Florists appreciate Tunberia for its beautifully flowering appearance. Grow more often climbing ampel species or plants that require support. They breed tuna and as an annual plant, sowing seeds every year.
Representatives.
Thoonberg winged (Latin Th. Alata Bojer ex Sims) is widespread in tropical countries. It is a climbing plant that reaches 2 m in length. The shape of the leaves varies from ovoid to trihedral-ovate, the length of the leaf is 2.5-7.5 cm, the base is cordate, the edges are serrated. Femoral flowers (3.5-4 cm) are attached with long pedicels. Corolla is made up of five rounded lobes, brownish-yellow or cream-colored, black at the edges. In the people this plant is called a black-eyed threefold hibiscus or a black-eyed Suzanne.
Varieties: The Alba variety has white flowers with a dark middle; Auraotiaca flowers are painted in orange, and the middle is black-and-red. Flowers of Bakeri variety are pure white; Doddsii - brown-orange. The Fryeri variety has light yellow flowers with a white middle. Lutea blooms with pure yellow flowers. When propagating by seeds, splitting occurs in the color of the flowers.
Care rules.
Lighting. Plants tunbergia (black-eyed Suzanne) are referred to photophilous plants. However, they can get burns from direct sunlight. The most comfortable for them are the western and eastern windows, as the tunberries are well tolerated in the morning and evening sun rays. In the summer on the southern windows you should create diffuse lighting. At the window of the northern direction the plant can feel a lack of light. If you want to transfer Tunberia to another place where there is a different level of illumination, then it should be done carefully, gradually adapting the plant.
Temperature regime. In the warm season, the optimum temperature is considered to be within 20-25 ° C. Beginning in the autumn, gradually reduce the degrees. For most species, the appropriate temperature for this period is not higher than 15-17 ° C. On hot summer days, the plant needs access to fresh air, so it is recommended to take it out to the balcony.
Watering. In the summer - plentiful, in the autumn - moderate. Watered as the upper part of the earth dries up, in no case letting stagnation of liquid in the pan. Use only soft water. Much moisture is needed for large specimens, exposed to a well-lit place in the sun.
Air humidity. Black-eyed Suzanne (Tunberia) relatively well tolerates dry air. But periodically it should be sprayed with its well-standing water at room temperature, it is especially important to do this in hot weather.
Top dressing. Top dressing is performed regularly (every 2-3 weeks) in the period from spring to autumn. Use full mineral fertilizers. Bloom. Throughout the summer until late autumn (sometimes in winter), the plant blooms with large orange, yellow or white flowers with a beautiful black throat and a corolla tube also black from the inside. In diameter, the flowers reach 4 cm.
Bloom. Grades of Tunberia are characterized by a wide range of colors and hues of corollas. In conditions of good illumination and proper care of the plant, the flowering period can include winter. Remember that wilted flowers should be removed from the plant before they tie the fruit and form seeds. To stimulate flowering, it is necessary to remove weak shoots at the very beginning of the growing season. Young shoots are recommended to pinch to increase branching and to achieve flowering shoots of the current year.
Transfer. In autumn or spring, if necessary, the plant of black-eyed Suzanne is transplanted into a new nutritious soil mixture consisting of equal parts of humus, turf and leaf land, sand and peat. You can use a mixture of humus and turf ground with the addition of a small amount of sand; the ratio of components is 2: 2: 1. The acidity (pH) of the substrate is about 6. At the moment of transplanting, the plant is recommended to be cut off, to remove weak and thin shoots. Good drainage is required at the bottom of the tank.
Reproduction. Suzanne reproduces black-eyed vegetatively (cuttings) and seeds.
Cuttings reproduce easily, they are rooted in the sand. Then cuttings with roots are planted in pots and placed in a well-lit place in the sun. When the plants grow up a little and get stronger, the tips of their shoots are pricked to achieve a dense branching and abundant flowering in the future. The more branched the plant will be, the more abundant will the flowering, since the flowers are formed only on the shoots of the current year. Then the young tunbergia is transplanted into a substrate consisting of a mixture of soddy and humus earth with the addition of sand (2: 2: 1).
Seed reproduction. Germination of seeds is about 2 years. Tuna seeds are sown in February-March at a temperature of not less than 18-20 ° C. The strong shoots are planted in pots, and at the end of May they are transplanted into the ground or transferred to large pots. After 3.5-4 months after sowing, the plant will blossom, if only a single shoot of shoots was made for their branching. Flowering continues until autumn.
Difficulties of care.
If buds and flowers fall, it means that the substrate is overdried. Especially often this situation takes place in summer in hot weather. Overdrying an earthy coma is extremely dangerous for large specimens.
Pests: whitefly and spider mite.