Eustoma - a gentle daughter of the prairies in your garden or on the window

• Description of eustoma
• Types and varieties of eustoma
• Russell's potted eustoma (Eustoma Russelianus)
• Garden eustoma grandiflorum (Eustoma Grandiflorum)
• Planting eustoma for seedlings
• Soil for growing eustoma
• Caring for eustoma seedlings and seedlings
• How to grow eustoma in peat tablets
• Prevention of diseases of eustoma seedlings
• Growing potted eustoma: care at home
• Watering and feeding eustoma
• Lighting and temperature conditions
• Eustoma flowering
• Eustoma after flowering: dormant period

Eustoma or Irish rose is a beautiful legendary flower native to North America. Despite its overseas roots, this culture has successfully taken root in our country.

Lisianthus is also grown by enterprising people, because a cut flower can stand in a vase for 18-20 days.

First of all, this plant is grown for cutting. Beautiful flowers, reminiscent of delicate silk half-opened roses, last a long time in bouquets. A wide palette of colors, the tenderness of the flower with amazing durability always surprises. Eustoma is grown as a garden, greenhouse, and indoor crop. And in any capacity, the plant will require very careful care, but even a novice gardener, having received the necessary knowledge about planting and care, will be able to enjoy a flowering plant in the garden or at home.

Description of eustoma

Known among flower growers also under the name of Russell's lisianthus, Irish, Japanese rose, Texas bell or love rose, eustoma is one of the most beautifully flowering crops. In both horticulture and floriculture, it is represented by only one species - grandiflora eustoma (eustoma grandiflorum).

Previously, three separate species were recognized in the genus Eustoma. However, joint work by employees of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew (UK) and the Missouri Botanical Garden (USA) to streamline the nomenclature of modern plant taxa, united the following species under a single name - Eustoma grandiflorum: Eustoma grandiflorum, Lisianthus - Eustoma Roussel's, or Russell's (Eustoma russellianum), Eustoma minor, Gentian minor, Western gentian, Blue marsh Eustoma (Eustoma exaltatum).

Wild form of eustoma.

Eustoma grandiflora is a luxurious plant from 30 to 90 cm in height with branched shoots, simple, elegant leaves with a bluish tint and flowers reminiscent of a hybrid of roses and poppies. Up to two dozen large luxurious flowers bloom on one plant per season, and due to the fact that they open not simultaneously, but alternately, eustoma remains attractive for an amazingly long time.

The ability of buds to bloom after the flowers wither is also preserved in bouquets: when buying eustoma or displaying it in vases, you can be sure that each bud will in turn turn into a beautiful Japanese rose. Each plant looks like a bouquet: due to its specific branching, strong, but slender, fan-shaped, eustoma really seems like a bouquet planted in a pot.

Eustoma, cultivar 'Borealis Blue' and yarrow cultivar 'Moonshine'.

Flowering of eustoma depends on the timing of sowing and begins 20 weeks after sowing. For classic garden eustomas, it starts in June-August and lasts until mid-autumn, because the plant will not stop delighting with flowers until the frost reaches -10 degrees and snow falls.

The color palette of eustoma today includes not only white, purple, pink, yellow, orange colors, but also various two-color and watercolor combinations. Compact indoor eustomas have colors that are usually clean and quite bright, while garden ones have a much wider range of colors. It even includes light green and fruity shades.

Variety of colors of eustoma.

The huge assortment of eustoma and its popularity all over the world are the merit of breeders in the USA and Japan. In the West, this plant is one of the most popular cut species, but here, too, this Japanese beauty is slowly gaining ground.

Russell's potted eustoma (Eustoma Russelianus)

This flower has a small compact bush, its height rarely exceeds 30 centimeters. Let's get acquainted with the most popular varieties of potted eustoma:

Mermaid variety.

Lisianthus Little Bell.

The Mermaid variety has simple inflorescences up to 6 centimeters in diameter. The petals are pink-lilac or blue, the maximum height of the crop is 15 centimeters. The bush develops well and does not need pinching to form additional side shoots.

Lisianthus Light Bell is up to 15 centimeters tall with small simple inflorescences of different colors. The culture bushes well and does not require pinching of shoots.

Variety Fidelity.

Florida Pink variety.

Variety Fidelity is a beautiful flower with many white inflorescences. A feature of the culture is the spiral arrangement of peduncles.

The Florida Pink variety is a fairly compact bush up to 20 centimeters in height. The inflorescences are pink with simple petals that form a beautiful bouquet.

Rozzi variety.

Variety Sapphire.

The Rozzi variety is one of the tallest crops of the species in question, its height reaches 30 centimeters. Double inflorescences with white, blue or pink petals.

Variety Sapphire with simple or double petals. The inflorescences have different colors, the height of the bush reaches 30 centimeters.

Variety Echo.

Variety Aurora.

Light purple (lavender)

"Lavender" in the series "Mariachi" (Mariachi). A similar variety to the previous one, only with an extra-double light purple flower 5-7 cm in diameter and a second flowering group.

“Lavender” (Lavender) in the “Rosita” collection (Rosita, group 3). Huge new series in the 2022 catalogue. Tall variety (80-100 cm) with a medium-sized double flower. The inflorescence is shaped like a rose. Soft blue color.

"Lavender" in the Japanese line "Echo" (Echo) or the popular name "Echo Lavender". Tall plant (60-80 cm in height). Ideal variety for cutting. Early flowering - 22-24 weeks, first group. Large double flower (4-6 cm).

"Lavender" in the American series "ABC 2" (ABC, 2). Tall variety (80-100 cm). Large double flower. Light lilac color of dense petals. Lasts a long time in a vase.

Garden eustoma grandiflorum (Eustoma Grandiflorum)

As the name suggests, this crop is grown as a garden plant. The flower is quite tall, similar in appearance to a rose, and is used for cutting and making bouquets.

Let us describe the popular varieties of large-flowered garden eustoma:

The Aurora variety of double lisianthus reaches 1.2 meters in height. Inflorescences of white, blue and pink shades. The peculiarity of the flower in question is the early formation of buds; it blooms two weeks earlier than the others.

Variety Echo with spreading thick stems up to 70 centimeters in height. It blooms early, forms large inflorescences, the petals have 11 different shades.

Heidi variety.

Variety Eustoma Flamenco.

Variety Heidi . A medium-height species with simple, numerous inflorescences, it comes in 15 different color combinations. The height of the bush does not exceed 90 centimeters.

Variety Eustoma Flamenco up to 1.2 meters in height. The culture has powerful, well-developed stems and simple but large inflorescences, their diameter reaches 8 centimeters. The main advantage of Flamenco is its low maintenance requirements.

Variety Variety Twinkie.

Variety Double White.

Variety Twinkie variety with simple inflorescences. Bushes up to 50 centimeters in height with pink, purple and yellow petals.

Variety Double White . A terry type with white inflorescences, a bush up to 70 centimeters in height, with powerful, erect shoots. It is low maintenance.

Pink

“Deep Rose” (Deep Rose) from the American series “Flare” (Flae, translated as flash). On sale it is referred to as “Laguna Deep Rose”, only in the photo it looks more saturated in color. Tall variety of the second flowering group. Terry pink flower.

“Pink” (Pink), series “Echo” (Echo). Tall variety (70-90 cm) of the first flowering group from the famous series. Standard double flower. One of the most popular pink eustomas for growing as cut flowers.

"Misty Pink Mariachi" Tall collection (up to 100 cm) “Mariachi” with an extra-double flower reminiscent of a camellia. Light pink eustoma is perfect for making bouquets. Second group of flowering.

"Deep Rose" from the ABC 1 episode. We sell the variety under the name “Maidge Deep Rose”. Tall variety for cutting, 80-100 cm high, with double flowers of light pink color.

"Rose" in the collection "Carmen" (Carmen). Low-growing indoor eustoma (15-25 cm) pink. Simple flower. High-quality root system. Resistant to fusarium.

“Pink” (Pink), series “Florida” (Florida). A low-growing variety (20-25 cm), which can be grown in open ground, a greenhouse and at home (a pot of at least 12 cm in diameter). A popular series with the most resistant varieties to summer heat in the garden. Light pink color.

“Pink” (Pink) from the series “Rosie” (Rosie). A low-growing plant (15-25 cm) with a strong root system, which is suitable for growing as a houseplant. Fully double flower of delicate pink color.

Other varieties

• Tall varieties are simple: “Rose Pink” (Rose pink, 2 and 3) series “Piccolo” (Piccolo).
• Tall terry: "ABC" (ABC, 2 and 3), "Alissa" (Alice, 1 "Rose" and 2 "Pink"), "Arena" (Arena, 1, 2, 3 and 4), "Cocktail Champagne" (Champagne cocktail) in the “Aube” series (Aube, 3), “Borealis” (Borealis, 0), “Corelli” (Corelli, 3), “Rose Pink” in the “Excalibur” series (Excalibur, 2 ), “Mariachi” (Mariachi, 2), “Clear Pink” (Klia pink) series “Robella” (Robella). Series "Rosita" (Rosita): "Rose Pink" (Rose pink, 1, 2 and 4), "Pink" (Pink, 2 and 3) and "Pink Flash" (Pink Flash, 3), "Super Magic" ( Super Magic, 2).
• Light pink lisianthus "Champagne" (Champagne) in the collection "Echo" (Echo), "Misty Pink" (Misty pink) from "Mariachi" (Mariachi, 2) and "Rosita" (Rosita, 2), "Rose" ( Rose) from "ABC" (ABC, 2), "Corelli" (Corelli, 2 and 3).

Planting eustoma for seedlings

The seeds of the crop in question are quite small; they are supplied to stores in the form of pills. You can collect your own seeds if you have these flowers on your site, but in this case the difference between the parent and subsequent forms will be more and more felt every year.

Collecting seeds for seedlings:

• In order for the seeds to ripen, it is necessary to remove some of the inflorescences and move the plant indoors at the end of autumn.
• When frost occurs, the plant pots should be taken to a warm place and trimmed, leaving two pairs of leaves.
• Provide a temperature of 8 - 10 degrees, reduce watering, stop fertilizing. The flower remains in this state until March.
• The plant is well pollinated by insects and produces seeds in special boxes. Collecting such seeds is not difficult.
• First and second generation hybrids tend to inherit the traits of the parent plants, so feel free to collect seeds from your lisianthus plants within two years.
• Third-generation hybrids will not inherit the characteristics of the original plants, but as an experiment, you can try to sow seeds collected from third-generation plants.

Irish rose seeds.
Note! Coated seeds do not require preliminary preparation, because their shell already contains a sufficient amount of microelements and other nutrients.

Growing in a flowerbed

In order for the beauty to feel good in the flower garden, planting is planned in the right place. The place for the flower should be well lit by sunlight and have fertile soil. Just take into account that direct rays of the sun hitting flowers and leaves is destructive. For favorable cultivation, it is recommended to choose a site close to the crowns of ornamental or fruit trees.

After May 15, seedlings can be planted in the flower garden. The seedling is ready for transplanting when 5–8 true leaves form on the stem. The flower has a bush-like shape, and a distance of 10-15 cm should be left between the plants. Before planting, the plants are watered so that they can be removed from the pot along with a lump of earth. Holes are prepared in the flowerbed, the size of which corresponds to an earthen coma. The hole is watered with water, allowed to soak into the soil, and the eustoma with a lump of earth is carefully placed. The planting depth should correspond to that at which the plant grew before transplanting.

After planting, the hole is filled with soil. The plant is covered with half of a light plastic bottle.

This will protect against nighttime temperature changes. Also, the shelter will not allow moisture to quickly evaporate. Such a covering will allow the seedlings to adapt to new conditions in three weeks. 10 days after transplantation, the cover is removed during the day and put back at night. After another 10 days, the cover is completely removed.

Watering and fertilizers

Seedlings should be watered sparingly, as overwatering will lead to rotting of the roots.

Feeding of young plants begins after the seedlings have rooted, approximately a month after transplantation. During the growing season, the plant extracts the entire complex of nutrients from the ground, so it must be fed with special fertilizers. They should contain phosphorus, potassium and small doses of nitrogen substances. The best option would be a complex fertilizer, for example, ammophos, which is completely soluble in water. You need to feed the flowers at least twice.

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Bloom

Eustoma begins to bloom in the second decade of July and ends flowering in October. At first, the stem begins to branch strongly from the middle, then up to 20-30 buds are formed on each branch. One flower will bloom for about two months if it is not cut and placed in a vase. And if the eustoma is cut off, it begins to grow back from the root and blooms a second time. When autumn is warm, you can observe the second abundant flowering of eustoma.

Collecting seeds

Flowers are easily pollinated, and after a while boxes with numerous small seeds are formed, characterized by high germination. Seeds can be collected if an F1 hybrid is grown. The second generation of the flower is basically similar to the parent bush, but some differences also appear.

Diseases and pests

To protect against diseases during the growing process, it is necessary to carry out preventive spraying with fungicidal preparations. When the summer is rainy, they spray it with foundationazole. This will prevent and treat fusarium wilt, gray rot, and powdery mildew.

Harmful insects for eustoma are aphids, slugs, and whiteflies. To destroy pests, use confidor, actellik, actara, fitoverm.

Reproduction by rhizome

To save time, you can buy already grown eustoma seedlings. But when buying, you need to know the features of the root system. The rhizome of this beautiful flower is fibrous, highly branched with thin and very fragile roots. These roots break off easily; when the soil becomes waterlogged, they begin to rot and are attacked by nematodes and rot.

The roots are not buried in the soil, but are located almost at the surface of the soil. And if, when weeding, you touch the root system and break off the fragile roots (and this is easy to do), then the plant begins to wither and simply dies from moisture deficiency.

Therefore, it is important to replant with a ball of earth in order to preserve all the branched roots. You need to buy eustoma seedlings in garden stores or nurseries. The root system should only be closed.

Rhizome division

In the flowerbed the bush is growing strongly. In the fall, it can be trimmed, planted in a wide container and wintered in a cool room (8–10°C). With the arrival of spring, sprouts will begin to form from the roots. After spring frosts, you can propagate the flower by dividing the rhizome into parts.

The roots of the eustoma are watered with a weak manganese solution and left for 2 hours. Next, the rhizome is divided into 2-3 parts by hand. These parts must have sprouts and full roots. Fractures must be treated with crushed activated carbon. They also moisten the separated parts with root.

Parts of the eustoma are planted in shallow, wide holes. A drainage layer of 10-15 cm must be laid on the bottom. The holes are filled with nutrient substrate to 1/3 on top and seedlings are installed, covering them with soil. Water the plants generously with a foundation solution so that all voids are filled. When the liquid is absorbed, add soil. After 10 days, watering with foundationazole is repeated.

After planting on the second day, the top crust of the soil is loosened and a layer of five-centimeter mulch is laid.

Young plants need to be shaded from the scorching rays of the sun. It is good to plant a tall eustoma near a moisture-loving hosta. It will additionally shade the surface of the earth, improving the microclimate.

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Soil for growing eustoma

We prepare the soil for sowing seedlings from equal parts of peat, garden soil and sifted sand. The end result should be soil with a neutral acid reaction. You can use Saintpaulia soil from store-bought mixtures.

Before moving to seedling containers, the soil is disinfected in a solution of potassium permanganate or placed in the oven for 30-40 minutes. There the earth is calcined at maximum temperature. The container for sowing can be special plastic boxes, disposable plastic cups or peat humus pots. Drainage from small pebbles is placed in the boxes and only after that the nutrient substrate is filled in.

Seed germination should occur in the light, so the grains are placed on slightly compacted and moistened soil, but not sprinkled with soil. To destroy the protective shell, the seeds are lightly sprayed with a spray bottle, then the containers are covered with a plastic bag or glass.

On a note! For better germination, seedlings are placed on a well-lit windowsill in a room with a temperature range of +20...+25 degrees.

Before emergence, the soil should be moistened with a spray bottle as needed. With the right approach, the first shoots will appear within two weeks from the date of sowing the seeds. Next, remove the cover and begin to care for the young plants.

Caring for eustoma seedlings and seedlings

Measures to care for hatched seedlings consist of maintaining optimal daytime temperatures at 20..25 degrees. The room temperature at night should not drop below +16 degrees.

Eustoma seedlings in cassettes.

Eustoma seedlings begin to be grown at the end of winter with short daylight hours, so the flowers should receive additional lighting with phytolamps. In general, crops should receive up to 16 hours of natural and artificial light per day. Water the seedlings using a pipette or a small syringe in a targeted manner. To avoid the occurrence of diseases, chemicals such as Previkur or Fitosporin are added to the irrigation liquid.

Note! At a certain stage of development, flower seedlings may be delayed in growth, but there is no need to worry. At this time, the root part of the crop is growing, while the above-ground part of the flower stands still.

After about 2 months from the moment of planting, the first pair of true leaves will appear on the plants, which means that the plants need to be transplanted into a larger container, for example, a disposable plastic cup. During picking, the seedlings are carefully removed from the soil using a toothpick or an awl. Make a hole in the new soil with your finger or pencil and transplant the seedling there.

After the diving process, approximately 10 days later, we add liquid fertilizers for flowers to the soil. We place the seedlings on a well-lit windowsill, which will prevent them from being stretched out due to lack of sunlight. When the seedlings grow a little, they are planted again into permanent pots with a diameter of 6-8 centimeters.

How to plant in open ground

Purchased or independently grown eustoma seedlings can be planted in open ground in a garden or flower garden. Since this is a fastidious plant, in order for it to take root, you need to take into account some factors.

First of all, it is important to decide on the landing site. This should be a draft-free area in partial shade. In this case, you need loose soil that can drain water well.

Before planting, the soil is dug up using a spade. At the same time, the soil is fertilized with complex mineral fertilizers (nitrophoska, azofoska or the like). If the soil is highly acidic, it will be necessary to add wood ash or dolomite flour.

After mixing the fertilizers with the soil, level the area and make shallow holes where the seedlings are placed. After planting, careful watering is carried out. It is important that water does not get on the foliage. In addition, the area is mulched with peat.

Care involves constantly maintaining the soil in a loose state with optimal moisture. Remember: if there is insufficient watering, the eustoma may drop its buds or dry out completely. It is important to promptly remove weeds from the garden bed. Tall varieties are tied up.

During the open ground season, the plant will need to be fertilized 2-3 times. You should not exceed the recommended amount; it is better to even reduce the concentration. In case of frequent rains, it is recommended to carry out the prevention of fungal diseases.

How to grow eustoma in peat tablets

Special peat-based tablets improve seed germination, and picking from such containers is much easier for plants. To grow Lisianthus seedlings, it is recommended to buy washers with a diameter of about 5 centimeters. They are placed several at a time in a food container and moistened with heated water.

When the tablets increase in volume, you need to drain the remaining liquid from the container and place one seed in the center of each of them. To speed up the destruction of the protective shell, the seeds are sprayed with water from a spray bottle. After this, the container is covered with film or glass and placed on a sunny windowsill. Seed germination occurs at a temperature of 20...25 degrees. After the formation of several true leaves, the flower seedlings are moved to a permanent pot.

Prevention of diseases of eustoma seedlings

Coconut substrate and plant fibers are prone to mold. Therefore, before using it, you need to treat it with potassium permanganate or a fungicide.

When germinating seeds, be sure to ventilate to avoid the appearance of mold:

• To prevent black leg and fusarium rot, Fundazol is used.
• Recently, many flower growers have fallen in love with epin and zircon. These drugs stimulate physiological processes in the plant body and increase stress resistance.

Picking seedlings

• When four normal leaves appear, the plant is ready for picking. Seedlings grown in a container or peat tablets need to be planted in separate pots; sometimes two or three plants are allowed in one container.
• This procedure will speed up the growth of the flower, make the plant stronger, and improve the development of the root system.
• Using a thin object, carefully lift the miniature plant and remove it from the peat soil.
• A small depression is made in the pot where the picking will be done. The sprout is transferred into this depression.
• The soil should be well moistened. Deepening is carried out along the lower leaves.
• Immediately after the procedure, put on a protective cap (plastic bag or plastic cup). The plants are kept in this state for several weeks.
• As a rule, plants tolerate picking well. In two weeks, your seedlings will already be twice as large.

Picking seedlings at the age of 2 months.

Growing potted eustoma: care at home

In order for the Irish rose to develop well, it is necessary to create favorable conditions in the apartment. Let's get acquainted with some of the nuances of growing this plant.

An adult flower can grow to a significant size and will need to be moved to a new larger container. Eustoma does not like transplants, so the procedure must be carried out with special care. The plants are transferred from pot to pot, filled with new nutrient substrate and watered with warm water.

Caring for lisianthus in apartment conditions involves timely pruning and feeding of plants, maintaining the necessary air and soil humidity. Let's take a closer look at these procedures.

Historical data

The history of lisianthus is very long, dating back to the 19th century. The native side of eustoma is the southern countries of North America. In 1806, English botanist Richard Anthony Salisbury was the first to study this flower, give it a name and classify it. However, Japanese breeders achieved great achievements in plant cultivation only in the 20th century, in the early 30s. After about 50-60 years, the “Irish rose” achieved worldwide popularity and, in terms of the scale of cultivation, it surpassed many flower crops. It is best known in America, Australia and New Zealand.

Watering and feeding eustoma

In summer, the flower needs regular watering, but with the arrival of winter, their amount is reduced. During this period, each subsequent watering is carried out when the top layer of soil dries to a depth of 2-3 centimeters. To carry out the procedures, soft rain or settled tap liquid is used. The crop needs high air humidity. To do this, you can place a container of water next to the plant or spray the liquid near the flower.

Note! If water gets on the leaves and stems of plants, it can cause sunburn of plants, so water should be poured only at the root.

Fertilizers are applied to lisianthus every two weeks. For this purpose, special store-bought compositions for flowers are used in the dosage prescribed by the instructions. In winter, nutrients are not added to the soil. During this period, the plant should be at rest.

Lighting and temperature conditions

During development, the flower must receive sufficient heat and light. An adult plant will delight its owner with lush, long-lasting flowering for a long time if the pot is placed on a well-lit windowsill. Lisianthus prefers bright but diffused light. In this regard, the plant must be placed on the windowsills of eastern or southwestern windows. In case of persistent drought in the summer, the crop needs to be shaded.

When growing eustoma, it is necessary to create a special temperature regime. In summer, this plant feels good at standard room temperatures within +18...+25 degrees. In autumn, temperatures begin to gradually decrease. With the arrival of winter, the flower goes into a dormant state. During this period, it is recommended to take the culture out to the balcony or to another room where you can set the temperature to +10...+15 degrees.

Eustoma flowering

If all care rules are followed, the first inflorescences on the plant appear 5 months after the formation of the first shoots. During flowering, the gardener must constantly pick off faded buds, which not only spoil the appearance of the flower, but also provoke the development of certain diseases.

Note! If the crop care is correct and timely, then repeated flowering can be observed within three months after the first wave of ovary formation.

Brown and burgundy

In addition to popular colors of inflorescences, such as white, pink or purple, there are varieties of eustoma with a rather amazing palette of colors. We have selected several unusual varieties for you.

"Deep Brown" in the episode "Rosanne 2". A tall variety with a standard double flower, but of rare color. The color is translated as "dark brown", but it is described as lavender brown.

"Brown" in the series "Rosanne1". This variety is from the same series, only with the first group of flowering. It is difficult to describe the color palette of the inflorescence in one word. You can say lemon color, turning into a light brown shade with lilac notes or close to burgundy color.