardeners: learn how to maintain, water and fertilize these plants so that they flourish!
Geranium flowers. Source: spm
Why aren’t my geraniums blooming?
The garden or florist geranium, also called pelargonium, is a flowering perennial plant with evergreen foliage. This multi-colored herbaceous plant blooms from April to October, but this beautiful flowering flower may not bloom due to poor maintenance.
If your geranium does not spoil you with its beautiful flowers, this may be due to the following reasons:
Without light
Pelargoniums are native to South Africa. Lovers of light, they require a sunny or partially shaded position. Exposure to light helps geraniums to develop, but also to produce flower buds which then give rise to flowers. In summary, geraniums need exposure to direct light, about 6 hours a day. Don’t deprive your flowers of good weather!
Bad watering
Watering is an important step in getting geraniums to bloom. Water is vital to all living creatures on earth, but you have to be sensible! If the soil is soggy, your plant’s roots may rot. This will make it difficult for the geranium to absorb nutrients from the soil and this will affect its ability to produce flowers. However, if you water your plant very little, it will be dehydrated and will focus its energy more on its survival than on the production of flowers.
Excess fertilizer
Fertilizers are a double-edged sword. They help fertilize plants and encourage flowering, but can also have the opposite effect if used in excess.
Cold temperatures
Pelargonium is a not very resistant plant. This cold flower cannot tolerate cold and frost. The wrong temperature can delay flowering or shorten the flowering season altogether. So keep your plants warm to watch them bloom!
On the other hand, you can help your plant give you beautiful flowers by feeding it with natural fertilizers. Brighten up your garden, terrace or balcony with the sparkling colors of this famous plant!
How to make geranium bloom again with brewer’s yeast?
Brewer’s yeast is a natural product, rich in minerals and vitamins, which is not only used in cooking. You can use it to feed geraniums and fertilize them. To do this, you can do the following:
- Dilute 2 teaspoons of brewer’s yeast in 3 liters of water;
- Transfer the liquid fertilizer to a bottle;
- Use the solution to water your geraniums.
You won’t wait long to see the result. Use this fertilizer in spring and your geraniums will thank you with the appearance of flower buds.
What are the other tricks to get beautiful geranium blooms?
Pelargoniums. Source: spm
To make geraniums bloom and get beautiful plants, you can use the following natural fertilizers:
Coffee grounds to fertilize geraniums
Rich in nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus, coffee grounds can be used as a fertilizer to encourage the flowering of geraniums. Use it in small doses, and in addition to another nitrogen-rich fertilizer, because the nitrogen content of coffee grounds is not sufficient for geraniums.
Vegetable cooking water for geraniums
Never throw away vegetable cooking water! This water is rich in trace elements and mineral salts, very useful for nourishing your plants and fertilizing them. This natural fertilizer is effective for both your garden and indoor plants or those you keep on your balcony or terrace. But be careful dear readers, your plants don’t like this soup if it’s hot. Let this cooking water cool before watering your geraniums with it. Also make sure it’s not salty.
Banana peels to feed geraniums
Don’t know what to do with banana peels? Well, recycle them! Banana peels are rich in potassium , a very important mineral for the flowering of geraniums. It also allows you to protect them from parasite attacks. To do this, follow these steps:
- Collect banana peels;
- Dry them in the oven;
- Cut them into small pieces;
- Scatter them on the ground once every two weeks;
How to have beautiful geraniums and keep them for a long time?
There is no magic formula! Just take care of them. Whether you have a green thumb or not, we show you how to successfully maintain these flowers. Geraniums will no longer have secrets from you!
Successful watering of geraniums
Water the geraniums. Source: spm
For geraniums you grow in the ground, water them regularly during the first few weeks after planting. For geraniums in pots or planters, water them abundantly as soon as the soil dries on the surface, during the flowering period. Be careful, don’t have too heavy a hand! Geraniums do not like excess. From October reduce watering until completely suspending it in winter. Avoid wetting the geranium foliage when watering
Successful care of geraniums
To stimulate flower production, prune geraniums regularly. For this, cut off the leaves and flowers that have wilted. Proper pruning will also help keep your flowering plants healthy. Also keep in mind that geraniums like sun. They like full sun or partial shade. They also resist high heat, but only if you water them well. In cold weather, protect these cold plants. Store them at a temperature between 5 and 10°C. Your plants will produce new shoots as soon as they receive heat again.
Thanks to this ingredient that you can easily find in your kitchen, you will fertilize your geraniums and promote lush and colorful flowering that will leave no one indifferent! What are you waiting for to try it?
How to cut geraniums?
To take cuttings from a geranium, here are the steps to follow:
- Choose a healthy stem 15cm long with at least 5 leaves and not yet flowering.
- Cut the stem just above a node with disinfected shears.
- Remove the buds and lower leaves, keeping the upper leaves.
- Allow the cut to soak in water for a few minutes.
- Fill a pot or bucket with a mixture of potting soil, peat and river sand or special cutting soil.
- Plant the stem into the substrate, avoiding breaking it.
- Tamp the soil around the plant and water.
- Keep the soil moist with regular watering.
To optimize your chances of a successful cut:
- For a cutting in summer, take the cutting early in the morning.
- For spring cuttings, place them indoors or in a mini greenhouse until the temperature reaches 19-20°C. Remove the lid when pimples appear.
- For cuttings in summer, place them in partial shade.
- During the winter, keep the young cuttings in a frost-free, dry and sufficiently ventilated room.
- In spring, transplant the cuttings into the ground or into pots, planters or suspensions.
We recommend taking multiple cuttings rather than just one to have a greater number of geraniums and to create a diversity of colors and foliage.