Daisies Care: [Soil, Humidity, Pruning and Problems]
What characteristics do daisies have?
The Margarita is a bushy plant with woody stems that measures between 30 cm to 1 meter in height approximately.
It produces flowers of sublime beauty that are among the most popular in the world. There are many colors, but the most desired is the one with white petals.
Due to the way it has spread throughout the planet, it is very difficult to determine its specific origin.
Although it is known that it comes from Europe. It is an indoor and outdoor plant and its flowers are sought after for arrangements, gifts, ornaments and gardening in a way that is not the case with other plants.
It is also sought after for its healing and culinary properties, since, in this case, its sweet-tasting leaves are used in salads, combined with dandelion and fennel.
Its flowers are used for infusions, as they are considered to be very digestive and fight parasites that lodge in the intestine, purify the liver and kidneys and are diuretic and laxative.
In Spain, the best known of the daisies is the Chysanthemum frutescens from the Canary Islands, with flowers of 3 to 5 cm in diameter that are special to give to those people to whom we want to show our deepest feelings of friendship, familiarity or love. love.
Each gift of daisies has a special meaning, and in that the white daisy takes the honors, as they serve to announce joy at the birth of a new family member, show affection on the birthday of a loved person and especially to express love. pure and sincere to our partner.
It is also common to remove the leaves to meet the requirements of loose and resistant love, «he loves me, he doesn’t love me…» In any case, a bouquet of daisies is the demonstration of good taste of the one who grants it and the loving acceptance of the one who receives it.
In the house, daisies are an enviable decoration, whether in the living room, the terrace, the balcony or the garden, because their immaculate beauty does not go unnoticed by anyone.
What soil needs do daisies have?
The Margarita requires loose soil, with sand, in the garden or in a pot, but in any case there must be good drainage. It is advisable to sow in spring or late summer by seed or reproduce by division in the fall.
We can do it in a small pot, and then transplant it to the garden or a terrace planter when it reaches 15 cm in height.
Sowing does not require many problems for seeds or cuttings; we simply have to dig a hole quite deep, taking care to space the plants 20 cm from each other.
To obtain flowers with a splendid color throughout the year, it is essential to fertilize the soil with a specific balanced fertilizer throughout the flowering process.
Sometimes the stem tends not to grow much and not stay straight, so it is necessary to provide it with a support rod, tied with fine wire or a cord, in order to guarantee its straightness.
How to make daisies grow strong and vigorous?
Daisies are spring plants, which, as has been said, is the ideal time to plant them. To make them strong and provide them with the beauty they require, we must protect them to the extreme by giving them the care they need.
One of them is the need for sunlight, which is why indoors we must place it in a place in the house where we make sure that it will be bathed in sunlight for several hours a day.
But attention! we must ensure that the sun does not hit it directly because it could burn its leaves and flowers, although it is also possible to keep it in semi-shade because it adapts very well to different environments, because, as they are perennial flowers, daisies can withstand extreme temperatures, even frost.
However, its ideal temperature is between 15ºC and 25ºC, that is, it is rather a temperate climate plant.
What humidity do daisies need?
The daisy does not require very humid or very dry environments. The very humid ones cause disorders and the very dry ones wither the leaves and flowers.
For example, it may happen that the flowers do not last very long due to the intense heat, in which case we must move the plant to a less sunny or cooler place.
To water, follow the instructions of the experts in this type of plants. Water frequently in hot weather, especially as the temperature rises. To do this we must wait for the soil to dry between irrigations.
But in general, the watering that is recommended is as follows: in the summer, regular watering, two or three times a week, and in winter every fifteen days, trying to avoid waterlogging, which in this case can rot the roots, condemning the plant. to an early death.
Is it necessary to prune daisies?
It is essential to prune the daisies to guarantee the elegance and development of the flowers, eliminating faded flowers and dead and yellow foliage, as well as the development of the stems.
When should we prune daisies?
As the daisies bloom in spring, with the rains their seeds germinate quickly and fill with flowers, so it is advisable to prune them in summer in order to stimulate new flowering.
It is also advisable to prune them before winter to eliminate dead flowers and promote the health of the plant in spring flowering.
In this sense, we must eliminate the dead parts as soon as we realize the problem; dead stems and leaves are usually dark in color, and we must cut them one by one with pruning shears or with our fingers.
We must remove the stems and the withered yellow leaves and prune the stems leaving them 10 cm long, so that when they continue to grow and the flowers sprout again, they all have the same height. After pruning, growth will occur in about 20 days.
How to avoid pests and diseases of daisies?
As daisies are resistant plants, we must be aware of the attack of pests, such as aphids or snails, a problem that we will solve with insecticides purchased in florists.
But, in addition, they can suffer a series of inconveniences during their development, such as wilted flowers, due to lack of water, in which case we must make sure to water them properly, without flooding the soil or the pot for the reasons described above of the rot of its roots.
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