A profusely blooming miracle flower produces handy seeds in abundance. That's a good thing, because the magic flower is not hardy. Therefore, where there are no suitable premises for wintering, the festival of flowers continues in the next season after sowing seeds. You can find out how to do this here.
The seeds of the magic flower are highly poisonous
Seed harvest made easy
Harvesting the pea-sized seeds would be child's play if it weren't for the questionable poison content. Wear protective gloves to remove the ripe seeds from the withered remains of flowers in autumn. In order for a Mirabilis jalapa to produce the desired seed heads, leave a few flowers in place from the second half of summer and do not clean them.
Use your fingers to separate the seeds from the remains of the flowers and keep them dry, dark and cool until next spring.
Instructions for sowing
From March, the light conditions on the windowsill have improved to such an extent that you can start growing young miracle flowers. How to do it right:
- The day before, rough up the seeds with sandpaper or a file and soak them in chamomile tea
- Fill small pots with seed soil and moisten with soft water
- Put 1-2 seeds per container 1 cm deep into the moist substrate
- Put a transparent plastic bag over each pot to create a tropical microclimate
You can look forward to the first seedlings within 1 to 2 weeks on the warm, partially shaded window sill. The cover has thus fulfilled its duty and is removed. Then keep the substrate constantly slightly moist. By mid-May, your pupils will have developed the bulbous outlasting organ and can be planted in a sunny location.
Direct sowing is rarely crowned with success
Sowing the seeds directly into the bed rarely takes the desired course. Since the soil temperatures do not provide the necessary heat for germination before the end of May/beginning of June, the young plant only gets going late in the year, when the flowering period is already drawing to a close.
tips
In order for a seed to turn into a magnificent miracle flower, a poor substrate is required during cultivation. If the young roots have a lavish nutrient buffet at their disposal, they see no reason to make any special effort to grow. Therefore, only supplement the care with regular fertilizing when a vital root system has developed on a strong tuber.