Gloxinia can be propagated in two ways: either you grow new plants from seeds or you get the tubers out of the ground in autumn and divide them in spring. Both methods have their advantages as well as their disadvantages. This is how the multiplication of the non-poisonous gloxinia works.
There are two promising methods of multiplying gloxinia
Where do you get seeds from?
If you already have gloxinias in your garden, you can harvest seeds from the faded flowers. You only need to leave the buds in place long enough for the seed to ripen. However, this is at the expense of a long flowering period.
Buying gloxinia seeds is not easy. However, you will often find what you are looking for on garden swap sites or on the Internet.
Propagating gloxinias from seed
- Sowing in spring
- Do not cover seed (light germinators!)
- spray with a flower sprayer
- Cover pots with foil
- bright and warm
- Maintain young plants in a cooler place
Prepare seed trays or pots for sowing in February or March. Scatter the seed thinly, but do not cover it with soil.
A transparent film protects the seeds from drying out. Air the foil regularly so that nothing gets mouldy. Set the vessels at 22 to 25 degrees.
When the seeds have germinated and the young plants have developed two to three pairs of leaves, plant them in individual pots and continue to care for them at around 15 degrees. It takes three years for the first flowering of the gloxinias propagated in this way.
Propagation by dividing the tubers
Gloxinia can be propagated very well by division. Dig up the tubers in autumn and store them in a cool, dark and dry place over winter.
From March, take the tubers out of their winter quarters and divide them into pieces. Prefer them in pots. It is easy to see whether the mother plant survived the division.
You can plant the tubers from May when it is no longer freezing outside.
tips
Unlike indoor gloxinias, garden gloxinias are hardy. They tolerate temperatures down to minus 20 degrees. However, the wetness is very difficult for them, so it makes sense to dig up the tubers and overwinter them indoors.