Thunbergia in the Asian and African tropics occupies a vast territory, covering tree trunks and rocky slopes with a continuous green carpet with many bright colors. The plant has the form of a vine or small shrub. It adapts well to cultivation in the garden or indoors. It’s not difficult to take care of the turgia. It grows rapidly and blooms beautifully. Thanks to this, it can be used for practical purposes, masking unsightly walls or decorating a balcony.
Botanical Description
Thunbergia is a grassy flowering plant of the Acanthus family. In the genus, annual and perennial species are found. In our country, it is often grown on open ground as an annual. In just a year, the length of the whip can be 2-8 m. Thunbergia has a strong rhizome and several branched ground shoots.
Heart-shaped or oval leaves of bright green color are dotted with small relief veins. They are opposite on short petioles. The sheet plate may have a smooth or serrated edge and short pubescence on the back side.
At home, the flowering of tunbergia often continues year-round. In central Russia, it occurs from July to September. Sinuous single flowers on flexible peduncles have a dark fluffy core and 5 wide petals. The cup diameter is about 4 cm. The color of the petals can be white, yellow, orange, pink, red.
After flowering, a rounded seed box is tied, which contains several oblong seeds with a rough brown skin. The diameter of the seed is 4 mm.
Types of Tunbergia
About one hundred plant species are registered in the genus tunbergia. However, only some of the most interesting of them are used in culture.
Tunbergia winged. Flexible shoots up to 2 m long easily cling to any support. Paired leaves are green or bluish. They have an ovoid or triangular shape with serrated edges. The length of the leaf plate is 2.5-10 cm. Flowers with a diameter of about 3 cm in our latitudes bloom in late June. They have a dark core, for which tunbergia is called the "black-eyed Susanna." Popular varieties:
- Blushing Sussie - petals are painted in pastel shades of peach and cream colors;
- Sussie Orange - bright orange petals are located around the dark center;
- African Sunset - a dark peephole is surrounded by bright terracotta petals;
- Sussie Weib - creeper with white flowers.
Thunbergia grandiflora. The plant tolerates shade well and forms long, curly shoots. During flowering, large flowers bloom on them with thin petals of blue or purple.
Thunbergia is fragrant. The winding variety of light tropical forests has triangular leaves. Snow-white flowers with a diameter of up to 5 cm exude an intense sweet aroma. At night, the buds close, and in the morning they open again.
Thunbergia erect. This form is a branchy bush up to 120 cm high. Thin shoots can lie down over time, and therefore require support. Egg-shaped leaves with smooth edges are painted in bright green color. The flower consists of saturated purple petals and has a small yellow spot at the base.
Tunbergia Mizorenskaya. This evergreen climbing plant can reach a height of 5 m. Large oval leaves are arranged in pairs in rare internodes. Along the entire length of the shoot, long red-brown inflorescences from small tubular flowers are formed. A flowering plant exudes a pleasant aroma and is often used to decorate arbors.
Growing and planting
Thunbergia prefers seed cultivation. They are pre-planted on seedlings at the end of winter. Before sowing, it is recommended to soak the seeds in a solution of growth stimulants. In a shallow box with sandy peat soil, the seeds are sown to a depth of 5-7 mm. It is better to moisten the soil from the spray gun, since water from the watering can can erode the holes.
Greenhouses are covered with a film and kept in a bright place at a temperature of + 22 ... + 24 ° C. Shoots appear after 3-7 days, after which the shelter is removed, and the temperature is lowered to + 18 ° C. With the appearance of 3-4 leaves, the seedlings are thinned out. The distance between them should be 15 cm.
In the open ground, turgeria is transplanted in mid-May, when the danger of night frosts passes. The place should have good lighting or very little shadow. Reliable draft protection is also required. The optimal distance between the vines is 40-45 cm.
The soil for the plant should be light, fertile and have a slightly acid reaction. The soil mixture can be composed of the following components:
- turf soil;
- sheet soil;
- sand;
- peat.
Before planting, a small amount of lime should be added to the ground.
When grown at home, tunbergia looks great in hanging flower pots. A wide and not very deep pot is needed. At the bottom there should be a drainage layer to drain excess water. Indoors, tunbergia is able to please the owner for several years. A transplant is carried out annually in early spring.
Plant Care Rules
Caring for thunderbird is quite simple. Even a beginner grower can cope with the plant.
Lighting. For normal development and abundant flowering, it is necessary to provide bright illumination of the tunbergia. However, from the scorching summer sun, it is better to provide a slight shading from 12 to 15 hours.
Temperature. The optimum air temperature in summer is + 21 ... + 25 ° C. In winter, it should be reduced to + 12 ... + 14 ° C. In the summer, it is recommended to bring indoor tumbria to the garden or balcony, picking up a calm place.
Humidity. Liana adapts well to the dry air in the house. To make the leaves look more beautiful, it is recommended to periodically spray the plant and bathe in the shower.
Watering. Thunbergia needs frequent and plentiful watering. The soil should be slightly moist all the time. However, if the water stagnates, root rot cannot be avoided.
Fertilizer. The plant responds well to fertilizing. Mineral compositions for flowering are applied to the soil twice a month from the formation of the first buds until mid-October.
Pruning. To make the crown look like a beautiful thick shovel, you should pinch young shoots. In spring, long stems are trimmed, as over the years they can be exposed. If thunderberg is grown in a pot, you can take care of the support in advance, on which the lashes can climb as they grow.
Possible difficulties
Thunbergia is disease resistant. Only with prolonged improper care does she lose her attractiveness. For example, rot stagnates due to stagnant water, and lack of sunlight negatively affects flowering and growth.
Liana is often attacked by spider mites and whiteflies, therefore it is advisable not to wait for parasites, but to carry out preventive treatments once a month.
