Butterwort is not only a popular ornamental plant because of its beautiful, violet flowers. It can also be used to some extent to control fruit flies or fungus gnats. It can therefore be worth collecting Pinguicula seeds in order to propagate additional plants for the herb bed.
Seeds for propagation can be obtained from the beautiful flowers of the butterwort
How to get Butterwort seeds
If you are already growing succulents in the garden or in pots, you can get seeds from the flowers themselves. For this, however, the flowers of the Pinguicula must be pollinated. For plants kept indoors, you must do the pollination yourself.
You need at least two flowers, preferably from two plants. Using a soft brush, stroke each flower one at a time. Repeat this process one more time to be on the safe side. Bees and other insects pollinate succulents grown outdoors. The seeds form in the ovary, which burst open when the seed is ripe.
Tie a bag over the pollinated flowers into which the ripe seeds later fall. You can also put a bowl underneath to catch the seeds. Seeds must dry by spring before sowing.
Grow butterwort from seed
- Prepare pots with substrate
- Spread the seeds thinly
- Press in the seeds only slightly
- do not cover with soil
- Keep surface well moist
- Put on the plastic hood
- Place pots in semi-shade
- prick after emergence
Butterwort belongs to the light germs. The seeds must therefore under no circumstances be covered with substrate.
Make sure that the seed and later the young plants are kept sufficiently moist, but never too wet.
When pricking out, only leave the strongest plant in each pot, the rest is discarded.
Be careful when transplanting young plants
If the young plants are big enough, you need to transplant them into larger pots. Be very careful when doing this. Butterwort roots are very delicate and delicate. Be careful not to break or tear them.
tips
Butterwort is even easier to propagate from cuttings. To do this, cut a few leaves with the stalk in late summer and put them in prepared pots with substrate for carnivores.