- origin
- growth
- leaves
- blossoms
- When is flowering time?
- fruit
- Which location is suitable?
- What soil does the plant need?
- Pour hussar buttons
- Fertilize Hussarenknoepfchen properly
- Hussar buttons in a pot
- hardy
- hibernate
- Increase Hussar Buttons
- Diseases
- Is Hussar button poisonous?
- sorts
Hussar Knöpfchen not only have a cute name, their character is also simply adorable due to their simple, cheerful appearance and their undemanding nature. Whether as a hearty tub planting, as a comforting grave planting or as a cheerful groundcover - you will definitely get a grateful little plant here.
The miniature sunflower is the most common hussar buttonlet species in our country
Table of Contents
Show all- origin
- growth
- leaves
- blossoms
- When is flowering time?
- fruit
- Which location is suitable?
- What soil does the plant need?
- Pour hussar buttons
- Fertilize Hussarenknoepfchen properly
- Hussar buttons in a pot
- hardy
- hibernate
- Increase Hussar Buttons
- Diseases
- Is Hussar button poisonous?
- sorts
- The 7 species of hussar buttonlets come from Central America and the southern and western United States
- Appropriately warm, sunny habitat of origin
- Can also be cultivated outdoors in this country without any problems (annual anyway)
- In this country mostly cultivated species annual
- Laying, branched growth
- Forms a dense plant cushion, therefore suitable as ground cover
- Growth height 15-30 cm
- Small, sunny yellow cup-shaped flowers
- Reminiscent of sunflower blossoms
- Wide open, plate-shaped appearance
- Husarenköpfchen needs a sunny, warm location
- But it can also cope with semi-shade
- Recommended: place in the rock garden
- Plant on the edge in a tub arrangement
- Overall, Husarenköpfchen quite undemanding in terms of substrate
- Relatively high nutrient requirement - but some compost in standard potting soil is sufficient
- Work in drains made of sand or gravel both in the tub and in outdoor planting
- Water regularly and relatively plentifully, especially in tub culture
- Less urgent outdoors, especially during summer dry periods
- Avoid waterlogging
- In addition to being used as a ground cover, Husarenköpfchen is also well suited for pot and balcony box cultivation
- Especially as a border accompaniment in large plant arrangements
- Also great for hanging basket arrangements with other cascading plants
- Harvest seeds yourself from ripe fruits in autumn or buy them from specialist shops
- Store self-collected seeds in a cool, dry place over the winter
- Sow from the end of February
- Germination within 1-2 weeks under foil or mini greenhouse cover, temperature approx. 18°C
- Breeding on windowsill
- Plant out in May after the last threat of frost
origin
The Husarenköpfchen, botanically Sanvitalia, form a separate genus with 7 different species, of which the Sanvitalia procumbens, the so-called miniature sunflower, is cultivated in Central Europe. They and their conspecifics originally come from the Central American area, especially from Mexico, where they mainly inhabit slightly higher altitudes around 1000 m. The distribution area of Sanvitalia procumbens also extends a little beyond the southern border of Mexico to Guatemala and Costa Rica. In their home ranges, Hussar's Buttons are considered more of a weed.
Other Sanvitalia species are also found in areas farther north, in the southern and western parts of the United States such as Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California.
Corresponding to its warm and sunny origin, Husarenköpfchen can also be best cultivated in warm, sunny conditions in this country. Outdoor cultivation is also possible without any problems, since it is an annual plant anyway.
Origin at a glance:
growth
The various species of the Sanvitalia genus either grow as perennials or are annuals. However, the perennial species do not have a particularly long lifespan either. The species of Sanvitalia procumbens, commonly known as the miniature sunflower, which is most commonly encountered in this country, is an annual species. It therefore dies off towards the winter.
Its growth is characterized by a prostrate, richly branched habit. The Sanvitalia procumbens forms a dense cushion of plants with slightly overhanging shoots. Therefore, it is also a popular groundcover variety. Overall, the plant reaches a height of 15 to 30 centimeters.
Growth characteristics in keywords:
leaves
The leaves of the hussar button are opposite and attached to the shoots on short petioles. Their shape is elongated oval to lanceolate and pointed in front, they are entire on the outside. They are colored in a rich, deep green.
blossoms
The flowers are the most beautiful decoration of the hussar button and also give their name to the trivial name miniature sunflower. In fact, with their bright yellow color, the brownish-black pistil and their open, plate-shaped appearance, they are reminiscent of the large sun-worshippers. They also look like small suns with their petals fanning out like rays. Above all, they stand out very attractively from the lush green foliage and this is how they get their cheerful character. The flowers are cup-shaped and attach terminally to the stems.
Flower characteristics in brief:
When is flowering time?
You can enjoy the sun-yellow flowers for a long time: the flowers open from June and usually remain until October. Therefore, they also offer a valuable color decoration for the autumn garden, especially for summer nostalgics. In order to keep the flowering period as lush and attractive as possible, you should clean the hussar button regularly.
fruit
In autumn, small, brownish fruits develop from the flowers.
Which location is suitable?
According to its origin, the Husarenknöpfchen prefers a warm, sunny place. Both in the window box and tub culture, as well as planted outdoors, you should give it a location that gets a lot of sun and where it can also be stored. A hussar button also feels very comfortable in the rock garden, for example, where stones can serve as a cozy heat accumulator. But it also gets along quite well in the semi-shade, it will only form fewer flowers there. The hussar button is pleasantly insensitive to wind and rain.
If you want to cultivate the Sanvitalia procumbens in a plant arrangement in a tub, it is advisable to plant it on the edge. This is how its slightly overhanging shoots come into their own. It also forms a structurally attractive border due to its low stature.
To remember:
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What soil does the plant need?
When it comes to plant substrate, the hussar button is even more frugal than the location. It does not have an excessively high nutrient requirement and does not otherwise require any special conditions such as particularly high or low pH values. You can use commercially available potting soil for planting in the bucket or balcony box, which is either slightly richer in humus from the outset or which you can enrich with some compost. In addition, the substrate should have a certain amount of sand - good permeability should be given to avoid waterlogging.
When planting outdoors, this is all the more important if the planting ground is rather heavy and loamy. If necessary, work some coarser gravel into the soil bed here.
To remember:
Pour hussar buttons
You should water the Hussar Knöpfchen regularly and thoroughly. Especially if you keep it in the bucket, the substrate must not dry out completely. When there are longer hot dry phases in summer, reaching for the watering can every day is indispensable. However, waterlogging should be avoided - so do not water when the substrate is still wet or there is water in the saucer.
Of course, the need for water is not quite as acute outdoors. But here, too, you should make sure, especially in summer, that the hussar button doesn't have to suffer from thirst.
Casting practice in brief:
Fertilize Hussarenknoepfchen properly
Fertilizing is not absolutely necessary for the not particularly hungry Hussar Knöpfchen. In order to keep it in good shape and to keep the flowers lush, regular cleaning is usually sufficient, which saves the plant from having to take care of dying parts of the plant. If you want, you can help with the balcony box culture over the summer months with some liquid fertilizer. However, a time interval of about 2 to 3 weeks should be observed here.
Hussar buttons in a pot
On the one hand, hussar buttons are very well suited as ground cover due to their low, cushion-forming growth. On the other hand, they can also be kept wonderfully in a bucket or balcony box - either alone or as an accompaniment in a larger plant arrangement. The latter is particularly possible due to the frugality of the hussar button on the substrate. In an arrangement with several plants in a large pot, the Husarenknöpfchen is particularly suitable as a low border planting. It gracefully rivals other, taller ornamental plants with its dense, green foliage and summer carpet of flowers.
Due to its overhanging growth, planting in a traffic light arrangement together with other cascading balcony plants such as hanging petunias is also recommended.
The pitcher or hanging place of the bucket should of course be sunny and warm. South-facing terraces or balconies are ideal.
To remember:
hardy
The Sanvitalia procumbens is an annual plant - so the question of winter hardiness does not even arise with it. It dies off in autumn and, if desired, has to be planted or sown again and again in spring. Other species of the genus are perennial, but difficult to obtain commercially. Most likely there are opportunities in the British network.
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hibernate
Overwintering a Sanvitalia procumbens plant is therefore not possible given its annual status. But you can of course collect the seeds of your specimen in autumn and store them over the winter. In the following early spring, these can then be sown and brought forward.
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Increase Hussar Buttons
The propagation of a Husarenköpfchen takes place exclusively through seed cultivation. You can get seeds either by remembering to collect them from the ripe fruits in good time in autumn or by purchasing them from specialist shops. Store the seeds you have collected yourself in a cool and dry place over the winter.
You can sow from the end of February. Put the seeds in a planting bowl with a peat-sand mixture or potting soil and put it in a bright place. The ambient temperature does not have to be excessively high, around 18°C is ideal. For an evenly moist and protected microclimate, cover the planter with foil, a mini greenhouse (€7.95) is even better. After about 1 to 2 weeks, the seedlings should appear.
Continue cultivating them on the windowsill. The young plants can be planted out from about May, when the ice saints are over.
Seed cultivation at a glance:
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Diseases
In terms of diseases and pest infestation, the hussar button gives the hobby gardener hardly any cause for concern. It is virtually never afflicted by aches and pains, which makes its grateful, carefree character perfect. Even snails show little interest in its leaf green. The only thing that can harm the plant is excessive waterlogging. If you water too much or forget to empty the waterlogged coaster over a long period of time, root rot or even fungi, such as the botrytis fungus, can develop. However, that really rarely happens.
Is Hussar button poisonous?
As good-natured and trusting as the hussar button appears, so is his nature. It does not contain any toxins and is therefore completely safe for planting in homes with small children and inquisitive cats or dogs.
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sorts
Quite a number of different cultivars of the species Sanvitalia procumbens are offered in the plant trade. However, these differ less in the color of the flowers than in their growth. After all, the cheerful sunny yellow of the flowers is also one of the most characteristic features of the Husarenköpfchen. Nevertheless, there are isolated varieties with a slightly darker, orange tint.
Sanvitalia procumbens 'Gold Carpet'
This variety shows Husarenköpfchen typical sunny yellow, small and very numerous flowers. A special feature is that they appear a little earlier than other varieties, in good weather as early as May.
As its name suggests, the variety is characterized by a dense, creeping growth, in which a cushiony carpet of plants develops - with a wonderful yellow pile over the summer. Therefore, it is very suitable as a ground cover. Their height is about 15 to 20 centimeters.
Sanvitalia procumbens 'Starbini'
Also the variety S. p. Starbini has bright yellow flowers that appear in June and persist through October. In this respect, it offers the typically sunny and cheerful sight of the hussar buttons.
Characteristic of this variety is its strongly overhanging growth, which is why it is very well suited for hanging baskets.
Sanvitalia procumbens 'Superbini'
The flowers of the variety S. p. superbin. They open from June and remain until autumn if you regularly remove faded flowers and old branches.
Unlike most other strains, this strain grows rather upright and bushy. It can therefore be used well for border planting in beds and borders.
Sanvitalia procumbens 'Mandarin'
The name of this variety already suggests it: This is a variant whose flowers are in a rich, indeed tangerine-colored tone. As a result, it radiates a very warm, southern flair. In addition, the flowers here are tongue-edged. As with most varieties, the flowering period begins in June and lasts until October.
In terms of growth, the S. p. Mandarin bushy and reaches a height of about 20 to 30 centimeters.
Sanvitalia procumbens 'Plena'
A small attraction at the end: The variety S. p. Plena has something else special to offer, and that is double flowers. Although it loses a little of the typical mini sun character, it looks a bit more artistic and elegant. It is therefore something for those who can be fascinated by unusual flower structures. The flowers appear in June and can also remain until early autumn.
The growth of the variety S. p. Plena is quite bushy and compact, making it well suited for border edging or as ground cover.